Design of a low-cost level-triggered Zigbee network multi-application sensor in smart homes

In this paper, we propose a low-cost Zigbee network based multi-application sensor, which is capable of door open/close and water leakage detection for smart homes. The proposed multi-application sensor consists of a MCU, a tamper switch for anti-theft, and a water-leak switch for detecting water leakage or a reed switch for opening/closing door. We design a unique firmware program executing on the MCU, which can be achieved multi-application by sharing the same program. Moreover, three level-triggered signals are encoded to different endpoints and zone type, respectively. Thus, the designed firmware can judge these three level-triggered signals to map their responding application. As a result, the proposed multi-application can reduce 41.67% code density in firmware program to achieve a low-cost purpose.