Tips & Tricks

Using Bluetooth® with your M1400 Tablet PC

The following sections contain information about Bluetooth and how to set up Bluetooth devices. For information about a particular Bluetooth device, be sure to read the manufacturer’s documentation, visit their website, or select Help.

Motion understands that it is not optimal for users to install standard software. However, in order for the Widcomm Bluetooth® software to correctly identify your integrated Bluetooth device, it must be installed after the initial tablet setup.

If you are using the Widcomm Bluetooth Software that came with your M1400 and you update to Service Pack 2 for Windows XP, your Bluetooth software should continue to function normally. If it does not, please call Motion support. If you would prefer to use the Microsoft Bluetooth Software, please see the
Knowledge Base.

• Bluetooth Technology
• Bluetooth and your Motion Tablet PC
• Installing the Bluetooth Software
• Overview: Connecting and Pairing Bluetooth Devices
• Using the Bluetooth Setup Wizard to Connect and Pair Bluetooth Devices
• Manually Managing Bluetooth Connections
• Examples on Connecting and Pairing Common Devices

Bluetooth is a wireless cable replacement technology that allows devices to connect and exchange information with one another without requiring cables. Unlike proprietary wireless technologies found in many of today’s wireless products, Bluetooth provides a published protocol capable of supporting a much wider variety of devices – and is considered to be one of the most robust and versatile wireless technologies available. Unlike IrDA devices, which must have direct line-of-sight connection to operate, Bluetooth devices are RF devices operating at 2.4GHz at a range of up to 10 meters (33 feet) and through solid, non-metal objects. Furthermore, Bluetooth requires minimal power and utilizes frequency hopping and key pairing for security. Using the Bluetooth protocol, any Bluetooth-enabled device is able to connect and exchange information with any other Bluetooth-enabled device including keyboards, mice, printers, bar code scanners, headphones, cell phones, PDAs, tablet PCs, notebook PCs, and more.

Your Motion Tablet PC is designed to use a Bluetooth wireless radio, part of an emerging technology of products designed to eliminate cables through a low-powered, short-distance personal area network. Bluetooth was designed to provide wireless operations between devices such as keyboards, mice, and printers as well as Tablet PCs and cellular phones.

Motion Computing and its Bluetooth partners have worked to ensure a positive experience with this technology, as well as to ensure Bluetooth interoperability. In doing so, the following operating issues have been found:

• When simultaneously operating Bluetooth wireless and 802.11 wireless, interference between these wireless technologies impacts Bluetooth performance. This is most noticeable with the transfer of large amounts of data, such as file transfers, printing large documents, or using a Bluetooth device for audio.
• Bluetooth audio support for the Tablet PC is currently based on Bluetooth technology that has not yet been fully developed for speech recognition. Therefore, for speech recognition, we recommend that you do not use a wireless Bluetooth headset.
• Because Bluetooth is a relatively new technology, some cross-device compatibility issues may occur. If you are having problems with interoperability of Bluetooth devices, contact the manufacturer of your Bluetooth device and check its compatibility with the Bluetooth software installed on your Tablet PC.

IMPORTANT : To operate your Bluetooth device, first install the Bluetooth software, which is part of the Tablet PC software image. No separate installation CD is required.

• With your pen, tap Start>All Programs>Motion Resources>Bluetooth> Bluetooth Readme.
• Follow the steps in the Readme to install and configure the Bluetooth software. When the installation is complete, a white Bluetooth icon appears the System Tray.

The exact process for connecting a device to the Tablet PC is slightly different for every type and brand of device. However, there are four steps that are the same for all devices. The flow chart below lists and describes these steps.

Step 1. Put device into discoverable mode

What is discoverable mode?
Placing a device into discoverable mode is similar to resetting a device. The device will broadcast a signal with information about itself and that it is available for connection. If the device has previously been connected to another Tablet PC, placing it in discoverable mode with disconnect and unpair that device from the other tablet.

Step 2. On the Tablet PC, search for Bluetooth devices in range

This process will find every Bluetooth devices within 30 feet (10 meters) that is available for connection.

Step 3. Once the Tablet PC discovers the Bluetooth device, you must pair it to establish connectivity

What is pairing?
Pairing is the process by which the Tablet PC and Bluetooth device connect to each other with a unique seven-digit Personal Identification Number (PIN) code. This PIN code prevents data from being intercepted by another device. For example, if two people have desks next to each other and they both want to use a Bluetooth keyboard, they can without interference because each Tablet PC and keyboard shares a different PIN code.

Step 4. Now that the Tablet PC is paired to the device, connect the devices

What is connecting?
The first time a device is connected to the Tablet PC, the drivers are loaded for that device. After that initial connection, some devices may disconnect when they go into power saving mode. Most devices will automatically reconnect when they become active again.

Note: When you use the Bluetooth Setup Wizard to connect a device to the Tablet PC you will not see this step.

This section describes how to use the Bluetooth Setup Wizard. It is recommended that you use the wizard when connecting new devices to your Tablet PC. In this example, the Bluetooth Setup Wizard will be used to connect and pair a Bluetooth keyboard to the Tablet PC. This is a general example only; some of the steps may be slightly different for other devices.

IMPORTANT : Follow these steps before installing any software that came with your Bluetooth device. You may need to install application software for your device at the end of this procedure, but do not install new Bluetooth software.

1. Start the Bluetooth Application

Using your pen, tap Start>All Programs>My Bluetooth Places to launch the My Bluetooth Places application window.

2. Open the Bluetooth Setup Wizard

Under Bluetooth Tasks, tap or select the Bluetooth Setup Wizard. The Welcome to the Bluetooth Setup Wizard window appears.

Before starting to use the Wizard, you need to place your device in discoverable mode. This procedure initiates a signal that is detected by the Bluetooth card in the Tablet PC.

NOTE : See the documentation that came with the device or the device manufacturer’s website for information about how to put your device in discoverable mode.

3. Search for Bluetooth Devices

On the Bluetooth Setup window, select the second option, “I want to find a specific Bluetooth device and configure how this computer will use its services.”

4. Tap Next

5. Select the Bluetooth Device

a. The Bluetooth Device Selection window appears and the Tablet PC searches for Bluetooth devices within range.

b. When the icon for your Bluetooth device appears in the Bluetooth Device Selection window, highlight it; then tap Next.

c. If the Bluetooth device is not found in a minute or so, tap Cancel Search. Then reset the device (to make it discoverable) and tap the Search Again button to start the search over

NOTE: The Tablet PC may discover other Bluetooth devices and display them in the Select a device window, as shown in this example. (Your devices may differ from those in this example.)

6. Start the Pairing Process

a. From the Bluetooth Security Setup window, tap the Initiate Pairing button. (Some fields gray out and the cursor changes to an hourglass, indicating that Bluetooth is ready to accept a PIN code and pair the devices.)

b. Using your Bluetooth keyboard, immediately type the seven-digit number shown in the PIN Code field.

c. Press the Enter key on the Bluetooth keyboard to initiate pairing. It may take a minute or two for the devices to pair. Please wait. When the Bluetooth Service Selection window appears, pairing is complete.

 

NOTES:
A message may appear that the PIN Code entry has timed out. Tap the Back button, put the device in discoverable mode and repeat Step 5. A new PIN code is generated each time you restart the process.

Some devices, such as mice, do not require pairing.

7. Select the Bluetooth Services

From the Bluetooth Service Selection window, verify that Human Interface Device Service is checked.

8. Tap Finish to Complete the Installation

Microsoft® Windows® now installs services for your keyboard. This may take a few seconds. Please wait until this process is complete before installing any other Bluetooth devices.

9. Take Your Device for a Spin

You can now begin using your Bluetooth device.

You can also manually manage Bluetooth device connections. This is only recommended for devices that have been previously connected to the Tablet PC using the Bluetooth Setup Wizard. To view and manage connections, open My Bluetooth Places and select View Devices in Range. This will open the Entire Bluetooth Neighborhood window.

There are several key options in this window:

• Search for devices in range This option will search for all active devices that are available for connection and in range, 30 feet or 10 meters, of the Tablet PC.
• View or modify configuration Select the option to view or modify the Tablet PC configuration. You can change the name of your Tablet PC, configure whether or not other devices can discover your Tablet PC, and verify your Bluetooth device.
• Discover services If you select a specific Bluetooth device in the Entire Bluetooth Neighborhood window and choose Discover services, a list of services or options of what type of data exchanges can occur will be displayed.
• Right click or tap on a device and manage the device connection When you right click or tap on a specific device, a short menu will appear. From this menu you can pair/unpair and connect/disconnect a device with the Tablet PC. You can also view the device status and properties. These menu options are most effective for a device that has been previously connected to the Tablet PC through the Bluetooth Setup Wizard.

Bluetooth Device Symbols

	No symbol; the device is detected by the Tablet PC, but is not paired nor connected
	Red checkmark; the device is paired but not connected to the Tablet PC
	Green arrows; the device is connected with the Tablet PC

Select one of the following links to see an example about how to connect a specific Bluetooth device to your Tablet PC:

• Setting up a keyboard
• Setting up a mouse
• Transferring a file between two Tablet PCs