Bluetooth low energy for wearable sensor-based healthcare systems

Wearable sensor-based healthcare systems have drawn a lot of attention from the scientific community and the industry during the past several years. As the healthcare cost is increasing and the population is aging, unobtrusive, low cost and accurate healthcare systems will potentially transform the future of healthcare. They are convenient to use, and can be utilized directly from home or community. These systems have various functionalities, such as bio-signal monitoring, signal analysis and biofeedback. They are consist of sub-systems including sensors, data aggregators, data processing units, connected by wired or wireless communication modules. The developing goal of the systems includes to increase the performance accuracy, to make the system smaller, to prolong the battery life and to lower the product cost. Bluetooth low energy (BLE), comparing to traditional wired or other wireless communication modules, is beneficial for these design goals. Devices with bluetooth low energy are attracting more scientists and engineers in research and are changing individuals' lives with products such as wearable sport bends, smart toothbrushes, and intelligent watches. In this paper, we provide an overview of the state-of-the-art Bluetooth low energy technology. Further, we list and analyze the most popular commercial products and the available developing tools.