Ecobot Collector uses native mobile device location data to populate photo fields like lat/long, direction, coordinates, etc. To ensure your photo data is accurate, please calibrate your mobile device using one or more of the methods below:
Calibrate Location Data - iOS
Enhancing Compass Accuracy on iOS Devices
Your iPhone’s internal compass is a valuable tool, but it can easily become misaligned, especially when indoors. Here are several ways to improve the accuracy of the compass on your iPhone or iPad.
Remove Magnetic Materials from Your Device
The compass in your iPhone relies on a built-in magnetometer, which can be disrupted by nearby magnetic sources. To ensure accurate readings, remove any magnets near your device. This includes items like iPhone cases or pop sockets that often have magnetic components. If a magnet causes misalignment, removing it might fix the issue, though you may also need to restart your device.
Rotate Your iPhone in a Figure-8 Motion
Your compass calibrates itself over time through movement, such as walking or removing your phone from your pocket. A quick trick to help realign the compass is to rotate your phone in a large figure-8 motion. For minor misalignments, this often fine-tunes the compass.
Enable Compass Calibration in Settings
Starting with iOS 13, there is a privacy setting that allows the compass to use location services for improved calibration. This feature is off by default, but enabling it can enhance compass accuracy.
Steps to enable Compass Calibration:
1. Open the “Settings” app
2. Tap “Privacy”
3. Tap “Location Services”
4. Tap “System Services”
5. Enable “Compass Calibration”
Disable and Re-enable Location Services
Refreshing your location services can clear out any GPS-related errors, which may improve compass accuracy. Disabling and then re-enabling location services is a quick way to achieve this.
Steps to refresh Location Services:
1. Open the “Settings” app
2. Tap “Privacy”
3. Tap “Location Services”
4. Disable and then re-enable “Location Services”
Restart Your iPhone
If your compass is still misaligned, restarting your device is often the quickest and most reliable way to restore accuracy. Though it might feel inconvenient, restarting can effectively reset the compass for optimal performance.
Disable True North in Settings
By default, your iPhone uses True North for compass readings. However, in some cases, you might prefer to use Magnetic North temporarily. Disabling True North may provide the readings you're looking for.
Steps to disable True North:
1. Open the “Settings” app
2. Scroll down and tap on the “Compass” app
3. Disable the “Use True North” option
By following these steps, you can significantly improve the compass accuracy on your iPhone or iPad and ensure more reliable readings.
Calibrate Location Data - Android
Calibrating the compass on an Android mobile device is straightforward. Here's how you can do it to improve accuracy:
Rotate Your Phone in a Figure-8 Motion
Similar to iOS, Android devices use motion to help calibrate the compass. The most common and easy method is rotating your phone in a figure-8 pattern.
1. Hold your phone in front of you.
2. Rotate it in a large figure-8 motion (make sure to tilt it as you do this).
3. Continue the motion for a few seconds until the compass calibration improves.
You can repeat this if you feel the compass is still inaccurate.
Use Google Maps to Calibrate the Compass
Google Maps has a built-in feature to calibrate the compass.
1. Open the Google Maps app on your Android device.
2. Tap the blue dot (this represents your location).
3. A small window will appear—tap on Calibrate Compass (if the option is available).
4. You will see an on-screen guide to follow the figure-8 motion. Complete this movement as prompted to calibrate the compass.
Once you've completed this, your compass should be recalibrated.
Enable High Accuracy Mode for Location
High Accuracy mode uses GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and mobile networks to improve location services, which can also affect compass performance.
1. Open Settings
2. Go to Location
3. Tap Mode or Location Mode
4. Select High Accuracy
Restart Your Device
If the compass remains uncalibrated or misaligned, restarting your Android device can sometimes resolve the issue, as it resets the device's sensors.
By following these steps, you can ensure your Android device's compass remains accurate for navigation and other applications like Ecobot.