Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy: análisis de las prestaciones y aplicaciones para la automoción

Abstract

The objective of this project is to analyze the viability of Bluetooth Low Energy and give it a new use in the automobile industry. Specifically, it will be used as an alternative to the traffic-sign detection system based on cameras that do not work properly. The features chosen for such a purpose are: the discovery time for an efficient detection that guarantees a secure reaction of the driver to any traffic sign and the energy consumption of BLE device to respond to the economic demand and get a responsible environmental impact. On first place we introduce BLE and its functioning along with the layers of its protocol stack. The protocol stack description is exclusively focused on the layers that have been considered relevant for this project. A comparative investigation has also been done with other standards where we highlighted the advantages that BLE offers for the objective of this project compared to other standards. Hereafter, we study the scanning/advertising procedures and its respective parameters. The type of advertising that must be implemented to comply with the conditions of proposed system (broadcaster-scanner) has been selected from the results obtained. Time Discovery taken measures has been focused on the type of nonconnectable Undirected Advertising (Beacons), varying parameters of scanning/advertising and scanner chipsets. To take the discovery time measures, algorithms in the transmitter and the receiver (broadcaster/scaner) have been programmed. To do so, it was necessary to study the used devices, their parameters and how to modify and configure them through HCI commands. On the other side, we have measured the power consumption of different configurations and chipsets. We can see that power consumption can change depending on the configuration and chipset, but always meeting its low consumption feature. At last, a setting of adaptative traffic sign detection and configuration application is introduced. New ideas of warning signs have been introduced, as well, to improve road safety.