For three years now, Bluetooth 5 has been standard in developers’ devices. With Bluetooth 5.1, the next generation will follow, which will differ fundamentally from the previous version in one respect in particular. With the new Bluetooth it will be possible to determine very precisely the direction from which a signal penetrates to the device.
This function, called “Direction Finding”, can be used, for example, to locate misplaced objects that are either Bluetooth enabled themselves or are linked to a Bluetooth enabled device. A popular example of this is the front door key, which is repeatedly installed in one’s own home. Now a Bluetooth finder can be attached to the key ring, which transmits a Bluetooth signal. Another Bluetooth device, such as the smartphone, could then be used to determine the position of this finder and thus also of the key.
This Bluetooth navigation should be of particular interest, especially inside buildings. Other navigation options – above all GPS and WLAN – are not suitable for navigation inside buildings, as they determine the desired location far too imprecisely in this context. Bluetooth 5.1 could become a very practical solution here.
The “Bluetooth Special Interest Group”, which presented Bluetooth 5.1, expects around 400 million devices to use this new Bluetooth function by 2022. On the official website you will find further information for developers, who can now use the standard in their devices.
