Simulator

KayakNav contains a Simulator that can replicate:

• Movement along the Route by generation of GPS coordinates and speed data.
• Compass bearings that would be received from your device whilst paddling.
• Motion data from the accelerometer to replicate paddling activity.
• Heart rate data.

This Simulator has allowed testing of the navigation logic, but is also used estimate location when the GPS signal is lost temporarily. This is similar to the behaviour of your satellite navigation system in your car when you travel into a tunnel.

When running KayakNav in Simulator mode, the paddler and the Virtual Training Partner move 3.5 times the actual speed so that running through a planned route doesn't take all day to complete.

The simulator was left in the app so that it could be used as a demo mode and for users to run over their route to check waypoint messages and expected map displays. It also caches the map tiles if they are not already stored in the database, although this will not cover all zoom levels, so it is recommended that you hit the "Map Tiles" button to do this with the route loaded. Simulators for heart rate, stroke rate and compass are also built into KayakNav.

The path followed by the simulated GPS is along your loaded route and interpolates with random compass and speed changes to simulate the paddler moving at about 30 km/hr. In LIVE mode, the simulators are stopped and data is used from the in-built GPS, compass, accelerometer and any BLTE heart rate monitor that you are wearing. The loaded route determines where the waypoints and course are shown on the map, and KayakNav assumes that you will be following the course from start to finish. When you cross the start line, the counters are reset. When you cross the finish line, the data is bundled into a CSV file, attached to an email and the data cleared. The "RECORD" button allows you to set off without a pre-loaded route and to record your path.

In Simulator mode, features of Race Stages, Activity, Training Partner Modes, Route Position, Route Tracking etc can be reviewed.

A future release may allow you to provide a different Route for the Virtual Training Partner.