Satellite navigation has revolutionized the way we get around. It’s cheap, fast and easy to use. But there’s one fatal flaw in the system: It simply can’t work underground.
GPS requires line of sight to satellites orbiting the planet. The great advantage of this is that it works seamlessly all over the world, without needing to be connected to a cellular or Wi-Fi network. This works well in open areas but in built-up areas with tall buildings, or in underground tunnels, the system can fall apart.
Mesh networking with Bluetooth has a bright future. By taking advantage of existing lighting systems you open the door to huge added value possibilities, both for your business and its customers.
While mesh networking is nothing new, it is only now starting to be adopted in industrial and commercial environments. Bluetooth Mesh offers a low power mesh network with the potential to deliver many and varied added value services.
Some people in the industry view mesh networking as the next ‘shiny object’, nothing more than another excuse to raise prices. But mesh does deliver significant benefits over star or peer-to-peer networks and looks set to make a real impact on the industrial IoT and in the smart home in the years to come.
The reason is simple: mesh networks solve a specific problem. A conventional wireless router offers limited coverage if you can’t hardwire additional access points to it, which drives up complexity and expense in large spaces such an office building. On the other hand, mesh networks bring wireless connectivity to such a space far more simply than ever before.