Bluetooth

Bluetooth is an open wireless protocol for exchanging data over short distances (using short length
radio waves) from fixed and mobile devices, creating personal area networks (PANs). It was originally
conceived as a wireless alternative to RS-232 data cables. It can connect several devices, overcoming
problems of synchronization.

Name and logo

The word Bluetooth is an anglicized version of Danish Blåtand, the epithet of the tenth-century
king Harald I of Denmark and Norway who united dissonant Danish tribes into a single
kingdom. The implication is that Bluetooth does the same with communications protocols,
uniting them into one universal standard.[1][2][3] Although blå in modern Scandinavic languages
means blue, during the Viking age it also could mean black. So a historically correct translation
of Old Norse Harald Blátönn would rather be Harald Blacktooth than Harald Bluetooth.

The Bluetooth logo is a bind rune merging the Germanic runes  (Hagall) and   (Berkanan

Implementation

Bluetooth uses a radio technology called frequency-hopping spread spectrum, which chops up
the data being sent and transmits chunks of it on up to 79 frequencies. In its basic mode, the
modulation is Gaussian frequency-shift keying (GFSK). It can achieve a gross data rate of 1
Mbit/s. Bluetooth provides a way to connect and exchange information between devices such as
mobile phones, telephones, laptops, personal computers, printers, Global Positioning System
(GPS) receivers, digital cameras, and video game consoles through a secure, globally unlicensed
Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) 2.4 GHz short-range radio frequency bandwidth. The
Bluetooth specifications are developed and licensed by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group
(SIG). The Bluetooth SIG consists of companies in the areas of telecommunication, computing,
networking, and consumer electronics.[4]

Uses

Bluetooth is a standard and a communications protocol primarily designed for low power
consumption, with a short range (power-class-dependent: 100m, 10m and 1m, but ranges vary in
practice; see table below) based on low-cost transceiver microchips in each device.[5] Bluetooth
makes it possible for these devices to communicate with each other when they are in range.
Because the devices use a radio (broadcast) communications system, they do not have to be in
line of sight of each other.[4]
 Maximum Permitted Power Range
Class
mW (dBm) (approximate)

Class 1 100 mW (20 dBm) ~100 metres

Class 2 2.5 mW (4 dBm) ~10 metres

Class 3 1 mW (0 dBm) ~1 metres

In most cases the effective range of class 2 devices is extended if they connect to a class 1
transceiver, compared to a pure class 2 network. This is accomplished by the higher sensitivity
and transmission power of Class 1 devices.

Version Data Rate

Version 1.2 1 Mbit/s

Version 2.0 + EDR 3 Mbit/s

How Bluetooth Technology Works

Bluetooth wireless technology is a short-range communications system intended to replace the
cables connecting portable and/or fixed electronic devices. The key features of Bluetooth
wireless technology are robustness, low power, and low cost. Many features of the Bluetooth
Core Specification are optional, allowing product differentiation.

The Bluetooth Core System consists of an RF transceiver, baseband, and protocol stack. The
system offers services that enable the connection of devices and the exchange of a variety of
data classes between these devices.

Why the name Bluetooth??

The name Bluetooth is taken from the 10th century Danish King Harald Blatand - or Harold Bluetooth in
English. During the formative stage of the Trade Association a code name was needed to name the
effort. Over an evening discussing European history and the future of wireless technology several felt it
was appropriate to name the technology after King Blatand.
Bluetooth devices

A Bluetooth USB dongle with a 100 m range.

Bluetooth exists in many products, such as telephones, the Wii, PlayStation 3, PSP Go, Lego
Mindstorms NXT and in some high definition watches[citation needed], modems and headsets. The
technology is useful when transferring information between two or more devices that are near
each other in low-bandwidth situations. Bluetooth is commonly used to transfer sound data with
telephones (i.e., with a Bluetooth headset) or byte data with hand-held computers (transferring
files).

Bluetooth protocols simplify the discovery and setup of services between devices. Bluetooth
devices can advertise all of the services they provide. This makes using services easier because
more of the security, network address and permission configuration can be automated than with
many other network types.

Mobile phone requirements

A mobile phone that is Bluetooth enabled is able to pair with many devices. To ensure the
broadest support of feature functionality together with legacy device support, the Open Mobile
Terminal Platform (OMTP) forum has published a recommendations paper, entitled "Bluetooth
Local Connectivity"[12]
Technical information
[edit] Bluetooth protocol stack
Main articles: Bluetooth stack and Bluetooth protocols

"Bluetooth is defined as a layer protocol architecture consisting of core protocols, cable

replacement protocols, telephony control protocols, and adopted protocols."[25] Mandatory
protocols for all Bluetooth stacks are: LMP, L2CAP and SDP. Additionally, these protocols are
almost universally supported: HCI and RFCOMM.

[edit] LMP (Link Management Protocol)

Used for control of the radio link between two devices. Implemented on the controller.

L2CAP (Logical Link Control & Adaptation Protocol)

Used to multiplex multiple logical connections between two devices using different higher level
protocols. Provides segmentation and reassembly of on-air packets.

In Basic mode, L2CAP provides packets with a payload configurable up to 64kB, with 672 bytes
as the default MTU, and 48 bytes as the minimum mandatory supported MTU.

In Retransmission & Flow Control modes, L2CAP can be configured for reliable or isochronous
data per channel by performing retransmissions and CRC checks.

Bluetooth Core Specification Addendum 1 adds two additional L2CAP modes to the core
specification. These modes effectively deprecate original Retransmission and Flow Control
modes:

 Enhanced Retransmission Mode (ERTM): This mode is an improved version of the original
retransmission mode. This mode provides a reliable L2CAP channel.
 Streaming Mode (SM): This is a very simple mode, with no retransmission or flow control. This
mode provides an unreliable L2CAP channel.

Reliability in any of these modes is optionally and/or additionally guaranteed by the lower layer
Bluetooth BDR/EDR air interface by configuring the number of retransmissions and flush
timeout (time after which the radio will flush packets). In-order sequencing is guaranteed by the
lower layer.

Only L2CAP channels configured in ERTM or SM may be operated over AMP logical links.

Allows a device to discover services support by other devices, and their associated parameters.
For example, when connecting a mobile phone to a Bluetooth headset, SDP will be used for
determining which Bluetooth profiles are supported by the headset (Headset Profile, Hands Free
Profile, Advanced Audio Distribution Profile etc) and the protocol multiplexer settings needed to
connect to each of them. Each service is identified by a Universally Unique Identifier (UUID),
with official services (Bluetooth profiles) assigned a short form UUID (16 bits rather than the
full 128)

Communication and connection

A master Bluetooth device can communicate with up to seven devices in a Wireless User Group.
This network group of up to eight devices is called a piconet.

A piconet is an ad-hoc computer network, using Bluetooth technology protocols to allow one
master device to interconnect with up to seven active devices. Up to 255 further devices can be
inactive, or parked, which the master device can bring into active status at any time.

At any given time, data can be transferred between the master and one other device, however, the
devices can switch roles and the slave can become the master at any time. The master switches
rapidly from one device to another in a round-robin fashion. (Simultaneous transmission from
the master to multiple other devices is possible, but not used much.)

The Bluetooth specification allows connecting two or more piconets together to form a
scatternet, with some devices acting as a bridge by simultaneously playing the master role in one
piconet and the slave role in another.

Many USB Bluetooth adapters are available, some of which also include an IrDA adapter. Older
(pre-2003) Bluetooth adapters, however, have limited services, offering only the Bluetooth
Enumerator and a less-powerful Bluetooth Radio incarnation. Such devices can link computers
with Bluetooth, but they do not offer much in the way of services that modern adapters do.

Setting up connections

Any Bluetooth device in discoverable mode will transmit the following information on demand:

 Device name
 Device class
 List of services
 Technical information (for example: device features, manufacturer, Bluetooth specification
used, clock offset)

Any device may perform an inquiry to find other devices to connect to, and any device can be
configured to respond to such inquiries. However, if the device trying to connect knows the
address of the device, it always responds to direct connection requests and transmits the
information shown in the list above if requested. Use of a device's services may require pairing
or acceptance by its owner, but the connection itself can be initiated by any device and held until
it goes out of range. Some devices can be connected to only one device at a time, and connecting
to them prevents them from connecting to other devices and appearing in inquiries until they
disconnect from the other device.
Every device has a unique 48-bit address. However, these addresses are generally not shown in
inquiries. Instead, friendly Bluetooth names are used, which can be set by the user. This name
appears when another user scans for devices and in lists of paired devices.

Most phones have the Bluetooth name set to the manufacturer and model of the phone by
default. Most phones and laptops show only the Bluetooth names and special programs are
required to get additional information about remote devices. This can be confusing as, for
example, there could be several phones in range named T610 (see Bluejacking).

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