Today’s IoT devices like smartwatches etc brought an extreme change and boom in healthcare & almost every field. The largest hurdle in making IoT devices is to find the right IoT platform for their devices. For this purpose, manufacturers choose Bluetooth platform together option. Bluetooth classic has been used previously in several products but because of factors like power consumption & cost, it’s not preferred for the internet of things.
In many use cases of IoT products, Bluetooth LE or Bluetooth Smart or Bluetooth version came into existence. Here we are about to explain Bluetooth Low energy in IoT uses, applications etc thoroughly.
Bluetooth Low Energy Platform for IoT devices
Bluetooth low energy technology is ideal for those applications that need the periodic transfer of a little amount of data. To permit connectivity between several devices and also the world around them, especially Bluetooth sig (special interest group) is formed to spread the span of this technology everywhere. Let’s have a glance at its factors, benefits and uses very well.
How does BLE technology work?
BLE data transfer is essentially a one-way communication. Let’s take an example of BLE beacons trying to communicate with a smartphone in close proximity – a Bluetooth Low Energy beacon device broadcasts packets of data at regular intervals of time. These data packets are detected by app/pre-installed services on smartphones nearby. This BLE communication triggers actions such as, pushing a message or promoting an app.
To save energy and provide higher data transfer speed, the entire Bluetooth BLE communication framework consists of 40 frequency channels, separated by 2MHz. 3 of these channels are the primary advertisement channels while the remaining 37 channels are secondary channels, also known as data channels. The Bluetooth communication starts with the 3 primary advertisement channel and then offloads to the secondary channels.
Key factors of Bluetooth LE
With the advancement of technology, each and everything has their pros and cons. Similarly, nowadays Bluetooth low energy IoT platform is most demandable as compared to Bluetooth classic due to the following key factors:
(i) Low cost:
As all we all know, whenever we head to the market and buy anything, the price is a key think about deciding what to buy or not. a similar thing is to use when making a decision the IoT platform. The cost of a Bluetooth LE chip/SOC is in a range of 2-3 $. If you wish a product which will run both the BLE Protocol stack likewise as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) Application then Texas Simple Link Bluetooth Smart Wireless MCU with USB is the better option. In the market, other silicon companies’ product like Atmel & ST is also available as per user requirement.
(ii) Low Power Consumption:
The major aspect of using BLE is lower power consumption which allows the device to run for years on a button size battery depending upon the usability. As compare to Bluetooth classic, the BLE device can respond & filter only required messages and maintain the connection between devices when there’s a requirement to transfer data.
(iii) Reduced data rate:
In the IoT-enabled device, whenever two devices are connected to transfer the data, the rate at which data transfers plays an important role. BLE transfers data rate within the range of 1 Mbps or more is enough for an IoT-enabled device which makes it more demandable than Bluetooth classic.
(iv) Typical Range:
As per the device specification, the range of Bluetooth LE isn’t limited. It mostly depends on the hardware and antenna capability. The common range for Bluetooth LE is 100m (330 ft).
BLE using Smartphone as a gateway in IoT
Internet of things uses a smartphone as a gateway with the BLE platform. As shown within the figure above, the smartphone can work as a gateway and uses the cloud through its Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G, or GSM connection. Depending upon the need the gateway is often permanent or temporary, you’ll be able to use different gateways as per your requirement and availability. A smartphone shown above is connected as a user interface to a BLE device. When phone app starts running, it simultaneously reads and transfers data from the device to an internet service. In the case of wearables or IoT device, health or medical Bluetooth low energy sensor sends and transfers data to a phone app and hospital connected Internet service.
BLE Applications
With the convenience of usability and efficiency, BLE goes to be an honest platform in every field. Following its applications are:
Healthcare: It utilized in health-related smart devices like blood glucose monitor, heart rate and blood pressure.
Sports & Fitness: many fitness trackers with Bluetooth low energy technology can share your fitness data with your smartphones. Examples are Fitbit bands, Nike+ Fuel band SE etc.
Electronic devices: For smartphone connectivity, various electronic devices like air conditioners, lights, fans etc have Bluetooth LE.
Smart Locks: Like devices, nowadays smart locks with BLE also came into existence can open/close as per the instruction is given by smartphone.
