Bluetooth Classic vs Bluetooth LE

Beacons use Bluetooth Low Energy (LE). Some people confuse this with ‘Bluetooth Classic’ so here’s concise explanation.

Bluetooth Classic or, more technically, Basic Rate/Enhanced Data Rate (BR/EDR) is an older Bluetooth standard announced in 1998. Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) was introduced in 2010, as part of the Bluetooth 4.0 specification. It came out of Nokia’s previous Wibree technology.

Although Bluetooth Classic is older, it is not obsolete and is instead used for different types of applications such as streaming audio and video. Bluetooth Classic is used when transferring files by Bluetooth between devices, such as photos, videos, and documents. It’s also commonly used for hands-free calling in vehicles. Bluetooth Classic is also used in medical devices such as glucose meters, blood pressure monitors, and heart rate monitors to transmit data to smartphones or other devices. Bluetooth Basic Rate/Enhanced Data Rate (BR/EDR) requires pairing, the process of establishing a secure wireless connection between the two Bluetooth-enabled devices.

Bluetooth LE is designed for applications that require lower power consumption and low data transfer rates such as fitness trackers, smartwatches, beacons and other IoT devices. It uses a different protocol for data transmission which allows it to achieve higher throughput using smaller packet sizes. Bluetooth LE does not need pairing.

Both Bluetooth Classic and Bluetooth LE use the 2.4GHz unlicensed frequency band which is part the industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) frequency band. Bluetooth Classic and Bluetooth LE differ in how they use the frequency and can coexist together.

Tracking Work in Progress (WIP) with Bluetooth Beacons

Work-in-progress (WIP) monitoring is tracking the progress of production. It allows managers to make informed decisions about resource allocation and scheduling as well as determine the current status of a job or subassembly. Work-in-progress (WIP) monitoring is part of Industry 4.0, the term used to describe the fourth industrial revolution, which use digital technologies to create more efficient and automated production processes.

WIP monitoring saves costs by identifying bottlenecks in the production process, reduces the amount manual tracking and enables proactive decisions. Also, real-time data can be used to optimise production schedules and minimise downtime, reducing the overall cost of production.

Tracking work in progress (WIP) has several advantages for manufacturing and production operations:

  • Improved Production Planning: By tracking WIP, manufacturers can better understand how much inventory they have at each stage of production, which can help them plan for future production runs, adjust staffing levels, and optimise production schedules.
  • Better Resource Allocation: WIP tracking can help identify areas of the production process where resources are being over-utilised or under-utilised. This information can be used to allocate resources more efficiently, reducing waste and increasing productivity.
  • Quality Control: WIP tracking can help identify quality issues earlier in the production process, allowing manufacturers to take corrective action before the product reaches the final assembly stage. This can reduce the amount of rework required and improve overall product quality.
  • Reduced Lead Times: By tracking WIP, manufacturers can identify bottlenecks in the production process and take action to resolve them more quickly. This can help reduce lead times and improve on-time delivery to customers.
  • Cost Savings: By optimising production schedules and resource allocation, WIP tracking can help manufacturers reduce costs associated with over-production, inventory storage, and waste.

Bluetooth beacons can be used to track WIP by attaching a small, low-power Bluetooth device to each job or unit of production. These beacons transmit a unique signal that can be detected by Bluetooth-enabled gateways located throughout the production line. This allows for real-time tracking of the location and status of each job or unit of production.

Some legacy system use barcodes or RFID for WIP tracking. The problem with these is the information is only as up-to-date as the last scan. Bluetooth beacons transmit all the time allowing for real-time tracking of WIP with no manual scanning. Additionally, Bluetooth beacons can be easily integrated with existing IoT infrastructure, making them a cost-effective solution for WIP monitoring. RFID and barcodes, on the other hand, require specialised equipment to read the tags. Bluetooth beacons can transmit data up to 100 meters or more, also making them more suitable for large spaces such as warehouses and factories.

Bluetooth beacons

BeaconRTLS™

Configuring Bluetooth Beacons

The configuration of a Bluetooth beacon can vary depending on the manufacturer and the specific use case. However, in general, the configuration includes iBeacon settings such as the beacon’s UUID (Universally Unique Identifier), major and minor values, transmit power, advertising interval, and other parameters that define the behaviour of the beacon.

  • UUID: This is a 128-bit value that uniquely identifies the beacon. It can be used by an application to identify a beacon among many others in the vicinity.
  • Major and Minor values: These are 16-bit values that can be used to group beacons into different categories or to identify specific beacons within a group.
  • Transmit power: This setting determines the strength of the signal transmitted by the beacon. A higher transmit power will increase the range of the beacon, but will also consume more battery power.
  • Advertising interval: This setting determines how often the beacon broadcasts its signal. A shorter interval will provide more frequent updates on the beacon’s location, but will also consume more battery power.

These settings are configured using smartphone apps. These use Bluetooth GATT (Generic Attribute Profile), a protocol used to define the way that data is exchanged between Bluetooth devices. Some beacon manufacturers also publish how they use Bluetooth GATT’s services and characteristics to update these settings so that you can also update them via your own apps or from other Bluetooth devices.

Automatic Attendance Tracking in Education

Advantages of using Bluetooth beacons for automatic attendance tracking in education include:

  • Improved accuracy: Bluetooth beacons can accurately detect the presence of students in the classroom, reducing the likelihood of errors in attendance tracking.
  • Time-saving: Automating attendance tracking with Bluetooth beacons can save time for teachers and administrative staff, as they do not need to manually record attendance.
  • Real-time tracking: Bluetooth beacons can provide real-time attendance tracking data, allowing teachers and administrative staff to monitor attendance in real-time.
  • Safety and security: Alerts can be provided when students enter prohibited areas.

Bluetooth beacons can be used for automatic attendance tracking in education by placing them in the classroom or lecture hall and configuring them to detect the presence of students’ Bluetooth-enabled devices such as smartphones or tablets. When a student enters the range of the beacon, the beacon sends a signal to their device, which can then be used to record their attendance. The main problem with this setup is that students might accidentally disable detection. Not all smartphones/tablets work the same and there can be incompatibilities and the requirement for high levels of support. Also, a detection app needs to be created and distributed. The scanning for beacons can also reduce smartphone/tablet battery life.

An alternative setup is to have the students carry the beacons and use gateways to detect attendance. Data is set to a server running software such as BeaconRTLS™ or BeaconServer™. Attendance reports can run against the historical RTLS data.

Which Beacons to Buy?

There’s an old, yet pertinent, post at Hotel Online, by Dr. Michael Arner is the Chief Technology Officer of RoamingAround, on How Do You Choose Which Beacons to Have Faith In? The article questions the merits of being tied in to a particular supplier’s hardware or software features.

The article gives the opinions:

“If you’re a beacon merchant, I suppose it’s great to have clients that are willing to shackle themselves to your super-special hardware, but if you’re the consumer, it’s usually best to avoid doing so when you can.”

“In reality, iOS and Android devices can both speak to both protocols and there are very few reasons why you shouldn’t be choosing a solution that’s beacon agnostic.”

Regarding security:

“There exist beacons which maintain proprietary end-to-end encryption, and these should be purchased, in the very rare case they’re needed”

On Customer service:

“Multiply-source your vendors and then you’ll discover that the decisive factor ends up being not the device stats but the customer service”

There’s also the issue of longevity. Since the article was written, many beacon SAAS platforms with tied hardware have ceased to be in business.

Summarising the advice in the article, look beyond what’s being offered or promoted by vendors. They will always be promoting their unique selling points but those might not actually be the decisive factors for your project.

Read about the advantages of generic beacons

Beacons for Smart Space Management

Smart space management refers to the use of technology to optimise the use and efficiency of physical spaces such as buildings, offices, factories, and other facilities. This involves integrating various systems such as lighting, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), security, and occupancy sensors, to create a more intelligent and responsive environment that can adapt to the needs of users and the environment.

The benefits of smart space management include improved energy efficiency, reduced operating costs, enhanced security and safety, increased productivity and employee satisfaction, and better utilisation of resources. By using real-time data from sensors and other devices, smart space management systems optimise the use of space, automate routine tasks, and provide valuable insights into how spaces are being used, enabling better decision-making and resource allocation.

Bluetooth beacons can be used for smart space management by providing a way to track and monitor the location of people and assets within a space. Beacons are small, low-cost devices that use Bluetooth technology to communicate with other devices such as smartphones, WiFi gateways, and other connected devices. By placing beacons throughout a space, it’s possible to track the movements of people and assets, and gather data on how spaces are being used.

For example, beacons can be used to track occupancy of employees within an office building, enabling more efficient use of meeting rooms and other shared spaces. They can also be used to monitor the movement of equipment, machinery, goods and materials. Additionally, beacons can be used for indoor navigation, providing visitors with directions to specific locations within a building and helping to improve the overall user experience.

View beacons

Using Beacons to Mitigate Staff Duress

Staff duress, also known as employee duress or worker duress, is where employees may feel threatened, intimidated, or unsafe while performing their job duties. This can occur in a variety of industries, including healthcare, education, retail, hospitality, and security.

Problems associated with staff duress include:

  • Employee safety: If employees feel threatened or unsafe, it can have a negative impact on their well-being, job satisfaction, and productivity.
  • Employer liability: Employers have a legal obligation to provide a safe working environment for their employees. Failure to do so can result in legal action and financial penalties.
  • Costly incidents: If an employee is injured due to a safety issue, it can result in costly workers’ compensation claims, lawsuits, and reputational damage to the employer.

Beacons with buttons, used with real time locating systems, can help mitigate staff duress by providing a quick and effective way for employees to signal for help in an emergency situation. These devices have a wearable or handheld button that employees can press to trigger an alert. The alert is then sent to a designated response team, who can quickly assess the situation and provide assistance as needed.

Beacons with buttons can be especially useful in industries where employees work alone or in remote locations. They can also be helpful in schools and universities, where teachers and staff members may be at risk of violence or other safety threats.

Beacons with buttons

Using Beacons for Intelligent In-Room Presence Detection

Most Beacon usecases involve putting beacons on things or in places and triggering notifications on users’ phones. There’s a paper by Yang Yang, Zhouchi Li and Kaveh Pahlavan of Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), Worcester, MA that instead proposes Using iBeacon for Intelligent In-Room Presence Detection.

Their system records users in a room for applications such as graduate seminar check-in, security and in and out counting. It recognises in room presence by analysing path loss and door motion readings to decide whether a person is inside the room. Their custom app receives the beacon data and sends it to a server for analysis. They experimented using two iBeacons, one attached to the outside of the door with another mirroring at the inside and also as single iBeacon implementation that still performed well.

presencedetection

The paper also a useful chart showing the variation of RSSI with how a phone is held:

rssivspostion

The iBeacon Protocol

iBeacon is a protocol developed by Apple that uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to transmit a signal that can be picked up by nearby devices, such as smartphones. The iBeacon protocol format is based on the standard BLE advertising packet, which is a small amount of data that is broadcast at regular intervals.

The iBeacon protocol format includes the following components:

  • Proximity UUID: This is a unique identifier that is used to identify a group of beacons. It is typically a 128-bit value.
  • Major and Minor: This is a 16-bit value that is used to identify a specific beacon within a group of beacons.
  • Measured Power: This is a value that is used to indicate the expected signal strength of the beacon at a distance of one meter. This value is used to estimate the distance between the device and the beacon.

Together, the Proximity UUID, Major, and Minor values make up a unique identifier for each beacon, which can be used to determine the beacon’s location or trigger an action on a nearby device.

It’s worth noting that the iBeacon protocol is one of the many implementations of BLE beacons, and other protocols and vendors have different formats.

Beacon Advertising Cheat Sheet