Well it isn't some strange form of tooth decay as you might initially
imagine. Bluetooth is the name of a new technology that is now becoming
commercially available. It promises to change significantly the way we
use machines.
1 Take a look around
Look around you at the moment, you have your
keyboard connected to the computer, as well as a printer, mouse, monitor
and so on. What (literally) joins all of these together?, they are
connected by cables. Cables have become the bane of many offices, homes
etc. Most of us have experienced the 'joys' of trying to figure out what
cable goes where, and getting tangled up in the details. Bluetooth
essentially aims to fix this, it is a cable-replacement technology
2 How?
Conceived initially by Ericsson, before being
adopted by a myriad of other companies, Bluetooth is a standard for a small
, cheap radio chip to be plugged into computers, printers, mobile phones,
etc.A Bluetooth chip is designed to replace cables by taking the
information normally carried by the cable, and transmitting it at a
special frequency to a receiver Bluetooth chip, which will then give the
information received to the computer, phone whatever.
3 How about ?
That was the original idea, but the originators of
the original idea soon realised that a lot more was possible. If you can
transmit information between a computer and a printer, why not transmit
data from a mobile phone to a printer, or even a printer to a printer?.
The projected low cost of a Bluetooth chip (~$5), and its low power
consumption, means you could literally place one anywhere.
4 Ideas, ideas...
With this viewpoint interest in Bluetooth is
soaring, lots of ideas are constantly emerging, some practical and
feasible e.g.: Bluetooth chips in freight containers to identify cargo
when a lorry drives into a storage depot, or a headset that communicates
with a mobile phone in your pocket, or even in the other room, other ideas
not so feasible: Refrigerator communicating with your Bluetooth-enabled
computer, informing it that food supply is low, and to inform the retailer
over the internet.
5 The future, this website
Whatever the ideas, Bluetooth is set to take off. To
be honest it's going to be forced down the consumers necks, whether they
want it or not, as too many companies have invested in it. This website is
generally geared towards the technical issues surrounding Bluetooth, and
its implementation in real life. But free feel to have a look around
anyway, and see why this technology will have such a big impact on our
lives. If you're a complete beginner & you want to know more go
to the other pages on the website: the Tutorial has
a reasonably in-depth guide to Bluetooth (can be quite technical in parts
though), our members-only Download** page has
some more general introductions to Bluetooth to download. Also check out
the Resource Center, Articles,
Glossary & Knowledge
Base to further enhance your Bluetooth education. There are also
related Resource Centers on IEEE 802.11 WiFi
Wireless LANs, HomeRF, GPS,
SyncML, ZigBee and other
mobile and wireless technologies. Enjoy!
** Note that although many sections of this web site are freely
available, some require a free
membership and others are available only to paid
members.
6 Looking after your teeth
By the way if, you're wondering where the Bluetooth
name originally came from, it named after a Danish Viking and King, Harald
Blåtand (translated as Bluetooth in English), who lived in the latter
part of the 10th century. Harald Blåtand united and controlled Denmark
and Norway (hence the inspiration on the name: uniting devices through
Bluetooth). He got his name from his very dark hair which was unusual for
Vikings, Blåtand means dark complexion. However a more popular, (but less
likely reason), was that Old Harald had a inclination towards eating
Blueberries , so much so his teeth became stained with the colour, leaving
Harald with a rather unique set of molars. And you thought your teeth were
bad...
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