Packetcraft’s Bluetooth Software Availability Accelerates Market with Auracast™ Broadcast Audio
Industry-leading wireless software licensor Packetcraft, Inc. today announces they are providing commercial licensees with Bluetooth SIG qualified LE Audio software supporting the Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) Generic Audio Framework specifications. These new specifications define a flexible middleware for transmitting and controlling audio over Bluetooth LE and are an integral part of every LE Audio application, including Auracast™ broadcast audio.
As a full-service supplier of leading-edge software for Bluetooth and UWB, Packetcraft is distinguished in the global market and enables many of the world’s most recognized semiconductor companies and product brands. Today’s announcement reaffirms their investment and commitment to enable their licensees with standards-compliant interoperable Bluetooth LE Audio software supporting products including truly wireless earbuds, wireless microphones, broadcast capable headsets, and advanced hearing aids.
Packetcraft’s comprehensive software solution for LE Audio features:
- Packetcraft Host – Bluetooth 5.3 host stack with profiles for LE Audio
- Packetcraft Controller – Bluetooth 5.3 link layer with isochronous channels
- Packetcraft LC3 – Bluetooth LC3 codec for LE Audio
“With significant improvements and new features, LE Audio expands the market potential for standardized high-quality wireless audio and Packetcraft is helping accelerate product introductions and software refreshes for our customers and partners,” said John Yi, Co-Founder and CEO of Packetcraft. “Our team is excited to be on the cutting-edge of technology and that our innovative solutions can profoundly improve human interactions.”
Since Bluetooth’s debut in 1998, audio has been the predominate application and in 2020 device shipments for audio streaming were more than 1.1 billion. For more than a decade, Bluetooth LE has had a profound impact on IoT applications and its expansion now to address audio is a major milestone for both the technology and products.
“Bluetooth Classic Audio has been stretched to its limits and proprietary extensions are often used to improve audio fidelity and to support an evolving set of use cases beyond what point-to-point single-stream communications allows for,” said Phil Solis, research director at IDC. “LE Audio improves the audio experience on Bluetooth-enabled devices we use today and will expand the market with new applications that will enhance how we interact with audio sources. LE Audio capabilities will have an increasing role in Bluetooth devices that will ship over 5 billion per year by 2025.”
LE Audio incorporates a new audio codec known as LC3 which is superior to its predecessor and can operate at half the data rate resulting in less power draw. Consuming lower power for same or better performance gives product developers design flexibility in offering extended battery life or reducing battery size allowing for smaller form-factor devices.
Aside from the impressive new audio codec, LE Audio supports multiple streams that are highly synchronized allowing for source devices to communicate directly to multiple speakers (e.g., left and right) delivering stereo sound that enables a standardized approach to truly wireless earbuds.
The Bluetooth SIG recently launched Auracast™ broadcast audio as an unprecedented new capability provided in LE Audio for sharing audio with nearby listeners. This includes the ability to invite others to simultaneously share your personal audio stream as well as for venues to deliver audio directly to your earbud when watching a muted restaurant/bar or gym television, enjoying a movie at the cinema with high quality sound coming directly into your advanced hearing aid, or receiving an airport public announcement broadcasted privately to you in your preferred language.
Companies interested in refreshing existing products via over-the-air updates and/or developing new solutions should inquire about our software licensing by contacting sales. System designers interested in evaluating streaming audio with an LC3 codec can purchase Packetcraft’s audio evaluation kit from packetcraft.com/shop. The kit comes with sample applications for a wireless microphone, full duplex audio intercom, and broadcast stereo headphones.
About Packetcraft, Inc.
Packetcraft is an industry-leading software solutions provider supporting short-range wireless technologies including Bluetooth® and UWB. By developing solutions while specifications are in development and by applying decades of embedded protocol expertise, semiconductor and product company licensees gain a market advantage with accelerated access to leading-edge, Bluetooth qualified, and commercially-proven standards-compliant software. More information at www.packetcraft.com/about
