The Communications Standards Alliance (CSA) has just announced the release of the Matter 1.3 specification and SDK with energy reporting, support for water and power management devices, electric vehicle chargers, and several new “major appliances,” namely various kitchen appliances and laundry dryers, and various other features.
As a reminder, the Matter Protocol was initially introduced several years ago under the name Project CHIP to improve the interoperability of Smart Home devices from different vendors, so for example, users could connect a Matter-compatible Philips Hue light bulb to a Samsung gateway, or a Matter-branded sensor White with Google Home, etc… Matter has been getting picked up in the past year with several product launches, and Paisit particularly reviewed the MINI Extreme Wi-Fi Smart Switch (MINIR4M), SONOFF’s first Matter device, last October. Matter 1.3 adds many new capabilities and devices.
Article 1.3 highlights:
- Supporting water and energy management devices
- Energy management – Matter 1.3 adds support for new energy reporting capabilities. This allows any device to report actual and estimated measurements, including instantaneous power, voltage, current, etc., in real time, as well as power consumption or generation over time.
- Electric vehicle charging – Matter 1.3 enables new energy-focused devices starting with Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE). Manufacturers of electric vehicle charging equipment can now offer consumers a way to better control how and when they charge their vehicles. Users can manually start or stop charging, adjust the charging rate, or specify the number of miles or kilometers to be added at a specific departure time. The charging station will then optimize charging to be carried out in the cheapest and lowest carbon times.
- Water management – Support for leak and freeze detectors, rain sensors, and controllable water valves.
- The following main device types are added
- Microwave ovens – Users can control cooking time, power level and mode of operation, and receive notifications, such as “end of cycle” or “food ready” when the microwave is complete.
- Ovens – This allows configuration of the operating mode (standard, convection bake, roast, steam, broil/grill, proofing) and temperature control, and users can receive notifications such as preheating and target temperature achieved.
- Cooktops – Like before.
- Hood hoods (cooker hoods, vent hoods) — Users can control light and fan settings and receive notifications about the status/end of life of any filter material used such as HEPA filters.
- Laundry dryers — Matter 1.2 added support for laundry machines, so it should come as no surprise that the new Matter 1.3 specification adds support for laundry dryers, allowing users to set the dryer mode and target temperature and start and stop the dryer remotely (depending on local safety systems). Users can also appreciate notifications such as “end of cycle” and alerts about error conditions.
- Improvements to media players and TVs Matter Casting – Matter 1.3 adds push messages and dialog support for new ambient experiences, cast configuration improvements, expanded interaction options for TV apps, text and path support, and improved search functionality. Other Matter devices can now also send notifications to TVs or other devices with displays (e.g. to report that the robot vacuum has stopped, the laundry has finished, etc.)
Matter 1.3 also implements several other user experience improvements and new features for developers such as improved network playback through WiFi bands and theme version/feature reporting. You’ll find the full list of changes in the announcement.
At least four documents form part of the Article 1.3 specification:
- Issue 1.3 Basic specifications
- Issue 1.3 Application suite specifications
- Issue 1.3 Device library specifications
- Issue 1.3 Standard namespace specifications
It is available from the download page, but requires your full name, company name, and email address. Not sure why they do this, as you will receive the email instantly without human supervision… The Matter 1.3 SDK can be found on GitHub in the usual “connectedhomeip” repository.
Thanks to TLS for this tip.
Jean-Luc started CNX in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before leaving his job as a software engineering manager, and began writing daily news and reviews full-time later in 2011.
Support CNX software! Donate via cryptocurrency, become a patron on Patreon, or purchase merchandise on Amazon or Aliexpress
