Can't Aquire Satellite Lock

[seaners]

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I bought a TomTom ONE 130 the other day and it worked pretty good to begin with, but now I can't get a satellite lock. I haven't been able to get a lock for 48 hours now. I'll leave it on my windshield in my car for an entire half hour trip and I get nothing. The weather is fine. In fact it was quite clear this afternoon. I live in British Columbia, Canada. I hadn't plugged it into my computer yet so that's what I'm doing right now. It did an update and now it's downloading a new map as we speak. I just don't get why it would work so well for two days and then all of the sudden I get nothing. I'm hoping this isn't going to be an ongoing thing or I may have to return it. Hopefully the update fixes it.



Oh and this is my first GPS unit. I find that it gives me really weird directions. Like the other day I was on the freeway and it told me to pass the first exit I thought I should take. I did it because I wanted to see where it was taking me. Then it told me to pass the next one which I would have taken as well. Then it told me to get off, only to double right back to the street that the second exit would have brought me straight onto! I also find that when driving around town it always sends you to the busiest route with the most lights.



Any input would be really appreciated.

 

[seaners]

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Okay after all the updates I am locked onto 7 satellites indoors. Hopefully this doesn't happen again.

 

[Gilbert]

A few tips come to my mind:

1- When using your TT for the 1st time, it has no idea where the gps satellites could be. It is a good idea to download a QuickFix with Home, That QuickFix file contains the satellite positions for the next 7 days or so and greatly speeds up satellite position acquisition and lock. Caution: a pin reset could delete the important gps data file in your TT.

2- With any gps, they function better outdoors, in the open. While you may get a good gps lock inside, it will not always be the case: large concrete apt buildings will prevent getting strong gps satellites' signals. Same with multilevel concrete floor parkings and even multilevel wood floors. Also, they will get a faster lock when not moving. Start your TT before getting in your car if out in the open.

3- When you restart your gps at the same place you turned it off, the lock occurs faster. If you take a plane and end up far away from where the TT was last turned off, the gps will need time to get a lock.

4- If you wish to always get a fast gps lock, update the QuickFix on a weekly basis.

 

[seaners]

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Thanks for the feedback, I really appreciate it.

1: That is understandable. I just find it odd that it work for two days and then it comepletly stopped working. Being a noob, I hope you'll excuse my ignorance. But what is a Quick Fix? Does that automatically happen when I plug it into my PC for updates? What exactly does it do and why do I need to do this ever 7 days?

2: Yes I kind of figured as much which is why I didn't think too much of it when it was cloudy and when I was downtown surrounded by high-rises. But when I was outside with no clouds and no obstructions, and I couldn't get a lock for 48 hours I kind of figured there was a problem.

3: Good to know.

4: What a pain in the arse!

 

[dhn]

A quickfix is the file download Gilbert mentioned for the location of the satellites. It only takes a couple of seconds to dl it once docked to the computer with Home running.

 

[seaners]

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Is this sort of thing going to happen to be while I'm in the middle of a road trip? Or is this just a growing pain associated with a new device?

 

[GarCor]

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Is this sort of thing going to happen to be while I'm in the middle of a road trip? Or is this just a growing pain associated with a new device?

No you will still get you sat fix on road trip but if you have your unit turned off for a few days and have moved from the last location that you had your unit running it might just take the unit a bit longer to lock in sometimes up to 10 min but not often.
TT suggest you DL GPS fix once a week but it isn't necessary it just helps GPS to find sat quicker.

Now only if you could beam mre up Scottie, LOL

 

[seaners]

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Yeah I don't mind waiting 10 minuted for a lock (although not convenient). I'm more worried if say I'm on a two week road trip and I don't have access to a PC to be able to update it once a week. It wasn't getting a lock at all until I did the update. From what you're saying, I shouldn't worry about it. Thanks!

 

[Rick F.]

Is this sort of thing going to happen to be while I'm in the middle of a road trip? Or is this just a growing pain associated with a new device?

The QuickGPSfix just helps your GPS find the satellites more quickly, but not absolutely necessary. If your TomTom doesn't find the satellites where they are expected, the sensitivity of the receiver is increased and the search is widened. If you turn on the GPS everyday, your need for the GPS quick fix is not necessary.

Here's a link where the the QuickGPSfix is discussed:

http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=68408

... this links direct to what I think should be a 'sticky' for explanation:
http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=412446#412446​

A link to how a GPS receiver works:
http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/howgpsworks.php

Hope this helps.

 

[seaners]

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry Curve 8330: BlackBerry8330/4.5.0.77 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/126 UP.Browser/5.0.3.3)

Groovy! Thanks!

 

[Gilbert]

When you turn on your gps and press on the lower right, you will be able to graphically see the gps lock in action with each of the satellite signals and locking process. Sometimes my lock occurs almost immediately after turning on my TT. Other times, with no QuickFix data, I can see the number of satellites being fewer and the lock taking longer.

The QuickFix consists of three files: lto.dat which has the data for the satellites positions for a week whose size varies from time to time but around 60k, ee_meta.txt which contains the expiry date in a popular Unix format (something like seconds after a set date) and ee_meta.tlv containing the QuickFix url, date/time obtained and some explanation text. Caution here: lto.dat file is for those TT that feature the HammerHead gps chipset, for SirfStar chipset the file will be named packedephemeris.ee instead.