Comparing RTLS infrastructure:

Weighing Bluetooth and Competitors

Contents

3 Introduction

7 I. RTLS technologies cost comparison

9 II. BLE-Based RTLS

How Bluetooth provides value for customers

Upcoming Bluetooth capabilities

13 III. Complete capabilities for RTLS

How Location Engine provides value for solutions providers

Example applications: Kontakt.io's Location Engine and Gateway
Gateway & Location Engine FAQ

18 IV. BLE interviews

Test your RTLS with Gateway

Define Success and Deploy

26 Buy Location Engine Starter Kit

Kontakt.io
 3

Introduction
Real-Time Location Systems enable businesses to understand
and utilize their assets efficiently. It makes daily operations more
transparent and aids in process optimization. As the Internet of
Things develops, an increasing number of options and standards
are appearing. WiFi, Bluetooth, UWB, and Zigbee all provide a
great service to businesses despite using different methods.
Getting the most out of a connected infrastructure begins with
the choice of standard, and the technologies available are rapidly
changing.

In the past, Bluetooth was not the strongest competitor. Now,

with Bluetooth Low Energy, it is offering completely new
capabilities to asset tracking at a fraction of the cost of other
standards. It benefits from a large existing ecosystem of over 8.2
billion Bluetooth devices worldwide, making it the most widely
adopted standard for short range wireless communication.
 4

Modern Bluetooth technology revolutionizes Asset Positioning Systems through:

Super low cost: 1/5th the price of competing

technologies.

Better battery life: Beacons can last several years;

WiFi tags often have to be charged every 24 hours.

Range: Bluetooth provides accuracy even at larger

distances.
 5

"
Think of asset tracking in process management and
transportation and logistics, where you want to be able to track
an asset from place A to place B in relation to other things on
your shop floor or in your office building or in your factory. Bea-
cons are a perfect solution for these types of problems and
these types of scenarios, so I really believe beacons will abso-
lutely explode.” 1

Steve Hegenderfer, director of developer programs at

Bluetooth SIG

1. We’ll Govern the Internet of Things with Mob Rules. (episode 87) IoT Podcast.
 6

As companies try to modernize their current infrastructures,

Bluetooth continues to grow in popularity. RFID is decidedly
impractical for mid- or long-range tracking as well as projects
that extend beyond registering entry and exit. WiFi is no longer
the only option for tracking with a built-in ecosystem. Firms are
reevaluating their options, examining the differences between
each standard in greater detail.

In this paper we will compare Bluetooth and competing technol-

ogies on several levels including hardware and software require-
ments. We will also examine the capabilities of new Gateway and
Location Engine technology which allow for trigger-based events
and feature an easily integrated API for consumer-facing apps
and platforms.

We will build upon our in-depth RTLS white paper through:

Cost comparisons

Breakdown of BLE use cases in RTLS

Introduction to Gateway technology

Gateway technology FAQ

Hardware- and software-oriented interviews

 7

I. RTLS technologies cost comparsion

 8

There are several options for an RTLS system, but the most popular are active RFID and WiFi.

Active RFID WiFi tags Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)

uses small battery-powered tags to
broadcast signals. Unlike passive tags,
these provide a long read range (up to
100 meters) and include a power source
for broadcasting. These systems can be
exponentially more expensive than their
passive counterparts; passive RFID tags
are simple and cheap and can be easily
disposed of with product packaging.
They have a range of some 10m, making
them significantly less practical for
many use cases.
are able to, in part, leverage existing
WiFi ecosystems, making them very
popular in industries like healthcare.
They act almost the same as Bluetooth
beacons with one big difference:
energy usage. WiFi was designed to
be highly efficient and therefore uses
a large amount of bandwidth. The
result is more energy usage and higher
associated costs.
was introduced in 2010 and is designed
to use less energy than other standards.
It allows for devices that can run for
several years on tiny coin-cell operated
batteries. Due largely to the simplicity
of the technology, Bluetooth-based
beacons can be created quickly and for
a lower cost than competitors.

RTLS Type Cost Accuracy/Reading Distance Battery Life Upfront Hardware Costs

BLE (Kontakt.io) Gateway: $89 4 m (room level) 7 Months for card beacons $25,900
Tag: $17 2+ years for tough beacon

WiFi Tag: $120 3-4 m 24h for personal tags $120,000

3-4 years (low frequency)

Active RFID Reader: $1000 - $5k 3-5 m 3-10 years $130,000

Tag: $30 - $100
 9

II. BLE-Based RTLS

 10

Bluetooth is capable of providing accuracy and capabilities near the level of the most popular solutions on the market. More importantly,
BLE has proven far more affordable and easier to deploy. This allows beacons to support cutting edge use cases with less hassle and
waste.

Check In/Check Out Taking Stock Monitor, Analyze, Alert

Note each time an asset enters or exits a Map which assets are located in a given Record movements for analysis and
space. area. automate processes.

- Create timelines - Count assets moving through a station - Automate triggers and alerts

- Highlight bottlenecks - Keep running stock of crucial assets - Generate data

- Inform managers, employees, and

customers about asset locations
 11

Bluetooth 5

With the recent release of Bluetooth 5, the asset tracking
community now has access to an unprecedented amount of
strength. Bluetooth 5 boasts four times the range and double
the speed of its predecessor. It also has an 800% increased
capacity for advertisements. Because of these improvements,
there will be definitive changes for both developers and end
users. Users will begin experiencing the IoT in a new, faster way.
Even Bluetooth SIG’s Steve Hegenderfer admits that beacons will
be one of the biggest winners with Bluetooth 5.

"
“The really interesting part for me is, with the advent of the huge advertising package, we are taking beacons to the next level, so you can
have a much richer, deeper and much more involved experience with beacons, compared to what what was possible before.”
Steve Hegenderfer, director of developer programs at Bluetooth SIG.
 12

For large enterprises and warehouses, more range means less

hardware is needed to extend coverage.

In places where a company previously needed 10 Gateways,

they now only need 5.

That is money saved on hardware, installation, cables, and

deployment specialists. More importantly, in scenarios where
beacons simply can’t be placed (for example, in the middle of
a sports field) the longer range will make covering previously
unreachable space easy. The lifetime maintenance of these
infrastructures will also be simplified significantly. With the
number of beacons in a fleet cut in half, taking care of these
systems will be much more manageable.

Until now, beacons could only send 31 bytes of information at a

time, and they utilize every last bit of that space. For example,
the new Kontakt.io Beacon Pro is equipped with sensors to send
data on light and movement. These sensors do three major
things: they let managers better understand their infrastructure
through data analysis; they enable triggers and alerts based on
changes in the environment; and they save energy by powering
the beacon down when not in use. Now, there’s 800% more
space to play with. A beacon could be equipped with all kinds of
extra sensors.

Whatever particular needs a business has can be much more

easily met with these powerful beacons.
 13

III. Complete capabilities

for RTLS

The importance of any RTLS rests in the data they transfer or

collect. The most basic system (like those based on NFC or
passive RFID) simply registers when an asset passes through a
location. This rudimentary data can help managers track asset
locations, optimize usage, decrease waste, and even find insight
into the overall flow of an operation. That, however, is just the
beginning.
 14

How Location Engine provides value for

solution providers

Beacons are able to generate active and even real-time data

that can be easily leveraged for analysis and visualization. More
importantly, beacon technology recently got one huge addi-
tion: the Location Engine. The Location Engine API passes data
through a beacon gateway and directly to the cloud, allowing
users to check data like beacon location and telemetry. The Lo-
cation Engine API also allows for “triggers,” real-time reactions to
specified events or changes in the space.

The Location Engine enables easy data generation and quick

integration of data into solution provider apps and platforms.
Instead of just numbers and location data, a solution provider
can create a program that indicates dwell times in different ar-
eas, visualization tools, heatmapping interfaces, and more. The
software allows businesses to not just get by with asset tracking
but to extend and optimize operations by gathering reliable data
quickly and easily.
 15

Location Engine:

Low cost: Build a Real-Time Location System

at 1/5th the cost of competing positioning
technologies such as active RFID or WiFi.

Easy integration: Launch faster by building an

asset positioning solution on Kontakt.io's scalable
Rest API.

No hassle: Ease maintance and additional costs by

leveraging hardware designed to be reliable and
integrate seamlessly.
 16

Example applications: Kontakt.io’s Location Engine and Gateway

There are several uses for Bluetooth beacons in infrastructure, but the third classification, “monitor, analyze, alert” takes full advantage of
the modern beacon’s capabilities. Many companies employ similar RTLS systems based on WiFi or active RFID tags, but the low energy
requirements of Bluetooth enables them to work more efficiently and offer more capabilities for a smaller cost.

Asset tracking to drive up usage Data-based optimization Alerts for unfavorable developments

A hospital attaches beacons to assets. A manager uses dwell time data to Assets are equipped with beacons, so
Crucial equipment can now be tracked understand asset movements down the managers can be alerted if packages
and located instantly, increasing usage production line. This information can are sent to the wrong area, decreasing
and decreasing lost assets help better allocate staff and resources. wasted time and misplaced assets.
 17

Gateway & Location Engine FAQ

The Location Engine software relies on the beacon Gateway, a
technology that funnels data directly from a beacon fleet to the
cloud. This hardware is key to the new standard of Bluetooth-
based RTLS. Like beacons, they are relatively simple pieces of
hardware that can be easily deployed.
These are the most common questions asked about the new
gateway technology.
Q. What are my options for powering the Gateway?
A. The Gateway can be powered by micro-usb only.
Q. Can I deploy the solution locally? (without internet connec-
tion)
A. Yes. The Gateway can be deployed locally. There is a one-time
setup cost, and the API acts the same as it would online.
Q. Can I white-label the solution?
A. You can build any solution you would like on top of the Kon-
takt.io API. There is nothing hidden in the API, so you have full
access to all relevant data.
Q. Can I get the raw data straight from the Gateway (without
leveraging the API)?
A. No.

Q. How do I get the raw data

A. Use our web socket

Q. What’s different about the Kontakt.io/BLE stack?

A. The Kontakt.io stack is cheaper than self-built systems. BLE
infrastructures offer lower costs, higher penetration rates, and

?
comparable capabilities to competing technologies.

Q. How do I get the data to my application?

A. Data can be funneled through the API into your own app.
 18

IV. BLE interviews

One major reason to switch from WiFi to Bluetooth is the
cost, but why is this true? What is the real difference between
Bluetooth and other infrastructure standards? We sat down with
Kontakt.io’s head of engineering, Łukasz Wierzbicki, and head of
hardware, Łukasz Szelejewski, to get a better understanding of
what makes Bluetooth unique.

This can also work with either Bluetooth or WiFi data, but
the lowest level, where the software communicates with the
hardware, that can’t be done with both protocols. That needs to
be adapted to Bluetooth or WiFi. Not both. So, you can use part
of an existing software stack for both Bluetooth and WiFi.
 19

"Power efficiency is the most important feature of Bluetooth. Plus, Bluetooth can do
more than just track items. You can do interactions through the smartphone. So that
means it’s more power efficient, cost effective, and you can do more with it."

Łukasz Wierzbicki, Head of Engineering

Why is Bluetooth so much more reach about 100 meters and RFID about 2.
practical for RTLS now? WiFi and Bluetooth work on the same principles, but
Bluetooth is designed to be as low energy as possible.
The basic difference is that Bluetooth is more power It was built with a focus on low energy. WiFi
efficient. Now you can use a beacon for two years with was designed to be highly efficient. It’s a protocol
one battery. That’s not something that was previously designed with the assumption that it won’t be
possible. Secondly, Bluetooth doesn’t need to be low energy. With Bluetooth, you have the beacon
connected. You can broadcast a signal and nothing broadcasting its signal and with WiFi it’s the same.
has to receive it. With previous versions, you also had But because WiFi’s bandwidth [usage] is less efficient,
to have a connection. you will need more power to reach the same antenna
This non-connection is a big reason for Bluetooth's broadcasting level. In the end, Bluetooth is cheaper
success. Bluetooth SIG created the newest for most cases, but it does depend on the accuracy
specifications after deciding it should be more needed.
power efficient and work without connectivity. Once
companies using Bluetooth had to implement these What’s the difference in software for
new protocols, this new kind of more affordable and BLE and other infrastructures?
capable infrastructure became possible.
There’s a difference for low-level stack software.
Why is the cost so much lower with Operating raw data on WiFi signals cannot be mixed
Bluetooth? with Bluetooth signals. The operating stack is basically
the same, but a software that works for WiFi won’t
Because of the range of Bluetooth. RFID has a very work for Bluetooth. I do imagine a company with WiFi
short range, and Bluetooth has a very long range. To could easily embed Bluetooth into their system. This is
cover a big area with RFID, you have to have a lot of because there’s several levels with the software.
hardware. That’s the main difference. Bluetooth can
 20

There’s the presentation level that a user sees. Here it

doesn’t make a difference whether a signal is in WiFi or
Bluetooth. Same for the next level: Middleware, where
the software uses abstractions like signal strength,
distance, relative position. This can also work with
either Bluetooth or WiFi data, but the lowest level,
where the software communicates with the hardware,
that can’t be done with both protocols.

That needs to be adapted to Bluetooth or WiFi.

Not both. So, you can use part of an existing software
stack for both Bluetooth and WiFi. Is there a difference
in the data generated?
The general data is the same. WiFi broadcasts the
same information as Bluetooth. In general, RTLS uses
just the RSSI strength, so the data is basically all the
same. They use different frequencies and frames
but, from an overall perspective, they’re the same. It’s
always about signal strength.

How does security with Bluetooth

compare to other options?

Security depends on the implementation. In general,

each device has a MAC address. On a hardware level,
devices are identified by this MAC address. If we talk
about security in terms of knowing “who is who,” it
depends not on the standard but the implementation.
If MAC shuffling or rotating is used, then, at every
defined point in time, the device will change this
MAC address. When it comes to RTLS, the question
is really ‘what is security?’ First, we need to know if
the data is safe and if it’s being safely stored. That
doesn’t depend on the standard. That depends on
the software. Second, is a hacker able to see your
infrastructure at a particular moment? Can they go
into an office and have to context to know exactly
where particular items are?

Why is Bluetooth so much more
practical for RTLS now?
First, it’s the power consumption. I think it’s the
best solution on the market. You can create tiny
devices with two, three, five years battery life. The
maintenance costs are low because you don’t need to
always replace batteries and hardware.
Second, It’s very long-range compared to RFID and
NFC. It’s similar to WiFi, but the devices are still smaller.
Portable. If you’re using RTLS for tracking, it’s normal
for devices to be very small, but because the methods
of broadcasting are so different than WiFi, Bluetooth
hardware can be much smaller. For users, the smaller
the device, the better. For example, our new Card
Beacon. It’s tiny, and that’s a key point. Now, many of
these RTLS solutions can be small, but because of the
power saving, beacons also need less battery. WiFi
broadcasts tons of data even if you don’t need it. It
takes much more energy.
21
" With beacons, because we have great control over the transmission power, we can
configure them to have low power and place beacons every 2 or 3 meters. With that low
power broadcasting we can create navigation with great accuracy, less than 3 meters.
That’s something really unique."
Łukasz Szelejewski, Head of Hardware
Why is Bluetooth so much cheaper?
It’s the technology. It’s not complicated. The time to
market and time to deploy are much shorter.
If you build a device with Bluetooth versus WiFi, you
use a smaller number of components in the main
device. That makes the technology easier for users
and manufacturers. The time spent thinking about
development is also easier than developing with WiFi.
People are deploying beacons around the world much
more easily than WiFi solutions because they use
batteries. They don’t need to worry about cords and
wires.
Because WiFi requires so much energy,
WiFi tags need to be recharged very of-
ten. Usually every 24 hours.
 22

How can we compare functionality and

deployment between standards?

Bluetooth devices are smaller and lighter. You can just

stick them to the wall. The technology itself also differs
from WiFi. You have more control over things like
broadcasting power, intervals. WiFi has that, but it’s
not so easy. Installing 50 units and adjusting power for
maximum accuracy is easier with beacons.
For WiFi, there’s always two devices. There are
stations or clients (like smartphones) and access
points. Usually, WiFi systems require a connection
between devices. Beacons are on the other side of the
spectrum; there’s no connection between the beacon
and phone needed--except for configuration changes.
Beacons are only broadcasting. WiFi for RTLS has more
parameters. There are two bands, transmitting in 2.4
GHz and 5 GHz. Some countries’ WiFi has 14 channels,
others have 13. It’s all hardware dependent. These are
additional factors you’ll always have to consider and
maintain.

Is Bluetooth fundamentally different

from competing standards?

BLE and WiFi are very similar, but RFID and NFC are
completely different. They’re meant for short range,
around a few centimeters to maybe one meter. You
can make them increase range but the antenna
needed could be up to a half meter long. Passive
technologies don’t have their own power source, so
you have to transmit energy by sending energy to this
antenna. That’s why they have to be so long. Active
RFID does have its own power source but it’s not as
handy because of that antenna size.
 23

Test your RTLS with Gateway Beacon hardware type

Determine possible needs

Card Beacon

Even if the final use case involves tracking thousands of assets Thin, mobile beacons are good for:
moving through several buildings, the initial use case should be People monitoring
small and simple. Find one situation where the functionality of Employee management
beacon technology can be easily implemented, tested, and ana- Package tracking
lyzed.

Start by tracking certain assets entering or leaving a single room,

using triggers to register when an asset goes to a predefined
area, or collecting data from assets in a single production line. Tough Beacon
The goal is to understand how beacons work in your environ- Strong, durable beacons are good for:
ment and whether they will be appropriate for the goal project. Outdoor usage
Once their functionality, and perhaps the capabilities of a rel- Vehicle tracking
evant app, is proven, then the next steps can be taken. Equipment tracking

Determine technical requirements

There are two technological decisions that must be made at the
beginning of the planning stages for any Bluetooth infrastruc-
ture.
Other Beacon

Other types beacons may include

different batteries, sensors, or add-
ons; however, Card Beacon and
Tough Beacon are sufficient for most
scenarios.
 24

iBeacon or Eddystone

iBeacon

The Apple profile is:

Robust
Easy to implement
Functional with any app
Great with iOS

Eddystone

The Google profile is:

Flexible
Able to broadcast additional data
Customizable
Great with Android
 25

Understand the software Once the beacons are deployed, it’s time to setup the hardware
Gateway. Detailed steps can be found here. From there, the
software Gateway and Location Engine are the real tools that will
turn your RTLS beacons into data machines. Once the Gateway is
On top of choosing your beacon hardware and creating a
plugged in, it will start collecting data about all beacons nearby.
physical infrastructure, a smart RTLS system will require proper
You can access this data using the Location Engine API.
software knowledge and usage. The Bluetooth RTLS system
described here works in conjunction with the beacon Gateway
hardware and the Location Engine API. Make sure you under-
stand how the different softwares and technologies work and
know how and when to use them. If you’re having problems or
don’t understand some of the terms we use, head over to our
Support pages. If you want to dive into details, check out our Get-
ting Started guide.

Begin by getting comfortable with the Web Panel. If you’re a

solution provider, you may be integrating the Kontakt.io API into
your own program to create something bigger. The Kontakt.io
Proximity Web Panel is your command center. It lets you manage
and monitor your fleet, set up beacons, schedule updates, and
configure beacon security settings. Here you can create your ac-
count and add beacons to it.

The Web Panel will let you:

Change beacon settings

Create venues
See overview of beacons
Quickly demo your RTLS solution
 26

Define Success and Deploy

Once you know exactly what you hope to accomplish and have planned methods for quantifying success, it’s time to begin. Prepare to
determine what data is useful, uncover poorly connected areas, and find other information that can be used to make a future deploy-
ment more effective.

You can also leverage our complete POC guide for more information.

To get started with your RTLS POC or next asset tracking project, check out the starter kits available from Kontakt.io. These two kits are
designed to help you test and validate the usefulness of a Bluetooth-based infrastructure for your business and use cases.

Location Engine Starter Kit

+ 3 x Card Beacon OR 3 x Tough Beacon

Perfect for: Perfect for:

- people monitoring - outdoor usage

- employee management - vehicle tracking
- package tracking - equipment tracking

and much more! and much more!

1 x GATEWAY
3 MONTHS API ACCESS
LEARN MORE LEARN MORE
 27

Kontakt.io empowers businesses by bridging the gap between

real and digital. We are pushing the Internet of Things revolution
forward by connecting proximity-aware devices to the cloud.
Future IoT solutions will be built on beacons, and Kontakt.io is
proud to be a thriving leader in that space. We want to share
our best-in-class beacon infrastructure solutions and expertise
to empower every organization on the planet to realize its full
potential.