NFC Forum issues health care specs
The NFC Forum published three specifications that cover the use of the communications protocol in health care. The three specifications are the Personal Health Device Communication (PHDC) Technical Specification, the Connection Handover 1.3 and Signature Record Type Definition (RTD) 2.0 Candidate Technical Specifications.
The PHDC Technical Specification supports these “Connected Health” solutions by enabling health devices such as wireless blood pressure monitors, weighing scales, and glucose meters to transmit health data easily via NFC technology to external computer systems for monitoring by physicians.
Wireless health monitoring devices are being increasingly advocated by health care providers as a means of better managing chronic health conditions, such as heart disease and diabetes, and reducing health care costs.
The two other specifications published are candidate technical specifications:
- The Connection Handover 1.3 Candidate Technical Specification defines the structure and sequence of interactions that allow two NFC-enabled devices to establish a connection using other wireless communication technologies, such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.
- The Signature RTD 2.0 Candidate Technical Specification provides developers with a means of enabling users to verify the authenticity and integrity of data within NFC Data Exchange Format (NDEF) messages.
Candidate specifications remain candidates for final release pending feedback from NFC Forum members and other standards organizations. This gives both NFC Forum members and other standards organizations an opportunity to accelerate their development and provide valuable feedback that can be incorporated into the final specifications.
Once the feedback has been evaluated and integrated, the specification will be officially adopted and released by the NFC Forum.
