The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) has released Bluetooth Core Specification version 6.0. This new version introduces a range of features and improvements to functionality and security of Bluetooth devices.
One of the most noteworthy additions is Bluetooth Channel Sounding, which introduces a precise distance measurement feature to Bluetooth devices. This may improve Bluetooth-based item trackers, and it could also provide geofencing for digital keys. Bluetooth 6.0 also introduces Decision-Based Advertising Filtering. This optimizes scanning in Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) Extended Advertising. Unlike what the name might suggest, this is a way to help your Bluetooth devices find each other. It can do an initial scan and uses the information of that scan to see whether it needs to prod further into each device. This way, you find the device to connect to faster.
Monitoring Advertisers also helps with this. It’s like having a smart filter that lets you see each device once. It also tells your device when a device was sent a signal that is moving closer or farther away. This helps your device save energy because it doesn’t have to keep looking for signals from devices that are no longer nearby. This helps it understand device proximity while filtering duplicate advertising packets.
The Isochronous Adaptation Layer (ISOAL) has also received improvements in version 6.0. A new framing mode has been introduced to reduce latency and improve reliability, particularly in audio applications where low latency is crucial. The LL Extended Feature Set has also been expanded by helping devices exchange information about their supported link-layer features more effectively. Finally, the update also upgrades frame spacing. This allows devices to negotiate for shorter or longer intervals. Basically, it lets devices talk to each other and agree on how fast they send messages back and forth.
It’s not clear if any devices currently using Bluetooth 5.x will be updated to support Bluetooth 6.0. We also don’t know yet when the first new devcies with Bluetooth 6 will hit the market.
Source: Bluetooth
