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Date and Time:
05/15/2012
at
09:32 AM
Category:
Handsfree; Bluetooth SIG; Automotive On May 7, the NHTSA released its preliminary numbers for traffic fatalities in 2011 and it was the lowest number recorded by the agency in 60 years. The reasons behind the decline are a little fuzzy and explanations differ depending on whom you talk to (better roads, better child safety laws), but none of them have cited hands-free legislation and Bluetooth hands-free solutions as a possible factor. Yes, we do represent the technology, but even to us it seems like an obvious oversight.
Consider this: overall, traffic fatalities have nosedived 26 percent since 2005. In that same time period, from 2005 until now, hands-free legislation has increased by states, counties and municipalities, smartphone use has increased in staggering numbers, and sales of Bluetooth headsets, car kits, cars and mobile phones have taken off like a rocket.
 No doubt there are multiple factors at work in these encouraging statistics. Modern cars do have more safety technology and updated roads incorporate safer designs. But, even as total miles traveled have increased in the last year, the fatality rate has continued to fall. We believe there’s a legitimate case to be made for the expanded use of handsfree devices in cars as one of the positive factors in this welcome trend.
There is precedent for this correlation. New York State was the first to institute its hands-free law in 2001. The state kept statistics on contributing factors to accidents. From 2001 through 2006, hand-held phones were a factor in 1,170 crashes versus 214 crashes involving handsfree phones, according to the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. Perhaps this was foreshadowing to what is now happening on a national level.
The Bluetooth SIG believes in smart driving – hands on the wheel, eyes on the road. We don’t believe in throwing the baby out with the bath water, as a recently proposed total ban on all cell phones in the car would actually do. Mobile phones and the connectivity they allow enable innumerable safety measures and conveniences to drivers, such as accident alert, GPS mapping and vehicle recovery in instances of theft.
All drivers should assess their unique driving situation and use common sense when using a phone in the car. Don’t pick up the phone while driving and if you need to make a call, use a handsfree Bluetooth device and keep both hands on the wheel and eyes on the road. If everyone drives this smart, we could continue to see a downward trend in the yearly U.S. traffic fatality statistics. |
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Date and Time:
05/10/2012
at
2:37 PM
Category:
Bluetooth SIG Everyone likes to be recognized for their hard work. We at the Bluetooth SIG are no different. That’s why I was so happy to hear that the TechAmerica Foundation named the SIG one of four finalists in the annual American Technology Awards in the category of best health and medical technology, specifically for Bluetooth 4.0 and low energy technology.
 This national organization will name the winner on June 13 at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. Nominations for the American Technology Awards are vetted by industry experts and technology companies.
It’s fitting that we’re being recognized for health and medical technology. Bluetooth 4.0 will have an impact in many different markets, but health and medicine (which we usually call health and wellness) is one of the most promising new markets for Bluetooth technology.
Bluetooth 4.0 is in all Bluetooth Smart and Smart Ready devices. There are many new Bluetooth Smart devices coming to the health and wellness market, such as wireless heart-rate monitors, blood glucose monitors and weight scales. These Bluetooth Smart sensor devices will draw very little power and operate for months or years off tiny batteries, making them feasible for all sorts of health and medical uses where it would be impractical or impossible to use bulky batteries that need frequent recharging.
Many SIG members worked for years to make Bluetooth 4.0 and low energy technology a reality. I can hardly wait another month to find out if we’ll make it one step further when the winners are announced. |
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Date and Time:
05/08/2012
at
5:30 PM
Category:
Bluetooth SIG; Technology Signs of growth were all around at this year’s annual Bluetooth SIG All Hands Meeting recently in Vancouver, B.C. I’ve attended all these meetings since we started holding them nine years ago for our SIG members, and rarely have I seen so much optimism about the future of Bluetooth technology. It was the perfect way to wrap up my time as executive director before I step down June 1.
SIG membership is now well past 16,000, with 160 companies joining our organization in just the 30 days before our big annual meeting. Our membership is growing 40 percent faster per month than a year ago.
The rise in Bluetooth product shipments is even more dramatic. As our Chief Marketing Officer Suke Jawanda explained in Vancouver, Qualified Design Listings (a requirement for all new Bluetooth products) are expanding at their fastest rate in three years. Total Bluetooth device shipments expected to reach 2 billion in 2012 – 200 million more devices than shipped in 2011, according to ABI Research. Instead of seeding the second wave of Bluetooth technology as we were a year ago, we’re now beginning to ride the second wave.
I expect this growth to really take off in the second half of 2012, when many new Bluetooth Smart Ready phones, tablets and other hub devices will reach the market, creating demand for all sorts of Bluetooth Smart devices that can connect to them. These products validate the strategy we began years ago when we started working on Bluetooth low energy technology, culminating in Bluetooth 4.0. With dozens of Bluetooth 4.0 profiles and services now adopted, our members can start churning out Bluetooth Smart devices at a rapid pace.
To fulfill the needs of our new SIG members, we need to keep delivering on our open platform and allow our members to continue innovating. As I said in my keynote talk in Vancouver, a decade ago I never would have guessed that someday we’d see Bluetooth technology in basketball shoes, yet global sports giant Nike is doing just that. I could list many other surprising new uses of Bluetooth technology in healthcare, consumer electronics and other markets. There was a strong vibe in Vancouver of new members getting involved in the SIG and bringing their fresh new ideas.
Ten years from now, I’m sure there will be products I would never guess will use Bluetooth technology. Will we swallow pills someday that put Bluetooth technology inside our bodies? One of our members speculated about that and other far-out possibilities during an entertaining talk titled “What If?”
When you look at how far Bluetooth technology has come in the last decade, such speculation isn’t just science fiction. |
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Date and Time:
04/19/2012
at
1:36 PM
Category:
Phones Near Field Communication technology got a boost recently when Nokia announced its first phone with NFC, the Lumia 610 NFC. This new Windows smartphone will soon be available in Europe through mobile operator Orange.
Seeing this gave me deja vu. Five years ago, in the days before smartphones, I demonstrated NFC running on a prototype Nokia phone with Bluetooth v2.1 + EDR, sending a photo to a Parrot picture frame. Engadget wrote about my demo in this 2007 article, calling NFC "the coolest new feature."
So it took awhile, but NFC is finally starting to make it into shipping phones.
 This is interesting for Bluetooth technology because NFC could make it easier to pair some types of Bluetooth devices. To pair this phone with another NFC device such as stereo headphones or a headset, for example, the Lumia 610 NFC should allow you to simply tap the handset against the accessory and have them automatically pair.
Depending on the type of device you’re trying to pair with the phone, that could eliminate the need for you to scan for new Bluetooth devices and then punch in a PIN code.
Anything that makes it easier to pair devices is good for Bluetooth technology. I expect NFC to work great with some Bluetooth products such as phones, headsets and handsfree calling systems in the car, but not so great with others, like surround speakers and A/V receivers, where conventional pairing will still be needed.
It will be interesting to see if other manufacturers follow Nokia’s lead and start adding NFC to their smartphones. Nokia used to be able to drive the ecosystem to ensure there were peripherals to support an initiative such as this. These days the company doesn’t have quiet as much pull, so unless another big player in the mobile industry such as Google or Apple decide to add NFC support to their smartphone operating system, this technology may face a slow adoption. |
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Date and Time:
04/09/2012
at
2:32 PM
Category:
Home Entertainment The diversity of Bluetooth speakers is amazing. I noticed that again recently when Samsung announced a new Bluetooth speaker dock with a rich, furniture-quality wood finish and exposed speaker cones. The Samsung DA-E750 costs an eye-opening $800, supports both Bluetooth and Apple’s Airplay technology, and includes a docking station for your iPhone or iPad.
Samsung DA-E750
Contrast that with the new Panasonic SC-MC07 Compact Wireless Stereo Speaker. This $70 Bluetooth wireless speaker is tiny. I mean really tiny – about the size and shape of a hockey puck (but white). It’s powered by a pair of AA batteries, or you can power it by plugging the speaker into a USB port.
Panasonic SC-MC07
Both speakers let you stream music from a Bluetooth phone, tablet or laptop, but the similarities end there. The Samsung model looks like something you’d want on display in a high-end home theater system. It even has a vacuum tube amplifier – something sure to please audiophiles.
The Panasonic looks like something you’d toss into a bag to take with you on the go. According to a CNET reporter who heard the Panasonic speaker: “It plays louder than you’d think for its size.”
When it comes to Bluetooth speakers, there’s no shortage of selection. I could find a wide range of speakers at every price point between these two models, in a huge variety of shapes, sizes and designs. There’s even a new “splash proof” Bluetooth speaker called the G-Go that you can use in a shower, if you want music everywhere in your house. Now that’s innovative. |
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Date and Time:
03/19/2012
at
11:41 AM
Category:
Health & Wellness By now you’ve probably heard of “wearable computing,” which tends to conjure up images of an MIT student wearing a miniature computer and sporting an odd-looking head-mounted display, perhaps with a keyboard or camera attached for added effect.
Few people have any desire to wear something so geeky-looking. But when it comes to sports and fitness, wearable devices are much more stylish and practical. They’re also going mainstream. They include cool products like the Nike FuelBand wristband that measures your workouts or the new Nike+ basketball shoes and training shoes the company plans to release this summer that will also use wireless sensors to measure performance.
All these Nike devices use Bluetooth technology, sending the information to an app on a Bluetooth enabled smartphone, tablet or laptop. The wearable fitness device market is hardly limited to Nike, however. A variety of other companies make smart watches, heart rate monitors, and other sensor-type devices you can strap on your wrist, arm, or chest or wear embedded in your shoes or clothing.
Many of these wearable devices include Bluetooth technology and come from Bluetooth SIG member companies such as Motorola, Polar and Wahoo Fitness.
Wearable devices with Bluetooth technology are also taking off in healthcare, with tiny wireless sensors you can wear on your body to detect blood glucose levels, body temperature, and other vital measurements.
Motorola MOTOACTV with Bluetooth wireless headphones
Tens of millions of wearable devices
A recent analyst report about the wearable devices market provides evidence of this growth. ABI Research predicts that over the next five years, the total market for wearable wireless devices in sports and healthcare will grow by 41 percent each year, to 169.5 million devices in 2017 from 20.77 million in 2011.
According to ABI: “The market for wearable sports and fitness activity sensors is set to explode over the next few years as a new generation of devices collect and automatically share data online. Nike, Adidas, and Motorola are just some of the companies to recently launch new wearable wireless products, and there are plenty more to follow them.”
The news media is also predicting growth. The Associated Press published a news video titled Wearable computing could take off that says the medical industry could lead the charge for wearable devices. One example cited is a Bluetooth enabled wristwatch with sensors to detect abnormal motions that could indicate seizures. The video also highlights several wearable fitness devices with Bluetooth technology, including the WIMM smart watch platform and Recon ski goggles.
As these powerful devices become even smaller and lighter, you won’t even notice you’re wearing them – nor will the people who look at you. |
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Date and Time:
03/07/2012
at
3:09 PM
Category:
Sports & Fitness; Tablets I’m happy to see that Apple incorporated Bluetooth v4.0 into the new iPad, creating the world’s first Bluetooth Smart Ready tablet. To anyone following the trajectory of Bluetooth v4.0, this news should come as no surprise. Apple has already released three other Bluetooth Smart Ready devices in the past nine months – the iPhone 4S, Mac mini and MacBook Air.
The addition of the new iPad to this lineup will have a big impact, because the iPad is more than just another hot new device – it’s a phenomenon that has millions of people talking about it. It’s also changing the face of computing, with some industry watchers predicting the surging popularity of the iPad will cause laptop sales to shrink. To have Bluetooth v4.0 in such a device means a lot.
What exactly does it mean that the new iPad is a Bluetooth Smart Ready device? It means that like those three other Bluetooth Smart Ready devices from Apple, the iPad will now be able to connect to billions of Bluetooth devices in use today, the growing ecosystem of new Bluetooth Smart devices and the apps that collect and display data from them.
I’m especially excited about the apps, because they transform information coming from Bluetooth Smart device sensors from data to useful information, whether the sensor is strapped to your chest, on your wrist, inside your bike pedal, embedded in your shoe or placed somewhere else.
A really good app can make almost any Bluetooth device more useful and engaging. Especially on the iPad, which has so much more screen space than any phone. Manufacturers who are smart will put as much effort into the apps as the device itself. Third-party software developers can also create apps for Bluetooth Smart devices, finding opportunities unfulfilled by device manufacturers.
With so much happening in the tablet market, I’m eager to watch it grow and develop in the months and years to come. No matter what happens, I’m sure Bluetooth technology will be an integral part of it. |
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Date and Time:
02/27/2012
at
4:20 PM
Category:
Health & Wellness If you wandered into the Health Informational and Management Systems (HIMSS) conference in Las Vegas last week, you would have seen 35,000 attendees and hundreds of companies intently discussing the latest medical devices and technologies. The show was filled with CIOs, CTOs and IT pros for hospitals and other large healthcare providers.
Top of mind for many of these healthcare technologists is how to send data from the rising number of medical devices in their facilities to the cloud, where this tidal wave of information can be securely shared by patients, doctors and other healthcare providers. Many of these devices use Wi-Fi to send their data, causing them to crowd onto the same wireless LAN and clogging Wi-Fi networks at hospitals and clinics.
 This is where Bluetooth technology can help. The frequency hopping capabilities of Bluetooth technology let it shine in so-called “chatty environments” like hospitals. Bluetooth leaves wireless LANs alone, using point-to-point wireless connectivity between devices.
Bluetooth technology is also energy efficient, with the Bluetooth v4.0 and its low energy technology allowing many medical devices to operate for months or years on just a button-cell battery. The same technology also features asset-based location tracking, helping hospitals and large clinics keep an eye on the expensive medical equipment scattered all over their facilities.
Bluetooth technology is also secure, using military-grade 128-bit AES encryption. This is an important consideration when you’re sending private health data about individuals over wireless connections.
(For technical details about how Bluetooth technology works in medical devices, see Bluetooth Low Energy Technology and Healthcare, from SIG member ConnectBlue.)
Making the rounds with Bluetooth
Doctors and other healthcare providers are starting to make their rounds with iPads and other tablets rather than the paper charts of yesteryear. These slim, portable devices are already able to communicate with Bluetooth medical devices, since Bluetooth technology is already built into virtually all tablets.
A doctor could collect data on his tablet from Bluetooth enabled wireless blood glucose monitors, pulse oximeters, heart rate monitors, weight scales, wireless stethoscopes and other medical devices made by Bluetooth SIG member companies such as Nonin, Polar and 3M.
 This is a time of rapid change in the medical device market, driven by wireless devices that are getting smaller and more capable all the time, with new applications and cloud storage to extend their reach.
With all these factors at work, I expect to see more and more Bluetooth medical devices in hospitals and medical clinics.
Just stick out your tongue and say “Aaaaaah,” then check the results on your tablet or smartphone. |
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Date and Time:
02/17/2012
at
10:20 AM
Category:
Bluetooth SIG This morning I sent a mail to the membership explaining a transition at the Executive Director position of Bluetooth SIG. I’ll write more about this and more reflections of my time with the SIG over the next couple of months. The Bluetooth SIG is a great organization and has a great future.
Here is the text of the mail sent to the membership:
For the past decade, the majority of my professional focus has been on fulfilling the mission of the Bluetooth SIG. During this time, the success of Bluetooth technology has been unparalleled. It is amazing to look back and think of the organization in 1999 when I first got involved. There weren’t any products, there weren’t any staff members, the organization was run entirely by committees of volunteers. Contrast that with today where there are over 5M products shipping every day from over 15,500 members from around the world who are supported by a dedicated team of 50 staff members across 7 countries.
It has been my honor to drive that mission forward. It’s been an amazing ride, full of innovation and creation. Some highlights:
- When I took over the executive director role in March 2004, the technology was version 1.2; since that time we’ve launched to the market versions 2.0, 2.1 + EDR, 3.0 with high speed hallmark feature, and 4.0 with low energy hallmark feature.
- That consistent innovation of the technology resulted in the proliferation of Bluetooth and the move from a niche technology to the global standard it is today. Since 2004, the number of Bluetooth shipments soared from less than 1M to over 5M per week.
- Global awareness of the Bluetooth brand had topped 85% at last measure (in 2008), and has become a household name today.
- Membership in the SIG grew from less than 3,500 in 2004 to over 4x that today - with 15,654 members at last count.
- The organization and the technology’s expansion from the headset, handset and automotive industries into virtually all lines of business has been an exciting thing to watch, and will continue to be in the coming years.
None of this happened by accident. I have had the opportunity to work with many talented individuals over the years, and it has been a pleasure. The second wave strategy is in place and going to be a huge success. The number of innovative products implemented with Bluetooth continues to expand. Rarely does a week go by that I don’t see a new product utilizing Bluetooth in new ways. The organization is solid and on its way to fulfilling its mission.
With the strength of the organization established and a solid strategy in place, I feel it’s time for me to embark on a new path as well. As such, I have been working with the Board of Directors on a transition plan. The Board is initiating a search to fill the Executive Director position. I will stay on with the organization for the next couple of months to help with the transition.
I appreciate the opportunity I have had with the Bluetooth SIG. It has truly been an honor working with all the members and my fellow staff mates over the years. While I will miss that, I also look forward to the future. |
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Date and Time:
02/14/2012
at
10:21 AM
Category:
Bluetooth SIG Sometimes I talk shop in this blog about decisions we’ve made here at the Bluetooth SIG. Our latest decision affects only SIG member companies, but it’s worth covering here, especially for the SIG members who read my blog.
The SIG Board of Directors has approved a mandatory enhancement to the Bluetooth specifications aimed at ensuring interoperability among Bluetooth enabled devices. The measure was created by the Bluetooth Qualification Review Board (BQRB). It defines valid subsystem combinations and excludes all other subsystem combinations.
This issue arose after some manufacturers interpreted the Bluetooth Core Specification differently than others. This led to a qualified subsystem that shipped in a product without a completely implemented host stack. The BQRB and SIG Board analyzed the situation and decided the current subsystem rules aren’t clear enough, so they decided to fix the issue by creating this measure (officially titled Erratum 4656).
The SIG Board adopted the measure to clarify the intent of the Specification and ensure that all qualified products follow the same rules regarding subsystems. The Board ultimately decided that the promise of compatibility with billions of Bluetooth devices already on the market is a core requirement of Bluetooth technology, and that the need to maintain interoperability is of paramount importance.
If the Specification has any ambiguities that could hurt interoperability, then we need to fix them. This measure is a step in that direction.
The measure could impact some products nearing release that do not meet the approved subsystem combinations. To smooth the transition for member companies in this situation, SIG members can apply for a waiver that will allow them to release such products. However, these products will not be allowed to use the Bluetooth logo.
Bluetooth SIG members can view the complete text of Erratum 4656 on the Adopted Specifications page of Bluetooth.org, our member website. |
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