Wibree Joins Bluetooth

Since 2001, Nokia have been working on a new Personal Area Network (PAN) wireless system called Wibree intended for use around the body connecting (say) a watch to a PDA, mobile phone or other personal device. One of the key things that differentiates Wibree from Bluetooth, ultra wideband and NFC (near field communication) is its extremely low power consumption. This allows it to be used in devices that typically aren't charged on a daily or even weekly basis like watches, access keys, etc.

On 12 June, 2007, Nolia announced that the Wibree Forum (that controls the Wibree specification) will be merged with the Bluetooth SIG (Special Interest Group) comprising some 8000 companies. This means that Wibree will become part of the Bluetooth specification thereby ensuring interoperability and/or integration with Bluetooth devices.

Michael Foley, Ph.D., executive director, Bluetooth SIG said, "With Nokia’s innovative development and contribution to the Bluetooth specification with Wibree, we will be able to deliver this in approximately one year.” Once finalized, the specification will be made available to the industry.

Examples of application domains include toys, sports, wellness, healthcare and entertainment allowing relevant devices to be easily added to one’s personal area network. In many cases it makes it possible to operate these devices for more than a year without recharging.

For more information see: http://www.wibree.com/