Having better understanding of features provided by NXP JN5168, I understood that I need to create next generation of coordinator/gateway device at least for development purposes.

The main issue I wanted to solve was messy setup with connections to coordinator board – coordinator board had uart in/out and I used usb->uart dongles to connect board to pc. As I absolutely love dual uart functionality (one for communication with application, one for debug/info output), it was even more messy with two dongles and two connections to board.

So the new board of course has my current favorite Zigbee chip from NXP – JN5168, and I went with FD2232D which provides dual uart functionality with single usb connection. Added few pushbuttons for reset/programming mode and command button (not used yet, but who knows), and also I2C header in case I’ll decide to add some extra features later.

Regarding firmware of JN5168 – I’m still sticking with XBEE compatible API for communication with application, as it’s simple enough and at the same time provides all the necessary information, as well as provides certain level of compatibility with XBEE devices.

After long fight with my laziness and as some my friends were asking for some link where to read about stuff I have, I decided to start something like a blog…

Basically I will focuss on home automation stuff, as few years ago I discovered ZigBee which seemed to be a perfect suit for an idea I had sleeping in my mind – all devices in house should be manageable by central system. Of course, idea was not new, a lot of existing smart house solutions, where special cable network must to be installed and in most cases price is not even close to friendly. But having ZigBee intgrated with some microcontrollers, all these things can be realised without rebuilding power installations, and possibilities get limited only by imagination, free time and hands.