20 Aug 2007

History of Bluetooth

Why is it called Bluetooth?
The name Bluetooth draws its inspiration from the 10th century king of Denmark, Harald Bluetooth. History suggests that Harald's aggressive diplomatic policies led to the unification of previously warring tribes of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Like Harald, Bluetooth technology is about communication - allowing different devices from cell phones to televisions, cars and even earpieces to communicate and network with each other in one simple uninterrupted flow. The Bluetooth Logo is based on the H and B runes from Harald's name.

History of Bluetooth Technology
The Bluetooth movement was launched in 1994 by Ericsson, a Swedish company, in order to eliminate clutter in homes and offices. In 1998, Bluetooth technology was starting to take shape and led to the development of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG); the founding members IBM, Intel, Nokia, Toshiba and Ericsson officially threw their weight behind Bluetooth technology. Within six months, the success and versatility of Bluetooth technology was apparent, and other companies joined the initiative. From there, adoption of the Bluetooth standard exploded, growing into the global presence that it is today.

Evolution of the Bluetooth Standard
Bluetooth technology was designed to permit data and voice exchange at rates up to1 Mbps per second. Initially, the standard used short range radio links in the 2.GHz Instrumentation Scientific and Medical (ISM) "free band." The early coverage range of Bluetooth devices hovered around 5 meters, but now - after expanding into the 700-800 kb bandwidth - it generally attains a range of about 10 meters, where its seamless radio connections create what's known as a Personal Wireless Network. The transmission frequency range for Bluetooth sits between 2.4 and 2.4835 GHz, with a maximum transfer speed of, typically, 2.0 Mbps per second (some devices manage up to 3 Mbps per second). The range, effectiveness, and speed of Bluetooth technology continues to grow, thanks to the work of the Bluetooth SIG.