RIPlink introduction

RIPlink few words

RIPlink is a non-intrusive technology extending IP networks' reach to low-resource devices connected to non-IP capable networks, either wired or wireless.

With a RIPlink Gateway sitting between the IP network (Ethernet, Cellular, WiFi, etc.) and the non-IP network (ZigBee, PLC, CAN, etc.), devices as small as simple sensors can be connected to IP world.

Why has RIPlink be created

The majority of communication systems are now designed around Internet Protocol (IP), which is the most standard and widely deployed architecture.

By defining a clear separation between networks and services, IP offers interoperability and extensibility, resulting in lower up-front investments, maintenance cost savings and future-proofing of long-life products.

Machine-to-Machine (M2M) applications remain the exception to the rule since they do not yet widely use IP technology. One of the reasons is that many M2M solutions cannot efficiently support IP from end-to-end. The burden on resource-constrained devices and limited bandwidth networks has until now been considered a show stopper.

RIPlink was designed specifically to save resources (memory, CPU, battery life, bandwidth) while enabling standard TCP and UDP applications to be ported on any device and connected over any non-IP network. This includes in particular low power RF networks, such as ZigBee or Power Line Communication (PLC) wired networks.

RIPlink benefits

Thanks to a RIPlink Gateway, connected on one side to IP network(s), and on the other side to non-IP network(s), non-IP devices can exchange safely their data with devices on IPv4 - and IPv6 - networks:

Data can be transported on IP without TCP/UDP/IP stack on the device
The underlying non-IP network (including mesh capability when existing, security, etc.) remains unchanged.
The application on the device is independent from the non-IP network, in the same way that IP applications are independent from their underlying IP network.

With RIPlink, IP solutions can easily operate over heterogeneous IP and non-IP networks. For example, the same application designs can directly be ported straight from one network environment to another.

RIPlink as an industry standard

The technical concept used by RIPlink has been described several years ago in some universitary studies, in a slightly different application context, but had never used by the industry. Under Wavecom initiative, RIPlink technology has been recently implemented and demonstrated over non-IP networks such as ZigBee and PLC for machine-to-machine (M2M) applications.

In order to ensure that the M2M community benefits to the fullest from RIPlink technology, Wavecom makes RIPlink available as an industry standard, with freely available specifications and with solutions available from RIPlink adopters. Wavecom and RIPlink adopters also contributes to other standardization bodies to include RIPlink as an interopeable application profile.

Combined with such standardisation approach, a RIPlink eco-system is emerging, bringing to the market interoperable RIPlink Devices and Gateways solutions for a variety of non-IP wired and wireless network solutions.

RIPlink menu

RIPlink introduction

RIPlink few words

Why has RIPlink be created

RIPlink benefits

RIPlink as an industry standard

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