Hubble Network Builds Satellite Network to Connect Regular Bluetooth IoT Devices

The Hubble Network, which specialises in connecting Internet of Things (IoT) devices (e.g. sensors, parcel tracking, stolen vehicle recovery etc.), has confirmed the first-ever direct-to-satellite connection using standard, commercially available Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) chips. The development could enable ordinary Bluetooth devices to transmit data globally from virtually anywhere on Earth.

Admittedly on these pages we normally write about broadband connectivity for consumers, yet those same networks can often also be used to connect IoT devices. But such approaches normally involve existing 4G / 5G mobile networks and spectrum, while extending the Direct-to-Device (DtD) approach of satellite connectivity to Bluetooth kit (without specialised hardware or cellular infrastructure) could help to open up the IoT market.

The challenge is that BLE tends to be more of a short-range wireless technology via a small slice of the unlicensed 2.4GHz ISM band, which often claims to offer ranges of up to 100 metres in open environments (in the real world it’s frequently more like 10-30 metres). However, a strong signal coming directly from space could get around this and open up the scope of such connectivity, provided it can coexist with WiFi and other services.

In the new demonstration, which used Hubble Network’s proprietary protocol, standard Bluetooth® LE microcontrollers were able to transmit small packets of sensor and tracking data of up to 13 Bytes per message directly to Hubble’s Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellation. Developers can enable the capability through Hubble’s software development kit SDK, allowing devices to add satellite connectivity without cellular modems, SIM cards, or GPS modules. A simple firmware update is often all that’s required.

Alex Haro, CEO and Co-Founder of Hubble Network, said:

“Until now, satellite IoT required expensive specialized hardware. We have eliminated that barrier. Any device built with a standard Bluetooth LE chip now has the potential to send data from anywhere on the planet.”

Before anybody asks, Bluetooth devices using this approach can still potentially run for years on a single coin cell battery (more of a reference to smaller sensors), as the device itself just sees a regular connection. In order to do all this the Hubble Network aspires to deploy a 60-satellite constellation capable of connecting up to a billion Bluetooth devices worldwide by 2028.

Hubble has already ordered two 500kg MuSat XL satellite buses from California’s Muon Space for deployment in 2027, which follows 7 smaller cubesats that have already been launched into orbit via Spire Global – these enabled Hubble to demonstrate their first Bluetooth connections directly to a satellite (this technically occurred last year).