New Bluetooth software for the Wireless Gecko portfolio

Silicon Labs has released new Bluetooth software for the Wireless Gecko portfolio, the industry's most comprehensive Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity solution. Silicon Labs' commercial, industrial, and retail customers can use the Bluetooth direction finding feature added to the Bluetooth Core Specification 5.1 to enhance their location-based services, such as indoor navigation, asset tracking, space utilization, and points of Interest (POI).

To meet the growing demand in the location services market, Bluetooth has added a new direction finding feature that allows devices to determine the direction of the Bluetooth signal. The new feature supports multiple ways to determine signal direction, including Angle of arrival (AoA) and Angle of Departure (AoD), and Silicon Labs has implemented a new Bluetooth feature that detects signal direction within a 5-degree Angle. To date, Bluetooth asset tracking and indoor positioning solutions typically provide positioning accuracy in the 3-4 meter range. With Silicon Labs' Bluetooth 5.1 solution, developers are able to build products that improve position accuracy to within 1 meter, opening the door to applications that were previously impossible.

Matt Johnson, senior vice president and general manager of iot products at Silicon Labs, said: "The Silicon Labs Bluetooth direction finding solution is a quantum leap in location service accuracy for the industry, and the Silicon Labs wireless solution combined with the new capabilities added in Bluetooth 5.1 will help developers reshape the industry and improve people's lives."

In addition to improved location services, Bluetooth 5.1 can help developers:

● Reduce power consumption by updating sleep clock accuracy;

● Use GATT cache to improve smart home connectivity.

●Optimize beacons for Bluetooth mesh networks in crowded RF environments with broadcast channel indexing.

● "The Bluetooth community is always looking for ways to meet changing market needs and open up new opportunities, and the addition of Bluetooth direction finding reaffirms this commitment - to drive innovation and support the incredible growth opportunities in the location services market," said Mark Powell, Executive Director of the Bluetooth Technology Alliance.