Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology that can be used by those who want to exchange data between devices over a short distance.
The technology uses UHF frequency, and creates a connection using what's called a Personal Area Network (PAN). While the technology is very capable and remains useful in certain scenarios, it doesn't adapt well to the ever-growing file size and needs of transferring data over greater distances.
Google has a solution for this.
And that is by using what it's called a Neighbor Awareness Network (NAN).
What this technology is capable of, is allowing people to connect their phones together over far greater distances than Bluetooth, while at the same time making it possible for the parties to send messages to each other, or even transfer large amounts of data without an internet connection.
And to showcase that technology, Google has developed an app called the 'WifiNanScan'.
It should be noted that this WifiNanScan app is initially launched as a demo app.
Inside the app, users can accurately tell how far apart two devices are from each other, with a distance measurement with a precision of about 1 meter with phones up to 15 meters apart.
It also allows one of the two phones to be either a publisher or subscriber.
In other words, this app only allows users to detect their proximity to each other, and pick which role they want to fulfill to exchange messages.
This app is simple, and does not bring anything useful to the general users.
Google released the app aimed for developers, OEMs and researchers, to show them how the NAN-based technology works. By giving them this tool, Google hopes that it can help enable the development of peer-to-peer ranging and data transfer, find my phone and context-aware applications that are based on the NAN API.
The technology works like this:
The WifiNanScan app makes use of NAN, a technology that is also known as 'Wi-Fi Aware'.
This allows phones using Android 8.0 and above to “discover and connect directly to each other without any other type of connectivity between them.” In other words, phones can connect with each other like when using an active internet connection, but without an active internet connection.
The NAN API works by discovering nearby devices and create network connections that can “share large amounts of data,” or send short messages.
Using the app for example, users can start the service, to signal their availability to potential subscribers within Wi-Fi range. And if the phone detects another phone with Wi-Fi Aware turned on, it can connect to it by creating an ad-hoc network without even using a Wi-Fi access point.
The potential of this technology is quite considerable.
On a web page on its website, the Wi-Fi Alliance, the organization that owns the Wi-Fi trademark, said that the technology can allow people to play a game together with friends without access to the internet. It can also allow people to listen to music on multiple devices at once.
Beyond phones, Wi-Fi Alliance also said that the technology can provide autonomous vehicles a way to communicate with each other and share crucial information. In this case, Wi-Fi Aware can be used to alert cars to nearby accidents or hazards or simply managing traffic flow to reduce congestion.
Google has in the past and for several times, work on local discovery technologies to make devices understand their surroundings better. And this WifiNanScan app is just another of its contribution.