Bluetooth may be set to become the new standard for the IoT
As the Internet of Things is gradually taking root and becoming a solid reality, interconnecting millions of sensors and data sources around the world, the automotive industry (and many others) are looking at a new significant development of Bluetooth, a standard which to date has mostly been used to connect wireless earphone and handsets with smartphones.
The Bluetooth Special Interest Group recently announced significant changes to the open network standard that may well make it the premier method for interconnecting devices. In particular, the new key features that will adopted shortly include extended range, increased speed and mesh networking.
The new Bluetooth standard has four times the range of traditional Bluetooth and is 100% faster. This makes it ideal not only for consumers interested in smart homes and wearable devices, but also for businesses that need to quickly and reliably connect point-to-point or point-to-multipoint infrastructural communication. Moreover, the Mesh Network is specially designed for devices interconnected in specific networks and provides a scalable IoT solution that is perfect for enterprises.
In a separate and equally significant update, Bluetooth Low Energy has announced that coin-sized batteries will now last for months or even years thanks to redesigned power management routines, something which is fundamental for IoT devices that spend a large percentage of time in standby.
With millions of devices that are already connected in the Internet of Things and the estimated 30 billion devices that should join the IoT over the next 5 years, the new Bluetooth standard will probably sweep past mobile adoption standards.
“Bluetooth has been adopted by countless developers and manufacturers as their connectivity solution of choice for the IoT,” explains Mark Powell, Executive Director, Bluetooth SIG. “The new functionality we will soon be adding will further solidify Bluetooth as the backbone of IoT technology.”