Michael W. Foley (born March 2, 1964) is an American electrical engineer, wireless expert and executive director of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, a consortium of over 12,000 companies who come together to create and promote

Bluetooth Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is limi ...

wireless technology Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or other continuous guided medium for the transfer. The most ...

. Foley earned his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Arizona State University in 1992, a master's degree from Arizona State University in 1989 and a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 col ...

in 1985. Foley joined the Bluetooth SIG in March 2004 as the executive director. He is responsible for guiding the qualification and interoperability programs, promotion of the technology, the specification publications, and the long-term road map of

wireless technology. Prior to joining the Bluetooth SIG, Foley worked with Bluetooth wireless technology and other wireless technologies as a senior wireless architect with

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washin ...

. While there, he played a pivotal role in the creation and development of the wireless desktop vision and

802.11 IEEE 802.11 is part of the IEEE 802 set of local area network (LAN) technical standards, and specifies the set of media access control (MAC) and physical layer (PHY) protocols for implementing wireless local area network (WLAN) computer com ...

. Foley also helped shape the Bluetooth standard from its inception, as a SIG Board Member, and later chairman of the board from 2002 to 2003. Under Foley's direction, Bluetooth technology has experienced phenomenal growth and consumer acceptance. Since his arrival at the helm of the Bluetooth SIG, he has pushed through an ambitious roadmap, demanding substantial improvements in interoperability and security. In the fall of 2007, Foley forged a merger with the Wibree Forum to bring Wibree technology under the Bluetooth umbrella to create the Bluetooth low energy specification, expected in late 2009. In April 2009, Foley brought to market Bluetooth 3.0, the high speed version of the technology utilizing

radios which will allow mobile devices to provide high speed transfer of entertainment data. In 2010 along with

Titan Industries Titan Company Limited is an Indian company that mainly manufactures fashion accessories such as jewellery, watches and eyewear. Part of the Tata Group and started as a joint venture with the TIDCO, the company has its corporate headquarters in ...

and

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) is an Indian central public sector undertaking. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Heavy Industries, Government of India. It is based in New Delhi, India. Established in 1956, BHEL is India' ...

he designed the 2010 Commonwealth Games Baton which had a LED and a

GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of the global navigation satellite sy ...

Awards and recognition

*In 2006, Foley received the Special Recognition Award from wireless industry publication Wireless Week on behalf of the Bluetooth SIG in honor of its significant progress of Bluetooth technology in 2005. *In 2007, Foley was awarded the Telematics Leadership Award from Telematics Update for achievements and innovation in the telematics market with Bluetooth wireless technology. *In 2008, Foley was named a finalist in the Executive of the Year category of the EE Times ACE Awards. *In 2008, Foley was named to th
RCR Wireless Movers and Shakers
list highlighting those responsible for making things happen in the wireless industry. *In 2012, Foley was inducted into the Bluetooth SIG Hall of Fame.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Foley, Michael W. 1964 births Living people American electrical engineers Arizona State University alumni University of Iowa alumni Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering alumni