Element launches Matter testing for smart home devices

Element laboratories offer pre-certification, formal testing, and test harness training to the Matter smart home standard.

Matter is a new technology launched on October 4, 2022 and is focused around standardising a unified approach to connecting smart home devices since the existing standards such as Z-Wave, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth have not been able to become the primary protocol of the smart home. It aims to provide consumers with the confidence that a Matter-certified logo on a smart home device signifies a high-quality product that will work seamlessly and allow all devices within a home to communicate with each other locally without the need for a cloud.

The major manufacturers of smart home devices are driving ongoing development and Element has expanded its capability to match customer demand.

Element is one of only a few testing operators who provide Matter testing, which adds to its portfolio of Internet of Things (IoT) communication protocols including Zigbee testing. The service has initially rolled out at Element laboratories in Hull, UK and Shenzhen, China to offer pre-certification, formal testing, and test harness training services. This new service provides a critical step for manufacturers to gain Matter certification from the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) of which Element is an active member. The formal testing allows manufacturers to gain certification, ensure their products are safe and use the Matter logo on their products.

Matt Hopkinson, EVP for EMEAA at Element, comments: “Element’s response to the growth IoT is putting our Connected Technology testing services ahead of the curve with the continual development of new smart devices. As homes become more and more sophisticated in their networks, Matter is at the centre of connectivity and our new services, which we hope to roll out further across our global laboratories, support vital product development.

“We can offer these new services so quickly due to $300m+ investment into our Connected Technology business and leveraging the expertise of our team of 500 people. We plan to expand our offering in these thriving markets and support our customers with testing to the very highest standards ensuring they are safe to use in the home environment and help our customers bring new products to market.”

Matter-enabled products will predominately make use of Thread, Wi-Fi, Ethernet and BLE for networking capabilities, but it is the application layer which sits on top of these network transports which includes the allied communication protocol, aka Matter.