A lightbulb that does IPv6: You know you want it
Mesh-networking standard ZigBee now has support for IP, allowing embedded devices (from 'leccy meters to lightbulbs) to be directly addressed as long as the addresser is using IPv6.
The new extension to the standard, ZigBee IP, has been created at the behest of utilities and will be integrated into the next version of the ZigBee Smart Energy profile. That profile is already being used by utilities in California and Texas and permits utilities to control energy consumption, but version two will extend those capabilities and, with ZigBee IP, make them internet friendly.
Zigee is a low-power mesh-networking protocol. Devices supporting the standard can be addressed and also relay messages to devices which would otherwise be beyond range. The mesh is thus self-forming and the ZigBee Alliance would like our homes to be awash with nodes linking back to our electricity meter or other hub.
