Q&A About Z-Wave

["Robert L Bass" <no-sales-spam@bassburglaralarms>]

The following is quoted with permission from www.zwaveworld.com:

===========

Ask the Expert / Updated April 2, 2007 09:00 PDST

Q. Do you know of any Z-Wave ceiling fan interfaces yet? I'm new and just starting to implement Z-Wave in my home.

A. There are Z-Wave switches that will turn a fan on and off. At this time, however, there are no Z-Wave fan speed controllers or
switches that would allow you to control the actual speed of the fan. There are several companies working on these fan speed
controllers so we expect to see them on the market before too long.

Q. I am searching for an easy solution for integrating a security system via Z-Wave. I don't know if these exist yet, but I need
window and door magnetic switches for a security system, which will then integrate into a Z-Wave control system. Are these out
there, or still on the wish list?

A. There are no direct to Z-Wave door and window magnetic switches available at this time. There are some scheduled for
certification so I would expect to see them on the market soon. There are home monitoring systems from Xanboo and iControl that use
400MHz window and door switches bridged to Z-Wave controllers to provide the same function.

Q. I have two four-plex apartment buildings that are about 100 yards away from each other. I would like to know if there is a way to
control the heat in the winter in each of these apartments wirelessly using Z-Wave. I would like to be able to control them from my
laptop from inside one of the units. I would like to be able to see what the temperature in each unit is also from on my laptop.
There is no internet available at these sites. What options would I have for this project?

A. The best solution is to create a separate Z-Wave network for each unit and come in to each unit via an internet or RS485 bridge.
As there is no internet available and I'm assuming you don't want to run cables, you could use a single Z-Wave network, one home ID,
and control each unit as if they were rooms in a single house. While Z-Wave is a low-power RF Mesh networking technology and 100
yards is beyond the design range for the technology you may find that you can get Z-Wave to communicate over this distance in clear
space, i.e.. no physical obstructions. You could test this by purchasing a few plug-in appliance modules and put one in each
building and see if you get communication. I would place the plug-modules as close to each other in each building and starting with
both modules on the upper floors of each building. This may work, I've seen Z-wave modules work over this distance, however, your
best bet is to use a bridge product and keep each building as a separate Z-Wave network.

Q. What is the modulation in Z-wave?

A. The modulation of Z-Wave is FSK in the 900MHz ISM band

Q. I'm looking to replace a couple of existing regular switches in my theater room with Z-Wave switches. I have a Harmony 1000
remote. Will my Harmony remote control up to four different Z-Wave switches? Is it easy to program? Where can I get switches? Are
they reliable?

A. First, the Harmony 1000 remote will directly control your Z-Wave switches. It's also easy to program. Log on to Harmony's web
site and set up your control menus and scenes, and download that to the Harmony 1000. Then use the Harmony 1000 to create a link
between each of the logical devices (the ones you created menu items for on the web site) with the actual physical switches in the
room. This is a push the button process. You're done, sit back and enjoy!

Switches are currently available from Intermatic, Wayne Dalton, ACT, Monster, and Leviton. They will be available from Cooper Wiring
Devices and Jasco-GE in the next few months.

Z-Wave is very reliable. Every command sent to a receiver is acknowledged by the receiver. If the transmitter doesn't receive the
acknowledgement from the receiver it resends the command. If there is still no acknowledgment the command is routed to the intended
receiver using other Z-Wave devices to relay the command. As long as you have a Z-Wave device every 30 meters or so you will have no
problems with communication reliability. The products themselves are also very reliable, we are working with the best in class
manufacturers in each product category. Leviton, Cooper, Intermatic are all companies that have been in the residential lighting
business ever since electric lighting was invented. Harmony and UEI are the leaders in universal remotes. All these products are
very reliable and well supported.

===========

--

Regards,
Robert L Bass

=============================>
Bass Home Electronics
941-925-8650
4883 Fallcrest Circle
Sarasota · Florida · 34233
http://www.bassburglaralarms.com
=============================>


begin 666 Robert L Bass.vcf
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M8W)E<W0@xxxxxxxxxxxx<F%S;W1A.T9,.S,T,C,S#0I,04)%3#M(3TU%.T5.
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:-S U,#54,C P,S$U6@T*14Y$.E9#05)$#0H`
`
end