BLE is based upon the common Bluetooth wireless standard, but it has been completely retooled to minimize energy usage, thus allowing wireless devices to operate for years on a watch battery. It is this extraordinary battery life, combined with a ~100 meter range and a very low cost, which will make possible hundreds of applications not previously viable. Central to the BLE technology is the “beacon”. A beacon is a self-contained wireless device that can transmit its information to as far away as 100 meters, can host a range of sensors including temperature, humidity, direction, motion, and light, all in a package no bigger than a coin, at a cost of under $20, and with a battery lasting up to 2 years. Today, Smartphone Apps will “see” and respond to beacons, even if the Apps are not currently open on the phone, which is what makes this technology so transformative. What is most important about beacons is that they add context to applications. For example, by sensing a beacon in a coffee shop, a loyalty card App will know which coffee shop the patron is in and will be able to automatically determine if a free coffee award has been earned. Similarly, a Gallery App will know from a beacon which piece of Art a viewer is standing in front of and will thus be able to deliver the correct descriptive content. Robin Heydon says in his 2013 book about BLE: “Sometimes, once in a lifetime, a new technology comes along that changes the world; for example, AM radio, television, and wireless Internet. Bluetooth low energy is at the cusp of the next revolution…”

1. what’s a beacon?

2. Bluetooth Low Energy
Hardware, Software & Management

3. Also known as iBeacon, Bluetooth LE (Low Energy), BLE, or BTLE
http://www.bluetooth.com/Pages/Bluetooth-Smart.aspx

4. These little things…

5. …with a one year + battery life…

6. …and near universal compatibility with smartphones…

7. ...send out tiny, short range signals.
10’

8. Signals that smartphones can hear, and understand.
10’
50’

9. Prompting action when those messages are received…
10’
50’
200’+

10. proximity= nearness in location, time and relationship.
This tech isn’t about location… It is about
CC Photo courtesy: Architecture, Food & One Little Beautiful Girl

11. context
analyzing
CC Photo courtesy: Julian Fong

12. engagement
and enabling
when the conditions are just right.
CC Photo courtesy: U.S. Department of Agriculture

13. the next wave
of the ‘net
…they are

14. “the internet
of everything”
…what some are calling, one of the cornerstones of

15. http://www.bluetooth.com/Pages/Bluetooth-Smart.aspx
…beacons are about to become a very big deal.

16. cnet.com
How big?

17. cnet.com
How big?

18. we make beaconsand the software that makes them smarter.
www.BKON.com