Smartphones and PICs

[khufumen]

Paul,
As I think about it, the bluetooth does seem to be the way to go. My ITouch has bluetooth as well as my Blackberry. What is the range that you get with your bluetooth set up and if I may inquire, what PIC do you use?
Eric

[khufumen]

What's the difference between the ESD100 and the ESD200. It says one is Class 1 and one is Class 2 but I don't really know what that means.
Eric

[prstein]

Hello Eric,

Class 2 = low power, range ~30 meters if you have a clear line-of-sight. Way less if not line-of-sight. Since I figure a person has the PDA in one hand and the device in the other, 2 or 3 meters really is enough and real-world world conditions we expect about 10 or 15 meters. That translates to one or two rooms over in a building.

Class 1 = high power, nominal range 100 meters. I've used this for one application (total of only eight units) where lots of power was available (from vehicles). Now, I've never seen a PDA with anything other than Class 2 built in. Using a Class 1 BT chip doesn't really make things much better because of the limitations imposed by the Class 2 in the PDA. With that said, when able to control both sides of the BT chain, a pair of Class 2 modules with very good antennae, in an outdoor desert environment, can easily go hundreds upon hundreds of meters at 115,200 baud. I haven't had the opportunity to measure it out but I don't doubt the advertised 1,000 meters (again, under the right conditions).

Mostly, the PICs used are the 18F1330, but I've also done BT with the 16F877 and 18F452. Use a PIC with a USART. Use HSEROUT and HSERIN. Beyond that it is really not much different than using wired RS232.

Best Regards,
Paul