Satellite navigation has revolutionized the way we get around. It’s cheap, fast and easy to use. But there’s one fatal flaw in the system: It simply can’t work underground.

GPS requires line of sight to satellites orbiting the planet. The great advantage of this is that it works seamlessly all over the world, without needing to be connected to a cellular or Wi-Fi network. This works well in open areas but in built-up areas with tall buildings, or in underground tunnels, the system can fall apart.

Bluetooth beacons offer a great opportunity for many industries to work more efficiently and improve their offering to customers. One of the most interesting applications is in the world of retail, where the phrase ‘know your customer’ is taking on a whole new meaning.

Mesh networking with Bluetooth has a bright future. By taking advantage of existing lighting systems you open the door to huge added value possibilities, both for your business and its customers.

While mesh networking is nothing new, it is only now starting to be adopted in industrial and commercial environments. Bluetooth Mesh offers a low power mesh network with the potential to deliver many and varied added value services.

Some people in the industry view mesh networking as the next ‘shiny object’, nothing more than another excuse to raise prices. But mesh does deliver significant benefits over star or peer-to-peer networks and looks set to make a real impact on the industrial IoT and in the smart home in the years to come.

The reason is simple: mesh networks solve a specific problem. A conventional wireless router offers limited coverage if you can’t hardwire additional access points to it, which drives up complexity and expense in large spaces such an office building. On the other hand, mesh networks bring wireless connectivity to such a space far more simply than ever before.

Like all communication technologies, Bluetooth is a better fit for some applications than others. If you're considering using Bluetooth, here’s an outline of the primary factors that determine the effective range of Bluetooth communications, plus some ways to improve it with networking. This article is now updated with the addition of Bluetooth 5 performance.

Let's imagine you've found a gap in the market for a great wearable device and, although some competitors offer similar products, you know that your idea adds unique, killer features that will mean people choose your product ahead of the others. The path from idea to market will still involve a lot of tricky decisions. One of the most important ones is how to connect your great product to users’ phones. This can have a huge impact on product design and usability so the sooner you start thinking about this the better.

Are you creating a wearable product, but not sure of what wireless technology to choose? The way modern APIs work, developers don’t necessarily need to know the technical details. But having a basic understanding of the underlying technology will help you make apps that are more efficient, more responsive and easier to use.

Which solution is best for your wearable product? This depends on your requirements for bandwidth, power considerations and range. Here’s a brief overview of the 6 most common wireless technologies to consider.

Advances in technology mean that smart clothes are moving away from the preserve of fitness fanatics and heading squarely into the mainstream. But what if our clothes could tell us not only how we’re doing but how they’re doing as well?

Outline

• Errata affecting the current measurements
• DCDC does not automatically switch off in System ON IDLE
• NFCT can draw current when not enabled
• Measurements
• Results
• Test setup: Power analyzer
• Power Analyzer Measurements
• Test setup: Oscilloscope and ampere-meter
• Oscilloscope Measurements

Preparing the development kit The USB connector must not be used to power the board during measurements as it will give unreliable results due to added supply and measurement noise when the debugger chip USB port is active. The board should be powered from a coin cell battery, or using the External Supply pins P21 for current measurements.