JSR 179 - developing applications with it

[Avengola]

Hi there,
does anyone know where I should start reading to develop and test software using the JSR 179. I am going to try and develop a sort of subscribe and publish application that will allow users to post a message/ reminder in a particular location (for my tests this will be at a pc in a lab) and when they return to that location it will alert them with the reminder they posted. Once I have conclusions from this test I will try and make an advertising version where for example shops will be able to host a server/ subscribe to a server which will send mobile users who are accepting these ads a note detailing the advert.

But firstly I need to know what the JSR 179 communicates with ... GPS? or GPRS.
All help is appreciated thanks

[njzk2]

seems like a complicate thing, especially if you want people to have there phone on and the app launched to receive adds
(may be some bluetooth direct messaging could be easier and be more widely spread, as jsr 179 is very specific, especially, the costs of the service, if it requieres operator's intervention (A-GPS, cellID ...)
jsr 179 does not specify the method used for localisation, so every phone can implement any
it can be GPS, A-GPS, CellID, other method provided by the operator ...

[njzk2]

you should also start by reading the java doc of the api ...

[mrmonteith]

JSR 179 uses GPS. GPRS is General Packet Radio Service. A GSM data transmission technique that does not set up a continuous channel from a portable terminal for the transmission and reception of data, but transmits and receives data in packets. It makes very efficient use of available radio spectrum. So it's not the same thing.

Here is a great reference with GPS terms and types:
http://jdj.sys-con.com/read/37747.htm
http://www.mobilein.com/mobile_positioning.htm

Two Parts of series
http://today.java.net/pub/a/today/2004/02/16/gis.html
http://today.java.net/pub/a/today/2004/04/01/gis.html

More information with Requirements
http://developers.sun.com/techtopics...cles/location/
JSR 179 requires the Connected Device Configuration (CDC) or version 1.1 of the Connected Limited Device Configuration (CLDC). CLDC 1.0 isn't adequate because it doesn't support floating-point numbers, which the API uses to represent coordinates and other measurements. The Location API doesn't depend on any particular profile -- it can be used with MIDP or the Personal Profile.

I think I read somewhere that it requires MIDP 2.0 since it has more security features. Which when you start looking it's hard to find all but the newest phones that have GPS as well as CLDC 1.1 and MIDP 2.0.

JSR 179 Specification:
http://www.jcp.org/en/jsr/detail?id=179

But trying to search by those 3 criteria to select a phone is next to impossible. You practically have to go through the specs on every phone to find one. I'm hoping to find a phone but haven't taken the time to look through every one.

Michael

[njzk2]

the a1000 is one of the very few phones that match your request (it integrates a a-gps chip)

mrmonteith : the jsr does not specify which method is to be used, this is why it returns also informations about precision of localization
it may use various methods based on the cells surrounding the phone, inciding angle on the antenna, power of the signal, transmition duration deltas ...

[mrmonteith]

I was looking for one at Nokia. I know the Motorola i860 also has support. It's one of those thing you have to look at every spec on every phone to find what you need. So I'm sure there's more out there. I was just looking here for Nokia phones.

Michae

[mrmonteith]

Be sure and read the links I left above on the topic.

It's really not that complicated really. JSR-179 just gives you the abstraction to access those functions. Obviously you can poll the devices to find which it uses and the code takes care of the handshaking necessary. In fact my LG VX5200 has A-GPS and a special code I can get to the Qualcom app gpsOne. I fire it up, call a local number and I get longitude and latitude information.

I also found out about some of the Motorola iDEN phones have GPS as well as JSR-179 support. They are the i703, i830, and i860. But the i860 is a bit pricey, even used ones.

Nokia is a bit tricky. They have GPS listed but what they don't tell you it's not built into the phone. You have to buy an external gps device. I think their 3585i is supposed to have it built in, but it is not on the market yet so not sure what the scoop is with it.

The JSR-179 when placed on the phone gives the calls necessary to talk to whichever method is employed by the phones hardware. You make a call to get a location, the api talks to the GPS hardware or software to get that information (of course making software calls based on which functions are available on that phone). The APIs code knows how to get that information and return it back.

You need to definately read some of the links above. They talk about the different types of GPS, the JSR-179, etc.

Of course my task now is finding a used phone that has GPS of some sort, supports J2ME, CLDC 1.1, MIDP 2.0, and has JSR-179 support.

There are some phones out there with Symbian OS on them that I think would work but haven't even dug there.

I think I'm going to opt to see if I can find a Motorola iDEN phone with what I need.

Michael

[o66183]

Mot. A780 works fine with J2ME and JSR 179 (GPS). I've developed some applications for it within JSR 179 standards

[basharrashid]

Your comments about the subject are very useful to what I am trying to do. What I hoping to accomplish is to develop a Java-based application that extracts the GPS geographical coordinates directly from the on-board GPS receiver and then send those coordinates to a server that can calculate and return the physical location of the cell phone. I am hoping to get the location of my cell phone without the need to subscribe to the service through the cell network.

Of course I am new to this, so I would appreciate any assistance with the idea or code.

[o66183]

What cellphone do you have, exactly what you want to do I've done already , but you've to pay for the reverse-geo-service, at least I haven't found one without billing.
Oliver

[basharrashid]

Thank you Oliver for your post.

My plan, to start with, is to use the Nokia emulator. Then I would migrate the app onto Nokia 6265i, which supports the location API (JSR 179).

Regarding the Reverse Geocoding location service, I am planning to sign up for a trial account, which some providers support free trial, to test my app.

My immediate concern is accessing the cell phone’s GPS receiver raw data.

Bashar

[o66183]

Do you have a 6265i already ? Why raw, when you have the JSR179 interfaces ?
How do you get the raw data ?
Regards
Oliver

[basharrashid]

I don’t have the cell phone yet, but the 6265 is one of the phones that I am looking at.

Doesn’t the JSR 179 provide the 2D position (latitude and longitude) or 3D position (latitude, longitude and altitude) data? … I should start digging into the JSR-179 docs!

[simonru]

I don’t have the cell phone yet, but the 6265 is one of the phones that I am looking at.

Doesn’t the JSR 179 provide the 2D position (latitude and longitude) or 3D position (latitude, longitude and altitude) data? … I should start digging into the JSR-179 docs!

In Coordinates.java, you can get all three. I was going to write an app, but after I downloaded Google Local into my device, I don't find the need anymore I figure even if I get lost, I can find the nearest street name and find the location from Google Map. Then from there, I can find bunch of other information... Well, that is only if the location has good wireless connection.

[basharrashid]

In Coordinates.java, you can get all three. I was going to write an app, but after I downloaded Google Local into my device, I don't find the need anymore I figure even if I get lost, I can find the nearest street name and find the location from Google Map. Then from there, I can find bunch of other information... Well, that is only if the location has good wireless connection.

I need to get as realistically close to the exact location of the mobile device as possible. I would like to be able to locate cell phones and other mobile devices locally, from the mobile device, and remotely using a web server, for example. Where I can log into this web server and issue a command to the cell phone and be able to retrieve the GPS coordinate then calculate the exact location.

bashar