RECENTLY, INTEREST HAS GROWN in the potential of wireless technologies to enable a new generation of mobile personal-healthcare devices. These efforts are summarized in a white paper by EZURiO titled, “Wireless Connectivity – the Key to Enabling Personal Medical Technology.” The seven-page document explains that three wireless standards— Bluetooth, Wibree, and WiFi—will most likely dominate the majority of medical applications.

Four primary parameters dictate the requirements of short-range technology for the majority of medical-use cases: the range over which the device needs to operate, the amount of data that needs to be transferred, the frequency of those transfers, and the power that is available. Under the auspices of the IEEE 11073 Personal Health Devices Working Group, the industry is developing standards for the way in which data from such devices is structured. As a result, similar devices from different manufacturers should be able to send medical data in the same format.

In addition, a working group is cooperating with medical device manufacturers to define a Bluetooth Medical Device Profile that enables products from different manufacturers to interoperate. The first standards also should be spawned by the IEEE 11073 Personal Health Devices Working Group. Together, they will enable the first generation of low-cost, interoperable medical devices.

EZURiO Ltd., Saturn House, Mercury Park, Wycombe Ln., Wooburn Green, Bucks HP10 0HH, UK; +44 (0) 1628 858 940, FAX: +44 (0) 1628 528 382, Internet: www.ezurio.com.