An interview with Benjamin Jansen, project manager at Wibutler (link) and responsible for developing the Matter Bridge in the Wibutler Pro. The smart home gateway has just received its official Matter certification. In this interview with matter-smarthome, Jansen explains why that matters to users and how the development process unfolded.
Dies ist die Übersetzung eines deutschen Interviews.
Zum Original bitte hier entlang.
Mr. Jansen, the Wibutler Pro gateway is available for anyone to purchase, but it’s primarily aimed at professional installers. Has Matter gained traction in that space yet?
Benjamin Jansen: Among end users, Matter is a huge topic. There’s hardly anything with stronger demand. For our core customers – craftspeople and property developers – the standard doesn’t carry as much weight yet. But since the ISH trade fair in Frankfurt/Main, we’ve seen growing interest. That’s largely because companies are realizing how important the topic has become for end users – their own customers. And for project partners like WeberHaus, Matter is already a relevant factor.
When did you decide to turn the Wibutler Pro into a Matter Bridge – and what ultimately pushed the decision over the line?
Jansen: We started development about a year ago. Several things came together at that point. On the one hand, we saw the potential of the technology. On the other, there was clear demand from partners who wanted it. And for us as a vendor- and discipline-agnostic platform, Matter fits very naturally into our portfolio. It’s another solution – among several – that allows for open, cross-technology device integration. So in many ways, it was a logical next step to include the standard.
“There’s hardly anything end users are asking for more than Matter.”
Which version of Matter are you supporting, and which devices are being bridged?
Jensen: We currently support Matter 1.2 and have focused primarily on classic consumer device types: lights, thermostats, shutters, sensors, switches, and so on. In total, twelve product categories are supported. The project was developed in collaboration with five partners – Bega, Oventrop, Viessmann, Eltako, and Jung. Right now, all devices from these manufacturers that fall into one of the twelve categories are supported. That includes a wide range of products, all listed on our online compatibility list (link).
Will more manufacturers and products be added in the future?
Jansen: Any manufacturer in the Wibutler Alliance is free to join and take part in the Matter integration. If the relevant device category is already supported by the bridge, it’s relatively straightforward. Otherwise, it requires a bit more effort – but the development is ongoing anyway. Internally, we’re already discussing Matter 1.4, especially since it includes categories like EV chargers and heat pumps, which the Wibutler platform already supports and which are critical for things like energy management.
Do software updates pose a challenge? Until recently, they came with additional certification costs. Is that still an issue?
Jansen: That definitely was a concern. As a platform provider, we can’t avoid regular updates. Starting with Matter 1.4, there’s a key advantage: self-certification becomes possible. Before that, we had to bite the bullet and ensure that updates weren’t treated as entirely new products by the Connectivity Standards Alliance. We achieved that by running the Matter app as a standalone application on the gateway. That gives us precise control over how updates to the Wibutler Pro firmware affect it.
“The Matter app runs as a standalone application on the gateway.”
Are you considering enabling control of Matter devices via software update – in other words, turning the Wibutler Pro into a Matter Controller?
Jansen: That’s technically possible, sure. Whether we go that route depends on our partners. With the bridge functionality, Wibutler devices can already be integrated with other Matter products – using a controller from Apple, Amazon, or Google. Right now, it’s primarily about usability and convenience. Matter makes features like voice control easy to implement – which is a clear benefit for our customers, since end users are strongly demanding it.
What was your experience with the certification process? Is the development of a Matter Bridge well-documented?
Jansen: I’d say it was a fairly typical software project. Matter may have higher requirements than usual, simply because there’s a lot of documentation and plenty of rules to follow. But that’s also what makes development easier compared to projects with vague requirements. Usually, you know where to look for information – and the Connectivity Standards Alliance responded fairly promptly to our questions and issues during development.
We also did extensive in-house testing throughout the development phase because we wanted to go to the test lab with the most stable version possible. And before the official compliance test, we spent a full day at the lab walking through all the key elements. As a result, we had very little to change after testing.
Were there any stumbling blocks or unexpected challenges?
Jansen: We actually underestimated the organizational overhead a bit. During certification, a lot of information needs to be documented and shared with various organizations. Just gathering that data takes time. And at some points, you first need to figure out what exactly is being asked.
Then there’s the so-called test harness, the official tool for verifying Matter compatibility. It runs on a Raspberry Pi with Linux in our case, and there are many settings and configurations to deal with. This was especially complex for us, since we were testing a Matter Bridge with more than ten device types at once. You really need to know what you’re doing to ensure the test produces the desired outcome.
“There was little official feedback on the certification status.”
Another challenge: The actual certification process – meaning the time between submitting all the documentation and the final approval by the CSA – unfortunately took a bit longer than we had originally hoped. During that phase, we received little to no feedback from the official side regarding the status of our submission or when we could expect it to be published.
This was particularly difficult for us because many of our customers were very interested in the new feature and kept asking about it. We would have loved to give them a clear answer, but we simply couldn’t. So it was all the more rewarding when we finally got the green light. Now it’s official, and we’re excited to roll out this innovation together with our customers.
Mr Jansen, thank you very much for this interview.
Editor’s note: The software update for the Wibutler Pro is scheduled for release in July 2025.
Share this information:
