(NASDAQ:QCOM), ARM, and Samsung Electronics is being released under OpenThread to allow developers to help accelerate the development process for the Smart Home technology that allows connected devices on a network to talk and work with each other.
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Late Wednesday, Nest published the source code for its implementation of the Thread protocol, OpenThread, on Github under a three-clause BSD license, allowing anyone to reuse, modify or redistribute it in source or binary form.
Any products will still need to be certified by the Thread Group and manufacturers will need to sign up as members to download the software. “As more silicon providers adopt Thread, manufacturers will have the option of using a proven networking technology rather than creating their own”, Nest said in a statement announcing the availability of Open Thread.
“Thread makes it possible for devices to simply, securely, and reliably connect to each other and to the cloud”, says Greg Hu, Nest’s leader of platform and Works with Nest program. Previously, the Thread Group was not open to everyone, but with its development to include more than 30 products, it now aims to become the new standard in your home-managing networking protocol.
What this means in real terms is that it’s going to get a lot easier to create apps that work with Nest and its utterly secure thermostat.
The networking protocol can also be used in development kits from both NXP Semiconductors and Silicon Labs. Opening up their Thread protocol is actually Nest’s very first move in the open-source world.
Nest points out that existing application protocols and IoT platforms like Nest Weave and ZigBee can run over Thread networks to deliver interoperable, end-to-end connectivity. Its IoTivity open source code using an Apache 2.0 license is expected to emerge in products shipping this year.
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Attendees of Google I/O, which runs May 18-20 in Mountain View, California, can view a demo of OpenThread in the Nest Sandbox. They plan to show off OpenThread at the upcoming Google I/O developer conference, but it is already available on GitHub for any interested users to pick through. Nest also said that support for OpenThread would be available on its discussion forum and Stack Overflow.
