List of Bluetooth protocols

Last updated

BluetoothLogo.svg

The wireless data exchange standard Bluetooth uses a variety of protocols. Core protocols are defined by the trade organization Bluetooth SIG. Additional protocols have been adopted from other standards bodies. This article gives an overview of the core protocols and those adopted protocols that are widely used.

Contents

The Bluetooth is split in two parts: a "controller stack" containing the timing critical radio interface, and a "host stack" dealing with high level data. The controller stack is generally implemented in a low cost silicon device containing the Bluetooth radio and a microprocessor. The host stack is generally implemented as part of an operating system, or as an installable package on top of an operating system. For integrated devices such as Bluetooth headsets, the host stack and controller stack can be run on the same microprocessor to reduce mass production costs; this is known as a hostless system.

Controller stack

Asynchronous Connection-Less [logical transport] (ACL)

The normal type of radio link used for general data packets using a polling TDMA scheme to arbitrate access. It can carry packets of several types, which are distinguished by:

A connection must be explicitly set up and accepted between two devices before packets can be transferred.

ACL packets are retransmitted automatically if unacknowledged, allowing for correction of a radio link that is subject to interference. For isochronous data, the number of retransmissions can be limited by a flush timeout; but without using L2PLAY retransmission and flow control mode or EL2CAP, a higher layer must handle the packet loss.

ACL links are disconnected if there is nothing received for the supervision timeout period; the default timeout is 20 seconds, but this may be modified by the master.

The type of radio link used for voice data. A SCO link is a set of reserved time slots separated by the SCO interval Tsco which is determined during logical link establishment by the Central device. Each device transmits encoded voice data in the reserved timeslot. There are no retransmissions, but forward error correction can be optionally applied. SCO packets may be sent every 1, 2, or 3 time slots.

Enhanced SCO (eSCO) links allow greater flexibility in setting up links: they may use retransmissions to achieve reliability, allow for a wider variety of packet types and for greater intervals between packets than SCO, thus increasing radio availability for other links.

Used for control of the radio link between two devices, mobile dmv, querying device abilities and power control. Implemented on the controller.

Host Controller Interface (HCI)

Standardized communication between the host stack (e.g., a PC or mobile phone OS) and the controller (the Bluetooth integrated circuit (IC)). This standard allows the host stack or controller IC to be swapped with minimal adaptation.

There are several HCI transport layer standards, each using a different hardware interface to transfer the same command, event and data packets. The most commonly used are USB (in PCs) and UART (in mobile phones and PDAs).

In Bluetooth devices with simple functionality (e.g., headsets), the host stack and controller can be implemented on the same microprocessor. In this case the HCI is optional, although often implemented as an internal software interface.

This is the LMP equivalent for Bluetooth Low Energy (LE), but is simpler. It is implemented on the controller and manages advertisement, scanning, connection and security from a low-level, close to the hardware point of view from Bluetooth perspective.

Host stack

L2CAP is used within the Bluetooth protocol stack. It passes packets to either the Host Controller Interface (HCI) or, on a hostless system, directly to the Link Manager/ACL link.

L2CAP's functions include:

L2CAP is used to communicate over the host ACL link. Its connection is established after the ACL link has been set up.

In basic mode, L2CAP provides packets with a payload configurable up to 64 kB, with 672 bytes as the default MTU, and 48 bytes as the minimum mandatory supported MTU. In retransmission and flow control modes, L2CAP can be configured for reliable or asynchronous data per channel by performing retransmissions and CRC checks. Reliability in either of these modes is optionally and/or additionally guaranteed by the lower layer Bluetooth BDR/EDR air interface by configuring the number of retransmissions and flush timeout (time after which the radio will flush packets). In-order sequencing is guaranteed by the lower layer.

The EL2CAP specification adds an additional enhanced retransmission mode (ERTM) to the core specification, which is an improved version of retransmission and flow control modes. ERTM is required when using an AMP (Alternate MAC/PHY), such as 802.11abgn.

Bluetooth network encapsulation protocol (BNEP)

BNEP [1] is used for delivering network packets on top of L2CAP. This protocol is used by the personal area networking (PAN) profile. BNEP performs a similar function to Subnetwork Access Protocol (SNAP) in Wireless LAN.

In the protocol stack, BNEP is bound to L2CAP.

Radio frequency communication (RFCOMM)

The Bluetooth protocol RFCOMM is a simple set of transport protocols, made on top of the L2CAP protocol, providing emulated RS-232 serial ports (up to sixty simultaneous connections to a Bluetooth device at a time). The protocol is based on the ETSI standard TS 07.10.

RFCOMM is sometimes called serial port emulation. The Bluetooth serial port profile (SPP) is based on this protocol.

RFCOMM provides a simple reliable data stream to the user, similar to TCP. It is used directly by many telephony related profiles as a carrier for AT commands, as well as being a transport layer for OBEX over Bluetooth.

Many Bluetooth applications use RFCOMM because of its widespread support and publicly available API on most operating systems. Additionally, applications that used a serial port to communicate can be quickly ported to use RFCOMM.

In the protocol stack, RFCOMM is bound to L2CAP.

Service discovery protocol (SDP)

Used to allow devices to discover what services each other support, and what parameters to use to connect to them. For example, when connecting a mobile phone to a Bluetooth headset, SDP will be used to determine which Bluetooth profiles are supported by the headset ( headset profile , hands free profile , advanced audio distribution profile , etc.) and the protocol multiplexer settings needed to connect to each of them. Each service is identified by a Universally Unique Identifier (UUID), with official services (Bluetooth profiles) assigned a short form UUID (16 bits rather than the full 128).

In the protocol stack, SDP is bound to L2CAP.

Telephony control protocol (TCS)

Also referred to as telephony control protocol specification binary (TCS binary)

Used to set up and control speech and data calls between Bluetooth devices. The protocol is based on the ITU-T standard Q.931, with the provisions of Annex D applied, making only the minimum changes necessary for Bluetooth.

TCS is used by the intercom (ICP) and cordless telephony (CTP) profiles. The telephone control protocol specification is not called TCP, to avoid confusion with transmission control protocol (TCP) used for Internet communication.

Audio/video control transport protocol (AVCTP)

Used by the remote control profile to transfer AV/C commands over an L2CAP channel. The music control buttons on a stereo headset use this protocol to control the music player.

In the protocol stack, AVCTP is bound to L2CAP.

Audio/video data transport protocol (AVDTP)

Used by the advanced audio distribution profile to stream music to stereo headsets over an L2CAP channel. Intended to be used by video distribution profile.

In the protocol stack, AVDTP is bound to L2CAP.

Object exchange (OBEX)

Object exchange (OBEX; also termed IrOBEX) is a communications protocol that facilitates the exchange of binary objects between devices. It is maintained by the Infrared Data Association but has also been adopted by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group and the SyncML wing of the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA).

In Bluetooth, OBEX is used for many profiles that require simple data exchange (e.g., object push, file transfer, basic imaging, basic printing, phonebook access, etc.).

Low Energy Attribute Protocol (ATT)

Similar in scope to SDP but specially adapted and simplified for Low Energy Bluetooth. It allows a client to read and/or write certain attributes exposed by the server in a non-complex, low-power friendly manner.

In the protocol stack, ATT is bound to L2CAP.

Low Energy Security Manager Protocol (SMP)

This is used by Bluetooth Low Energy implementations for pairing and transport specific key distribution.

In the protocol stack, SMP is bound to L2CAP.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bluetooth</span> Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard

Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is limited to 2.5 milliwatts, giving it a very short range of up to 10 metres (33 ft). It employs UHF radio waves in the ISM bands, from 2.402 GHz to 2.48 GHz. It is mainly used as an alternative to wired connections to exchange files between nearby portable devices and connect cell phones and music players with wireless headphones.

In computer networking, the User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is one of the core communication protocols of the Internet protocol suite used to send messages to other hosts on an Internet Protocol (IP) network. Within an IP network, UDP does not require prior communication to set up communication channels or data paths.

Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) is a simple lockstep File Transfer Protocol which allows a client to get a file from or put a file onto a remote host. One of its primary uses is in the early stages of nodes booting from a local area network. TFTP has been used for this application because it is very simple to implement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Infrared Data Association</span> Industry consortium for the IrDA standard

The Infrared Data Association (IrDA) is an industry-driven interest group that was founded in 1994 by around 50 companies. IrDA provides specifications for a complete set of protocols for wireless infrared communications, and the name "IrDA" also refers to that set of protocols. The main reason for using the IrDA protocols had been wireless data transfer over the "last one meter" using point-and-shoot principles. Thus, it has been implemented in portable devices such as mobile telephones, laptops, cameras, printers, and medical devices. The main characteristics of this kind of wireless optical communication are physically secure data transfer, line-of-sight (LOS) and very low bit error rate (BER) that makes it very efficient.

In the seven-layer OSI model of computer networking, the physical layer or layer 1 is the first and lowest layer: the layer most closely associated with the physical connection between devices. The physical layer provides an electrical, mechanical, and procedural interface to the transmission medium. The shapes and properties of the electrical connectors, the frequencies to transmit on, the line code to use and similar low-level parameters, are specified by the physical layer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KNX</span> Standard in building automation

KNX is an open standard for commercial and residential building automation. KNX devices can manage lighting, blinds and shutters, HVAC, security systems, energy management, audio video, white goods, displays, remote control, etc. KNX evolved from three earlier standards; the European Home Systems Protocol (EHS), BatiBUS, and the European Installation Bus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medium access control</span> Service layer in IEEE 802 network standards

In IEEE 802 LAN/MAN standards, the medium access control (MAC), also called media access control, is the layer that controls the hardware responsible for interaction with the wired or wireless transmission medium. The MAC sublayer and the logical link control (LLC) sublayer together make up the data link layer. The LLC provides flow control and multiplexing for the logical link, while the MAC provides flow control and multiplexing for the transmission medium.

OBEX is a communication protocol that facilitates the exchange of binary objects between devices. It is maintained by the Infrared Data Association but has also been adopted by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group and the SyncML wing of the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA). One of OBEX's earliest popular applications was in the Palm III. This PDA and its many successors use OBEX to exchange business cards, data, even applications.

A human interface device or HID is a type of computer device usually used by humans that takes input from or provides output to humans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wireless USB</span> Wireless radio communication protocol

Wireless USB (Universal Serial Bus) is a short-range, high-bandwidth wireless radio communication protocol created by the Wireless USB Promoter Group, which is intended to increase the availability of general USB-based technologies. It is unrelated to Wi-Fi and different from the Cypress Wireless USB offerings. It was maintained by the WiMedia Alliance which ceased operations in 2009. Wireless USB is sometimes abbreviated as WUSB, although the USB Implementers Forum discouraged this practice and instead prefers to call the technology Certified Wireless USB to distinguish it from the competing UWB standard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wireless network interface controller</span> Hardware component that connects a computer to a wireless computer network

A wireless network interface controller (WNIC) is a network interface controller which connects to a wireless network, such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or LTE (4G) or 5G rather than a wired network, such as an Ethernet network. A WNIC, just like other NICs, works on the layers 1 and 2 of the OSI model and uses an antenna to communicate via radio waves.

In computing, the USB human interface device class is a part of the USB specification for computer peripherals: it specifies a device class for human interface devices such as keyboards, mice, game controllers and alphanumeric display devices.

EtherCAT is an Ethernet-based fieldbus system developed by Beckhoff Automation. The protocol is standardized in IEC 61158 and is suitable for both hard and soft real-time computing requirements in automation technology.

A Bluetooth stack is software that is an implementation of the Bluetooth protocol stack.

In computing, Microsoft's Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 introduced in 2007/2008 a new networking stack named Next Generation TCP/IP stack, to improve on the previous stack in several ways. The stack includes native implementation of IPv6, as well as a complete overhaul of IPv4. The new TCP/IP stack uses a new method to store configuration settings that enables more dynamic control and does not require a computer restart after a change in settings. The new stack, implemented as a dual-stack model, depends on a strong host-model and features an infrastructure to enable more modular components that one can dynamically insert and remove.

In mobile-telephone technology, the UniPro protocol stack follows the architecture of the classical OSI Reference Model. In UniPro, the OSI Physical Layer is split into two sublayers: Layer 1 and Layer 1.5 which abstracts from differences between alternative Layer 1 technologies. The actual physical layer is a separate specification as the various PHY options are reused in other MIPI Alliance specifications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stonestreet One</span>

Stonestreet One was a software company specializing in Bluetooth software solutions. Founded in 1999 in Louisville, Kentucky, Stonestreet One created and sold software for the Bluetooth wireless technology industry. They specialized in solutions for chipmakers, distributors, embedded software companies and Original Equipment Manufacturers. Stonestreet One was acquired by Qualcomm in 2014.

The eXtensible Host Controller Interface (xHCI) is a technical specification that provides a detailed framework for the functioning of a computer's host controller for Universal Serial Bus (USB). Known alternately as the USB 3.0 host controller specification, xHCI is designed to be backward compatible, supporting a wide range of USB devices from older USB 1.x to the more recent USB 3.x versions.

References