Definition: personal area network

Transmitting data wireless over a short distance. Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Direct are examples of personal area networks (PANs). See Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Direct.

The Most Personal of Networks
In the mid-1990s, IBM's Almaden Research Center developed a method that let people transfer information by touch. It worked by sending a billionth of an amp (nanoamp) through the body, which is actually considerably less current than is generated by people combing their hair.

In 2007, Ident Technology AG was founded to market SKINPLEX in the U.S. Developed in Germany, SKINPLEX uses human skin as the transmission medium. See also processor area network and BBN.

Touch and Transfer

Reminiscent of the movie E.T., this photo depicts the transfer of business card information by touching fingers. (Image courtesy of IBM Almaden Research Center.)