faq

The theoretical limit for a ZigBee network is 65,536 nodes and the theoretical limit for a Thread network is 255 nodes. Silicon Labs has successfully deployed ZigBee networks containing thousands of nodes. Click here to see a case study.

Latencies on the order of 10ms per hop (including security) are typical.

The EM35x supports 128-bit AES encryption. NIST-based CCM, CCM, CBC-MAC, and CTR modes are implemented in hardware.

Modules included with the Silicon Labs development kit come loaded with Silicon Labs' nodetest software. CEL production modules come loaded with CEL's Hardware Evaluation Software.

This software can be downloaded from the "Dev Tools & Software" product page on the CEL website.

CEL recommends customers use the 10-pin Insight port and an Ember Debug Adapter (ISA3) to load or debug software. Please see the ZICM35xSPx Hardware Design Guidelines for the recommended connector and the debug port pin connections.

CEL also sells a programming fixture that can be used for programming in conjunction with the Ember Debug Adapter (ISA3). Please see the ZICM35xSPx Programming Fixture application note located here for more details. Please contact us here for pricing and availability.

Silicon Labs offers two software tools for programming:Ember^® EM35x Utilities Guide for the EM35x SoC Platform

Ember^® Debug Adapter (ISA3) Technical SpecificationWith both options you can use the ISA3 debug port in conjunction with the Ember Debug Adapter and reprogram the modules using Ember Desktop (Ethernet) or the ISA Utilities (USB) provided by Silicon Labs.

Yes, the module serial number is stored in the manufacturing token TOKEN_MFG_CUSTOM_EUI_64. See the Silicon Labs application note Ember® EM35x Utilities Guide for the EM35x SoC Platform for details on reading tokens.

Please see the following document from Silicon Labs for examples on how to read tokens: Ember^® EM35x Utilities Guide for the EM35x SoC Platform.

Silicon Labs' API documents are very comprehensive, and their support is very good. For more information, click here. For video tutorials, lectures, and forum, please visit the Silicon Labs community.

Silicon Labs does not offer a trial version of their software environment. We recommend starting with the development kit. Click here for more information.

Silicon Labs offers an extensive set of videos which provide an introduction to the Ember Desktop tools and App Builder. Click here for a good place to start.

The EM35x Mini Modules fully support both the EmberZNet PRO stack and the EZSP interface. All EM35x GPIOs are available at the module castellation pins, so all of the IC functionality is available when developing with the Mini Modules.

We recommend purchasing the Silicon Labs development kit to start evaluation of the CEL Mini Modules. The part number is EM35X-DEV or EM35X-DEV-IAR, depending on whether you already have an IAR license. Click here for more details.

Yes, please see the ZICM35xSPx Software Design Guidelines application note.

Silicon Labs supplies SPI drivers as part of the EmberZNet PRO stack. Within the Silicon Labs support portal there are application notes that will walk the customer through this process.

We recommend using the ZICM357SP2-2 module for new designs. This is one of the world's smallest ZigBee modules, and has excellent RF performance and low cost.

We recommend using the ZICM3588SP2-2 module for new designs.

In order to improve sleep current performance, PC5 and PC6 are used internally in the module and are not connected to the ZICM35xSP2-2 castellations. We recommend all new designs label these pins as "Not Used" in the schematic and not to connect them to any external circuits. If you are using the ZICM35xSP0 modules, these pins are still available for general purpose digital I/O.

Please refer to the Hardware Design Guidelines application note located here.

Flow control is used by a data receiver to prevent buffer overflow by signaling an external device when it is and is not allowed to transmit. RTS/CTS hardware flow control uses two signals, nRTS and nCTS, in addition to receive and transmit data lines. Hardware flow control is available in NCP mode. Please see the Silicon Labs EM35x documentation for more details.

The EM250 uses a different core processor than the EM35x. If your design was developed using Ember Desktop's Application Builder, it may be possible to update your project file to support the EM35x.

Yes, you need to purchase the Silicon Labs development kit if you will be developing a product using the Silicon Labs EmberZNet PRO or Thread stacks. Click here for the Silicon Labs product page.

Silicon Labs offers an Ember ZigBee EM35x NCP Add-On Kit for evaluation of the EM35x as a network co-processor. We recommend purchasing this add-on kit. It is our experience that it is easier and faster to get the product up and running with the add-on kit and then porting this code to the target microprocessor. For more details click here.

Check your VCC and GND connections on the ZICM35xSPx module. The ISA3 will supply power correctly via the programming connector using internal power if switched on; there might be a problem with the custom board. Please refer to our Hardware Design Guidelines application note for a reference design and proper power connections.

Please see the Mini Module Castellation Pin Layout Guidelines application note located here.

The CEL Mini Module has best-in-class range due to the combination of its industry-leading output power plus its innovative antenna design. Actual range really depends on your RF environment. We recommend conducting a range test in the target environment with one of our modules.

In the ZICM35xSP2, the “Power Setting” value represents the signal level of the EM35x transmitter (since this is software controlled). The ZICM35xSP2 module contains an amplifier that increases the EM35x output by about 22dB. Therefore for the ZICM35xSP2, a Power Setting of -2 will yield around 20dBm at the output of the module (-2dBm + 22dB = 20dBm). Please see the Software Design Guidelines application note for more details.

Please see the Software Design Guidelines application note for more details.

Please see the Software Design Guidelines application note for details on the correct software configuration when using an external antenna.

FCC testing typically requires the ability to generate continuously modulated and unmodulated signals. To implement these power settings, you can use the CEL Hardware Evaluation software that comes pre-loaded on the modules, or it can be downloaded from our website. You will also want to refer to the CEL MeshConnect ZICM35x Test Tool User Guide.

CEL's ZigBee/Thread Mini Modules use the Silicon Labs EM35x chipset. Click here for more information about the EM35x chipset.