Frient smoke and heat detectors missing "interlinking" feature via Zigbee binding, grouping, or IAS Zone device (IAS alarm device) function?

[Hedda]

Can anyone here please help clearify this? Do not yet myself have any Fient Zigbee devices however I had considered buying the Frient smoke detector and Frient heat detector until now seen a few reports from other users in the Home Assistant community forum that Frient smoke detector and Frient heat detector devices are at least in the ZHA integration missing some kind of "interlinking" feature (also refered to "interlinked" or "interconnected") via Zigbee binding function or Zigbee group function, or Zigbee IAS Zone device (IAS alarm device, a.k.a. IAS warning device) function. Is in just missing in ZHA or?

• https://community.home-assistant.io/t/frient-joins-works-with-home-assistant/926758/49
  • https://community.home-assistant.io/t/frient-joins-works-with-home-assistant/926758/50
  • https://community.home-assistant.io/t/frient-joins-works-with-home-assistant/926758/55
  • https://community.home-assistant.io/t/frient-joins-works-with-home-assistant/926758/53
  • https://community.home-assistant.io/t/frient-joins-works-with-home-assistant/926758/51
  • https://community.home-assistant.io/t/frient-joins-works-with-home-assistant/926758/52

Related question was also raised a few years back in an old issue for Develco HESZB-120 zha-quirk development discussion here asking it can bind a client cluster of one device to a server cluster of another device or group to connect the devices.

• [Device Support Request] Develco Frient SMSZB-120 Intelligent Smoke Alarm zha-device-handlers#854 (comment)
  • "I am also very interested in this device and its sibiling the Develco/Frient Heat detector HESZB-120. They have the funcionality of being used as Warning Device (cluster 0x0502), which is quite unique among all the other zigbee smoke detectors. Sending the right message you can get all the detectors to sound at once, either when fire is detected by one of them, or for burglar alarm purpouses."

There is also a related discussions within the Zigbee2MQTT community where users have similar questions regarding "interlinking" feature for Frient smoke detector:

• Frient smoke detector SMSZB-120 - How to add to group Koenkk/zigbee2mqtt#25487

• Support Develco SMSZB-120 IAS Zone Koenkk/zigbee-herdsman-converters#3486

The goal is abviously that if one device triggers a smoke or heat event then you want to set it up some king of grouping so that all your similar alarm devices sound the alarm. As in all detectors should be activate when one detector is activated due to smoke or heat, without the Zigbee Coordinator or gateway application being present (e.g. smoke detector X detects smoke which will in turn trigger the siren on detector X, Y and Z).

frient has joined the Works with Home Assistant partnership with the Open Home Foundation so wonder if you have any back-channels so can ask?

• https://www.home-assistant.io/blog/2025/09/02/frient-joins-works-with-home-assistant/

Update: According to their blog posts you can interconnect frient heat alarms or smoke alarms if use SmartThings or Homey:

• https://www.frient.com/the-friently-blog/the-intelligent-heat-alarm-now-works-with-smartthings

  • "if you have several frient heat alarms or smoke alarms you can interconnect them for improved safety so when one alarm goes off, the others go off as well"

• https://www.frient.com/the-friently-blog/all-frient-devices-are-now-fully-compatible-with-homey

  • "The new drivers allow you to activate and deactivate the sirens of the Intelligent Smoke Alarm, the Intelligent Heat Alarm, and the Water Leak Detector in the Homey app. Use this to set up a flow that if one alarm detects a fire or water leak, all alarms will turn on their sirens for a specific amount of time, and you’ll have all alarms interconnected." "Good news for all Homey users. You can now use all the frients with Homey. New features include support of the Smart Siren and Smart Button, interconnectivity for the frient alarms, and adjustments to the Electricity Meter Interface.](https://www.frient.com/the-friently-blog/all-frient-devices-are-now-fully-compatible-with-homey)"

I believe this type of "interlinking" feature is normally handled via Zigbee IAS (Intruder Alarm System) specification using an IAS Zone (IASZone)? Is that the "interlinking" standard that Zigbee device manufacturers should be using for smoke detectors and heat detectors?

Does the "frient Intelligent Smoke Alarm" and "frient Intelligent Heat Alarm" Zigbee devices support some kind of "interlinking" feature?

• frient Intelligent Smoke Alarm (SMSZB-120, previously sold under Develco brand) -> https://www.frient.com/products/intelligent-smoke-alarm

• frient Intelligent Heat Alarm (HESZB-120) previously sold under Develco branding) -> https://www.frient.com/products/intelligent-heat-alarm

This page on Onics website gives mixed messages saying they are internet-connected but also mention gateway notification:

• https://www.onics.com/products/intelligent-smoke-alarm

  • https://www.onics.com/news/how-the-iot-is-improving-fire-safety-in-multi-dwelling-units

Noting that SMSZB-120 is the same whitelabel product provided by Onics A/S and Frient A/S:

• https://csa-iot.org/csa_product/smoke-alarm-2/
  • https://api.knack.com/v1/applications/54e658034b4f44e42fb18201/download/asset/570c1e8b6ae060ef320bc9aa/smokealarmzhapics.xml

Does any of Frient smoke/heat detection sensors (Works with Home Assistant certified devices) support any kind of "interlinking" feature for this?

Could it be done with Zigbee IAS interlinking via Zigbee IAS Zone cluster, Zigbee binding, Zigbee grouping, or some other Zigbee standard feature?

I am guessing the answer is no if the current firmware fir frient smoke alarm and heat alarm did not make those IAS Zone / IAS alarm devices?

• Zigbee IAS CIE, IAS ACE, IAS WD, and IAS Zone for "Alarm Control Panel" and "Security Zones" to support Alarm System features? zigpy#419

As far a I can tell the user manual for the frient Intelligent Smoke Alarm does not mention anything regarding interlinking, nor IAS Zone / IAS alarm, binding, or grouping, but then again their manual is more or less just a quick-start guide more than a detailed manual so it does not contain list of supported Zigbee clusters and attributes or advanced configurations:

• https://help.frient.com/en/frient/intelligent-smoke-alarm
  • https://frient.dk/media/2318/h6500160-intelligent-smoke-alarm_installation-manual_v110.pdf

Update: Found these SMSZB-120 Technical Manual - Smoke Alarm here which at least says it is a IAS Warning device (IAS WD):

• https://keyfree.no/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Optiskbrannalarm-smszb-120-technical-manual-Develco.pdf
  • https://www.manualslib.com/manual/1236036/Develco-Smszb-120.html?page=9#manual

Would also be nice to bind frient Intelligent Smoke Alarm with [frient Smart Siren EU or frient Smart Siren UK?

• frient Smart Siren -> https://www.frient.com/products/smart-siren

Follow-up question is if you can also do a Zigbee binding for the frient Water Leak Detector (which is another product catagory you want this on)?

• frient Water Leak Detector -> https://www.frient.com/products/water-leak-detector (https://help.frient.com/en/frient/water-leak-detector-86cf0e)

Is this type of Zigbee IAS Zone, binding or other type of "interlinked" even available/possible on any known similar Zigbee smoke detector devices?

Or do you always need a smart home hub that has an automation which acts as the man-in-the-middle to get smoke/heat alarms on all devices?

I understand that it is a legal requirement in some countries, like example the UK (United Kingdom, including England, Wales, and Scotland, that all new smoke/heat fire-detectors (and gas or CO2 detector sensors) must have some kind of "interlinked" or "interconnected" functions. This is a mandatory law there since 2022 and looks to have very strict for Scotland where is now mandatory for all types of occupied homes today, and not just new buildings either:

• https://www.wisualarm.co.uk/blogs/news/what-is-the-legal-requirement-for-smoke-alarms-in-scotland

  • https://www.fireangel.co.uk/trade/knowledge-hub/comprehensive-guide-to-fire-alarm-requirements-in-uk-new-build-houses/

  • "Mandatory interlinked smoke and heat alarms in nearly all domestic properties, making Scotland the first UK nation to enforce this standard for existing homes (not just new builds)."

That is, all manufacturers of smoke detectors and heat detectors now really need to implemented as some kind of device-to-device interlinking function, like a Zigbee IAS Zone device / Zigbee IAS alarm device, or Zigbee binding and Zigbee grouping, so that you do not have to setup an automation in Home Assistant, as it needs to function independently of the smart hub so get alarms to all if one device trigger smoke or heat event.

PS: Off-topic but for reference; I have several Z-Wave smoke detectors myself (all older models) and they actually have different kinds of "interconnecting" features (wireless using Z-Wave or wired/hardwired using the communication over the electric-grid).

[Hedda]

I believe this type of "interlinking" feature is normally handled via Zigbee IAS (Intruder Alarm System) specification using an IAS Zone (IASZone)? Is that the "interlinking" standard that Zigbee device manufacturers should be using for smoke detectors and heat detectors?

Not verified so don't trust but FYI, Google's AI-overview says https://www.google.com/search?q=Zigbee+IAS+smoke+interconnect

Zigbee IAS (Intelligent Alarm System) smoke interconnect

Zigbee IAS (Intelligent Alarm System) smoke interconnect is a system that allows multiple Zigbee smoke detectors to communicate with each other, so that if one device detects smoke, all others in the network will sound an alarm and send remote alerts. This is achieved through the Zigbee 3.0 standard, which defines the IAS Zone and IAS Warning Device clusters that enable devices to report alarms and trigger warnings to the network.

How it works

• IAS Zone cluster: When a smoke detector senses smoke, it acts as an "IAS Zone" server and sends an alert message to the network.
• IAS Warning Device cluster: Other devices in the network act as "IAS Warning Device" clients. When a warning is received from an IAS Zone device, they use the IAS WD cluster to trigger their own alarms and send a "start warning command" to the network.
• Network communication: The interconnectivity is a wireless mesh network, so smoke detectors can communicate directly with each other or through other Zigbee devices in the network.
• Smart home integration: To get remote alerts on a smartphone, the IAS network must be connected to a smart home hub (like a Zigbee coordinator), which interprets the alerts and sends them to the user.

Benefits of Zigbee IAS interconnect

• Faster alerts: All alarms sound simultaneously, giving you more time to evacuate or take action, regardless of where the fire started.
• Remote alerts: You can receive alerts on your phone or other connected devices, even if you are not at home.
• Complete protection: Interconnected alarms protect the entire home, not just the area around the specific smoke detector.

So the question is probably if the current device firmware has the right server cluster that can be can bind to the right client cluster?

PS: Sound like Tuya might be using IAS ZONE device in Zigbee 3.0 standard as a "Zigbee Connection Standard for Smoke Detector"?

• https://developer.tuya.com/en/docs/iot/tuya-zigbee-smoke-sensor-access-standard?id=K9ik6zvm2tg0l