Feature: Embedded
If you developing different kinds of
Matter supports both Wi-Fi and Thread. In simple terms, these protocols provide the connection between devices, with Matter being the common language between them. Thread, in particular, has emerged as a crucial technology for connecting low-power, low- bandwidth ‘things’ to the Internet
in the documentation tab, and the compatible tools provide useful utilities for working with devices and code. Meanwhile, in the example projects and demos tab, there are many examples to get you started creating your application.
3. Creating a Matter over Thread bootloader application Before building the application, there is a need to create a bootloader. In the example projects in demos, a boot loader SoC internal storage single image on a one-megabyte device example can be found, which can be named and finished to create the example for your application. When the project creation is finished,
you will be taken to the Simplicity IDE perspective, where the main development work is carried out. A ‘readme’ file for the project automatically opens, as will the project configuration file. Clicking the Build button begins the process of building the application, and a console will display progress. If there are any problems on completion, details will be displayed in the Problems tab. Once the build is finished, you can
flash the binary into the connected device. Binaries are contained in various formats. For this task, a ‘.S37’ binary was selected. By clicking and selecting, you can choose a Flash device to open up the Flash programmer. As this is a new project with a new bootloader, when the bootloader is programmed in, you can erase the whole chip with the erase button. Once done, double-check that the binary file and board are the
14 May 2024
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ones you need, and click the program to transfer the bootloader binary into the Pro-Kit board.
4. Creating the Matter over Thread Light example application With the bootloader in place, you can now create Matter projects. So, returning to the launch perspective, and with the boards selected in the debug adapters from the example projects and demos tab, it is easy to filter down to Matter examples and demos to create a live device. Here would be the Matter system- on-chip lighting over Thread demo. For demos, clicking the Run button will program the pre-built binary into the connected board. To create a project, the examples without the demo indicator will create a project with source code that you can later edit and adapt to your needs. For the project created, the
configuration file is opened in the Simplicity IDE perspective, as well as the ‘readme’ file. This has helpful information, such as how the project runs on various boards and links, as well as additional documentation. There are also many time-saving features in Simplicity Studio that can assist with the development. There is, for example, a Zigbee cluster
configurator that allows the setting up of the data model that is used, which defines the way your device operates. The on/off cluster controls the light by issuing commands that will manipulate the on/off attribute, turning the light on or off.
devices, this is where you will configure the clusters and attributes for your device to operate. There is also the Bluetooth GATT configuration and, again, this defines the Bluetooth services and characteristics present on the Bluetooth side of the device. There is also a wide variety of
components and drivers that can be used to set up sensors on the board, or buttons and LEDs. It usually takes a couple of clicks to add support for the feature and configure the pins that are used. The software components are an excellent time saver to give you some code to operate peripherals and configure the hardware pins required during development. Building the project follows the same
steps as with the bootloader. Once the bootloader and Matter
binary are programmed into the device, the LED zero will occasionally flash, indicating that it is communicating over Bluetooth, looking for a network to join. In the case of the Pro-Kit board, a QR code will be displayed on the LCD. This can be used to commission a device into a network by scanning the QR code.
Full support for Matter This process is also available online, through a Quick Start step-by-step guide. Additional videos show how to commission a light. The first shows how to set up a Raspberry Pi as an OpenThread Border Router. That particular setup is most useful during development, since it gives complete control of the network and its devices. The second video shows how to commission a device from an end-user perspective, bringing a device into a network formed with a Google Home nest hub. Other resources are also available
from different hardware and software providers. Matter is an exciting standard that
offers the potential for real advantage in smart home automation. And it is easy for engineers to start device development through online resources.
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