Time for the world cup, but it isn’t football or rugby. It will however, likely change the playing field of technology, as it is the Innovation World Cup.
This week the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) announced that it is once again looking for ideas and prototypes in the areas of health care, sports and fitness, automotive, entertainment, and more, that use Bluetooth technology version 4.0, for this year’s edition of the Innovation World Cup (IWC). This competition is now in its third year, as the trade organization contest calls on developers, entrepreneurs and students to submit concepts for applications making use of the low energy feature of Bluetooth v4.0.
“We have seen some powerful ideas and prototypes in our past two competitions and this year should be no different, especially as v4.0 commercializes over the course of 2011,” said Michael Foley, Ph.D., executive director of the Bluetooth SIG. “Bluetooth wireless technology offers enormous potential for the development of innovative, wireless solutions in a wide range of markets. The low energy feature of Bluetooth v4.0 allows for low cost and low power wireless connectivity, while also retaining the simplicity, security and massive install base that is inherent with Bluetooth technology. That’s a lot of functionality to play around with for this competition.”
Entries for 2011 IWC competition are now being accepted, and the deadline for submissions is September 14. Finalists’ ideas and prototypes will be presented at MEDICA in Dusseldorf in November 2011 and at CES in Las Vegas in January 2012, where international audiences will have the chance to rank the finalists. The Innovator of the Year award will be announced and presented at ispo in Munich, also in January 2012. The Innovator of the Year will receive prize money of USD 5,000 and a Bluetooth Qualification Program voucher worth up to USD 10,000, as well as an Ellisys Bluetooth protocol analyzer.