Analysis of Bluetooth Technology

Most people associate Bluetooth technology with cell phone use and hands-free capability while driving. While this is certainly one of the most pervasive uses of the technology, Bluetooth’s continued development offers a range of possibilities beyond its current uses. Furthermore, many companies and services using Bluetooth technology would do well to better advertise the use of this communication system, as the general public is often not aware of the capabilities associated with the technology. According to Lawrence Harte in his book about the development of Bluetooth technology, Bluetooth is defined as a standardized technology that is used in the creation of temporary and short-range communication systems. Furthermore, Bluetooth wireless personal area networks, known as WPANs, allow connections between portable communication devices and accessories (Harte n.p.). While the technical terminology used to discuss Bluetooth often deters people from a thorough understanding of this useful technology, an analysis of its major concepts and components can help unveil the mystery and illuminate the possibilities of its use.

Bluetooth technology was first developed in 1993 by Ericsson as a means for the creation of smaller cell phones and communication between devices such as laptops and PDAs with other devices wirelessly (Harte n.p.). The technology evolved from the conception of simply replacing wired systems with wireless setups mimicking simple radio technology to the much more dynamic WPAN it functions as today (Harte n.p.). Several years after Ericsson, other companies began negotiating a special interest group (SIG) that would serve to promote and develop Bluetooth technology (Harte n.p.). In 1999, the first version of the technology, Bluetooth 1.0, was released; it was followed by the production and sale of 83 marketed items featuring Bluetooth capability the following year (Harte n.p.). According to a recent article in Connexion, a tech news publication, today there are more than a billion devices using Bluetooth technology globally, attesting to the rapid adoption of this rather simple means of communication (“Bluetooth Wireless Connection is Key”). In an article published by the IEEE, P. McDermott-Wells provides an early overview of the key features of Bluetooth technology that would allow for the popularization of its use:

1) it is an open specification that is publicly available and royalty free; 2) its short-range wireless capability allows peripheral devices to communicate over a single air-interface, replacing the cables that use connectors with a multitude of shapes, sizes and numbers of pins; 3) Bluetooth supports both voice and data, making it an ideal technology to enable many types of devices to communicate; and 4) Bluetooth uses an unregulated frequency band available anywhere in the world. (McDermott-Wells 33)

McDermott, among others that are members of the SIG, believed even a decade ago that the production of new technology devices and applications not even yet fathomed would allow for a network system of communication via Bluetooth that made everyone’s lives easier.

Bluetooth technology is a system that works via operation in 2.4 GHz uncontrolled frequency bands. Harte explains that Bluetooth employs a rather low radio transmission power, ranging from 1 milliwatt to 100. In regards to the “uncontrolled” nature of the frequency, this means that there is unlicensed use; however, this often also means interference with other devices operating on the same frequency band (Harte n.p.). Although the frequency band is uncontrolled for users of the devices using Bluetooth technology, companies that manufacture the devices must conform to government regulations in their respective countries (Harte n.p.). Bluetooth functions within the same frequency band as several other devices, so there is always some level of interference. Harte cites, “common types of other 2.4 GHz devices that Bluetooth interferes with include cordless telephones, microwave ovens, wireless cameras, and 802.11 wireless LAN,” with 802.11 causing the most problems for transmission (n.p).

Technologies designed to eliminate interference and maximize the potential of Bluetooth have been developed to address criticisms of the technology. In WPAN systems, frequency hopping spread spectrum (FHSS), a transmission process in which a communicated message is sent on a regularly changing or hopping frequency, making them difficult to detect (Harte n.p.). The system of frequency hopping, which operates on a programmed code, was initially used by the military to protect communicated messages (Harte n.p.). According to Harte,

Because Bluetooth transmits over a wide frequency bandwidth of 79 channels, much of the Bluetooth packets will get through even the toughest interference sources. Because Bluetooth transmits at such low power, the amount of interference Bluetooth causes to other systems is low. Bluetooth specification 1.2 introduced adaptive frequency hopping (AFH) that can reduce the effects of interference between Bluetooth and other types of devices. (n.p.)

The AFH alters channel sharing to avoid any significant interference by other devices (Harte n.p.). Using these interference avoidance techniques allows devices in proximity to acknowledge each other and avoid using the same frequency (Harte n.p.). Security concerns will continue to be an issue for Bluetooth technology use, but this is true of almost any technology of this nature. Researcher Satwant Kaur is more suspicious of the cybersecurity threats involved with Bluetooth technology, blaming its “lack of centralized administration and security enforcement infrastructure” for its “serious security vulnerabilities” (95).

Nonetheless, the use of Bluetooth technology is perpetually growing. Among the newest applications are proximity and, perhaps ironically, security applications, which alert users to other communication devices in the area. What this translates to in everyday use is the remote control convenience of anything from garage doors to logging into a personal computer (“Bluetooth Wireless Technology is Key”). In an article in Wireless News, the company Bluegiga Technologies announced this year’s launch of Bluetooth Smart Software to be used for over-the-air updates on iOS (Apple) and Android (Google) smartphones and smartwatches, eliminating the need for wired connection updates, i.e. via USB cables. From small scale convenience features like software updates on smartphones to the ability to control the security system on one’s home, Bluetooth continues to open the doors, both literally and figuratively, for easy access and everyday convenience of the products we use most. Other areas of use that Bluetooth is proposed to become more popular includes the medical field for purposes such as devices used for monitoring and recording vital statistics of patients such as heart rate or blood sugar levels (“Bluetooth Wireless Technology is Key”). Another tech news article boasts the use potential of the technology to include “new application opportunities for products within the mobile phone, consumer electronics, PC, automotive, health & wellness, sports & fitness and smart home industries” in the newest Bluetooth Version 4.0, which was released in 2012 (“Bluetooth Special Interest Group”).

In an article from IEEE’s journal, Pervasive Computing, editor Franklin Reynolds describes the protocols, profiles, and configurations of Bluetooth technology: “Bluetooth devices fall into three power classes. Each class has different maximum power output. More power means greater transmission range. Bluetooth also defines several native profiles” (6). The most important protocols highlighted by Reynolds include Radio Frequency Communication (RFCOMM), the Service Discovery Protocol (SDP), object exchange (OBEX), the Bluetooth Network Emulation Protocol (BPEM), and personal area network (PAN), the latter two providing IP over Bluetooth (Reynolds 6). Other protocols include special configurations for audio transmissions that would be used in devices like wireless headphones (Reynolds 6). The list of common protocols helps to visualize the many different modes and configurations for Bluetooth that suggests its variety of current and potential uses. The easy-to-use security mechanisms associated with Bluetooth technology are an important part of its specification. Reynolds explains that Bluetooth technology security is link level, which means “it provides visibility, authentication, authorization, and encryption of communication between locally connected hosts,” which addresses the concerns of the uncontrolled or unregulated frequency operations described earlier.

The potential for the use of Bluetooth technology is still in its infancy. Members of the SIG continue to suggest Bluetooth’s impact on the potential for the Internet of Things, and envisioned interconnectivity environment of the future. The Internet of Things, a term that has been floating around since as early as the 1990s, is described by Roy Want, Bill Schlitt, and Dominik Laskowski as the bridge between the physical world and the virtual world. Bluetooth’s proximity applications are a move towards this realization of the ability to identify other devices and objects within the immediate area. The low cost, low energy Bluetooth technology has been imagined for implementation for systems of mass transportation, in an effort to maximize the efficiency of scheduling; this is just one of the ways researchers like Nicole Radu Mârsanu and Radu Gabriel Cioban imagine the implications for Bluetooth technology in the broader context of information systems.

Bluetooth technology can no longer be imagined as simply a wireless technology for use while driving one’s car. The implications of this low-cost, low-frequency transmission technology are only beginning to be realized in the global market of over a billion devices. The future holds promise for the expansion of Bluetooth technology into our everyday lives in simple ways and also in potentially life-changing systems in regards to health and security. Bluetooth is a fantastic example of an early technology reimagined. The anachronistic radio has made its comeback.

Works Cited

"Bluegiga Technologies Accelerates Bluetooth Smart Accessory Development for Android and iOS Devices." Wireless News 30 Nov. 2013.Business Insights: Global. Web. 3 Dec. 2013.

"Bluetooth Special Interest Group; Bluetooth SIG Expands Board of Directors to Support Bluetooth(R) Technology Growth Trajectory." Telecommunications Weekly (2012): 90. ProQuest. Web. 3 Dec. 2013.

"Bluetooth wireless technology is key." GEO: Connexion June 2010: 9. Business Insights: Global. Web. 3 Dec. 2013.

Harte, Lawrence. Introduction to Bluetooth: Technology, Market, Operation, Profiles, & Services. Althos, 2004. Web. 2 December 2013.

Kaur, Satwant. "How to Secure our Bluetooth Insecure World!" IETE Technical Review 30.2 (2013): 95-101. ProQuest. Web. 3 Dec. 2013.

Mârsanu, Nicolae Radu, and Radu Gabriel Ciobanu. "A Bluetooth Solution for Public Information Systems." Informatica Economica15.1 (2011): 140-50. ProQuest. Web. 4 Dec. 2013.

McDermott-Wells, P. "What is Bluetooth?" IEEE Potentials 23.5 (2004): 33-5. ProQuest. Web. 4 Dec. 2013.

Reynolds, F., "Whither Bluetooth?" Pervasive Computing, IEEE ,.7.3 (2008): 6-8. Web. 3  Dec. 2013.