Database Develop

GPS Status 2 for Adnroid 1.5

Hello all,
As developers start to use firmware 1.5 I have updated the GPS status app to work with the new firmware.
The good news is that I no longer have to use internal APIs. Some features have been removed or changed:
- Screen orientation settig has been removed as it can be configured globally in 1.5
- Magnetic declination setting is removed too, but the good news is that declination is now automatically calculated (without internet access) based on a geomagnetic model. The model also gives the absolute value of the magnetc field at your location which is also displayed.
- finally: the GPS is not automatically turned on, because average programs can no longer turn on the GPS (it is possible only by using the system settings program) (GPS switch appliction will no longer work)
Have fun, comments are welcome.
Rudolf

If you start the app without enabling GPS first, it crashes right away.

Karolis said:
If you start the app without enabling GPS first, it crashes right away.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, noted the issue.

Crash on 5.0.1Gr3.
I switch GPS ON before launching.
It shows the first screen, and "force close" ...

i hope this works because GPStatus is my favorite app.

g force registers at 1.00 as default... it doesnt seem to be as accurate as gps status was on 1.1, or its more sensitive i dunno.

without moving, my heading goes frim 78-81deg.

joeydsmith said:
g force registers at 1.00 as default... it doesnt seem to be as accurate as gps status was on 1.1, or its more sensitive i dunno.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right, I've detected this too. It seems that the new formware is doing much less filtering than the 1.1 version. This gives a faster response with much more errors. Unfortunately I cannot do anything about it at the moment.
Having acceleration at 1.0 g is correct (at least GPS Stus 1.5 works the same way) as we are standing on the surface of the earth Thats a different stiry whether it is correct to call it "acceleration" for ordinary people (I know Einstein would not mind it )

lol yeah cant u jsut make it x-1? or sumthing lol, but yeah you are right we exipreince 1 g all the time.

joeydsmith said:
lol yeah cant u jsut make it x-1? or sumthing lol, but yeah you are right we exipreince 1 g all the time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Version 1.4 did that, but that was not correct.
The problem is that acceleration is a vector not a scalar. I.e. I have to add/substract vectors not scalars...
example:
- If you would accelerate horizontally with 1g and in addition the earth has also 1g gravity, you would feel (and your phone would measure) approximately 1.41g (sqrt(1g^2+1g^2))
- on the other hand if you would accelerate vertically (upwards) with 1g, your body would feel 2g
The real problem: it is not possible to measure the direction of your acceleration (and according to Einstein its not even distinguishable from the gravity at all).
Maybe I will assume that the acceleration is horizontal (which is true for most ordinary people, moving on the surface of Earth). The rest (astronauts during launch, parachute jumpers) will get slightly wrong results, but I'm hoping they will have better equipment than relying on their G1

Rudolf i am a fan of your gpsstatus.apk and since i load the 1.5 in my dev phone i wanting for your upgrade. really i do not understand what happens with this firmware but i think that the compass do not work anyway and all operations that in the past (and that work in my g1-not updated- phone) put to work the compass now is not responding...i have my compass pointing near the east!!!...
may be (that you says) is the automatic magnetic declination are actuating but the pointing i shure that is a mistake...
i am very fustrated and worried if this issue and if you can help me to understand this, it would be very appreciated...
meanwhile i thanks so much your work and hope gpsstaus.apk go to work in the future at least good that we have working in the past...
best regards and electronics greetings from spain

I noticed a small problem with the magnetic declination, the mag declination here is - 6° 39' west according to ngdc.noaa.gov, anyway when the compass moves slightly west from north it shows -1 to -6 then jumps to 350...

rhornig said:
Right, I've detected this too. It seems that the new formware is doing much less filtering than the 1.1 version. This gives a faster response with much more errors. Unfortunately I cannot do anything about it at the moment.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Running average of the last 5 results would smooth it out, but yea less responsive, if you hooked it into the accelerometer to notice a suden change to reset the smoothing should take care of responsiveness...

unicornio said:
Rudolf i am a fan of your gpsstatus.apk and since i load the 1.5 in my dev phone i wanting for your upgrade. really i do not understand what happens with this firmware but i think that the compass do not work anyway and all operations that in the past (and that work in my g1-not updated- phone) put to work the compass now is not responding...i have my compass pointing near the east!!!...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That sounds like the compass is being influnced by a magnetic field, try waving the phone in a figure 8 to get it to reset itself.

koxx said:
Crash on 5.0.1Gr3.
I switch GPS ON before launching.
It shows the first screen, and "force close" ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. Fixed (hopefully) and updated the first post.

delta_foxtrot2 said:
I noticed a small problem with the magnetic declination, the mag declination here is - 6° 39' west according to ngdc.noaa.gov, anyway when the compass moves slightly west from north it shows -1 to -6 then jumps to 350...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yepp. Thats a bug. Thanks for finding I will fix it for the next release.

unicornio said:
Rudolf i am a fan of your gpsstatus.apk and since i load the 1.5 in my dev phone i wanting for your upgrade. really i do not understand what happens with this firmware but i think that the compass do not work anyway and all operations that in the past (and that work in my g1-not updated- phone) put to work the compass now is not responding...i have my compass pointing near the east!!!...
may be (that you says) is the automatic magnetic declination are actuating but the pointing i shure that is a mistake...
i am very fustrated and worried if this issue and if you can help me to understand this, it would be very appreciated...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After firmware upgrades or if you experience strong magnetic field the internal compass must be recalibrated. Check the heading reading in the upper left corner. If it contains ?, ?? or ??? after the number, then your compass is inaccurate and must be recalibrated.
As alsready mentioned, you should draw big 8s in the air with your phone for about a minute. If everything goes well, the ? marks should go away and your compass should be much more accurate.

rhornig said:
Thanks. Fixed (hopefully) and updated the first post.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It works now ! thank you !!!

delta_foxtrot2 said:
Running average of the last 5 results would smooth it out, but yea less responsive, if you hooked it into the accelerometer to notice a suden change to reset the smoothing should take care of responsiveness...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. Good idea, however the android framework itself should do the filtering (i'm already using the slowest possible update frequency which means the highest filtering). I will wait until the final 1.5 firmware comes out, and then revisit the issue.

Yay. It works. The compass does look a little faster

[Q] Compass Calibration

I've read complaints of GPS and G-Sensors being out of whack, but didn't see anything on forum about compass calibration.
I noticed on my i9000 yesterday that while tracking myself on Google maps, that the compass should me pointing about 20 degrees to the right of the direction I was actually driving. In aviation, we call that crabbing, and it's normal based on wind, but not in a car.
I turned the direction my phone was pointing and the heading on the vehicle in the map started tracking properly. I guess my phone needs a little compass calibration.
Any idea where to this from? I'll dig around in the debug settings when I get some time, but hoping others might have found it already.
Thanks.

there are some free compass apps on android market that will display an actuall compass on your screen - and those will have a calibration tool you use when setting the compass up

No need for a special command.
Just turn the device 180 degrees and backwards two or three times in any program which uses the compass and it will be calibrated.

I'm a pilot too and I actually purchased a magnetic compass for my car and noticed the same thing. Haven't tested the phone's compass in my car though.
Are you forgetting some planes have Compass Deviation Cards to compensate for errors caused by the aircraft itself perhaps? Remember, cars have a significant amount of electronics, and a magnet in the alternator that can affect the direction of the compass (the magnetic flux created by the car is actually what triggers traffic light changes, so it probably isn't miniscule).
Btw, not sure crabbing is the correct term here (normally crabbing is isolated to wind I think). Correct me if I'm wrong (I'm still PPL).
Not sure about google maps, but I have noticed my hardware GPS (Navman's and that other rubbish which will be collectors items soon) actually use track, rather than heading.
distortedloop said:
I've read complaints of GPS and G-Sensors being out of whack, but didn't see anything on forum about compass calibration.
I noticed on my i9000 yesterday that while tracking myself on Google maps, that the compass should me pointing about 20 degrees to the right of the direction I was actually driving. In aviation, we call that crabbing, and it's normal based on wind, but not in a car.
I turned the direction my phone was pointing and the heading on the vehicle in the map started tracking properly. I guess my phone needs a little compass calibration.
Any idea where to this from? I'll dig around in the debug settings when I get some time, but hoping others might have found it already.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

compass
I have a galaxy s and so does my daughter we both have a compass app from android market installed on our phones , both phones will not display the correct direction i have also tried a friends galaxy and his is exactly the same .
I have a xperia X10 and that displays correct directions with the same compass installed so i can only assume it is the phone at fault , i love the phone but this is annoying and i wonder if it is related to the gps problems this phone appears to have ?.

good old fashioned magnetic compasses don't work in my car, regardless of where i install them
it will always point EAST, very annoying, good thing it doesn't affect my GPS or my SGS i've yet to test the compass mode inside the car.
As i've taken it for granted no compass will work inside my car, as it has speakers every where and metals all around.
before there was such thing as a GPS, i used to be a good old scout and used maps + compasses to find my ways when driving in unknown streets
andrewluecke said:
I'm a pilot too and I actually purchased a magnetic compass for my car and noticed the same thing. Haven't tested the phone's compass in my car though.
Are you forgetting some planes have Compass Deviation Cards to compensate for errors caused by the aircraft itself perhaps? Remember, cars have a significant amount of electronics, and a magnet in the alternator that can affect the direction of the compass (the magnetic flux created by the car is actually what triggers traffic light changes, so it probably isn't miniscule).
Btw, not sure crabbing is the correct term here (normally crabbing is isolated to wind I think). Correct me if I'm wrong (I'm still PPL).
Not sure about google maps, but I have noticed my hardware GPS (Navman's and that other rubbish which will be collectors items soon) actually use track, rather than heading.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

andrewluecke said:
).
Btw, not sure crabbing is the correct term here (normally crabbing is isolated to wind I think). Correct me if I'm wrong (I'm still PPL)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, you're correct about crabbing...it's the term I learned for landing with a cross-wind and yawing into the wind to maintain your track to the runway. It's just what came to mind looking at the vehicle indicator and the roadway, it looked like a plane landing on a runway and that's what popped to mind.
Thanks to everyone else about the compass app in the market, I'll check it out.

Probably best to grab a real compass and compare to your phones one.. Then you'll know for sure.
But for GPS apps, track makes more sense because especially whilst driving, the phone has no way of knowing if it is pointed towards the front of your car.
(Btw, for non-pilots, when I say track, I refer to the direction you are actually going, rather than where you are pointed towards).

I'm a electronic engineer, A compass actually show where the magnetic field is more effective as North (and South) but what does make the differ is electronic compasses are more sensetive and may effected by a little change in magnetic field (for example holding a little ironic screw around it) so it may show wrong direction based on your country (and sometimes region). so the manufactors calibrate it on an avarage in order to make it working all around the world. but if it is not satisfying go to a service center they calibrate it for you!
(if you're geeky one you can do it on service menu yourself but it takes time to do a good calibration!)

mdh_heydari said:
I'm a electronic engineer, A compass actually show where the magnetic field is more effective as North (and South) but what does make the differ is electronic compasses are more sensetive and may effected by a little change in magnetic field (for example holding a little ironic screw around it) so it may show wrong direction based on your country (and sometimes region). so the manufactors calibrate it on an avarage in order to make it working all around the world. but if it is not satisfying go to a service center they calibrate it for you!
(if you're geeky one you can do it on service menu yourself but it takes time to do a good calibration!)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HI, mdh_heydari
ok, but how to calibrate? even if it is time consuming and difficult. What is the procedure in SGS I9000?

sircm4x said:
HI, mdh_heydari
ok, but how to calibrate? even if it is time consuming and difficult. What is the procedure in SGS I9000?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are 2 ways, the best one is some little fixes in android kernel and the other one is making mods for famous navigation softwares like Google Maps.

[Q] Compass Calibration

My stock compass does not want to calibrate, I even tried Wear Compass and it also didnt work. Any suggestion to make it work.

My compass is wrong as well. Sometimes it's 90° off, sometimes it always shows West regardless of where it's oriented.

Herb.Grinda said:
My compass is wrong as well. Sometimes it's 90° off, sometimes it always shows West regardless of where it's oriented.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just hope that my watch is not defective and wanted to know if everyone else is having the same issue.

Javiggan69 said:
My stock compass does not want to calibrate, I even tried Wear Compass and it also didnt work. Any suggestion to make it work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My compass is way off.

Mine is quite off too.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

Mine is totally off as well. It always points to North. Stock compass and Wear Compass both shows the same.

Javiggan69 said:
My stock compass does not want to calibrate, I even tried Wear Compass and it also didnt work. Any suggestion to make it work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They will not work unless calibrated of course. Mine was just as you describe as is my phone when it goes out of calibration. When the compass app starts up it tells you how to do it but it does not tell you what plane to move the watch in. It seems odd to me but you need to hold it vertically in front of you and move it through a couple of figures of eights in front of you so the watch is pointing upwards (not parallel to the ground). Does that make sense?

gadgetgaz said:
They will not work unless calibrated of course. Mine was just as you describe as is my phone when it goes out of calibration. When the compass app starts up it tells you how to do it but it does not tell you what plane to move the watch in. It seems odd to me but you need to hold it vertically in front of you and move it through a couple of figures of eights in front of you so the watch is pointing upwards (not parallel to the ground). Does that make sense?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You get to be the mayor of Champ Town for the rest of the week sir. That worked perfectly.

Herb.Grinda said:
You get to be the mayor of Champ Town for the rest of the week sir. That worked perfectly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks you're welcome. It's actually a nice fluid and accurate compass.

Thanks gadhetgaz, verticle did the trick. Been trying it for weeks to no avail.

Compass issues

I picked up the nexus 6 from AT&T a couple days ago and love it but I have one issue. The compass is off by 90 to 180 degrees. If I spin it around enough it usually calibrated itself but only lasts until the next time I start maps.
I've seen a couple of comments indicating similar issues but I'm not sure if it is a hardware issue and should be replaced.
Does the compass work correctly for everyone else?
Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

Same issue here
I have the same issue with my Nexus 6 64Gb blue, bought in Germany from Amazon.de.
Calibration helps but it decalibrates soon, and then the compass is off by 90° or 180°.

DontHaveACLue said:
I picked up the nexus 6 from AT&T a couple days ago and love it but I have one issue. The compass is off by 90 to 180 degrees. If I spin it around enough it usually calibrated itself but only lasts until the next time I start maps.
I've seen a couple of comments indicating similar issues but I'm not sure if it is a hardware issue and should be replaced.
Does the compass work correctly for everyone else?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would NOT be a hardware issue. That is entirely software.

doitright said:
That would NOT be a hardware issue. That is entirely software.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why are you so sure it's a software issue if the sensor loses calibration no matter what?

max.shirshin said:
Why are you so sure it's a software issue if the sensor loses calibration no matter what?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
heres one way to calibrate a compass in android.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzQSsUsOWJc

simms22 said:
heres one way to calibrate a compass in android..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly, except that in case of Nexus 6 the calibration only helps for about half an hour. It corrects the compass sensor and it starts behaving as it should, only to start showing random direction when you open Google Maps the next time. I've been testing it for several days, both inside and outside, in different places, running calibration several times a day. In no less than a couple of hours (usually even faster) it goes nuts again.
If you own a Nexus 6 as well, and do NOT have this issue, please let us know where you bought the device and which exact model it was (white or blue? memory size?)
Thank you very much in advance!

ingdir said:
Exactly, except that in case of Nexus 6 the calibration only helps for about half an hour. It corrects the compass sensor and it starts behaving as it should, only to start showing random direction when you open Google Maps the next time. I've been testing it for several days, both inside and outside, in different places, running calibration several times a day. In no less than a couple of hours (usually even faster) it goes nuts again.
If you own a Nexus 6 as well, and do NOT have this issue, please let us know where you bought the device and which exact model it was (white or blue? memory size?)
Thank you very much in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
bought mine through tmobile. black(blue) 32gb version

max.shirshin said:
Why are you so sure it's a software issue if the sensor loses calibration no matter what?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Calibration *IS* a software function. You feed corrections into the compass driver to compensate for the magnetic fields generated by the phone itself. If it is losing calibration, it CAN ONLY be a software issue. The data generated by the compass HARDWARE is not affected by calibration. The calibration adjustments are applied to values after they have been received from the hardware by the driver, and before being passed on to userland.
---------- Post added at 08:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:50 PM ----------
ingdir said:
Exactly, except that in case of Nexus 6 the calibration only helps for about half an hour. It corrects the compass sensor and it starts behaving as it should, only to start showing random direction when you open Google Maps the next time. I've been testing it for several days, both inside and outside, in different places, running calibration several times a day. In no less than a couple of hours (usually even faster) it goes nuts again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you totally certain that this is a function of losing calibration and not of needing a NEW calibration? The problem is that a compass reads magnetic fields. Nearly EVERYTHING generates magnetic fields, ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING that uses electricity will generate magnetic fields. Everything with IRON in it will generate magnetic fields, typically in line with earth's magnetic field so it won't interfere (much), but if that thing with iron in it is MOVED, it will DEFINITELY interfere for quite a long time until it resets.
What the calibration does, is it tries to sort out all the competing magnetic fields in order to lock in to the true earth magnetic field. If you keep switching the compass on at different locations, then absolutely YES, it will spit out various incorrect values. In fact, if you go get yourself a regular old fashioned magnetic compass (with a needle on a pin in an oil bath) and you move it around, it WILL react to all the different things that produce a magnetic field.
Maybe try going into a forest, calibrating it, sitting around for a few hours (maybe a camp fire?), and then checking if it keeps its calibration.

doitright said:
Calibration *IS* a software function. You feed corrections into the compass driver to compensate for the magnetic fields generated by the phone itself. If it is losing calibration, it CAN ONLY be a software issue.
Are you totally certain that this is a function of losing calibration and not of needing a NEW calibration?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I'm not. Well, here are some possibilities to consider:
1. External magnetic fields affecting the phone in a way the compass goes nuts.
Before Nexus 6, I had Nexus 5 for 1 year and its compass worked perfectly in the same locations where Nexus 6 compass fails: same apartment, same office, same places around the city. Moreover, I don't even remember calibrating my Nexus 5, the compass just worked. Now I have Moto G as a temporary phone as I've sent my N6 back to Amazon, and Moto G compass works excellently as well -- again, no calibration required. So we have at least two devices with compasses working fine in the same environment.
2. Software bug that causes calibration data to be dropped.
I had the compass problem both on stock Lollipop and on CM. I also have a friend who did NOT have any compass issues while running exactly the same setup (first stock, then the same builds of CM) on the same Nexus 6 model. In Android, apps typically can't work with drivers on such a low level that could affect the calibration, and I don't run any special apps (except Google Maps) that do something with the compass. So it CAN be a software bug, but then it has to be very picky. Running a phone on pure CM without Google Maps for several days could be a good test as Maps is the only app that had something to do with a compass on my phone.
3. Some magnetic interference inside the device itself, or the sensor being too sensitive and/or having a hardware problem of its own.
This one seems the most likely to me, as it fits a pattern: the problem happens consistently on one device while never happening on other devices with identical configuration, several users have this problem (there are threads on reddit and other places, too) while the majority seems to be unaffected, and other devices with a compass work just fine in same locations.
Anyway, there obviously ARE devices around which can have a compass working just fine, and be it either a software or a hardware issue with Nexus 6, it's good if more people report a similar issue (or a lack thereof).

I have the same issue. I have calibrated from home and on the road in several states. I does not hold calibration.
I'm road warrior, and this is a real problem when traveling.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA Free mobile app

Question 90 degree GPS Issue

Hey all,
I moved recently and now rely a lot on google maps (and other location apps) to go to places.
Whine the location of the device fave been spot on, I have an issue with positioning and vector... What I mean is the device reports direction with a 90-degree error. If I am on the crosswalk facing one of its directions, the phone shows me that I'm perpendicular to the crosswalk and when I move up or down the crosswalk, it shows me moving sideways... not sure how to explain it better...
If I'm in a car and moving, the dot moves correctly on the map but I'm being shown as moving sideways on that map...
After doing a Google search on the issue, it seems that other people are also having this problem.
I've tried recalibrating, using the live view to calibrate (which works for a moment and then breaks again) Also tried clearing the cache of google maps, (but other GPS apps are also affected)...
Does anyone know how to deal with this problem?

Try turning off improved accuracy or vice versa...
Clear system cache.

blackhawk said:
Try turning off improved accuracy or vice versa...
Clear system cache.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All of this has been tried. even board replacements does not fix it...
it seems to be some kind of a software issue...

Screen rotation is set to manual or automatic? Try switching your settings.
Google Play System Update is up to date? Should at least be from 1st March 2022.

we have a crab in disguise among us... 'transformers~~ shell fish in deguise~~'
jokes aside, the GPS is known to be very unstable. I have the issue come and go... and from what I've heard it's due to signal disturbances.
You'll want to report the issue to Google if you are using Google Maps

Use common sense (or develop it) to navigate.
Constantly being led by a smartphone on the streets is a lousy and dangerous way to live.
Develop a mental picture with critical way points of where you are going and then concentrate on navigating the real world by memory. With practice it becomes 2nd nature.
If it's a complex navigation effort break it down into manageable blocks with start/end way points.
For the car a dedicated GPS is more practical and reliable, but you still need to use common sense for when it glitches... and it will.
GPS is just an aid to navigation... like a map.

Do you have a permanent magnet somewhere inside your phone case, or other source of magnetism that would confuse the on-board magnetic compass?

KingFatty said:
Do you have a permanent magnet somewhere inside your phone case, or other source of magnetism that would confuse the on-board magnetic compass?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
KingFatty came up with my initial thought. Might be some magnetic interference.
I do know the exact issue you are talking about though. I knew I was facing south (I have an actual compass) but my phone said I was facing east. But I solved it with a simple recalibration. I have to recalibrate at least weekly.
You say you have had board replacements to rule out a hardware issue but if it was a software issue then surely everyone would have it? I can confirm that right now, the orientation is correct on my phone. It could be a firmware issue for your specific device but this requires the manufacturer to fix it.
That leads me to think its some kind of outside interference like a magnet in a case.

richhaynes said:
KingFatty came up with my initial thought. Might be some magnetic interference.
I do know the exact issue you are talking about though. I knew I was facing south (I have an actual compass) but my phone said I was facing east. But I solved it with a simple recalibration. I have to recalibrate at least weekly.
You say you have had board replacements to rule out a hardware issue but if it was a software issue then surely everyone would have it? I can confirm that right now, the orientation is correct on my phone. It could be a firmware issue for your specific device but this requires the manufacturer to fix it.
That leads me to think its some kind of outside interference like a magnet in a case.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung's don't like magnets, truth
It may be the earth's magnetic field in your location. It isn't uniform.
It's actually began a cyclical pole shift which will take hundreds of year to complete. Magnetic anomalies with become more common as the reversal draws closer. I doubt the latter could be the cause but the former could.

I think magnets may indeed be the issue. My bag's phone pocket has a magnet on its latch so it might be the thing confusing the phone. The problem is that from more than 20 different phones I had over the years, the S21 Ultra is the first one to exhibit such side effects from magnets...

I use a car mount with wireless charger, and the mount itself creates a magnetic field that confuses the phone's compass so the phone re-calibrates the compass based on the navigation driving etc. When out of the charger, the phone is still interpreting the compass as though it's in the mount with the magnetic influence, so you just need to recalibrate the compass and it will fix the issue until next time it automatically recalibrates while under the influence of a magnetic field.
That's just how compasses work, they sense existing magnetic fields, and the closer a magnet is to the phone, the stronger the field. If only there was a way to tell the phone you are putting it next to a magnetic field so it knew not to recalibrate itself at that time.