Beacoin
Of late the new bluetooth 4.0 specification has been getting a lot of hype due to its extremely low voltage specifications and bluetooth beacon implementation. So we decided to create the Beacoin. This coin sized bluetooth device will act as a beacon for both iOS (iBeacon) and Android. We have decided to open source the SDK for iOS and Android and will be made available on out github page once the funding goal has been achieved. The device will run off a 3V button battery that is designed to last for up to a year.
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My name is Basil and I am the technical Co-Founder of TECSOL. We started our company in 2009 and are into development of software services related to iOS, Android and Web Applications. We are also into the business of electrical consulting and deal with electrical simulations at the grid level.
- The current solutions for iBeacon only support iOS and are expensive. iOS implementation only speaks of beacon development between two iOS devices. We are currently developing the SDK to support Android as well. Also there is no need to have an iOS device to act as a transmit beacon. Beacoin will help you setup beacons and you can use our SDK for any custom development that you are looking to deploy. Most beacons available in the market cost 5 times as much. We are looking to pull the cost of the device down.
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We already have the prototype design that runs on the TI2541 BLE chip on the CC2541DK-MINI - CC2541 Mini Development Kit. It works well on iOS7 and Android devices that support BLE. We have tested it on the iPhone 5, Samsung Galaxy S4 and the iPad Air and are looking to mass produce this device. Our designs are fully verified by TI and we are working closely with the TI engineers to make this happen. We are already a part of the TI development community.
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Our device will also support firmware upgrades in case the beacon bluetooth profile changes at any time. This will be done with a micro usb connection and software that will be made available once we have reached our goal.
Product Design Concept
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Product Use Case
The concept was best explained by Apple during during their developer conference. Here they have used of another iOS device to act as a beacon. Our product eliminates the need of this.
This video only speaks of beacon implementation on iOS. We will be releasing an open source SDK for Android on our github page once we reach the funding goal.
CNET iBeacon Video
iBeacon in the news
Current Competitor Ads in the Market
1st Prototype
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2nd Prototype
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Reference design for production
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CC2541 TI BLE
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Competitors
This technology is new and so are our competitors. We believe the price of the device is high and want to enable developers to adopt this technology by getting the device for cheap.
Here are a list of our competitors.
What We Need & What You Get
- We are looking to raise 28,000.00$ to take this prototype and move it into production, packed and ready for delivery.
- Every perk has at least 1 beacoin that will be delivered to you. You should be able to get started by downloading out SDK that will house a lot of examples that will work out of the box.
- We are looking for a fixed funding. In case we do not reach our goal we will refund the money back to you. We have a working prototype with us. The goal is to enable other developers to benefit from this technology and make exciting products out of them. If we do not reach our goal we cannot manufacture for the indicated price and hence the fixed funding.
Perks
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Schedule
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The Impact
- The current devices that are available in the market are bulky and expensive. We are looking to achieve a target price of 8-10$ per beacon. Our aim is to make the device as cheap as possible so that there is no hesitation in the adoption of this great technology. Our devices will also support firmware upgrades in case there are any changes to the bluetooth profile.
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For more information about our company please visit http://www.tecsolsoftware.com
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You can visit our github page at https://github.com/basilabbassv/
- We have given a very simple description because this is a very technical requirement and intended with a target market of developers and service providers who are looking to implement iBeacon. This description is not aimed at end consumers and hence we have not given any design integration in this page apart from the main image.
- If you have any questions feel free to contact us on basil@tecsolsoftware.com
