NOTE: We decided to combine the On/Off and Dimmer switch into a single SKU to make things easier from a logistics and cost management side of things. Plus, it will end the debate of having two different size LED bars 
New project can be found here: Zigbee 2-1 Switch (On/Off & Dimmer) | Project New Horizon (Blue Series)
TLDR: Here’s the PRD (Project Request Document) that we used to kick this off – this will give you the highlights and has pretty pictures.
Project New Horizon (Dimmer) - PRD (Compressed).pdf (4.1 MB)
NOTE: This is a PDF version, the PPT version is live and edited so the PRD may change and thus so will the project. However, I may not update the PDF as it shouldn’t change too much. In other words, this is a disclaimer stating that what you see in the initial PDF may not be what’s final.
Project Team
Feel free to tag any of us with questions. Courtney & Darwyn are the go-to’s for overall project management and timeline questions, Eric M is the go-to for any firmware related questions and I’m (Eric H) the go-to for anything else. Either way, we’re all here to help!
- Project Manager (Inovelli): @Courtney_Inovelli
- Project Manager (Manufacturer): @Darwyn_Inovelli
- Innovation Lead: @Eric_Inovelli
- Technical Lead: @EricM_Inovelli
Introduction
As per our tradition of working with you amazing people, here’s what this thread allows us to do as a community.
- Allows us to keep everyone updated on the project status (either good or bad)
- Allows you to participate and help us develop amazing products together
- Enjoy each other’s company and have fun talking home automation
How this initial post will be laid out is in five sections:
- Project Overview
- Initial Hardware & Software Requirements (edited to remain up-to-date)
- Timeline (edited to remain up-to-date)
- Pinned Ideas & Shout-outs (edited to remain up-to-date)
- Weekly Recap
Housekeeping
- DATES & FUNCTIONS ARE NOT SET IN STONE: Just a reminder that all dates and functions are sometimes fluid. We have to make choices based on feasibility, opportunity costs, and overall timeline. I will be as transparent as possible on these decisions, but just a heads up, they may not always be exciting.
- NO IDEA IS A BAD IDEA: Ok, some are, but honestly throw out anything that you can think of. If we use your idea, we’ll credit you and send you a free device, so take that shot!
- VERSION 1 VS VERSION 2: Some ideas may be fantastic, but may not make the cut for the first version of the product. Once the product is locked in from a function standpoint, we’ll keep a tally of V2 ideas and then once the product is produced, we’ll move the ideas over to a suggestions/wishlist section.
Ok, let’s get this party started!
Project Overview
The purpose of this project is to reach a new market. Traditionally, we’ve stayed in the Z-Wave space (and we will continue to do so) as that’s where we’re comfortable and where we’ve excelled. However, with the announcement of CHIP we made the decision to start developing in that space as well.
The ZigBee Alliance is spearheading the CHIP initiative and when the time comes to launch the CHIP project, certain products will have the ability to OTA the new protocol. In other words, some of the ZigBee switches you purchase now (ours included) will be using the same chip that the CHIP (too many chip references) protocol will use and you’ll be able to instantly OTA your firmware.
In addition, there has been a huge market for switches that work with smart bulbs and while our current Z-Wave switches have this ability already, they’re better suited for Z-Wave bulbs, which are a niche market (at this point in time, I think we’re the only ones who have plans to sell them). Whereas Philips Hue, the most popular and leader in lighting, runs off ZigBee.
We’re excited to start this journey and offer another option for people who aren’t quite ready for a full on hub and maybe are just starting to get their feet wet in home automation.
Project Name - New Horizon
“New Horizon” refers to us creating something that is new to us. As mentioned above, we’ve staked our existence in Z-Wave, but we’re ready to take on the adventure of a new (to us) protocol in ZigBee and a new (to the industry) protocol in CHIP.
New Horizon - Hardware Requirements
We will be using our current dimmer switch hardware with a few modifications. If you’re really interested in seeing what’s under the tent and how we kick off these projects, here’s the internal PRD (Project Request Document) that we presented.
Hardware
Hardware - Dimmer Switch (Look / Feel)
- Responsive Paddle: rests in a neutral state (tap up = on // tap down = off & hold up = dim up // hold down = dim down)
- Config / Favorite Button: button should be used for configuration of the switch as well as scene control.
- Should be able to be held (for config)
- Should be able to be tapped (for scene control)
- RGB LED Bar: should measure the % of how much the switch is dimmed
- LED’s should be RGB (artificial white included)
- LED’s should also be able to be dimmed
- Colors: dimmer switch will be offered in white (matching Lutron Claro wallplates), but the paddle should be able to be replaced to change colors (almond, brown, red, black, grey, etc)
- Slim Design: depth of switch should be as slim as possible so that it can fit into metal boxes.
- Air Gap: UL requirement
- No heat-sink tabs: remove heat sink tabs for easier installation (note: may have to sacrifice max wattage)
Hardware - Features & Capabilities
- ZigBee 3.0: use the latest ZigBee chipset (should be the same one that will be used for CHIP and compatible with Philips Hue + Amazon Echo Plus)
- 3-Way / 4-Way Ready: should work in multiple different settings in a 3 & 4 Way setting
- Should work with an auxiliary switch (like GE’s does)
- Should work with an existing dumb switch
- Should work with another smart switch (if wired to another smart switch, it should be able to detect this)
- Power Monitoring: switch should measure the power consumption
- ZigBee Distance Estimator: should be able to estimate the signal strength of the ZigBee signal and notify via the LED bar
- Instant On: when tapped 1x (and scenes aren’t used), switch should turn the bulb on instantly (no delay)
- Configurable delay in 100ms increments (see tech doc)
- CFL & LED Compatibility: minimum buzz and flickering
- 600W: increase the wattage to 600 like GE’s
- Neutral & Non-Neutral Compatibility: switch should be able to work with a neutral wire or without a neutral wire
- Should auto-detect which setting it’s in (neutral/non-neutral, aux/dumb) and if it can’t, then there should be a manual override.
- Auto-Detect Line/Load (and if possible other terminals)
- No matter how customer wires it, the switch should be able to detect what’s wired/where.
New Horizon - Software Requirements
Below is what we came up with for the software requirements. A lot has been inspired from our Red Series Dimmer switch!
- ZigBee Scene Control: 15 scenes (if possible – not sure if ZigBee supports this yet)
- 14 Scenes via Tapping the Paddle up or down and holding/releasing
- 1 Scenes via Tapping the Config Button
- Notifications via RGB Bars: RGBW Bars should be able to change colors based on events set up by customer (ie: if window sensor is opened, RGBW bar changes to red)
- User can choose to sync the bars or have them show separate notifications
- RGB Bars Config: bar should be able to change colors and also dimmed to the customers favorite level
- Auto Timer: switch should have a timer that shuts the switch off after a certain amount of time
- Easy Config: switch should be able to be configured via the config/favorites button.
- There should be infinite customization via parameters in the firmware, but also set customizations for HUB’s that do not allow parameter changes (ie: Wink)
- Internal Relay Disable: internal relay should be able to be disabled locally and via ZigBee
- Set Min/Max Level: minimum dim level / maximum dim level
- Ramp Rate Configuration: ability to change how fast/slow light turns on
- Ramp rate & instant on/off separated
- Default Dim Level: ability to set the default dim level
- OTA Ready: ability to update firmware via OTA
- Associations switch should be able to be associated to other ZigBee devices
- Smart Bulb Mode: mimic our Red Series smart bulb implementation but for ZigBee
Timeline
Ah, everyone’s favorite part. When is this flippin thing going to be released? Great question – here’s the high-level of what happens leading up to the first release of the timeline:
- We present a PRD (Project Request Document) that has all of the above info in it (see above section for the pdf)
- R&D (manufacturer) analyzes the PRD and we go back and forth until we can align on 90% of the product
- Initial Timeline is released and remaining 10% of product features are added/cut along the way
Again, just want to throw this out there – I don’t have a crystal ball so I can’t predict things that come up along the way. Trust me when I say we’re trying our best to get things launched on time.
In addition, we are using a separate manufacturer for this project so there may be a learning curve. Nothing wrong with our current manufacturer, just this new one is more specialized in ZigBee.
Pre-Initial Timeline Milestones:
- Present PRD: Completed (Feb. 02, 2021)
- R&D Analyzation: Completed (Mar. 01, 2021)
- Initial Timeline Released: Completed (Mar. 15, 2021)
Timeline (Estimated)
The initial timeline will be shown below and will be updated bi-weekly (if needed).
The overall project plan is divided into three stages:
Phase 1
Expected to be completed in mid-April, 2021.
- Competing product analysis, including structure, appearance, design plan, functional operation, and interaction.
- Est. Completion: April 15, 2021
- Status: In Progress
- Notes:
- Analysis of the neutral and non-neutral part of knowledge.
- Est. Completion: March 29, 2021
- Status: In Progress
- Notes:
- Analysis and verification of the dimmer one’s circuit.
- Est. Completion: March 29, 2021
- Status: In Progress
- Notes:
- Analysis and verification of electric energy metering method
- Est. Completion: March 29, 2021
- Status: In Progress
- Notes:
Phase 2
Expected to be completed early July, with the majority to be completed by late May, 2021.
- Structural design and tooling
- Est. Completion: July 5, 2021
- Status: Not Started
- Notes:
- Hardware design and PCBA production of the neutral and neutral dimmer switch
- Est. Completion: April 30, 2021
- Status: Not Started
- Notes:
- Hardware design and PCBA production of non-neutral switch and non-neutral dimmer switch
- Est. Completion: May 20, 2021
- Status: Not Started
- Notes:
- Software/firmware development
- Est. Completion: May 20, 2021
- Status: Not Started
- Notes:
- Prototype testing and production
- Est. Completion: May 25, 2021
- Status: Not Started
- Notes:
Phase 3
Expected to be completed by mid-late August, 2021.
- Neutral adaptive switch and dimmer switch solution analysis and verification
- Est. Completion: June 5, 2021
- Status: Not Started
- Notes:
- Neutral adaptive hardware design and PCBA production
- Est. Completion: July 5, 2021
- Status: Not Started
- Notes:
- Prototype testing and production (beta testing)
- Est. Completion: July 31, 2021
- Status: Not Started
- Notes:
- Product certification FCC/UL/Zigbee
- Est. Completion: August 14, 2021
- Status: Not Started
- Notes:
Final Estimated Release Date: September 30, 2021
Pinned Ideas & Shout-Outs
Here are the ideas from the community. We sincerely appreciate them, we love them, and we couldn’t create the products we do without them. So, thank you for your input and let’s continue to innovate together and change the home automation category for the better (NOTE: if an idea is crossed out, it’s not because it wasn’t valid, nor was it something we didn’t consider – we’ve discussed it internally or with the manufacturer and unfortunately it was not feasible).
Hardware
Software
Weekly Recap
Every Wednesday evening or Thursday morning, we have a meeting with our manufacturer to go over the various projects (status, issues, timeline, etc) and below I’ll provide a recap as well as edit the sections above so we can all keep track. If you have any specific questions you’d like me to ask, feel free to tag me and let me know so I can ask them as well. The weekly cadence for updates will be Thursday mornings (or afternoons depending on when we have the meeting).
March 03, 2021: First actual meeting with the new manufacturer to introduce ourselves and ask questions around the PRD that was given to them on the 1st of February (Chinese New Year halted a lot of the talks, that’s why a month has gone by without any movement). They are very excited to work with us and are optimistic about these switches as ZigBee is their specialty.
April 08, 2021: Still on track for a September release date. Today we talked about energy monitoring in a non-neutral setting. We ultimately decided against it as there is a 20-30% error rate if no neutral wire is used. Outside of this, we talked about a better dimming smoothness (ie: no choppiness) and the compatibility of our new aux switch. Overall, a great meeting!
May 10, 2021: Still on track for a September release date. More to come this Thursday (May 13th)!
