Healthy OutlookWritten by Jackie Zack An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but some aspects of healthy living demand a bit more attention. Bluetooth technology makes it possible to partner with doctors in mapping out a plan for managing personal health. There are more than 20 million devices in use in the health and fitness arena that use Bluetooth wireless technology to monitor and transmit vital statistics. But that is just the beginning. The expected adoption of the new Bluetooth low energy specification in late 2009 will result in greater market expansion in personal health care products. The new specification is power efficient; a device with a button cell battery, for example, could run for a year or more. With the new Bluetooth specification, this short-range wireless technology will allow users to connect their mobile phones with a new generation of small battery-powered devices such as watches, emergency pendants and sensor based monitors. Those devices will talk directly to Web-based applications for the ultimate in health care interoperability. Billions of new devices are expected. “Health and fitness is the coming evolution of Bluetooth technology. It is going to explode within the low energy space to enable more and different classes of devices and open up new markets,” says Diana Hoffman, senior marketing manager for the Bluetooth SIG. While many health and fitness devices already use classic Bluetooth technology, the low energy specification is expected to enhance that technology in many categories, including health, disease and medication management as well as fitness tracking and remote biosensor measurement. With Bluetooth low energy technology, health and fitness devices will be able to act as a collection point for data that can be transferred to another user or device. This technology will enhance health and fitness management: - A patient with chronic health issues can collect data from a blood pressure device or oxygen meter, communicate it to a healthcare center and receive near-real-time feedback.
- Instead of being tested at a hospital, a heart patient can monitor his ECG output remotely through the Internet while exercising at home.
- A runner or cyclist wanting to track progress via a wellness Web site can connect a heart rate monitor to a Bluetooth enabled smart phone, logging heart rate, speed and location during training.
- Using a Bluetooth enabled medication dispenser, a patient can receive reminders when it’s time to take the next dose. A “missed dose” alert could also be sent to caregivers.
To encourage the ongoing development of Bluetooth low energy technology enabled products, the Bluetooth SIG has created an online “marketplace” where developers can explore partnerships to support their low energy-related projects.The Marketplace, available at Bluetooth.com, includes listings for chipset providers, testing tool developers, consulting companies and manufacturers of ready-to-use modules and custom design solutions. Member companies that are interested in adding a listing to the Bluetooth Low Energy Marketplace should e-mail Andreas Andersson at aandersson@bluetooth.com. Jackie Zack is a Michigan-basedbusiness and technical writer.
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