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Read the latest press releases about Bluetooth wireless technology from the Bluetooth SIG.
BLUETOOTH SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP LAUNCHES NEW QUALIFICATION PROGRAM
17-Oct-2006
Bluetooth SIG
Enhancements Streamline Qualification Process for Members, Gets Products to Market Faster
Bellevue, WA – October 17, 2006 – Following months of beta testing and refinement, the Bluetooth SIG today announced the availability of an updated Qualification Program for member products designed with Bluetooth wireless technology. The improved program better ensures interoperability among devices, verifies conformance to Bluetooth specifications and strengthens the Bluetooth SIG’s ability to enforce compliance. For member companies, the new program facilitates more efficient development of Bluetooth devices by automating many of the processes, increasing consistency in how the process is applied while reducing time and cost of the qualification process.
“More Bluetooth products are being qualified than ever before and we wanted to streamline the process for members while continuing to improve interoperability between Bluetooth devices,” said Michael Foley, Ph. D., executive director of the Bluetooth SIG. “The improvements we’ve made accomplish both objectives.”
Approximately 90 Bluetooth products are sent through the Bluetooth SIG’s qualification program each month. The updated program will significantly shorten the amount of time invested by each company per product.
“While qualifying a profile of a recent product, we were expecting the process to take 10 hours under the previous system – instead, the new program turned that 10 hours into 10 minutes and our product was ready to go to market,” said Lars Nord, Bluetooth Program Manager, Sony Ericsson.
Components of the New Program
The Bluetooth SIG Qualification Program was built to address four principles: 1) improved interoperability of Bluetooth enabled devices, 2) reduced cost of qualification, 3) reduced complexity of the program, and 4) increased consistency in how the program is applied. Included among the elements and tools developed as a part of the Qualification Program are both improvements to existing tools as well as completely new additions: the Program Reference Document (PRD 2.0), the Profile Tuning Suite (PTS), the online Test Plan Generator (TPG), the Qualification Listing Interface (QLI) and the Experience Icons:
- The Program Reference Documents (PRD 2.0) provides members the ability to self-declare that their product is qualified in lieu of going through a Bluetooth Qualification Body (BQB). This document asserts that the requirements of the Bluetooth Specifications and qualification must be met.
- The Profile Tuning Suite (PTS) is a completely new tool and serves as a reference test system for Bluetooth profiles and protocols, with the goal of improving Bluetooth interoperability in the marketplace. This tool makes the qualification testing easier and more precise as well as assists member companies in debugging, testing, and certifying Bluetooth devices.
- The Test Plan Generator (TPG) provides companies with a test plan directly accessible from the web. The TPG allows members to complete the process online and automatically generates the testing requirements based on an expected qualification date. The TPG eliminates the formerly complex process that required members to derive their own testing requirements from a multitude of documents.
- The Qualification Listing Interface (QLI) is the new web interface where members will list their products after completing the Bluetooth Qualification Process in accordance with the newly approved PRD 2.0. For the first time, a complete list of all qualified Bluetooth products, both components and consumer products within the Bluetooth SIG databases, will be accessible online. The list will provide customized information and search functions for different audiences.
- Experience Icons provide a visual way for consumers to know what specific capabilities a Bluetooth enabled product encompasses. Members’ products must comply with a set of specifications in order to place the appropriate icon on packaging.
For more information on the updated Qualification Program, please visit https://programs.bluetooth.org/technical/qualification/overview.htm (must be a Bluetooth SIG member to access).
About Bluetooth® Wireless Technology
Bluetooth wireless technology is the global short-range wireless standard for personal connectivity of a broad range of electronic devices. The technology is now available in its fourth version of the core specification and continues to develop, building on its inherent strengths – small-form factor radio, low power, low cost, built-in security, robustness, ease-of-use, and ad hoc networking abilities. Three new Bluetooth enabled products are qualified every day and 10 million Bluetooth units are shipping per week. The installed base of Bluetooth devices was over 500 million products at the end of 2005 and is projected to surpass one billion by the end of 2006, making it the only proven choice for developers, product manufacturers, and consumers worldwide.
About the Bluetooth SIG
The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), comprised of leaders in the telecommunications, computing, consumer electronics, automotive and network industries, is driving development of Bluetooth wireless technology and bringing it to market. The Bluetooth SIG includes Promoter group companies Agere, Ericsson, Intel, Lenovo, Microsoft, Motorola, Nokia and Toshiba, along with over 6000 Associate and Adopter member companies. The Bluetooth SIG, Inc. headquarters are located in Bellevue, Washington, U.S.A. For more information please visit www.bluetooth.com.
The Bluetooth word mark and logo are registered trademarks and are owned by the Bluetooth SIG, Inc.
Note to Editors: Media assets (stills and video) to accompany stories about Bluetooth wireless technology are available on bluetooth.com, hosted by The NewsMarket: http://www.thenewsmarket.com/Bluetooth/br/Story/MultimediaPressPacks.aspx
Press Contacts:
Americas
Starr Million
INK Public Relations for the Bluetooth SIG
+1 (512) 382-8981
starr@ink-pr.com
Asia-Pacific
Eddie Chan
Hill & Knowlton Asia Ltd. for the Bluetooth SIG
+852 2894-6214
eddie.chan@hillandknowlton.com.hk
Europe, Middle East, Africa
Danny Devriendt
Porter Novelli for the Bluetooth SIG
+32 475353465
danny.devriendt@porternovelli.be
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