Signature - Q4, 2007 - (Page 29)

Bluetooth Technology 101 | By Jackie Zack | Illustration by John Hersey | Q4 ’07 Experience More As more cities and countries enact legislation banning the use of hand- held mobile phones in automobiles, the demand for hands-free solutions continues to grow. Thanks to advancements in Bluetooth technology and Bluetooth enabled devices, those hands-free solutions are quickly becoming a reality. Last year the Bluetooth SIG introduced the Phone Book Access Proﬁle (PBAP) along with enhancements to the existing Hands-Free Proﬁle (HFP 1.5). The new PBAP proﬁle is designed to improve phone-book handling and mobilephone dialing in a vehicle by allowing users to make and receive calls while keeping their eyes on the road and their hands on the steering wheel. Before PBAP there was no universal technology that allowed mobile phones and hands-free car systems to share phone-book information. Most car systems required users to glance at the car’s display unit for the number dialed and call status, while the contact information and keypad (for touch-tone services) could only be accessed on the phone. “While PBAP has been adopted for over a year, products implementing the proﬁle have only recently become available due to the normal development cycle,” says Burch Seymour, chairman of the Bluetooth SIG’s Car Working Group. Today, several automobile manufacturers have fully integrated PBAP into their vehicles’ electronics systems, in some cases as standard features. Drivers whose cars do not have this capability can receive the same beneﬁts with an after-market car kit, such as Nokia’s Bluetooth Display Car Kit CK-15W. From a user’s point of view, utilizing the PBAP technology is straightforward. After pairing the phone with the hands-free system, you simply download the phone book from any mobile phone or PDA – there’s no need to re-key your contacts into the system. Acura’s HandsFreeLink™ system shows PBAP in action. To make a call, you simply press the “talk” button on the steering wheel and say “call” or “dial,” followed by the name or number you wish to call. It appears on the system’s display unit, and you can verbally conﬁrm to dial the phone. When a call comes in the number is displayed. Touch the “talk” button and the system automatically switches to hands-free mode, mutes the car’s audio system and lets you hear the caller’s voice through the vehicle’s speakers. A Bluetooth wireless system using PBAP operates just like a mobile phone. The system allows your car to relay call data, such as missed calls, favorites and recent calls, as well as providing access to features such as hold, call waiting and caller ID. You can also transfer the call to a mobile phone at any time so you can continue talking after exiting the vehicle. The new Phone Book Access Proﬁle ﬁlls what had been an inconvenient void in the area of automotive wireless communication. For car and phone manufacturers, the new technology makes it more convenient to use Bluetooth wireless technology in their products. And for drivers, PBAP makes mobile-phone usage in a vehicle safer and easier. “Given the positive response to the feature, particularly from the automotive industry, we believe that PBAP-enabled devices will become commonplace in the very near future,” Seymour concludes. Jackie Zack is a Michigan-based business and technical writer. Number, Please! Anyone who’s ever made a mobile-phone call while driving knows how distracting the process can be. Hands-free systems have helped – after you get through fumbling for the correct number and dialing it. Now the new Phone Book Access Profile from the Bluetooth SIG, Inc. keeps your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel throughout every call. Bluetooth Special Interest Group | 29

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Signature - Q4, 2007

Signature - Q4, 2007 Contents The Road Ahead Getting Noticed In the News Keeping the Edge Why Wibree? The Message Zone Do You Compute? Command Center Mountain Magic On the Fast Track Give or Get? Groundsurf’s Up! Get in the Game Get on the List Number, Please! User-Friendly The Tell-Tale Car

Signature - Q4, 2007

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