what is i-beacon technology ?

iBeacon technology in a few words  

“i Beacons” is the name Apple chose for a particular technology that allows Mobile Apps (running on millions of recent i Phones, i Pads, etc.) to know how close they are to tiny, low-cost, wireless transmitters called “hardware i Beacons” (or just “i Beacons”). It’s important to note that i Beacon technology isn’t an Apple’s monopoly: all recent Android devices already support it too. i Beacons broadcast signals using the well-known Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) standard, allowing precise, indoor Geo-location (often called “Micro location”), but also contextual interaction/engagement, as proximity to an i Beacon can trigger some specific App functionalities.

Two valuable key concepts…

First key concept: 

                Micro-location iBeacon technology allows your Mobile device to understand its position, even in indoor locations where smartphones or tablets are not able to pick up GPS signals from satellites overhead – that’s geo-location with a very high level of granularity, conventionally known as Micro-location.

Second key concept:

              Interaction/Engagement/Context After understanding the first key concept (Micro-location), let’s now talk about the second key concept: Interaction/Engagement/Context. The iBeacons signals enable interaction with Mobile Apps, for example triggering some App functionality to perform a specific action on a specific Mobile device – at exactly a specific time and in a specific location. In other words, iBeacons signals express two valuable concepts at the same time: “This is where you are” and “This is what you (can) do”. iBeacons therefore make it possible to effortlessly engage with people in a physical space through their Mobile devices.  

Features of the iBeacon technology  

Item #1: 

          Mobile App automatic start Mobile devices will automatically react to when they come within range of iBeacons: there is no need to take your iPhone or Galaxy S3 out of the pocket to manually start the pertinent iBeacon-enabled App. iBeacons are identified in the background by iOS or Android, and the right App is started when necessary; in technical words, an App can register with iOS/Android to be started when specific types of iBeacons move in the range of the device. Of course you have to install the relevant iBeacons-enabled App before you can actually enjoy iBeacons benefits – currently there is no mechanism to auto-install Apps. 

Item #2: 

        Energy consumption I know what you are thinking: geo-location and Bluetooth combined are batteries drainers. Don’t worry, actually Bluetooth Low Energy standard (…as the name implies…) is very, very battery friendly.

 Item #3: 

         Hardware iBeacons deployment Hardware iBeacons are very easy to set-up and deploy; consider also that they are quite low-cost and will become almost free when critical mass (and economies of scale) will be reached; there are already a number of hardware companies selling iBeacons on the web.

 Item #4:

         Internet connection No connection to the Net is necessary (even though accessing valuable resources in the cloud is always beneficial), so your 3G data-plan won’t be affected – and there is no need to switch WiFi on as well.  

sample project using ibeacon technology