Chapter 7. The ZigBee Networking Layer

So far this book has concentrated on how applications interact with ZigBee. After all, as OEMs, applications are what you are typically building. This chapter describes what goes on under the hood, especially at the network layer.

Do you need to know what goes on in a ZigBee mesh network underneath those application-level commands? Technically, no, you don't have to, just as you can drive a car and work the stereo without knowing how the fuel injection or the radiator works. But a good understanding of how ZigBee accomplishes networking is really, really helpful when things go wrong. Is the application sending too many broadcasts? Will a route be established when this packet is sent? Why, and through what nodes? As engineers, you want to know. Besides, mesh networking is really, really interesting.