Every year, the Bluetooth® community makes major strides in wireless innovation, overcoming challenges and creating an even stronger, more interoperable network of global connectivity. Here is a look back at some of the accomplishments the Bluetooth community achieved in 2019.
New Bluetooth Direction Finding Enhances Location Services
To meet the demand for even greater performance and more precise location services capabilities, the Bluetooth® member community added a new direction finding capability that brings a time-tested method for determining signal direction to proven, trusted Bluetooth technology.
This new feature holds the potential to significantly enhance the performance of Bluetooth Location Services solutions. Bluetooth Direction Finding enables Bluetooth devices to determine the direction of a Bluetooth signal, enabling the development of Bluetooth proximity solutions that can understand device direction and Bluetooth positioning systems that can achieve down to centimeter-level location accuracy. Examples of key application areas include item finding and point of interest (POI) information solutions, as well as real-time location and indoor positioning systems.
“Bluetooth has emerged as the technology of choice for location services.”
Fabio Belloni, Quuppa
Download this paper, Enhancing Bluetooth Location Services with Direction Finding, to see how the new direction finding feature will enhance the performance of Bluetooth Location Services solutions.
Member Companies Prove the Long-Range Capabilities of Bluetooth
It’s a common misperception that Bluetooth® technology is only an effective solution for short-range applications. In truth, Bluetooth technology supports a wide spectrum of achievable ranges between two devices, providing developers tremendous flexibility. For years, companies have been developing and testing long-range Bluetooth solutions to meet various market needs. It’s been proven that a Bluetooth signal can be reliably received by another device more than a kilometer away.
Check out these videos and articles to see how leading innovators verify the extended range capabilities of Bluetooth technology. For a comprehensive overview of Bluetooth range as well as an interactive estimator that will help you calculate the expected range between two Bluetooth devices, visit: Understanding Bluetooth Range.
Bluetooth Paves the Way for Connected Lighting Platforms
With its capability to seamlessly connect tens, hundreds, or even thousands of devices on a single network, Bluetooth® Mesh is quickly becoming a sought-after solution for device network infrastructures. With more than 400 qualified Bluetooth Mesh products and a number of real-world implementations, Bluetooth Mesh is making a big impact in the smart building market. Nowhere has this impact been more apparent than in connected lighting.
Just as smartphones incorporate the functions of multiple devices, from clocks to maps to cameras, Bluetooth enabled luminaires can combine multiple components that were traditionally thought of as separate. With Bluetooth enabled lighting, the radio, sensors, microprocessor, and controller are all built-in, allowing for the seamless creation of a full, multi-purpose device network built on a commercial lighting infrastructure. Beyond serving as a control platform for lighting, these luminaries can support a range of other Bluetooth enabled services, from asset tracking and wayfinding to point of interest information and space utilization.
“The value of additional services enabled by smart lighting is seven to ten times more valuable than the lighting controls and energy savings themselves.”
Szymon Slupik, Silvair
Download this paper, Bluetooth Mesh Networking: Paving the Way for Smart Lighting, to discover how this innovative technology can turn wireless connectivity into a smart lighting wireless platform.
Bluetooth Trends Up in Emerging Markets
While Bluetooth® technology has played an integral role in traditional markets, like audio, automotive, and phones, tablets, and PCs, it also fills a critical role in emerging commercial and industrial markets around the world — from smart homes to smart buildings to smart cities.
According to the 2019 Bluetooth Market Update, which is supported by forecasts from ABI Research and insights from several other analyst firms, new trends in emerging Bluetooth markets show increased global adoption of Bluetooth technology across commercial and industrial sectors. All forecasts predict that Bluetooth technology will continue to power the expansion of emerging markets for the foreseeable future.
For a complete look at new trends and forecasts in emerging Bluetooth markets, as well as data and insights in traditional consumer markets, download the 2019 Bluetooth Market Update.
Location Services Use Cases Drive Operational Efficiency
Location services solutions now play an important role in driving efficiencies for a range of global facilities, tracking key assets and staff for manufacturers, hospitals, warehouses, and more. They’ve also supported new proximity marketing tools for retailers and are being used to support secure access control in commercial and industrial environments. As such, analysts predict that by 2023, more than 1.7 billion handsets will be actively engaged in Bluetooth Location Services.
Check out this infographic to see how Bluetooth® Location Services enhance building efficiencies and create a better visitor experience. Also, find out what’s driving the rapid adoption of location services solutions around the world.
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