Matter 1.5 Unveiled: Bringing Cameras, Closures, and Smarter Energy Management to the Smart Home – Residential Tech Today

Report on the Matter 1.5 Specification Release and its Contribution to Sustainable Development Goals

The Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) has released Matter 1.5, a functional expansion of the smart home standard. This update introduces new device categories and features designed to simplify development, enhance interoperability, and promote sustainable connected experiences. The advancements in Matter 1.5 directly support the achievement of several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those related to energy, water, sustainable communities, and climate action.

Key Feature Expansions and SDG Contributions

Native Camera Support for Enhanced Security (SDG 11)

The introduction of native support for cameras addresses a significant market demand and contributes to SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities by enhancing safety and security within residential environments. This specification allows cameras to interoperate directly with Matter ecosystems, removing reliance on proprietary APIs.

• Supported Device Types: The specification covers a wide range of cameras, including doorbell, indoor, outdoor, floodlight, and pan/tilt models.
• Connectivity and Access: Support is included for Wi-Fi, Power over Ethernet (PoE), and standard Ethernet, with provisions for live streaming, two-way communication, and both local and remote access.
• Advanced Capabilities: The standard incorporates features such as multi-stream configurations, pan-tilt-zoom controls, detection zones, and flexible storage integration.
• Scope Limitations: The specification does not directly manage video storage or clip playback, nor does it handle on-device analytics. These functions remain the responsibility of the device manufacturer or platform provider.

Unified Closures for Improved Energy Efficiency (SDG 7 & SDG 13)

Matter 1.5 establishes a new, unified “Closures” category, which enables more efficient energy management in buildings, directly supporting SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy and SDG 13: Climate Action. By standardizing control over window coverings, gates, and doors, the update allows for improved thermal regulation, reducing the energy required for heating and cooling.

• Consolidated Device Category: This new category includes devices such as window shades, drapes, awnings, gates, and garage doors, which were previously not certifiable.
• Simplified Development: A modular design allows manufacturers to represent various motion types (sliding, rotating) and configurations with a minimal set of components, reducing development complexity.
• Consumer Benefits: This provides users with consistent control and precise position reporting, enhancing both convenience and safety.

Soil Sensor Integration for Water Conservation (SDG 6 & SDG 15)

The addition of dedicated support for soil sensors extends Matter into gardening and agriculture, promoting resource efficiency in line with SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation and SDG 15: Life on Land. These sensors enable intelligent water management, conserving a critical resource and promoting sustainable plant care.

• Core Functionality: Devices can measure soil moisture and, optionally, temperature.
• System Integration: When integrated with Matter-enabled water valves or irrigation systems, these sensors facilitate automated and optimized watering schedules, preventing water waste.

Advanced Energy Management for Grid Modernization (SDG 7, SDG 11, SDG 13)

Matter 1.5 introduces a comprehensive framework for energy management, providing critical tools for demand-response programs, grid stability, and efficient energy consumption. These enhancements are pivotal for advancing SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and SDG 13 (Climate Action).

1. Energy Tariff Communication: A new device type allows utilities to share real-time pricing, tariff data, and grid carbon intensity information. This enables smart home ecosystems to automate energy consumption, shifting loads to off-peak hours and aligning with periods of high renewable energy generation.
2. Enhanced Smart Metering: The standard improves the measurement and reporting of power usage, including historical data and support for complex, time-varying tariffs, empowering consumers to track and manage costs effectively.
3. Grid Communication: Utilities can now communicate grid connection status and power limits to devices, enabling coordinated demand management and compliance with regional energy regulations.
4. EV Charging Enhancements: The update makes features like state-of-charge reporting and bi-directional charging certifiable under Matter. This lays the groundwork for vehicle-to-grid (V2G) and vehicle-to-home (V2H) applications, allowing electric vehicles to serve as distributed energy resources that support grid stability.

Technical Enhancements and Conclusion

Matter 1.5 adds full support for TCP transport, which enables more reliable and efficient transmission of large data sets required for high-bandwidth devices like cameras and facilitates faster firmware updates. The release of this specification provides developers and manufacturers with a robust foundation for creating innovative and interoperable products that contribute to a more sustainable future.

The Matter 1.5 specification, SDK, and associated test tools are now available to CSA members for implementation and certification.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy

  The article extensively discusses advancements in energy management, including smart metering, real-time tariff data, and EV charging enhancements. These features are designed to promote more efficient energy use in homes, directly aligning with the goal of ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy.

• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

  The entire article focuses on the Matter 1.5 standard, which is an innovation aimed at building a resilient and interoperable infrastructure for the smart home industry. By simplifying development and creating a unified standard, it fosters innovation and promotes the adoption of sustainable technologies.

• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

  The technologies described, such as efficient energy management and water conservation, contribute to making homes—the fundamental units of cities—more sustainable. By reducing the resource consumption of individual households, the Matter standard helps lessen the overall environmental impact of urban areas.

• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

  The introduction of soil sensors for intelligent watering directly addresses the goal of ensuring sustainable consumption patterns. This feature promotes the efficient use of natural resources, specifically water, by automating conservation efforts in gardening and plant care.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

• Target 7.3: By 2030, double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency.

  The article’s section on “Advancing Energy Management” directly supports this target. Features like the “Energy Tariff Device Type,” which allows devices to make decisions based on real-time pricing, and “Enhanced Smart Metering” for accurate power usage reporting, are tools designed to significantly improve energy efficiency within the home.

• Target 9.4: By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies…

  The Matter 1.5 standard itself represents an upgrade to the smart home industry’s infrastructure. It is an environmentally sound technology that promotes resource efficiency (both energy and water) by standardizing communication and control, making it easier for manufacturers to create and for consumers to adopt sustainable products.

• Target 12.2: By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources.

  The introduction of “Soil Sensors for Sustainable Gardening” is a direct application of technology to achieve this target. The article states that these sensors, when integrated with irrigation systems, “enable intelligent, automated watering, helping users conserve water,” which is a clear example of promoting the efficient use of a key natural resource.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• Implied Indicator for Target 7.3: Data on household energy consumption and cost.

  The article mentions that Matter 1.5 “improves how devices measure and report power usage” and provides “historical data for accurate cost tracking.” This reported data can serve as a direct indicator to measure improvements in energy efficiency and the impact of demand management based on tariff information.

• Implied Indicator for Target 12.2: Measurement of water usage in automated gardening.

  The functionality of soil sensors is to “measure moisture” to enable “intelligent, automated watering.” The progress towards water conservation can be measured by tracking the amount of water used by these smart irrigation systems compared to traditional or manual watering methods. The data from these systems would serve as the indicator.

• Implied Indicator for Target 9.4: Number of devices certified under the Matter 1.5 standard.

  The article states that the new features are now “certifiable under Matter” and that the specification and tools are available for “implementation and certification planning.” The number of products, especially those with energy and water-saving features, that achieve Matter certification would be a clear indicator of the adoption rate of this sustainable technology within the industry.

4. SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Table

Source: restechtoday.com