iconicflux

I've been working on an app called Sag Wagon which is going to have to wait a bit because I keep getting requests to redo my turn by turn app first before I do CueNav. As such, I started working on it a couple days ago.

It's not pretty but here's what it does right now:
1. Downloads routes from a web URL.
2. Saves preferences so you don't have to refill things later.
3. Saves the route file to local storage (So no network connection is needed when you're on a ride).
4. Populates a list of the file names so you can select whichever you want.
5. Parses GPX (and in a moment TCX) format files.
1. Put parsed file into temporary sqlite database (so I can do some fancy searches for route info incase you don't start exactly on the first cue.)
2. Display cues to a List that gets automatically scrolled to the one you're on currently.
3. Text to Speech ("TTS") for the Cue directions

To do:
2. Finish the auto scrolling by updating the ListView control.
4. Finish the checking of distance to next location & playing TTS turn info.
5. Play multiple directions steps if the the next 2 turns are within 100' of each other.
6. Adjust when to play TTS directions based on speed.*in progress*

iconicflux

Wow! I thought I had the GPX parsing worked out but I was SOOO wrong. It now accurately parses Garmin gpx files. I'll do TCX after I get some other stuff working.

downtube42

Can I get in an early feature request? Extreme power-save mode, for ultracyclists. Or actually I could put it in terms of a requirement: able to run for over 40 hours without a recharge. For those 1200k brevets: 90 hours of runtime.

Obviously you have to turn off the display and all wireless. Can you turn the GPS sample rate down to save battery? What about turning GPS off entirely if the next turn isn't for a mile or more?

It might even be possible to make it a semi-manual thing... let me hit a button when I want to hear the next turn or hit a button when I want to check my location. Dunno, just thinking out loud.

iconicflux

Downtube,

I've already written a service that runs in the background that does slow down GPS updates based on when turns are, speed, time, and estimated time until the next turn. Next is figuring out if I can somehow get the app functional (for replaying turn info if needed) without using the screen. My goal is to have the screen remain off (configurable of course) and I think I've figured out how to do that for most/all phones.

To get 40 hours out of it you'd have to shut down the gsm and wifi radios. Even then, powering up GPS once every 3-5 minutes, 10-30 seconds for a lock (it's around 10 if you pass it the info from the last satellites used) uses power I just don't know how much yet. Without gsm you'd lose A-GPS but it would still be pretty accurate although you could turn on gsm for a small bit too. The running it with the screen off may also be required to get that much time out of it.

I have multiple android devices so I'll certainly try to squeeze as much as is possible but 40's a lot to ask for when you're using GPS. I suppose we'll only know when I start testing it and the extrapolate what it would likely be.

I want this app to have ultra endurance because I'd like to use it on tours and an upcoming trans-america ride.

downtube42

Glad to see you're thinking about it. I think extreme extended life could be what sets your app apart.

iconicflux

downtube: that and audio turn by turn navigation for bicycles. I've yet to find an app that does that actually based on the route files you give it. Too often you give it the exact route you want and the other app is like, "I know a better way with lots of traffic! Let's get buzzed!"

There's one that's not too far from being almost useable but it's car oriented and doesn't work well.

Notso_fastLane

If you're doing brevets that extreme, have you considered hanging/mounting a small solar cell (I've got one about the size of my iPhone) for supplemental power?
I like the idea of your app. Will it work on iPhone?

iconicflux

Notso - I'm writing it first for Android and then I'll do an iphone native version too. I already have XCode and the full dev environment for IOS stuff. (I do a lot of work with it.)

The nice thing is that the iphone native version will be mostly implementing the same algorithms in obj-c instead of java.

iconicflux

I've been working on some code to make the database and downloading less prone to failure. (Noticed a problem when I moved over to a real phone.)

It now correctly downloads gpx files, saves them to external storage, then allows you to select from a list of routes by name.

When selected, it loads that route into a temporary database and then displays details about it on the main screen so you know it's ready and that it's the one you meant to use.

The picture above was taken off my phone this morning...

iconicflux

If anyone wants to take it on themselves to find some free navigation icons for this that'd be cool. I may see if I can find a car based one that's open source to take them from.

iconicflux

I got the app displaying the cue of directions now. It uses a custom SimpleCursorAdapter to place the turn arrow image and the turn instructions onto the list. What you can't see is that there are also 2 hidden items. Each line has Lat & Lon associated with it also so that I can easily set a proximity alert for the corners.

I'm ALMOST to where I'll be testing the app on the bicycle.. WOO WOO!
Unfortunately.. a medical issue may keep me off the bike for another week so i may have to drive at first.

iconicflux

So I think I figured out why other app makers aren't doing navigation from proximity alerts. It turns out that when the screen is off it slows down checks for proximity alerts to only once every 4 minutes. That's obviously not the greatest.

Fortunately, I have a way around this which will actually be easier in the long run. I'll be calculating the distance to the next lat/lon point myself and then using that.

Now I just have to figure out how to do callbacks so when one fires it can callback from the location service to the startroute activity and update the route.

iconicflux

I put together a sweet GPS library with a couple of modifications that now allows my app to get GPS via passive or active depending on what is needed. This means that if another app gets a GPS update, my app will use the location the other app has and if no update has been seen within a set amount of time we'll actively update. This significantly cuts down on the power usage.

It now is calculating the number of seconds till the next turn. This will allow me to do the voice navigation based on when the next turn is so that cyclists have time to make the turns. (Right now if it doesn't know speed it's defaulting to 10mph. I hope to find a way to get the speed from gps so we always have speed but right now I don't have that.)

Anyone out there want to be an alpha tester for me?

iconicflux

For those of you that are interested.. I started a new thread about it in the Road Cycling forum and I've been giving people some early alpha copies of the app so I can get some help testing it and working the bugs out.

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...s-Some-Testers

Notso_fastLane

I would, but I have an iPhone.