<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
are	O
hardware	O
transmitters	O
—	O
a	O
class	O
of	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
Low	I-General_Concept
Energy	I-General_Concept
(	O
LE	O
)	O
devices	O
that	O
broadcast	O
their	O
identifier	O
to	O
nearby	O
portable	O
electronic	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
technology	O
enables	O
smartphones	B-Application
,	O
tablets	O
and	O
other	O
devices	O
to	O
perform	O
actions	O
when	O
in	O
close	O
proximity	O
to	O
a	O
beacon	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
use	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
Low	I-General_Concept
Energy	I-General_Concept
proximity	O
sensing	O
to	O
transmit	O
a	O
universally	O
unique	O
identifier	O
picked	O
up	O
by	O
a	O
compatible	O
app	O
or	O
operating	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
identifier	O
and	O
several	O
bytes	O
sent	O
with	O
it	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
determine	O
the	O
device	O
's	O
physical	O
location	O
,	O
track	O
customers	O
,	O
or	O
trigger	O
a	O
location-based	B-Application
action	O
on	O
the	O
device	O
such	O
as	O
a	O
check-in	O
on	O
social	O
media	O
or	O
a	O
push	O
notification	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
application	O
is	O
an	O
indoor	B-Device
positioning	I-Device
system	I-Device
,	O
which	O
helps	O
smartphones	B-Application
determine	O
their	O
approximate	O
location	O
or	O
context	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
help	O
of	O
a	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacon	I-General_Concept
,	O
a	O
smartphone	B-Application
's	O
software	O
can	O
approximately	O
find	O
its	O
relative	O
location	O
to	O
a	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacon	I-General_Concept
in	O
a	O
store	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Brick	O
and	O
mortar	O
retail	O
stores	O
use	O
the	O
beacons	O
for	O
mobile	B-Application
commerce	I-Application
,	O
offering	O
customers	O
special	O
deals	O
through	O
mobile	O
marketing	O
,	O
and	O
can	O
enable	O
mobile	O
payments	O
through	O
point	O
of	O
sale	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
differ	O
from	O
some	O
other	O
location-based	B-Application
technologies	O
as	O
the	O
broadcasting	O
device	O
(	O
beacon	O
)	O
is	O
only	O
a	O
1-way	O
transmitter	O
to	O
the	O
receiving	O
smartphone	B-Application
or	O
receiving	O
device	O
,	O
and	O
necessitates	O
a	O
specific	O
app	O
installed	O
on	O
the	O
device	O
to	O
interact	O
with	O
the	O
beacons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thus	O
only	O
the	O
installed	O
app	O
,	O
and	O
not	O
the	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacon	I-General_Concept
transmitter	O
,	O
can	O
track	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacon	I-General_Concept
transmitters	O
come	O
in	O
a	O
variety	O
of	O
form	O
factors	O
,	O
including	O
small	O
coin	O
cell	O
devices	O
,	O
USB	O
sticks	O
,	O
and	O
generic	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
4.0	O
capable	O
USB	B-Device
dongles	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
development	O
of	O
the	O
"	O
short-link	O
"	O
radio	O
technology	O
,	O
later	O
named	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
,	O
was	O
initiated	O
in	O
1989	O
by	O
Dr.	O
Nils	O
Rydbeck	O
CTO	O
at	O
Ericsson	O
Mobile	O
in	O
Lund	O
and	O
Dr.	O
Johan	O
Ullman	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
its	O
creation	O
the	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
standard	O
has	O
gone	O
through	O
many	O
generations	O
each	O
adding	O
different	O
features	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
3.0	O
again	O
improved	O
transfer	O
speed	O
up	O
to	O
24	O
Mbit/s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2010	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
4.0	O
(	O
Low	O
Energy	O
)	O
was	O
released	O
with	O
its	O
main	O
focus	O
being	O
reduced	O
power	O
consumption	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Before	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
4.0	O
the	O
majority	O
of	O
connections	O
using	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
were	O
two	O
way	O
,	O
both	O
devices	O
listen	O
and	O
talk	O
to	O
each	O
other	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
this	O
two	O
way	O
communication	O
is	O
still	O
possible	O
with	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
4.0	O
,	O
one	O
way	O
communication	O
is	O
also	O
possible	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
one	O
way	O
communication	O
allows	O
a	O
bluetooth	B-Protocol
device	O
to	O
transmit	O
information	O
but	O
not	O
listen	O
for	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
one	O
way	O
"	O
beacons	O
"	O
do	O
not	O
require	O
a	O
paired	O
connection	O
like	O
previous	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
devices	O
so	O
they	O
have	O
new	O
useful	O
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
operate	O
using	O
the	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
4.0	O
Low	O
Energy	O
standard	O
so	O
battery	O
powered	O
devices	O
are	O
possible	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
LE	I-General_Concept
protocol	O
is	O
significantly	O
more	O
power	O
efficient	O
than	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
Classic	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Several	O
chipsets	O
makers	O
,	O
including	O
Texas	O
Instruments	O
and	O
Nordic	O
Semiconductor	O
now	O
supply	O
chipsets	O
optimized	O
for	O
iBeacon	B-General_Concept
use	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Power	O
consumption	O
depends	O
on	O
iBeacon	B-General_Concept
configuration	O
parameters	O
of	O
advertising	O
interval	O
and	O
transmit	O
power	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
older	O
phones	O
tend	O
to	O
draw	O
more	O
battery	O
power	O
in	O
the	O
vicinity	O
of	O
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
,	O
while	O
the	O
newer	O
phones	O
can	O
be	O
more	O
efficient	O
in	O
the	O
same	O
environment	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
energy	O
efficient	O
iBeacon	B-General_Concept
application	O
needs	O
to	O
consider	O
these	O
aspects	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
strike	O
a	O
good	O
balance	O
between	O
app	O
responsiveness	O
and	O
battery	O
consumption	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
can	O
also	O
come	O
in	O
the	O
form	O
of	O
USB	B-Device
dongles	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
can	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
send	O
a	O
packet	O
of	O
information	O
that	O
contains	O
a	O
Universally	O
Unique	O
Identifier	O
(	O
UUID	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
case	O
of	O
Apple	O
's	O
iBeacon	B-General_Concept
the	O
UUID	O
will	O
be	O
recognized	O
by	O
an	O
app	O
on	O
the	O
user	O
device	O
that	O
will	O
trigger	O
an	O
event	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
methods	O
of	O
advertising	O
are	O
also	O
possible	O
with	O
beacons	O
,	O
URIBeacon	O
and	O
Google	O
's	O
Eddystone	B-Operating_System
allow	O
for	O
a	O
URI	O
transmission	O
mode	O
that	O
unlike	O
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
UID	O
does	O
n't	O
require	O
an	O
outside	O
server	O
for	O
recognition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
general	O
,	O
a	O
native	O
app	O
is	O
needed	O
for	O
a	O
mobile	O
device	O
to	O
interact	O
with	O
the	O
beacon	O
if	O
the	O
beacon	O
uses	O
iBeacon	B-General_Concept
protocol	O
;	O
whereas	O
if	O
Eddystone	B-Operating_System
is	O
employed	O
,	O
user	O
can	O
interact	O
with	O
the	O
artpiece	O
through	O
a	O
physical	O
web	O
URL	O
broadcast	O
by	O
the	O
Eddystone	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Indoor	B-Device
positioning	I-Device
with	O
beacons	O
falls	O
into	O
three	O
categories	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Indoor	B-Device
navigation	I-Device
with	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
is	O
still	O
in	O
its	O
infancy	O
but	O
attempts	O
have	O
been	O
made	O
to	O
find	O
a	O
working	O
solution	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
are	O
capable	O
of	O
transmitting	O
their	O
Received	O
Signal	O
Strength	O
Indicator	O
(	O
RSSI	O
)	O
value	O
in	O
addition	O
to	O
other	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
its	O
release	O
in	O
2010	O
many	O
studies	O
have	O
been	O
connected	O
using	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
for	O
tracking	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
LE	I-General_Concept
specification	O
5.1	O
added	O
further	O
more	O
precise	O
methods	O
for	O
position	O
determination	O
using	O
multiple	O
beacons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
as	O
checkpoints	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
location	O
can	O
be	O
recalculated	O
to	O
reduce	O
error	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
this	O
way	O
a	O
few	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
can	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
cover	O
a	O
large	O
area	O
like	O
a	O
mall	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
the	O
device	O
tracking	O
capabilities	O
of	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
,	O
in-home	O
patient	O
monitoring	O
is	O
possible	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
a	O
person	O
's	O
movements	O
and	O
activities	O
can	O
be	O
tracked	O
in	O
their	O
home	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
are	O
a	O
good	O
alternative	O
to	O
in	O
house	O
cameras	O
due	O
to	O
their	O
increased	O
level	O
of	O
privacy	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
can	O
be	O
used	O
in	O
hospitals	O
or	O
other	O
workplaces	O
to	O
ensure	O
workers	O
meet	O
certain	O
standards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
use	O
of	O
beacons	O
is	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
key	O
finder	O
"	O
where	O
a	O
beacon	O
is	O
attached	O
to	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
a	O
keyring	O
and	O
a	O
smartphone	B-Application
app	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
track	O
the	O
last	O
time	O
the	O
device	O
came	O
in	O
range	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
mid-2013	O
,	O
Apple	O
introduced	O
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
and	O
experts	O
wrote	O
about	O
how	O
it	O
is	O
designed	O
to	O
help	O
the	O
retail	O
industry	O
by	O
simplifying	O
payments	O
and	O
enabling	O
on-site	O
offers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
6	O
,	O
2013	O
,	O
Apple	O
activated	O
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
across	O
its	O
254	O
US	O
retail	O
stores	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
May	O
2014	O
,	O
different	O
hardware	O
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
can	O
be	O
purchased	O
for	O
as	O
little	O
as	O
$5	O
per	O
device	O
to	O
more	O
than	O
$30	O
per	O
device	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Each	O
of	O
these	O
different	O
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
have	O
varying	O
default	O
settings	O
for	O
their	O
default	O
transmit	O
power	O
and	O
iBeacon	B-General_Concept
advertisement	O
frequency	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
hardware	O
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
advertise	O
at	O
as	O
low	O
as	O
1Hz	O
while	O
others	O
can	O
be	O
as	O
fast	O
as	O
10Hz	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
AltBeacon	O
is	O
an	O
open	O
source	O
alternative	O
to	O
iBeacon	B-General_Concept
created	O
by	O
Radius	O
Networks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
URIBeacons	O
are	O
different	O
from	O
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
and	O
AltBeacons	O
because	O
rather	O
than	O
broadcasting	O
an	O
identifier	O
,	O
they	O
send	O
an	O
URL	O
which	O
can	O
be	O
understood	O
immediately	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Eddystone	B-Operating_System
is	O
Google	O
's	O
standard	O
for	O
Bluetooth	B-General_Concept
beacons	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
supports	O
three	O
types	O
of	O
packets	O
,	O
Eddystone-UID	O
,	O
Eddystone-URL	O
,	O
and	O
Eddystone-TLM	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Eddystone-UID	O
functions	O
in	O
a	O
very	O
similar	O
way	O
to	O
Apple	O
's	O
iBeacon	B-General_Concept
,	O
however	O
,	O
it	O
supports	O
additional	O
telemetry	O
data	O
with	O
Eddystone-TLM	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
Eddystone	B-Operating_System
protocol	O
,	O
Google	O
had	O
built	O
Google	O
Nearby	O
that	O
allowed	O
Android	O
users	O
to	O
receive	O
beacon	O
notifications	O
without	O
an	O
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
the	O
near-field	O
communication	O
(	O
NFC	O
)	O
environment	O
is	O
very	O
different	O
and	O
has	O
many	O
non-overlapping	O
applications	O
,	O
it	O
is	O
still	O
compared	O
with	O
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
iBeacons	B-General_Concept
have	O
a	O
significantly	O
larger	O
range	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
Passif	O
(	O
bought	O
by	O
Apple	O
Inc	O
.	O
)	O
has	O
worked	O
on	O
reducing	O
the	O
energy	O
consumption	O
,	O
a	O
battery	O
pack	O
is	O
still	O
needed	O
inside	O
iBeacon	B-General_Concept
tags	O
at	O
this	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
Android	O
smart	O
devices	O
ship	O
with	O
both	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
4.0	O
LE	O
and	O
NFC	O
support	O
.	O
</s>
