Bluetooth GPS app - General Questions and Answers

I wrote an app that tells me time to a starting line where the official start is based on GPS time. My app needs the best location accuracy and the time from the GPS satellites. To get DGPS, I need an external module and for that I bought a Qstarz 100XT which has WAAS capability.
I cannot find an app to interface the module to my phone or tablet. Here is what I have tried and what the problem is:
1) Bluetooth GPS - loss of bluetooth lock without re-acquiring. Totally useless in a race situation.
2) Bluetooth GPS Provider - time reported is system time, not GPS time. I can set the system clock off 5 minutes and all my GPS apps thing the time is off 5 minutes. Totally useless.
3) GPS Mouse - same as #2.
In addition I would really like 5Hz update rate which Bluetooth GPS Provider has but more important is something that works, does not lose lock, and reports the GPS time not the system time.
I have read like 100 posts here on xda and Googled it for hours. I posted on stackoverflow without success.
Does anyone know of an app that really works for interfacing with an external GPS and reports distance and time from the satellites and reacquires when it loses lock?

Allen Edwards said:
.
Does anyone know of an app that really works for interfacing with an external GPS and reports distance and time from the satellites and reacquires when it loses lock?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use Bluetooth GPS 0.7.5a by Googoo Android in combination with an external GNS5870. This works like a charm for months now, using copilotlive premium, sygic (mock locations activated)
Matthias

Related

GPS recommended baudrate etc

Hi there,
Have been trying to setup the gps signal on my dads touch pro (raphael), however it seems incapable of getting any kind of GPS receipt.
I've installed HTC GPS tool to test this and have tested 57600 (default) and now 4800 baud rate. It does not seem to get ANY response, does not find a satellite whatsoever. I've also set it to cold start, and have run quickgps beforehand.
What settings do you guys use to get a GPS fix and do you have any suggestions for me?
Rom version is latest official, so is radio. No hardspl or any of that stuff installed, stock touch pro.
boud will make no difference at all
it's an old leftover from when gps was serial rs232 connected
and even back then it would make no difference as long
as the wired gps supported the chosen boudrate
preciously few data is being transmitted from a gps
but mind you it's rare to get a gps to work inside try outside or in a car
there they work
use ChartCross GPS app
it auto detects GPS and gives you indication on the progress of getting the GPS fix
usually it's COM4, baud could be 4800, 9600 (i've used these two) or anythinf
cold fix indoors (with QuickGPS almanac downloaded), i could get one indoors in 5 minutes... less than a minute outside of course

Bluetooth GPS Receiver

Will it ever be possible for Android to be able to interface to a Bluetooth GPS Receiver for use in programs like Google Maps?
What sounds like such a simple thing which would give me some respite on my Samsung Galaxy S.
Cheers
Simon
I am curious also.
i need that too
I know that most of the Bluetooth GPS receivers use a simulated Comm port. As long as Android can use the Comm port and receive position data through ASCII sentences, then it should be fine.
i'm gonna try BlueNMEA (it's on the market)
i'll report back
edit: the app seems to be broken :\
If there is an app for NMEA data, that is a good sign. NMEA uses ASCII text strings to send data. To be honest, I know that Garmin's Bluetooth receivers will send NMEA data to the phone.
Sent from my Garminfone using XDA App
Any news on this topic?
Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk
Look for "Bluetooth GPS Provider" or "Bluetooth GPS mouse" in the market...
I didn't want to pay for something like that and I did not understand why I should give phone call or network access for such an application...
So I've have developed mine:
it' free,
it's open-source (you can verify what it's really doing and you can improve it!),
it just asks for needed permissions.
The application allows to use an external bluetooth GPS on Android devices:
The application starts a service, then connects to a Bluetooth device (NMEA GPS) and creates a mock GPS provider which can be used to replace the internal GPS.
It's also possible to log the external GPS NMEA data in a file on the device.
The app need the following permissions:
bluetooth and bluetooth admin (connection to the GPS device),
location and mock location (replace the GPS location provider by a new one using the bluetooth GPS device),
write external storage (if you want to log the NMEA data into a file on the sdcard).
It should run on all android devices (2.0 and above) and NMEA bluetooth devices.
I have tested it with a GlobalSat BT-338 bluetooth GPS (SiRF III), a Galaxy S (I9000) and a HTC Sapphire (Froyo CM-6).
It works with Google Maps, Wikitude, GoPenS and my own personal navigation app. It should work with all applications that use Android official location API.
Note: in order to install the app:
enable Settings/Applications/Unknown sources,
enable Settings/Applications/Development/Allow mock locations,
download and install the apk.
Project page:
Bluetooth GPS for Android on SourceForge
BlueGPS4Droid apk: BlueGps4Droid_1.0.apk
herbert1 said:
I didn't want to pay for something like that and I did not understand why I should give phone call or network access for such an application...
So I've have developed mine:
it' free,
it's open-source (you can verify what it's really doing and you can improve it!),
it just asks for needed permissions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, went from zero of these to three or more.. More is good I guess! Does yours reconnect to the GPS when the connection is lost (walk away from the GPS, GPS accidentally gets turned off in pocket, etc)? What happens if you turn off the phone (hit power button.. standby), does it disconnect? Reconnect? What happens to apps while running, do they pick back up, or reconnect to the internal GPS?
EDIT: It disconnects. You should have it reconnect, especially if the signal was just lost watch for the device to become available again, and it'd also be really nice if it could do it automatically even if not just used; ie I get in the car, fire up the Holux 236 and a few seconds later your program connects to it.
Very very nice start, worked as well as the Bluetooth GPS Mouse program I've been using for a few weeks.. No sat or fix info, but that's a limitation of the Mock interface of course. Not much to be done there.
And it will be great if supports usb gps too. I have an android device with usb host and a usb gps, so will be great if we can attach a serial port to the mock gps in your app.
Thanks.
Corvus.
I actually have stopped using this, as about 50% of the time my phone is freezing when entering Waze with it enabled, 0% of the time without it or using Bluetooth GPS Mouse.
But it is a new program, it has room to grow.
khaytsus said:
Wow, went from zero of these to three or more.. More is good I guess! Does yours reconnect to the GPS when the connection is lost (walk away from the GPS, GPS accidentally gets turned off in pocket, etc)? What happens if you turn off the phone (hit power button.. standby), does it disconnect? Reconnect? What happens to apps while running, do they pick back up, or reconnect to the internal GPS?
EDIT: It disconnects. You should have it reconnect, especially if the signal was just lost watch for the device to become available again,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have this kind of problems in my car, so I haven't planned anything for that. For now, I have preferred that, in case of problems, everything stops properly. However I will verify what I can do (if I can find a simple way to do this).
and it'd also be really nice if it could do it automatically even if not just used; ie I get in the car, fire up the Holux 236 and a few seconds later your program connects to it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A priori, no good way for doing this with the sdk. If we have a background task, which runs looking for the GPS mouse to often it won't be good for the battery.
Generally you have to switch on the GPS, so It should not really be a problem to start the service at the same time, especially if, as I do, you plug the android device in a car dock...
Very very nice start, worked as well as the Bluetooth GPS Mouse program I've been using for a few weeks.. No sat or fix info, but that's a limitation of the Mock interface of course. Not much to be done there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can use the extra info in the location to have the number of sat used.
However, if Google has made a better Mock API, we should be able to use GPS Test directly...
Thanks for your comments,
Herbert
Hello,
I downloaded the file but that is not apk but zip and does not include any apy files.
Where can i download the bluegps4droid.apk file from? or How can I use the zip file in the android unit?
Thanks for the help
Sandor
Any Hope for Android 1.6?
I just tried Bluetooth GPS for Android but sadly found out it won't work with Android 1.6 such as used by my Archos 5 Internet Tablet.
Any hope for 1.6 support? Is it even possible?
I imagine the other two solutions suggested here were not found in my Market because they are 2.x only as well. Boo. I was so looking forward to this solving all my problems of the craptastic GPS in that device.
herbert1 said:
I didn't want to pay for something like that and I did not understand why I should give phone call or network access for such an application...
So I've have developed mine:
it' free,
it's open-source (you can verify what it's really doing and you can improve it!),
it just asks for needed permissions.
The application allows to use an external bluetooth GPS on Android devices:
The application starts a service, then connects to a Bluetooth device (NMEA GPS) and creates a mock GPS provider which can be used to replace the internal GPS.
It's also possible to log the external GPS NMEA data in a file on the device.
The app need the following permissions:
bluetooth and bluetooth admin (connection to the GPS device),
location and mock location (replace the GPS location provider by a new one using the bluetooth GPS device),
write external storage (if you want to log the NMEA data into a file on the sdcard).
It should run on all android devices (2.0 and above) and NMEA bluetooth devices.
I have tested it with a GlobalSat BT-338 bluetooth GPS (SiRF III), a Galaxy S (I9000) and a HTC Sapphire (Froyo CM-6).
It works with Google Maps, Wikitude, GoPenS and my own personal navigation app. It should work with all applications that use Android official location API.
Note: in order to install the app:
enable Settings/Applications/Unknown sources,
enable Settings/Applications/Development/Allow mock locations,
download and install the apk.
Project page:
Bluetooth GPS for Android on SourceForge
BlueGPS4Droid apk: BlueGps4Droid_1.0.apk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Any way you could port this to android 1.6 ? everyone with an archos needs this app cause the gps that is in it is terrible . Please please please port it to android 1.6 .
I've been in touch with a developer of one of these programs and unfortunately it is not possible to port these apps to 1.6 since 1.6 lacks some of the Bluetooth APIs/libraries needed for the functionality. Without a whole lot of messy programming it isn't possible for these apps to work on 1.6.
Can I use an USB GPS receivier instead of a Bluetooth one?
Stefem said:
Can I use an USB GPS receivier instead of a Bluetooth one?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not sure that such app exists...
Some devices (some tablets for example) have usb host capabilities, but not all of them.
If you can read the NMEA sentences from the USB GPS, it should be feasible (At least to adapt one of the app used with bluetooth GPS).
Thanks for this great App!
Wow!
Thanks Herbert1, this was exactly what I was looking for. I am using you app with a Samsung Galaxy S and a Columbus v900 BT GPS reciever. The reciever does the logging and is WAY faster and more accurate then the internal GPS android gives me.

[Q] Google Navigation jiggles

Hi!
I'm using my tf in my car as navigation system. I have the direct comparison to my Samsung Galaxy S (SGS) smart phone and I have to say that Google Navigation isn't running smooth for me. When driving through the streets, the displayed position jumps or jiggles from point to point in an interval with about 6 seconds. My SGS can handle this smooth, with the arrow moving in a constant speed over the maps.
First I expected that the TF has a worse GPS module but it seems that the GPS receiving is pretty good with other diagnostic apps. Could it be that Google Navigation runs better on a slower and older device?
How can I fix this problem? I have the newest OTA update from 25th Aug for DE.
thx
Could you try another navigation software? May be its some of the background app/temps.
How are you getting your Map update?
You will need a 3G data to push the maps (unless you have pre-downloaded them first of course).
Beards said:
How are you getting your Map update?
You will need a 3G data to push the maps (unless you have pre-downloaded them first of course).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I activate wlan tethering on my phone and connect the tablet over wlan. Works very good and the map updating is pretty fast. It also possible to listen to webstreams or watch youtube without any problem so I don't expect a problem on the internet connection.
thx for your answer anyway
Can somebody confirm, that it should be possible to have a smooth navigation in google maps navigation? Maybe it is a basically problem with the transformer?
fpdragon said:
I activate wlan tethering on my phone and connect the tablet over wlan. Works very good and the map updating is pretty fast. It also possible to listen to webstreams or watch youtube without any problem so I don't expect a problem on the internet connection.
thx for your answer anyway
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Understood.....
Try this and see if there is any difference:-
Next time you have a WLAN connection on your TF load Google Maps and download a map you would use for a particular journey.
When you next go out try using just your TF (not tethered) and the downloaded map.
Basically at this stage all we are trying to ascertain if the issue is with tethering or map updates.
Beards said:
Understood.....
Try this and see if there is any difference:-
Next time you have a WLAN connection on your TF load Google Maps and download a map you would use for a particular journey.
When you next go out try using just your TF (not tethered) and the downloaded map.
Basically at this stage all we are trying to ascertain if the issue is with tethering or map updates.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
2 things:
first... I think the beta labs feature to download maps is just for google maps and not google maps navigation. anyway... I make an offline test.
second... Do you mean to make a test without wlan or bluetooth enabled? Right now there must be much wireless traffic in my car:
bluetooth: phone to parrot
bluetooth: tablet to parrot
wlan: phone to tablet
other wireless: parrot wireless steering wheel remote
Maybe something of these disturbs the GPS?
Your phone is cheating. It has an assisted GPS that uses both GPS and cell triangulation to speed up lock and help maintain location when GPS is weak, without cellular your tf has to rely only on a limited GPS chip.
ryan stewart said:
Your phone is cheating. It has an assisted GPS that uses both GPS and cell triangulation to speed up lock and help maintain location when GPS is weak, without cellular your tf has to rely only on a limited GPS chip.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly what I was building up to Ryan.
ryan stewart said:
Your phone is cheating. It has an assisted GPS that uses both GPS and cell triangulation to speed up lock and help maintain location when GPS is weak, without cellular your tf has to rely only on a limited GPS chip.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have to say that I develop GPS Receiver for space use and I know a little bit about GPS
Anyway AGPS or assisted GPS just speeds up the first fix (as you said) and can fix the position error a very little bit. On weak GPS signal it wont make any difference if you have AGPS or GPS. Both wont work and none would work better or worse. With no GPS signal the AGPS Receiver would only know where the satellites are but thats it and he can't navigate with this info only.
So I don't expect a problem due to the not available AGPS, just to stop the speculation .
Maybe it's a SW thing or the GPS chip is just bad.
Anyway I still don't know if google navigation is running smoth on your tablet?
The Problem is solved...
A Speedometer Widget seems to be the cause:
https://market.android.com/details?id=it.opbyte.odometerwidget&feature=search_result
I uninstalled the widget and Google Maps Navigation runs fluently.
thank you all for helping

MK809IV with Bluetooth GPS time issue

Hi guys, please suggest the direction to find an answer.
Use MK809IV in the Car pc project and everything looks good except initial time issue when there is no wifi connection to sync time (tethering is not always a solution here (no coverage or wife driving)).
I use one of the qstarz bluetooth GPS and Bluetooth GPS app to connect it to the system. The app shows on connect 1917 year every time but the month, date and time is correct.
The other app I use for navigation (igo) shows fix but always with 0 satellite in view.
The same GPS and the app on a couple of others android phones works well.

Share GPS location from HU to phone

Is it possible to automatically update my phone gps location to the same as my HU gps location?
I rarely turn on gps on my phone. Only use it on certain condition. But GPS will takes time to lock especially when I'm inside a building and not moving.
Is there any app that I can install on my HU so that it will update current gps location to my phone, maybe via bluetooth?
Thanks.

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