Signature - Q2, 2008 - (Page 10)

Perspectives | Illustration by Arthur Mount | Q2 ’08 Prescription for Success An Interview with Robert Hughes Less Is More Industry and Bluetooth SIG experts examine the use of Bluetooth technology in medicine, where fewer cables go along with more flexible and friendly care. Our participants also spotlight the new ultra low power Bluetooth technology that enables the use of devices with small batteries for medical, industrial and other applications. Imagine you’re on an international business trip. You start the day with a 30-minute jog in the hotel gym. You wear a Bluetooth enabled heart rate monitor that transmits data to your cell phone, which then forwards the information to your fitness coach back in your hometown. After you cool down, you use a Bluetooth enabled blood pressure monitor to send a reading to your doctor. When you return home, you log on to your PC where you can track your progress. Sound simple? Actually, it’s not. The technology is certainly available to do such things; the problem is that international standards had not been developed to enable the economical wireless transmission of personal health data. Addressing that situation is the role of the Bluetooth Medical Devices Working Group. Established in May 2006, the group includes 35 member companies of the Bluetooth SIG, including consumer-product heavyweights Intel, IBM and Motorola, along with medical device makers such as Nonin Medical, Roche Diagnostics, A&D Medical and Welch Allyn. “Our primary goal is to create standards that facilitate interoperability of Bluetooth enabled devices in the medical, health and fitness domains,” explains Robert Hughes, chairman of the Working Group. “There aren’t standards in this area today. Up to now, companies have generally used the Serial Port Profile with proprietary data formats, and they have been longing for standards to improve interoperability and reduce engineering and development costs.” Achieving standardized interoperability started with development of the Medical Device Profile (MDP) and underlying Multi-Channel Adaptation Protocol (MCAP), which will ensure interoperability among Bluetooth enabled health and fitness devices. Prototype specs became available to Bluetooth SIG members last year and formal interoperability testing was completed in November. The group also teamed with the IEEE and others to form the IEEE 11073 Personal Health Data Working Group. That group is working to finalize the ISO/ IEEE P11073-20601™ Data Exchange Protocol in addition to a series of specifications that define an internationally accepted data format for consumer health devices. These data standards are designed to be transport-independent. At publication, Hughes expected both the MDP and MCAP to be adopted by the end of the first quarter of 2008. The other piece of the puzzle is the ultra low power technology being worked into the Bluetooth wireless specification. Hughes expects the group to have have extensions defined later this year to enable ultra low power health applications. The result could transform the home health and fitness sectors, which are full of devices that can be made Bluetooth enabled. “The data these devices collect can be automatically aggregated and shared with a remote caregiver,” Hughes notes, “whether that be a doctor, a fitness coach or a family member.” The business opportunities are tremendous, given the widespread availability of Bluetooth technology. “With large industry organizations such as the Continua Health Alliance and other momentum from health care providers, governments and gyms, there is a potential for millions of these devices to hit the market by 10 | SIGnature | Bluetooth.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Signature - Q2, 2008

Signature - Q2, 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.