Ember™ Corporation (www.ember.com), provider of embedded wireless networking solutions, today announced the general availability of the EmberNet™ product suite, a family of hardware and software products and development tools designed for embedded wireless networking. Optimized for sensing and control applications requiring moderate bandwidth, EmberNet products have proven successful in harsh environments including water treatment plants, manufacturing lines and power stations. Ember’s intelligent mesh-based topology, designed for scalability into the tens of thousands of nodes, is unparalleled in the industry. With eight successful pilots completed, several with Global 500 companies, Ember has set the stage to capture the embedded wireless marketplace.
EmberNet products utilize a patented routing algorithm that establishes a mesh networking architecture, creating extremely resilient, self-organizing and self-healing networks, with no single point of failure. The EmberNet devices create networks that automatically route traffic around the typical interference found in harsh industrial and building settings, resulting in increased flexibility in installation, maintenance and operation. Ember aims to become the standard for embedded wireless networking by offering Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) of sensing and control products the ability to quickly and easily enhance the value of their product lines by adding robust wireless capabilities.
“With more than 7 billion microprocessors shipped annually, EmberNet products can inject wireless routing and intelligence capabilities into a broad variety of sensing and control devices,” said Jeffrey Grammer, president and CEO of Ember. “The successes achieved with our pilot programs prove that the EmberNet platform is capable of solving real-world wireless challenges while delivering considerable cost savings and business benefits to our customers.”
EmberNet products are well-suited for industrial, defense and building automation environments and applications. With each EmberNet device serving as a programmable, embedded wireless router, its use in such environments eliminates the need for costly wiring for communicating information back to a central point. Additionally, EmberNet solutions enhance the value of sensing and control products by adding decentralized communications and intelligence capabilities to the equipment.
In harsh settings, such as those found in process manufacturing environments, existing wireless technologies including 802.11 and Bluetooth have experienced limited success due to reliability problems and limited scalability. Ember Enabled‘ sensors have proven their ability to reliably transmit data throughout an environment full of radio frequency (RF) interference, often caused by factors such as motors, steel tanks and concrete walls. In addition, expanding the network is accomplished by simply adding additional nodes. Whether an application calls for wire replacement, distributed control or remote monitoring, Ember provides an easy-to-use, secure and reliable communications platform.
“EmberNet is the closest thing to plug and play that I’ve seen for an industrial environment,” said Ken McCoy, general manager, TraceTek and DigiTrace Products, Tyco Thermal Controls. “We are now able to offer our customers networks with an embedded wireless solution that can scale to thousands of nodes, saving them significant wiring costs and delivering additional accurate data for their plant operations. In evaluating Ember’s technology, it’s clear that their approach of embedded mesh networking solves the reliability problem that other wireless solutions have failed to deliver.”
Operating in the 915 Mhz ISM band, EmberNet hardware products use a direct sequence spread spectrum radio with twelve channels and hardware support for the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES). Each device utilizes the EmberNet Protocol Stack, which includes the EmberNet Host API (Application Programming Interface) for programmability and Ember’s patented routing algorithm. The EmberNet product suite consists of the following products:
EmberNet Node: The core element of an EmberNet that consists of a microcontroller and radio chipset running the EmberNet Protocol Stack. The EmberNet Node is used with an external processor on which developers can write application-specific sensing and control software, thereby delivering a highly customizable and programmable solution.
EmberNet Gateway: A Linux-based hardware device that includes the EmberNet Protocol Stack, the EmberNet Gateway enables communication between an EmberNet and TCP/IP networks. The EmberNet Gateway also runs EmberNet View, dynamic monitoring software that provides a window on the EmberNet network.
EmberNet Serial Node: The EmberNet Serial Node supports RS-232 or RS-485 serial interfaces and can be connected to instrumentation products, instantly creating an EmberNet. The EmberNet Serial Node comes pre-loaded with the Modbus RTU protocol, enabling interoperability with Modbus-based devices. It also provides end users the ability to easily retrofit serial devices with a wireless communications capability.
EmberNet Developer Kit: The EmberNet Developer Kit enables the design of application-specific programs to run over an EmberNet. Several versions are available and consist of EmberNet Nodes, EmberNet Gateways and comprehensive software and development tools. The software package includes a service-aware API and additional tools that simplify code development and significantly reduce development time for OEMs.
Pricing and Availability
The EmberNet product suite is immediately available. Detailed pricing and order information can be obtained by contacting Ember at sales@ember.com.
About Ember Corporation
Ember removes the barriers to embedded networking. Ember’s self-organizing, self-healing, wireless mesh technology is uncompromisingly robust, easy to use, and flexible. The EmberNet³ networking platform gives forward-thinking companies the means to create products that do more by communicating better.
Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, Ember Corporation is a privately held company with investments from Polaris Venture Partners, GrandBanks Capital, Dr. Robert Metcalfe, DFJ New England, Stata Venture Partners, RRE Ventures and DFJ ePlanet and is focused on enhancing sensing and control products through wireless connectivity. More information is available at www.ember.com.
