The Bluetooth Special Interest Group has announced a new standard for the wireless technology that will allow Internet of Things devices to talk to each other in a mesh network.

Mesh networking is a network of connected devices where each node, in this case a connected device, can cooperate in the distribution of data to other devices on the network. For IoT devices, that means that those devices can share cooperative data, for example, a security system could talk to a fire detector or camera directly using Bluetooth instead of needing to share data over a wired or Wi-Fi connection through a central router.

The new standard, as described by Bluetooth SIG, enables many-to-many device communications and has been optimized for creating large-scale device networks. Pitched primarily at enterprise users, the new standard is “ideally suited for building automation, sensor networks, and other IoT solutions where tens, hundreds, or thousands of devices need to reliably and securely communicate with one another,” the group said.

Mesh networks also provide what could be best described as range extension. As devices on a mesh network can communicate with others on the network, data can be passed between them even when one or more of those devices is outside the range of a network hub, providing superior network range versus that of a traditional hub network typically used with a Wi-Fi router at its center.

“In the same way the connected device market experienced rapid growth after the introduction of Bluetooth Low Energy, we believe Bluetooth mesh networking can play a vital role in helping early stage markets, such as building automation and wireless sensor networks, experience more rapid growth,” Mark Powell, executive director for Bluetooth SIG, said in a media release.

Because the new standard is just that, there are currently no devices on the market that support it. That said, given the speedy adoption of the Bluetooth Low Energy standard before it, coupled with seemingly strong support for mesh networking capabilities, devices that support the new standard will likely start to appear on sale at some point in the first half of 2018.

Image: Bluetooth SIG