Bluetooth Technology Alliance releases Bluetooth low power audio technology guide

    Based on 20 years of innovation, Le audio can not only improve Bluetooth audio performance, but also provide strong support for hearing aid applications and add audio sharing function. Recently, the Bluetooth special interest group (SIG) released the Bluetooth low power audio technology guide series, which deeply analyzes the low power audio specifications and how to develop innovative applications based on Le audio, so as to provide technical guidance for employees in the audio field.

    The book was written by Nick Hunn, chairman of the hearing aid working group of the Bluetooth technology alliance, vice chairman of the general audio working group and an important contributor to the low-power audio specification. It details how the low-power audio specification changes the way we design and use audio, and provides a comprehensive interpretation of this revolutionary audio innovation.

    The concept of Le audio began a few years ago when hearing aid companies proposed to use low-power Bluetooth radio to develop a low-power version of Bluetooth audio compatible with hearing aids. Over the years, the hearing aid industry has been trying to solve the problems of audio quality, time delay, battery life and broadcast transmission. Hearing aid users have always wanted to be able to connect phones and other Bluetooth devices unimpeded, but they are limited by the power consumption of traditional HFP and A2DP solutions. Therefore, representatives of several large hearing aid companies and the board of directors of the Bluetooth Technology Alliance gathered together in 2013 and reached a joint agreement. They will jointly help the Bluetooth Technology Alliance develop a new Bluetooth low-power audio standard and help the hearing aid ecosystem achieve interoperability.

    Soon after this development, many consumer audio companies began to pay attention to the use cases of hearing aids and realized that they are also applicable to the consumer market. With the increasing number of enterprises participating in the project, the project has been widely expanded. Nowadays, the demand and use cases of low-power audio solutions are far beyond the scope of serving the hearing impaired. Changes in market demand and audio functions have created new use cases for audio transmission, such as voice assistance, true wireless stereo and noise elimination.

    Bluetooth low power audio plan has developed into the largest specification development project in the history of Bluetooth technology alliance. The new Bluetooth low power audio specification contains more than 20 documents and a toolkit. Designers can use the toolkit to develop applications with higher audio quality, new topology and even lower power consumption. The low-power audio specification also introduces broadcast audio, which will greatly promote wireless audio innovation in the next few years.

    According to the latest information on Bluetooth market in 2021, the completion of Le audio technical specifications wi