Nordic Semiconductor has made a notable advancement in the realm of Bluetooth technology by becoming the first company to integrate Bluetooth Channel Sounding into an open-source Android application. This development signifies a pivotal moment in the deployment of a new Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) feature that facilitates remarkably precise distance measurements between devices.
Innovative Integration with nRF Toolbox
The Norwegian chipmaker has announced that its nRF Toolbox app, now available on the Google Play Store, supports Channel Sounding and is compatible with its latest nRF54L Series system-on-chips (SoCs). This integration empowers developers to experiment with Bluetooth Channel Sounding on devices such as Google’s Pixel 10 smartphone, which is equipped with inherent support for this cutting-edge technology.
In a recent public demonstration, Nordic showcased the seamless interoperability between Android’s native Channel Sounding APIs and algorithms, alongside its proprietary Bluetooth stack and hardware. Utilizing an nRF54L15 Development Kit as a reflector, the system achieved an impressive distance accuracy of approximately ±1 metre over ranges extending up to 20 metres.
Expanding Possibilities with New Use Cases
The introduction of this feature is poised to unlock a myriad of new applications in distance ranging, indoor positioning, and presence detection. Potential use cases include:
- Asset tracking
- Medical equipment management
- Location-based customer experiences in retail and cultural venues
“Bluetooth Channel Sounding is one of the biggest enhancements to Bluetooth LE, and Nordic is proud to lead its adoption,” stated Petter Myhre, Product Marketing Director at Nordic Semiconductor. “By combining the nRF54L Series with our new open-source Android app, we provide developers with the tools they need to explore, evaluate, and build innovative smartphone-connected products.”
Nordic Semiconductor has been instrumental in the development of the Channel Sounding standard within the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG). With billions of Bluetooth LE SoCs shipped, the company views this technology as a natural progression of its expertise in low-power wireless connectivity and its ability to interoperate with smartphones.
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