2010 Bluetooth Innovation World Cup Finalists and Winners
After a successful first year of competition in 2009, the Bluetooth SIG called on developers, entrepreneurs and students in 2010 to submit ideas for products that use Bluetooth low energy technology.
The 2010 contest focused on Bluetooth enabled products for home automation, health care, and sports and fitness. All these product ideas make use of the unique characteristics of Bluetooth low energy technology, such as very low power consumption and compatibility with existing Bluetooth enabled devices.
Winners in the 2011 contest were announced 30 January 2012. Visit the main IWC contest page for a look at the 2011 winners.
2010 winners announced in Munich
The winner of the international innovation competition (pictured left) was presented at the official award ceremony, taking place at the ispo sporting goods conference in Munich in February 2011. The Innovator of the Year 2010 received a prize of $5,000 USD, a Bluetooth Qualification Program Voucher (QDID) worth an additional $10,000 USD, Bluetooth SIG marketing support, and an exclusive Anritsu Bluetooth Test Set with a value of $25,000 USD.
The Bluetooth Innovation World Cup 2010 is sponsored by Anritsu (Preferred Technology Partner), Nordic Semiconductor, STMicroelectronics, Suunto and Texas Instruments.
Our international panel of judges looked at 270 entrants this year, which they previously winnowed down to nine finalists. Their choice for overall winner is a small sensor that could be worn on a person's ear to measure balance, body posture, activity level, and heart rate. The sensor could transmit that information wirelessly to a computer, phone or other device where it could be sent to the patient's health care provider.
Because this ear sensor would have to be very small and light, it would need to have ultra low power consumption, making it able to run for a long time with a tiny battery. This is possible with Bluetooth low energy technology.
The idea for this ear sensor – which also won in the category of healthcare – comes from the Pervasive Computing Group at Imperial College in London, represented by Dr. Louis Atallah. His team of researchers collects prize money of USD $5,000, a Bluetooth Qualification Program voucher valued at up to US $10,000, and an Anritsu test set worth USD $17,000.
Here are the winners in our two other categories:
Home automation winner
Nicholas Pau of New Zealand won for an idea he came up with at the Wireless Research Centre at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, NZ. His proposed device, called Refill Alert, would send a message to a person's mobile phone or PC telling them then it's time to refill their Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) canisters. It could also alert them if there's a leak in the canister. This is important because LPG is widely used for cooking and heating in rural areas and smaller cities around the world where piped gas is not available.
Sports and Fitness winner
Biju Thomas of the United States won for his proposed "personal crash impact sensor." This would be capable of providing detailed measurements of shocks in sports accidents, such as a helmet that tells you how hard you hit your head if you fall while skiing or cycling. The severity of impact could be measured and transmitted to a mobile phone using Bluetooth low energy technology. This could help detect head injuries that seem minor, but turn out to be much more severe than a person realizes.
Here are the top three IWC 2010 finalists in each category
Bluetooth low energy technology in home automation
Wojciech Giergusiewicz
Wojciech Giergusiewicz of Poland proposed a smaller Bluetooth enabled multimeter for engineers. The multimeter (an instrument for measuring the properties of electric circuits) would be able to wirelessly transmit information about electric circuits to a mobile phone or laptop. Many engineers don't carry a multimeter with them because the devices are too big. Often they want to repair something or check why a product isn't functioning when they're away from their office. Friends and family members often ask engineers to help them repair electronic home devices, which can mean checking connections in cars or children toys.
A multimeter the size of a pen or a key ring pendant would be possible if it could use a mobile phone as a display, connecting wirelessly with Bluetooth low energy technology. Then engineers could carry a miniature multimeter with them all the time, just like a USB stick or pocket knife.
Nicholas Pau
Nicholas Pau of New Zealand proposed a device that would alert people when it's time to refill Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) canisters used for heating or cooking, and also tell them if there's a leak in the canister. LPG is widely used in rural areas and smaller cities around the world where piped gas is not available.
Today, most consumers are responsible for physically monitoring their own gas supply. This often requires them to go outside, even on cold and wet winter days. Refill Alert would send an alert to their mobile phone or laptop when a minimum amount of gas is left in the canister. People could then contact their gas suppliers for a refill without leaving the warmth and comfort of their home or office.
Christopher Allen
Christopher Allen of the United States proposed a barbecue that could be controlled by a Bluetooth enabled remote control. Allen's "iGrill" application would send information from your grill to your Apple iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch over a relatively long-range using Bluetooth technology. So you could relax with your guests while checking the status of your grilling food on your handheld device.
Bluetooth low energy technology in health care
Jimmy Vincent
Jimmy Vincent of India proposed an Oxygen Flow Controller, which would monitor blood oxygen levels in patients and automatically adjust their oxygen supply. This new Bluetooth enabled oxygen supply controller could sit a few meters from the patient, continuously monitoring blood oxygen levels reported by a wireless monitoring device, usually attached to the patient's finger. The controller could use that information to adjust the supply of oxygen the patient receives through a face mask.
Pervasive Computing Group
Pervasive Computing Group at Imperial College London, Great Britain, proposed a small sensor worn on a person's ear that's able to measure balance, body posture, activity level, and heart rate, and then transmit that information wirelessly to a computer or other device where it could be viewed by the patient's health care provider. Because the ear sensor would have to be very small and light, it would need to be low power. This is possible if the sensor is designed using Bluetooth low energy technology.
Ahang Baghschomali
Ahang Baghschomali of Germany proposed a system of sensors that combines classic Bluetooth technology with Bluetooth low energy technology to give disabled people with hearing problems instructions through a hearing aid. The system would track the person's location and deliver messages, telephone calls, and even audio entertainment to them via their hearing aid. The system could also transmit medical information about them, such as their vital signs, to the person's health-care provider.
Bluetooth low energy technology in sports and fitness
Anindya Bakshi
Anindya Bakshi of India
Vlad Savchenko
Vlad Savchenko of Canada proposed a device called the Velo Computer Bicycle Sensor that could provide highly accurate measurements of distance, speed, grade, and acceleration via a small, wireless sensor attached to a bicycle. The Bluetooth enabled sensor would mount on a bike's wheel or pedals and provide faster and more accurate measurements than traditional cycling computers.
Biju Thomas
Biju Thomas of the United States proposed an impact sensor capable of providing detailed measurements of shocks in sports accidents, such as a helmet that tells you how hard you hit your head when you fell while skiing. The severity of impact could be measured and transmitted to a mobile phone using Bluetooth low energy technology. This could help detect head injuries that seem minor, but turn out to be much more severe than a person realizes.
Such impacts could be detected immediately and trigger an alarm message sent to a mobile phone. It could even help people who are knocked unconscious, by automatically dialing a pre-programmed emergency number and delivering a pre-recorded message that includes the location of the injured person. A person would have 30 seconds to turn off the alarm and prevent the emergency call from being made.