The first result of the collaboration was to support devices that use NFC technology for the contactless secure access, such as in applications of mobile payment. Still, the collaboration is working on medical devices (Health Device Profile – HDP) using Bluetooth, the Real Time operating system INTEGRITY of Green Hills.

In line with the dictates of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), the medical profile of Bluetooth devices has been developed in order to ensure that health care devices, used in the medical and fitness applications, the ability to transfer data between them in a safe and well defined, in wireless.

Recall that the health and medical devices market, increasingly make use of wireless technology to connect the various equipment. Most of the connections is between a processing device, for example, a home health station, a remote device or a computer, and portable devices, which may be the sensors monitoring heart rate, blood pressure or the level of glucose which have within them small air cards.
In this way data transmission can take place transparently to the user, without requiring any physical intervention.
plantronics bluetooth headset

After about a year and a half of work, Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) now seems close to the specification published Alternate MAC / PHY, which combine the advantages of Bluetooth such as the ability to rapidly establish connections peer (P2P) between multiple devices, with the high-speed data transfer of WiFi air cards.

To maximize battery life, the new specification requires WiFi to be used only when really necessary, for example, to transfer large files or to stream multimedia content. In practice, therefore, devices capable of supporting the new standard will continue to find and connect with each other using Bluetooth air cards: As soon as users start a transfer or playback of streaming content, the communication is passed to layer 802.11b / g, that will transfer data at maximum speed of 54 Mbps (802.11n support is likely to be added in future). Once the transfer or streaming is finished, WiFi is disconnected and the control returns to Bluetooth.

Bluetooth SIG says that Alternate MAC / PHY can be used, for example, to synchronize your library of music between PC and MP3 player, print photos directly from a camera or a TV to send a video stored on a mobile device.

The most interesting is that, as explained by a manager at Broadcom, some of its wireless chip already support Alternate MAC / PHY This suggests that some mobile devices on the market today can make use of the symbiosis between Bluetooth and WiFi with a simple firmware upgrade or the system software without the helping of any aircard.

The specific functionality provided by the Alternate MAC / PHY are made possible by the service Service Discovery Protocol of Bluetooth, which is able to negotiate with other wireless network protocols.

Being a sort of intermediary protocol, Bluetooth making it possible interoperability between different wireless technologies, significantly simplifying the communication between mobile devices. Some observers argue, however, that it would be more positive if the market converged toward a single standard, or at most two: the coexistence of several wireless technologies, although each optimized for a certain field of use, multiplies the radio circuits and integrated into aircards, consequently, their cost, their size and their energy consumption.