A wireless extension of Profibus DP based on the Bluetooth radio system

Wireless networks are beginning to be employed in industrial automation systems as extensions of field networks (fieldbuses), in order to link devices which may not be equipped with a wired connection. In this way, all the benefits deriving from the use of a fieldbus may be maintained. This paper investigates a wireless extension of Profibus DP, one of the most popular fieldbus standards, based on the Bluetooth radio interface. After a description of how the data link layer services of Bluetooth could be used to implement the Profibus DP functions, we present a theoretical network performance analysis. The results obtained are then validated by means of numerical simulations.