Bluetoothtechnology,developedbyEricssonMobile.docVIP

Bluetooth technology, developed by Ericsson Mobile Communications, a worldwide telecommunications company based in Sweden, is fast becoming the worldwide standard for short-range wireless communication. The technology was originally developed to easily connect cell phones with peripheral devices such as personal computers. However, other potential applications for home and office quickly emerged. Today, over 2000 companies have joined the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, which coordinates the royalty-free licensing of Bluetooth technology. Bluetooth is growing so rapidly that Merrill Lynch predicts that by 2005 there will be more than 2.1 billion Bluetooth compatible devices on the market. Bluetooth uses Radio Frequencies (RF) to transmit and receive signals in the ISM Band. This is an unlicensed frequency range operating between 2.4 and 2.48 GHz. The ISM band is used by a host of wireless applications including some cordless phones, 802.11 and HomeRF technologies, baby monitors, garage door openers and microwaves. In order to prevent interference with other devices, Bluetooth employs a spread-spectrum frequency-hopping technique which takes a narrowband signal and spreads it over a broader portion of the available radio frequency band. This spreading is accomplished by frequency-hopping, a technique developed for encryption that relies on the sender and receiver agreeing on a pre-defined “hop” sequence for frequency variation. Since only the intended receiver is aware of the transmitter’s hopping pattern, only that receiver can make sense of the data being transmitted. Spread spectrum frequency hopping ensures Bluetooth’s security and limits interference. The Bluetooth 1.0 specification allows for a gross data transfer rate of 1Mbps. However, this is a theoretical maximum for half-duplex data transmission. Full duplex transmission is accomplished at 432.6 Kbps. The Bluetooth specification can support three synchronous voice channels at 64 Kbps ea