Common template to ease
interworking among devices and applications
Two world
leading organisations, HGI
and Broadband Forum (BBF), will
discuss, during a Smart Home Task Force meeting of HGI, recommendations for a
universal template which will facilitate interworking between home devices and
smart home applications.
The
universal template is a component of a logical abstraction layer that is used
to provide smart home services to broadband consumers. The aim of the
abstraction layer is to allow smart home applications authored by different
companies to easily connect to devices using one of several smart home
interface technologies. The applications don’t need to know which interface
technology is used, but only the device capabilities that are described in the
template.
The
adoption of a standardized description format for devices reflects important
business goals of both service providers and smart home vendors. Currently it
is difficult for applications to easily support devices on more than a single
smart home interface. By defining abstraction logic, HGI and BBF aim to make
problem solving in this space easier, create opportunities for service and
technology partnerships, and increase the interoperability between systems
built by their member companies and other adopters.
HGI and BBF
teamed up last December to combine both parties’ expertise and resolve key
problems in the M2M industry. In addition to the abstraction layer and
universal template, the groups are clarifying the performance and co-existence
requirements for wireless home area networks (WHAN). This project sets out
detailed requirements that support smart home services and will assist service
providers to evaluate and select available WHAN solutions. Already, major WHAN
technology organisations have been closely consulted.
As both the
templates project and the WHAN project continue, HGI and BBF will reach out to
the industry stakeholders to ensure that practical results are attained.
“Both of
these projects are very important in machine-to-machine systems for consumer
applications and discussing the concrete details for a universal template for
interworking between devices and applications is a significant step forward for
the Smart Home Task Force,” said Duncan Bees, Chief Business and Technology
Officer of HGI. “We look forward to hearing the feedback of both HGI and BBF
members and updating them on our other work within the Smart Home ecosystem.”
The
Broadband Forum and HGI have had a longstanding liaison agreement through which
the two organisations have worked together on projects including energy
efficiency of telecommunications networks, quality of service, and management
requirements for Home Gateways.
Robin
Mersh, CEO of the Broadband Forum, added: “HGI’s work complements the Broadband
Forum’s work in the management and control of devices in home networks so it
made good sense to work together on this project. Having a universal template
will be a big step in realising the Smart Home of the future.”
This Smart
Home Task Force meeting follows right after the BBF meeting in the same location
the previous week. HGI and BBF made this arrangement for the practical benefit
of their members and observers at the two meetings.
HGI’s quarterly meeting will take place at The Westin Dragonara
Resort, in Malta, between Monday, March 17 and Friday, March 21. To register to
attend as an observer, or for more information about HGI, visit http://www.homegatewayinitiative.org/index.asp.
For more
information about the Broadband Forum visit www.broadband-forum.org.
Ends
About the HGI http://www.homegatewayinitiative.org/
The HGI, founded in 2004 by nine telecom operators, is shaping the next
generation of internet and voice services. Starting from use-cases and service
needs, the HGI sets requirements for Home Gateways, infrastructure devices, and
the home network. The HGI now has over 60 members from across the globe,
representing the entire spectrum of players in the broadband home area.
About the Broadband Forum
Broadband Forum, a non-profit industry organization, is focused on
engineering smarter and faster broadband networks. Its work defines best
practices for global network design, enables service and content delivery,
establishes technology migration strategies, engineers critical device and
service management tools, and is key to redefining
broadband. Its free technical reports and white papers can be found at www.broadband-forum.org.
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