Imagine if many of these devices, particularly sensors, could communicate just as effectively via radio frequency (RF) and require minimal power, such that a simple, low-cost battery could power them. Not only would most of the wiring costs be eliminated, but also building owners would have the flexibility going forward to easily and inexpensively retrofit and enhance their BAS to keep pace with the changing building environment. The basic “drivers” for wireless use are essentially the same for buildings as they are for cell phones, PDAs, and PCs: more design flexibility, freedom of movement, lower total installed cost, and lower total cost of operation.
Now, however, all of that is changing. RF is poised to become a low-cost, low-power, highly effective and, most importantly, open and interoperable solution, thanks to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.’s (IEEE) new RF open standard, 802.15.4. This standard follows on the heels of other IEEE RF standards such as 802.11, commonly known as WiFi and 802.15.1, or Bluetooth. Both 802.15.4 and 80.2.11 use direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) technology, which, unlike the conventional narrow band of FM radio, spreads the data out over a very wide band so that competing noise will not ultimately cause any significant interference.