Bluetooth Peripherals Expand Field Service Functions

Here's how partnerships between handheld computer and peripheral vendors benefit you.

A few years ago, field service automation involved getting work order information from a back end, call center, or CRM (customer relationship management) application out to a field technician. This was often done via text messaging, paging, or simply a call on cell phones. Then, field service automation evolved to include mobile applications running on wireless handheld computers or laptops/tablets. This iteration enabled field service employees to be more productive because they didn't have to call back and forth to verify service call information. Now, the prevalence of Bluetooth wireless technology is enabling field techs to be even more functional via peripheral devices.

The emergence of Bluetooth technology is helping make a stronger case for the adoption of peripheral devices such as mobile printers. Bluetooth is a short-distance radio frequency technology that operates at 2.4 GHz on the worldwide ISM (Industrial, Scientific, and Medical) band. Bluetooth provides a personal area network for wireless devices to communicate that replaces serial cords or Wi-Fi (802.11b) connectivity. The short-range technology is much less taxing to a device's battery than Wi-Fi and creates a much shorter wireless range of use – usually 50 to 60 feet. Because of these two characteristics, it is ideally suited for connecting wireless peripherals.