Improved Bluetooth Modules For Medical Devices

With both consumer and commercial medical devices, Bluetooth has become a preferred connection. I remember back to the early days of Bluetooth and we all used to sit around and wonder in the Windows Mobile group where Bluetooth was going to somehow fit it. The cell phone was the obvious answer when phone integrated PDAs hit the market. Since this time it has also become the technology of choice in healthcare as well. When you stop and think about it, would you rather be working with a corded connection to your PC or wireless?

That’s a pretty simple answer there. Now we are looking at increasing the range of up to 1 km, so medical devices in the home as an example now could be outside of the same room and still be able to transmit data. Stop and think about PHRs, personal health records, that connect with consumer medical devices, nice that you could have your blood pressure cuff or your glucose module placed where it is convenient to use and not perhaps so close to your PC.

According to the article here, it is now going to be a bit easier to pair your device as well. Anyone who has used Bluetooth is familiar with the pairing procedures. Also, with cell phones being Bluetooth equipped, you may just be sending your information via the phone and not even using a PC, but that depends on the software and device. Pairing of devices is important for security and additional security can be set in preferences from there. I synchronize my phone/pda with Bluetooth all the time so I have Outlook and several other phone software programs up to date. Recently though with Outlook I have had less of a need for this though as I used the web based version of Microsoft Office in conjunction so everything is synchronized anyway with email.

If you haven’t given this much thought, take a look at the devices that connect via the HealthVault to get a better idea. Nice to connect and transmit with no manual entry required on a keyboard. Read about what’s going on at the Cleveland Clinic for a better idea here with devices connecting. Nice if you have let’s say a scale to enter your weigh with Bluetooth, the phone or pc can be outside the bathroom, if this is where you might happen to keep your scale. Let’s also not forget implantable devices too that also connect via Bluetooth too, but that is a bit more complicated subject I’ll leave for another time. BD

St. Louis, MO - Laird Technologies, Inc. recently announced a new range of Bluetooth® modules designed to support the demands of medical equipment manufacturers. For two years the medical device community has preferred Bluetooth as the wireless standard for the next generation of interoperable wirelessly-connected medical devices. As a result, a new Health Device Profile created by the Medical Working Group of the Bluetooth SIG will be a key requirement for manufacturers designing products for Continua Alliance Approval.

Through its involvement in the Medical Working Group and customer collaboration, Laird Technologies has developed a new, ground-breaking array of Bluetooth modules that extends its current range to cover almost any wireless medical application. Incorporating pre-approved Bluetooth stacks, these new modules meet the new Health Device Profile and minimize the design effort required to implement short range wireless.