Since the first version of Bluetooth was released in 1998, Bluetooth has gone through multiple versions including 1.1, 1.2, 2.0, 2.1, 3.0, 4.0, 4.2, 5.0, and 5.1. Currently, the majority of Bluetooth in the domestic market still remains at version 4.2 and earlier. With the rapid arrival of the Internet of Things (IoT) era, traditional Bluetooth faces several issues such as positioning, networking, transmission, and power consumption, necessitating product upgrades, which is also an urgent market demand.In addition, versions below Bluetooth 5.0 will stop maintenance by 2020, making the replacement of Bluetooth 5 or even higher versions an inevitable trend in market development.Bluetooth 5 was proposed in 2016, and by mid-2017, international manufacturers like Nordic began to successively launch mass production chips. This generation of Bluetooth not only doubles the transmission speed compared to Bluetooth 4.X but also significantly increases transmission distance and packet size by 4 to 8 times. Moreover, Bluetooth 5 expands and enhances its functionalities in IoT, such as mesh networking and positioning.Evolution of Bluetooth StandardsStarting from Bluetooth 4.0, the evolution of Bluetooth technology has focused on the low-power Bluetooth standard, specifically the BLE part, while there have been no updates regarding the audio aspects of classic Bluetooth. Recently, the Bluetooth standards organization plans to update the audio part and release the low-power audio standard, Bluetooth 6.0.
Comparison of IoT Short-Range Wireless Communication Technologies
5G, as the fifth-generation communication technology, possesses stronger communication and bandwidth capabilities compared to 4G, and can meet the high-speed stability, wide coverage, and low latency demands of IoT applications. With the accelerated arrival of the 5G era, the trend of IoT is becoming increasingly clear, with various IoT applications such as smart agriculture, smart logistics, smart homes, vehicle networking, smart cities, and smart living becoming inevitable trends.Short-range wireless communication, as the “capillary” in the IoT application environment, is expected to see considerable explosive demand in the current market. According to Gartner, as of 2020, the number of IoT terminal installations worldwide is expected to reach 19.78 billion, a 332% increase from 4.58 billion in 2015. Due to its advantages such as low power consumption, good stability, low cost, and excellent transmission distance and speed performance, Bluetooth has become one of the best solutions for IoT terminal communication.Concept ComparisonLet’s first look at the different wireless protocols corresponding to various application scenarios. This basic distinction marks the main scenarios corresponding to the emergence of these protocols. The following diagram provides a conceptual overview that visually illustrates the differences among various protocols (the ‘Other’ section includes low-speed long-distance wireless protocols such as NBIoT).Comparison of Wireless Communication in IoTIf we only care about the core characteristics, including rate and distance, we can simplify the representation of the positions of various wireless protocols. Generally speaking, various situations have already established relatively solid main wireless protocols, leaving little room for new protocols to emerge.Rate and DistanceDetailed Feature ComparisonBelow is a direct comparison of some wireless protocols that everyone is concerned about.
Power Consumption: In terms of power consumption performance, BLE is the best, with the best market indicator being around 1uA during RTC sleep (not shutdown, which is often confused either intentionally or unintentionally). This value is essentially determined by the physical characteristics of PMU, pad, etc., and is generally difficult to reduce further. The peak value during active state is generally below ten milliamps; while the average current during 500ms broadcasting is around 30uA. WiFi is generally an order of magnitude higher than this value, which is a basic judgment. NB, Lora, and Sigfox have power consumption generally between these two values, and these wireless protocols solve standby time by increasing the transmission interval and reducing the speed.
Rate: BLE has a rate of 2Mbps, suitable for transparent transmission, BLE profile applications, audio, etc. WiFi is currently used in IoT primarily with 802.11b (the IoT 802.11ah protocol is hardly applied), so the maximum rate is around 10Mbps. WiFi was born for data, and its transmission capability is relatively inadequate for control applications. Other protocols like Zigbee, NB, Lora, and Sigfox are around 250Kbps, and these protocols can only do very small data transparent transmission, unlike BLE which can also handle some applications.
Transmission Distance: BLE5 has long-distance features, approximately 50 meters indoors, performing even better than WiFi under high-power transmission conditions. Zigbee is similar to BT4.2, expected to be around 10 meters indoors or slightly more. NB, Lora, and Sigfox belong to wide-area protocols, with transmission distances over 1000 meters.
Networking Capability: BLE’s Mesh networking theoretically supports 65,000 nodes, but in practice, it may currently only support hundreds to thousands of nodes (with records of smart lighting having 10,000 nodes). The characteristic of mesh networking is that network nodes are equal, and internal data collection and control can be handled within the network, while data needing to go to the cloud can be transmitted through a gateway (such as a smart speaker or any proxy node) or mobile phone. WiFi networking is star-shaped, with routers connecting a dozen or dozens of nodes, which is not friendly for large-scale networking, as is commonly understood in the industry. Zigbee was designed for industrial interconnectivity, and it possesses networking capabilities from the beginning, but its weakness is that it requires a unique gateway to connect to the internet, which limits its network scale to usually 100-200 nodes and requires a dedicated router. Other protocols like NB, Lora, Sigfox, etc., are also star-shaped base station structures, either large or small, depending on the base station’s capabilities and protocol specifications, and currently seem to support a few thousand or small tens of thousands of nodes.
Cost: Cost is difficult to compare directly, as different chip specifications of the same protocol can have significant cost differences. The cost of BLE is lower than any other protocol when comparing similar high, medium, and low-end chips. From the overall market perspective, this conclusion can also be drawn.
Market Size: Currently, the market size for BLE alone, excluding audio, is nearly 2 billion units per year, and the compound annual growth rate for BLE remains above 20%. It is a market worth hundreds of billions (chip only). I do not have data for WiFi, but just from the perspective of connection using 11b, it is significantly smaller than BLE. Zigbee has not yet formed a sizable market since the establishment of the alliance in 2002; according to research by market research firm ON World, as of August 2018, the cumulative shipment of Zigbee chipsets reached only 500 million.
Comparison of Wireless Protocols in IoTConsidering factors such as rate, power consumption, networking, cost, and ease of entering the internet, we conclude that Bluetooth should undoubtedly be the leading solution in the field of short-range wireless connections in IoT.
New Features of Bluetooth
The latest BLE5.0 and 5.1 standards were proposed by Bluetooth SIG in response to the needs of Bluetooth IoT application scenarios, and the main features can be summarized as follows:BLE5.0Compared to 4.2, this feature represents a comprehensive upgrade that will lead to new applications for low-power Bluetooth. This includes 2Mbps; 8 times the broadcast packet expansion; 4 times the range; and spectrum compatibility.
2Mbps is a very suitable rate for short-range wireless communication, accommodating the vast majority of application scenarios. Referencing the application profiles defined by the Bluetooth organization SIG makes it easy to understand. The measured effect shows that the ING918xx can achieve 1.2Mbps, which is an excellent outcome, even capable of supporting video transmission applications and high-fidelity audio.
Actual Transmission Rate of BLE5
The 8 times broadcast packet expansion refers to the definition in 5.0, where the broadcast packet has 255 user bytes, which is an 8-fold expansion compared to 4.2. However, the maximum broadcast bytes defined in 5.0 can reach 1650, sent through the main broadcast packet and AUX auxiliary broadcast packet. This is very suitable for large data broadcasting needs or for mesh networking where the maximum broadcast packet requirement is 384 bytes. However, to be honest, currently in the Bluetooth application layer, there are very few that can utilize this well, or we have not yet seen it.
4 times the distance, referred to as LR (Long Range), is achieved by adding an additional level of error correction coding to the Bluetooth 5 channel. Previously, whitening and other techniques were used to reduce the error rate; now, an additional layer of channel coding has been added to improve sensitivity. Of course, the trade-off is that the actual effective data transmitted is reduced.
Additionally, the so-called improved compatibility means that the broadcast channels of 5.0 have been expanded. Previously, broadcasts could only be made on channels 37/38/39, but now they can also be broadcast on other channels from 0-36. This greatly improves the quality of broadcasting and reduces the degradation of experience caused by channel pollution. Of course, to maintain compatibility with 4.2, the broadcast initiating channels of 5.0 are still on 37/38/39.
Mesh self-organizing network technology enables multi-point, large-scale network transmission. Bluetooth mesh supports different node characteristics, including Relay, Friend, and Low Power. Additionally, based on the features of 5.0, the delay of mesh networks is reduced by around 10 times, and data transmission volume can increase by more than 8 times. Compared to WiFi and Zigbee networking, Bluetooth mesh has strong advantages in network scale and delay.
Bluetooth MeshBLE5.1Centimeter-level precise positioning should be a very powerful application for Bluetooth in application expansion. Taking AoA as an example:As shown in the figure, the A0 and A1 antennas of the Bluetooth chip at the base station correspond to the radio waves emitted by the Bluetooth device being measured, and the time of arrival is different. Therefore, when the two waves arrive, their phases are different. By combining the known distance between the two antennas and the phases of the received waves, the angle of incidence of the Bluetooth transmitting device can be calculated.Principle of AoABy calculating the angle between the measured Bluetooth device and the base station using the signals received from two base stations, planar positioning can be achieved. BLE5.1 can achieve centimeter-level precise positioning.Planar PositioningThe new generation of Bluetooth’s long-distance features address user experience regarding distance, while the mesh networking feature resolves the ‘network’ issue of IoT, and the 5.1 positioning service addresses the positioning and navigation challenges in IoT. Bluetooth has been revitalized, and viewing new things with old perspectives is not an attitude of progress.Every new generation of communication protocol brings industry reshuffling and new applications and business opportunities. Just like cellular communication has evolved from 1G to 2G, 3G, 4G, and now 5G, equipment manufacturers, mobile phone manufacturers, and chip manufacturers have all undergone significant changes.
New Application Scenarios and Scale of Bluetooth
Bluetooth applications have also experienced different scenarios with the evolution of Bluetooth standards.
Bluetooth before version 4.0 was mainly used for computers, mobile phones, and other devices as an interface for data and audio transmission, establishing Bluetooth’s advantageous position in the Internet ecosystem as a standard feature of mobile phones.
Versions 4.0/4.2 drove a huge wave of businesses in wearables, smart homes, etc., spawning a large number of IoT application companies and module companies based on connectivity and data, such as Huami. Application scenarios are reflected in various interconnected devices, smart homes, smart buildings, etc.
The release of versions 5.0 and 5.1 not only brought qualitative changes in efficiency and user experience for traditional applications but also provided Bluetooth with broader application space, including networking and positioning services. Application scenarios have expanded to smart cities, industrial interconnectivity, automotive, medical, and various other contexts.
In the future, the shipment volume of Bluetooth chips will continue to maintain an extraordinary growth trend. It is predicted that from 2018 to 2022, the compound annual growth rate can still reach 8% to 12%, with low-power Bluetooth growth at 20-30%, and the overall shipment volume of Bluetooth devices reaching over 5.2 billion by 2022. In the coming years, Bluetooth devices will net an increase of 400 million units annually, and currently, no chip can grow at such a scale, which deserves close attention.Source: SIG Bluetooth InformationRegarding the new applications of Bluetooth 5.0/5.1, we can provide two examples to illustrate the growth scale of BLE. First, regarding positioning services, including:
Landmark Information: Retailers have begun adopting landmark (PoI) information, and smart buildings, smart industries, and smart cities are also exploring the application of Bluetooth beacons.
Item Finding: Increasingly, consumers are attaching Bluetooth tags to keys, wallets, handbags, and other personal belongings, including luxury goods management in stores.
Asset Tracking: Bluetooth is driving rapid growth in real-time location service (RTLS) solutions for asset and personnel tracking, whether in warehouses for tools and worker positioning or in hospitals for medical equipment and patient positioning.
Navigation: From airports and train stations to museums and sports venues, Bluetooth indoor positioning systems (IPS) have quickly become the standard solution for solving the indoor coverage challenges of GPS, aiding visitors in navigation through complex environments.
Source: SIG Bluetooth InformationSecondly, the shipment of Bluetooth network devices will also maintain double-digit growth, including:
Control Systems: Bluetooth mesh networks are rapidly becoming the preferred wireless communication platform for many control systems, including advanced lighting solutions in the smart building and smart industrial markets.
Monitoring Systems: Bluetooth wireless sensor networks (WSN) can monitor lighting, temperature, humidity, and occupancy, helping to improve employee productivity, reduce building operating costs, or better meet the environmental conditions and maintenance requirements of production equipment to minimize unexpected downtime.
Automation Systems: Bluetooth can achieve centralized control of basic building systems, including heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), lighting, and security systems, thereby saving energy, reducing operating costs, and extending the lifespan of core building systems.
Source: SIG Bluetooth InformationExcluding mobile phones, tablets, and personal computers, we see that the shipment volume in the audio and low-power sectors will maintain rapid growth, especially the growth in the low-power sector is very strong. We believe that a market that is almost showing parabolic growth is undoubtedly a considerable blue ocean market.Source: SIG Bluetooth Information
Market Landscape of Bluetooth BLE Chips
A simple description can summarize that international manufacturers are still in the high-end market, with a market share of about 80% and gross margins greater than 50%; a few domestic manufacturers have achieved breakthroughs in limited applications, but their market share remains very small, with lower gross margins and many simple transparent transmission scenarios.Domestic vs. International ComparisonFrom various statistical data, the largest shipment of BLE belongs to Nordic Semiconductor, followed by TI, CSR, Dialog, Cypress, Realtek, and other manufacturers. The main domestic manufacturers achieving scale shipments include Telink Microelectronics and Etron Technology. Let’s take a look at the domestic BLE revenue data from 2018 compared to Nordic:It can be seen that there is a significant gap between domestic and international chip performance, and the potential and space for domestic chips are exceptionally vast.From the number of new case releases by Nordic, it is also evident that Nordic is the leading enterprise in the BLE niche market, and we also observe that new applications are steadily growing every year.New SolutionsDomestic Self-RelianceThe opportunities for domestic chips are immense; however, how do foreign chips excel, and how can we convert chip potential into tangible market share?Taking Nordic’s chips as an example, from a broad perspective, they have low power consumption, good product stability and compatibility, and a user-friendly SDK. The user experience is good, reliable, and trustworthy, which is what every manufacturer should pursue for their reputation.From a detailed perspective, the details determine success or failure. Opening up the datasheets of various manufacturers, to non-industry insiders, they may all seem similar, or even identical. However, in reality, the differences among chips are substantial. Judging the industry and market solely from PR articles is far from sufficient, as it can lead to the error of following the crowd.Specifically, for example, why use different CPUs, why adopt different processes, why external Flash and internal, why their chips do not disconnect, why they can support master-slave integration, why they can support long-distance features, why they can support more broadcast sets, and why their power consumption is low, etc. Let’s discuss two points:
Low Power Consumption: We can refer to two indicators to reflect the power consumption metrics of chips, one being the sleep current with RTC, which reflects the minimum power consumption of the chip even without interrupting business; the other being the average power consumption under specific connection intervals, such as 500ms, which reflects the power consumption of the chip when processing the same business.
Stability and Compatibility: This is a comprehensive reflection of chip performance, testing the robustness of the underlying wireless communication protocol, which is the completeness and flexibility of the supported protocol. One can make basic judgments by checking the items certified in the communication protocol (though there may also be tricky elements mixed in), consulting professionals, or obtaining direct evaluations from downstream users.
The essence of Bluetooth is still a wireless communication chip. Domestic practitioners need to understand wireless communication and truly comprehend low-power SoCs, starting from the basics to achieve good chip and market performance. Why emphasize mastering the core communication IP? Because IP capabilities directly determine the SoC architecture of the chip, the low-power architecture of the chip, the size and cost of the chip, and the stability, compatibility, and flexibility of the chip.We believe that domestic chips have already made breakthroughs in certain applications; it is time to achieve comprehensive breakthroughs and compete on quality, rather than merely on being low-cost and inferior.The following diagram organizes the situation of chip and solution companies related to Bluetooth and WiFi. It can be seen that the IoT industry is booming. In the domestic IoT field, a series of companies have participated in the chip to solution process, and we believe that soon, domestic chips will welcome their own spring.Efforts of the IndustryWe are pleased to see that both the industry and the investment community have put in significant effort in this area. Currently, major institutions have laid out plans, and the industry has recognized the tremendous opportunities in the IoT field. These well-known institutions include Huachuang, ZTE, Wuyuefeng, Polar Light, Guoke Investment, Guoke Jiahe, Chip Dynamics, Sequoia, Dongfang Fuhai, Tsinghua Star, and many others.Organized by: Hard Technology Accelerator
Several Basic Judgments
Bluetooth is destined to be the best solution for short-range connections in IoT.
The Bluetooth industry and chip maintain rapid growth, with chip growth at around 400 million units per year.
The domestic Bluetooth chip penetration rate is currently less than 20%, and domestic chips have a long way to go. The seemingly bustling chip industry in China currently lacks the emergence of iconic chips that can benchmark against international manufacturers.
The key to domestic chips catching up is mastering core wireless communication technology to freely define entirely independent chips that meet market and customer needs.
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Evolution of Bluetooth Standards
