PICO USB
Bluetooth
Software for USB Adapters
Users Manual
Table
of Contents
The PICO USB Bluetooth Software is used to
operate Bluetooth USB adapters with Windows 2000 / Windows XP. It works with
most USB Bluetooth adapters (e.g. TDK, 3COM, Anycom, Tecom) incorporating a
Cambrigde Silicon Radio or Broadcom chip sets. However, compatibility with all
Bluetooth USB adapters can not be guaranteed.
This User Manual describes the installation
procedure and usage of the PICO USB Bluetooth software. Please take some time
to read this manual.
If you are not familiar with the operation of
Bluetooth technology, we encourage you to read the chapter Bluetooth Basics before you start to use the software.
Important:
Please install the software before you connect your the
Bluetooth USB adapter to your PC.
Important: To
install the software you need administrator rights on your PC.
·
Insert
the PICO USB Bluetooth software set up CD into your CD-Rom drive. Usually the
Setup program launches automatically. In the case that Setup does not start
automatically, open the CD-ROM in the Windows Explorer and double click on
Setup.exe.
·
The
Setup program automatically detects the operating systems version and your
current language settings. If you wish to install the PICO USB Bluetooth
software in a different language, select that language in the upper right
corner of the Setup program.
·
To
start the installation click on install.
·
If the
Setup detects an older version of the software on your system, this software
will be uninstalled first. Depending on your system configuration, it may be
necessary to reboot your PC after uninstallation and start the Setup program
again.
·
Follow
the instructions of the Setup program.
After the Setup program has finished, connect
your USB Bluetooth device to your PC. It will be detected by the system and the
necessary device drivers will be installed automatically. To install Bluetooth
services now please continue with section Installing
Bluetooth Devices.
Usually it is not necessary to uninstall the
Bluetooth software for the USB Device. The USB Adaptor is a Plug and Play
device and can be removed with the “Safely Remove Hardware” icon the system
tray (lower right corner).
For the
complete uninstallation of the Bluetooth software of your USB Adaptor perform
the following steps:
·
The
USB Adaptor must be connected with your PC.
·
Open
the device manager (start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> System ->
Hardware tab -> Device Manager).
·
Select
“Bluetooth-RFCOMM” and deinstall all items in that tree view item (these are
named Bluetooth COMxx and Bluetooth-RFCOMM).
·
Select
the item “USB Bluetooth Adaptor” and uninstall the entry for your USB Adaptor.
·
Close
the device manager.
·
Open
“Add or Remove Programs” in the “Control Panel”.
·
Select
“PICO USB” and click on “Change/Remove”.
Remote and local Bluetooth services are
integrated into the system by virtual ports. For each service a virtual serial
(COM) or parallel (LPT) port is installed. The type of port depends on the
service used.
System services like the Dial Up Networking
(e.g. Modems) or the Fax service can use these virtual ports. They will work
like using a direct cable connection to the device you want to use.
There are two types of Bluetooth services:
local and remote. Remote services are those you want to use on a remote device,
e.g. the DUN service of a modem or the LPT service of a printer. A connection
to a remote service is created whenever your application wants to use the
service (e.g. printing a document on a Bluetooth printer).
By installing local services you allow other
Bluetooth devices to connect to your PC. The remote device must create the
connection to your computer. Examples for local services are incoming network
connections or a Hot-Sync connection to a PDA or Cell phone.
The PICO USB Bluetooth software currently
supports the following services:
Service |
Bluetooth Profile |
As remote Service (Application) |
As local Service (Application) |
Serial Port |
Serial Port |
Yes |
Yes |
Network |
LAN Access |
Yes |
Yes |
Modem |
Dial Up
Networking |
Yes (Dial Up Network, RAS) |
No |
Fax |
Fax |
Yes |
No |
After successful installation you
will find an blue antenna symbol in the system tray. You can open the Bluetooth
Monitor by clicking on this antenna symbol. The Bluetooth Monitor is used to
install and configure Bluetooth services. It also shows you the state of active
Bluetooth connections.
The Bluetooth Environment shows all Bluetooth
devices currently in range. The services offered by these devices are also
displayed. If you use the default settings, devices will be searched and their
services retrieved automatically. You can search for devices and search for
services manually by clicking the appropriate button. For services you have
already installed, the service and device name are shown in bold and the
virtual port used is shown behind the service name.
To install a service, mark it by clicking on
the service name and then click the install button (or simply double click the
service name). Further instructions on how to install Bluetooth Services you
will find in section Application Examples.
On the tab sheet Remote Services you will see a list of all currently installed
remote services. This list shows the installed services regardless of whether
the device is in range or not. You can change settings for the services or you
can remove services not needed anymore.
On the tab sheet Local Services you can see a list of all
installed local services. You can install new services or remove existing ones.
For further instructions on how to install local services please refer to
section Application Examples.
The Active
Connections tab sheet shows a list with the state of all currently active
Bluetooth connections.
The Paired Devices tab sheet shows a list of all currently paired
devices. You can delete pairings here.
On the Settings
tab sheet you can change the basic settings of the Bluetooth software.
In the section Bluetooth Environment you can change the behaviour of the Bluetooth
device search and service requests. You can also set the duration and the time
between two device searches (in seconds). You can also disable the automatic
device search and the automatic service requests.
In the section Security Settings for own Services you can set the security options
for local services. If you switch off the "scanable" option, your
Bluetooth device is invisible to other Bluetooth devices, but devices that
already know its Bluetooth Address, can still connect to it If you deselect the
"pageable" option, other devices cannot connect to your Bluetooth
device.
Please don't modify the settings for the
Bluetooth Role switch if not required. These options have the following
meanings:
Try being Master
When this option is enabled and a remote device
connects to a local service, a role switch is initiated. This means that the
Bluetooth software tries to switch from Bluetooth slave mode to master mode and
consequently the remote device has to switch from master mode to slave mode. In
practice, if the role switch is successful, this has the consequence that your
Bluetooth device still can connect to other devices or is able to accept
additional connection request.
On the other hand, if the role switch is not
successful (either because the remote device does not support or allow role
switching), your Bluetooth device can not connect to other devices or accept
additional connection while the current connection is active.
Force being Master
This option is very similar to try being master with the addition, that
a connection request from a remote device is rejected when the role switch
fails.
You should activate one of these options if you
want to:
·
Allow
multiple connections to local services from remote devices, e.g. for a LAN
access point.
·
Use
remote services from your PC while a remote device is connected, e.g. if you
want to print to a Bluetooth printer while a Hot-Sync connection from a PDA is
active.
In the following sections the installation of
some typical Bluetooth applications is described. Some steps to install a
particular device may vary depending on your device or the operating system you
are using.
The installation steps described here will be
basically the same for all devices supporting the DUN (Dial up Networking)
profile. This may even be a modem (analogue or ISDN) or a mobile phone.
·
Open
the Bluetooth Monitor by clicking on the blue antenna symbol in the system
tray.
·
If the
modem you want to install is not shown in the Bluetooth environment make sure
that the modem is switched on and Bluetooth is activated. Some devices,
especially mobile phones, require that you make them visible. Click on Search Devices to update the Bluetooth
environment view.
·
Mark the service for the modem
function (for the Pico Modem in the example this is Dialup Networking) and
click on Install.
·
The
next dialog allows you to select a virtual port number and to enable security
settings. Because modems usually request secure connections it is often not
necessary to enable security here. Click OK.
·
You
are now requested to start a test connection. This test connection is required
to pair the modem with your Bluetooth device. Before clicking Test, make sure your modem is in a
pairable mode. Most modems and mobile phones are not in a pairable mode during
normal operation for security reasons. For instructions how to make your modem
pairable please refer to its user manual. You should also look up the modems
PIN code (on mobile phones you usually enter the PIN during pairing later).
·
Click Test. The pairing process will be started now. When using a modem
with a fixed PIN you will be requested to enter its PIN code. If you are using
a mobile phone you will be requested to enter a PIN on the phone first. Enter a
code on the phone first and the same code when requested by the Bluetooth
monitor. The value of the code you enter is not important. The only thing that
is important is that you enter the same code on both devices.
·
When
the pairing was successful you will get a success message. If you get an error
message, you can retry the pairing. Possible causes for an error are:
- Your
Bluetooth device wasn't in a pairable mode.
- You
entered a wrong PIN.
- You
waited to long to enter the PIN and the pairing timed out.
After having successfully paired your modem you
need two install a modem driver. How this is done depends on your modem:
a) The modem (or mobile phone) manufacturer
supplies a special modem installation program.
(e.g. PICO ISDN, Nokia mobile phone)
b) Use the Windows modem installation wizard.
(e.g. PICO Modem, Ericsson mobile phone)
In case a) please follow the instructions given
by the modem supplier. The modem Setup programs often try to detect the port
the modem is connected to. If this detection fails you can select the port in
the Windows control panel under modem options later. The port used by the modem
is displayed in the Bluetooth Monitor in the Bluetooth Environment (if the modem is visible) or under Remote Services.
In case b) you need a so-called INF file, which
tells Windows how to use your modem. This file (ending .inf) is usually supplied with your modem. When installing the
modem from the Windows control panel you must specify this file.
To send Faxes over Bluetooth you need a
Bluetooth modem which also supports the fax profile. Most Bluetooth modems
support the FAX profile, too. In the examples given you can see that the PICO
Modem and the Nokia 6310 offer a fax service.
If you already have installed the modem
function, as described in the previous section, you can use the same modem for
sending faxes. No additional installation is necessary. If you have not
installed a modem, you can install the fax service the same way as described in
the previous section.
To install a Bluetooth printer you first
install a virtual port for the printer as described for a modem. In the example
you can see that the service Serial Port
on the device HP Deskjet 995 is
installed on COM5. On some Bluetooth printers, the installation of a virtual
parallel port (LPT) may be offered. This option enables additional features
like automatic printer detection and more verbose error messages like
"printer out of paper".
After this you can install the printer driver
software, using the virtual port you assigned. When asked for the communication
port to use, select the one you have the printer service installed to in the
previous step (COM5 in the example given).
The set up steps described here assume that you
are using Windows XP. For other Windows versions they are quiet similar but may
vary in details.
·
1.
Open the Bluetooth Monitor and select Local
Services.
·
2.
Click the Install button and select a
free COM port (for a free port no additional text beside COMX is displayed,
where X is the port number). Select LAN
over PPP and click OK to install the port.
·
3. Only for Windows XP (.NET) Server:
If you like to allow more than one user to connect to the access point at the
same time, repeat step 2. as often as many users you like to allow to connect
simultaneously. Please note that the limit set by Bluetooth is seven concurrent
connections. The home and professional editions of Windows XP only support one
connection.
·
4.
Open the Windows XP "Network Connections" window by clicking:
Start → Connect to → Show
all connections.
·
5.
Start the New Connection Wizard and
click Next.
Select Set up an advanced connection and
click Next.
Select Connect directly to another
Computer and click Next.
Leave Host selected and click Next.
Select the port installed in the previous step (COM6 in the example) and click Next.
Select the users you want allow access to your computer and click Next.
Click Finish.
If you select the Bluetooth Monitor tab sheet Active Connection now, you will find a
new entry for the service you just created with state waiting.
Other devices that support the Bluetooth LAN
access profile can now connect to the service you just created. If your
computer is connected to a LAN and/or to the Internet, a device connected to
this service can use the LAN or Internet connection, too.
Bluetooth is a manufacturer independent
standard for the wireless connection of various electronic devices. It supports
data transfer for applications like wireless printing or Internet access as
well as voice for applications like headsets or phones.
Bluetooth supports connections between just two
or between multiple devices. In the latter case, the master device can connect
to multiple other slave devices at the same time. Such a configuration is
called a "PICO-Net".
Bluetooth utilises the license free 2,4 GHz ISM
radio band. Other devices like wireless LAN or wireless Video transmission
devices also use this frequency range. Bluetooth implements sophisticated
techniques for error free operation:
·
A
frequency-hoping scheme with 1600 frequency changes per second.
·
Utilisation
of state of the art coding techniques with forward error correction.
·
Low
transmission power with automatic power control.
The low transmission power (about 1/1000 of a
mobile phone) limits the range of Bluetooth devices. For the lowest power class
(class 3) a range of about 10 meters outside buildings can be expected. Inside
buildings the range is usually smaller.
For the highest power class (class 1) a range
of up to 100 meters outside and about 30 meters inside buildings is achievable
in practice.
All Bluetooth Devices have a unique
identification, the Bluetooth Device Address. This is a twelve digit
hexadecimal number usually displayed in a notation like 01-23-45-67-89-AB.
Because this device address isn't very
practical, Bluetooth devices also have a name and a device code, which
identifies their main function (e.g. printer, modem, mobile phone or computer).
These properties can be discovered from other
Bluetooth devices and are used to identify a particular Bluetooth device and
its services. However, the device code and the device name are only used for
informational purposes. To connect to another Bluetooth device, the only thing
that is needed is its device address.
Further, all Bluetooth devices have an internal
database, which describes all services offered by a particular device. Other
devices can query this database. The protocol used to query this database is
specified as SDP (Service Discovery Protocol) within the Bluetooth standard.
The Bluetooth standard defines various
protocols and profiles that specify how Bluetooth devices can communicate. In
general the protocols define how information is to be exchanged and the
profiles define the type of data to be exchanged. For normal users the
protocols used are of little interest. Much more important is knowledge about
the profiles, because they are visible at the user interface level. The
following table gives an overview of the Bluetooth profiles. Because new
profiles are added to the Bluetooth standard from time to time there may be
profiles not listed here. Also, some rarely used profiles have been omitted.
Profile |
Applications |
Generic Access (GAP) |
Describe device discovery and general
security aspects. This profile is not related to a special service but is
used by all services. |
Service Discovery Application (SDAP) |
Describes the access to the service database.
Like the GAP profile it is used by other services. |
Serial Port(SPP) |
Basic profile which describes the emulation
of a serial port over Bluetooth . Is used by a number of other profiles for
data communication. |
Headset Hands Free (*) |
Used for wireless headsets |
Dial Up Networking (DUN) |
Used for modems. Analogue or ISDN, as well as
mobile phones. Uses the SPP for data communication. |
Fax |
Used to send and receive Faxes. Often found
in combination with DUN. Uses the SPP for data communication. |
LAN Access (LAN) |
Used for network access over a PPP
connection. Uses the SPP for data communication. |
Generic Object Exchange (GOEP) |
Base profile for OBEX based services. Uses
the SPP for data communication. |
Object Push |
OBEX service used to exchange address book
information and business cards, e.g. between a mobile phone and a PC. |
File Transfer |
OBEX service used to exchange general files. |
Synchronisation |
OBEX service to synchronise address book
information, notes, calendar information and messages between, for example,
between a PDA and a PC. Often realised by special software supplied
by the PDA manufacturer which directly uses the SPP and that will also
function over a cable connection. |
Hardcopy Cable Replacement (HCRP) (*) |
Parallel port emulation over Bluetooth.
Mainly intended for printers and scanners. |
Personal Area Network (PAN) (*) |
Direct (TCP/IP based) network connection over
Bluetooth. More flexible than the LAN profile. |
Common ISDN Access (*) |
Used for ISDN applications over Bluetooth.
More flexible than the DUN and FAX profiles. |
Human Interface Device (HID) (*) |
Used to connect mice, keyboards, joysticks
and similar devices. |
The profiles marked with a (*) are
not part of the original Bluetooth 1.1 specification and partly not finally
standardised.
Even though Bluetooth has a lot of different
applications, the basic steps to establish a Bluetooth connection the first
time are more or less the same:
·
Searching
for the device to connect to. This inquiry discovers the Bluetooth address, the
device code (class), and the name of the device you want connect to.
·
Searching
for available services and selection of the service to use.
·
Pairing
of the devices. This step is optional and not required if no security options
are enabled. During this step the entry of a PIN code (or passkey) on one or
both devices is required. Using this PIN code a Link Key is generated. This
Link Key is stored in both devices and used to authenticate the devices on
subsequent connections.
The information collected during these three
steps are now stored within the devices and used whenever a connection is to be
created between them. In most cases, the initial establishment of a Bluetooth
connection, will be initiated by the device that will create the connection later.
This device will be the master of the Bluetooth connection.
Devices, which communicate over Bluetooth, will
always have one of two roles: master or slave.
A master
-
Creates a connection (paging).
-
Controls which slave is allowed to send data.
-
Can create additional connections while others are active.
A slave
-
Waits for the connection request from a master.
- Cannot create or accept additional
connection while a connection is active.
Depending on the application the device roles
can be
a) Fixed
b) Fixed for the duration of a
single connection,
c) Dynamically change while a
connection is active.
An example for case a) is the connection
between a computer and a printer. The computer always creates a connection when
some document is to be printed.
An example for case b) is the connection
between a mobile phone and a headset. If there is an incoming call, the phone
will connect to the headset as master. If the user wants to make a call, he
will press some button on the headset, which will connect to the phone and
allow the user to voice dial a number.
An example for case c) is a network access
point for multiple users. The first device connects to the access point as a
master. However, if it keeps its master role, no further connections to the
access point (now a slave) are possible. To allow other devices to connect to
the access point, the devices will change the roles. Now the access point is a
master and can accept additional connections.
The Bluetooth standard defines various security
options. There are options to prevent unauthorised usage of a device and
options to prevent monitoring a connection.
The options to prevent unauthorised usage may
not be all implemented in a given device. Possible options are:
·
Bluetooth
devices may be made invisible. This makes it impossible for other devices to
get their Bluetooth address. Only devices, which already know the Bluetooth
address of an invisible device, can connect to this device.
·
Paring
can be disallowed.
·
The
user must authorise every connection.
·
A
connection is only accepted from paired devices (authentication).
To prevent monitoring a connection it is also
possible to enable encryption for a connection. This is only possible if
authentication is enabled, too.