Concurrent Multiprotocol (CMP) Sample Application (z3-light_ot-ftd)#

The CMP sample application consists of a Z3Light, which is a Zigbee router, and an OpenThread FTD (Full Thread Device). Both protocol stacks operate by multiplexing a single EFR32 radio.

Note: SiSDK 2024.12 allows inclusion of rail_util_ieee802154_fast_channel_switching and rail_util_dma components. This allows Zigbee and Thread networks to operate on 2 different radio channels. Note that the concurrent listening feature becomes active only when both networks are up. This feature can result in a decrease in receive sensitivity.

If this feature is not required, these components can be removed. However, it is imperative to make sure that both Zigbee and OpenThread networks are on the same channel.

RTOS#

Within the CMP application, scheduling is managed using a Real Time Operating System (RTOS). Each protocol runs in a dedicated RTOS task. The Zigbee and OpenThread tasks operate at the same priority while the Command Line Interface (CLI) is made available using a CLI RTOS task that operates at a lower priority.

CAUTION for SDK 4.4 and older: It is critical to note that Zigbee and OpenThread APIs are not thread-safe. Calling them from different threads can result in unexpected behavior. In addition, any references to EmberMessageBuffer must be contained within the Zigbee task.

As of SiSDK 2024.6, Zigbee stack APIs are thread-safe. Application framework APIs are protected by a mutex in the CLI task context. If they are to be called from a custom RTOS task, you are expected to surround the calls with sl_zigbee_af_acquire_lock and sl_zigbee_af_release_lock. It is also important to note that this version also introduced the standardization of all function names. Refer to the Zigbee API Reference Manual for more details. It is important to note that any references or allocations of zigbee buffers (for example, sli_legacy_buffer_manager_allocate_buffer) must be contained within the Zigbee task to avoid unexpected operation.

Command Line Interface#

This application supports all CLI commands that can be found in the Z3Light sample application. A subset of the OpenThread CLI has been ported to demonstrate form, join and ping operations. This functionality can be extended further, if necessary, by following the example commands in the ot_up_cli.c file from the ot_up_cli component. Note that OpenThread APIs are only invoked from sl_ot_rtos_application_tick since they are not thread-safe.

OpenThread Commissioning#

This device can be commissioned on to an OpenThread network out-of-band using CLI commands. Setting the OpenThread network parameters, such as network key and channel, before starting the network allows the CMP device to join a Thread network as a child or router device. The table below lists the OpenThread CLI commands.