Manuals | Plugwise

Installation manual

Plug & Play: Plug and Play describes a characteristic of the Plugwise protocol: connected appliances independently form a network, with minimal user intervention. In practice, it comes down to ‘plug it in and it works’.

Plugwise network: A Plugwise network is a dynamic structure of Plugwise components that measure energy consumption, switch appliances on or off and save energy. The different components perform their tasks independently and connect with each other via ZigBee. Plugwise networks can be large or small, depending on your requirements. New components such as Circles, are automatically recognized by the network; removing or moving components does not affect the network operation. Each Plugwise network has one Circle+. The Circle+ keeps track of which Circles belong to the network and communicates this to the Stick in the computer. After the network is set up the Circle+ can be used as a regular Circle.

ZigBee: The Plugwise system is based on the ZigBee-protocol. ZigBee is an international standard adopted by businesses worldwide. With ZigBee, appliances communicate using a secure, reconfigurable wireless mesh. ZigBee is designed for low power consumption and is far more energy efficient than other wireless communication methods such as Bluetooth and WiFi. ZigBee is used in a variety of situations such as smart metering, street lighting systems and building automation. The Plugwise implementation of the ZigBee-protocol is optimised for security, network performance and ease of installation.