Arduino and Bluetooth history, start here
Bluetooth is named after Harald Bluetooth, who ruled Denmark from about 958 until about 986. Arduino is named after the Bar di Re Arduino in Ivrea, where its founders drank, and the bar after Arduin, King of Italy from 1002 to 1014. Two Kings, a free 40-minute documentary, tells both stories and what came after.
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Two Kings, One Bench
Harald and Arduin never met. Their names meet on your breadboard every day.
A free book to keep beside the film: a timeline, the sources, the two kings, and the module family tree.
The chapters
Five chapters, each with its own page
Each chapter's page has the narration line by line, the source behind every fact, and every image with its credit.
Act 1 · 2:09–7:17
The king and the radio
How did Bluetooth get its name?
Bluetooth is named after Harald Bluetooth, who ruled Denmark from about 958 until about 986.
Watch from 2:09Still: Ljunie / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0
Act 2 · 7:17–14:26
The king and the bar
Why is it called Arduino?
Arduino is named after the Bar di Re Arduino in Ivrea, Italy, where its founders drank; the bar was named after Arduin, a local lord who was King of Italy from 1002 to 1014.
Watch from 7:17Still: Ales9000 / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
Act 3 · 14:26–24:04
The wire-cutting era
What does HC in HC-05 stand for?
The HC-05 came from Guangzhou, from a small firm called Huicheng Information Technology: HC stands for Huicheng, and by early 2011 it was selling the HC-05 to the world.
Watch from 14:26Still: Photo: Tanha Tamanna Syed / Pexels · Pexels License
Act 4 · 24:04–33:42
Low Energy changes everything
What is Bluetooth Low Energy?
Bluetooth Low Energy is a second Bluetooth radio, added beside Classic Bluetooth rather than replacing it, and built for things that run on a button cell.
Watch from 24:04Still: Photo: Gareth Halfacree / CC BY-SA 2.0
Act 5 · 33:42–38:50
Now and next
What is Auracast?
Today Bluetooth means Low Energy: the HC-05's kind of Bluetooth, Classic on its own, is fading, and by 2030 ninety-nine out of every hundred Bluetooth devices shipped will speak Low Energy.
Watch from 33:42Still: Lomrjyo / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0
The film’s page: the research behind it, how it was checked, and every source.
Related
The tools and books that go with the story
- LabWhich Bluetooth module should I buy?Say what has to talk to it, and see which of the HC-06, HC-05 and HM-10 that means.
- BlogHC-05 vs HC-06 vs HM-10One question decides it, and only one answer cannot be undone.
- LearnWhy is 9600 the default baud rate?A crystal, a teleprinter, and a lot of doubling.
- LearnTTL vs RS-232 vs USB serialSame bytes, three completely different wires.
- BookArduino Bluetooth: Make It ConnectEvery way the link fails, why, and the fix: the HC-05, HC-06, HM-10, the clones and the ESP32.
- Free bookBuild a Car With Your KidFree: a no-soldering Arduino car you drive from a phone, for a parent and a child of 12 or older.
Related topics
Two Kings: a history of Arduino and Bluetooth, by Troniction. The Bluetooth® word mark and logos are registered trademarks owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. Arduino® is a trademark of Arduino S.r.l. Neither endorses this film. Image credits and licences are listed with each image.