Pocket GPS UK Safety Camera Database

Darren

Whilst many of them are great suggestions we are limited severely by the constraints imposed on us in the .ov2 file format that TomTom use. We simply do not have enough room in each entry for all that data! As it is we can fit in our unique ID and we will implement TYPE.

The other issue is how you capture all this data, TYPE can be recorded easily using CheckPoint as this brings up a second screen after you log location with large icons of the camera types, simply tap the correct type and it is logged with the location. Direction of travel would be really useful but a. we can't fit it in the file and b. this would require a modification to the POI Warning software we all use to capture the information as it is vital that all this data is captured automatically at the time and not entered from memory at the end of the journey.

If we can make direction data fit then this for me would be the next logical step so that you only receive warnings for cameras in your direction of travel. The Cyclops hardware Gatso warning system had this and it worked well.
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Darren Griffin

TheBoyGroucho

Although locations which have cameras that can be rotated to check speed in both directions would have to be reliably accounted for.

daz205 · Occasional Visitor Joined: 17/06/2003 22:42:05 Posts: 4

ok i have copied the file and the bmp to the folder and can select the poi but i cannot get the pic of a speed camera next to it. it is just a blank space any ideas?

DavidW

Have you actually exited TomTom Navigator and restarted the application? File -> Exit on all screens except the Navigator screen will do the job, as will the Exit Application option in the Navigator screen if you have version 2.22 installed.

Pressing the X button is not enough unless you have an application installed that closes applications when that is pressed (my favourite is Spb Pocket Plus). By default, Pocket PC minimises applications when the X button is pressed.

If exiting the application and restarting it doesn't make the icon show, I suggest a soft reset of your Pocket PC before trying again.

The other possibility is that the .bmp file has been converted by ActiveSync to a .2bp file - I believe this is the default. You can reconfigure ActiveSync not to do this as follows:

Tools -> Options

Rules tab

Conversion Settings...

Desktop to Device tab

.bmp is probably the top option in the list (the precise description depends on what software you have installed on your Desktop machine - in my case, the file type belongs to Corel Photo-Paint 10). If you click on file types, you'll see the actual extension (you're looking for *.bmp) further down in the window.

When you've found .bmp, press Edit...

Select No conversion (.bmp).

Press OK on each of the three windows.

You have now disabled conversion from .bmp to .2bp

I appear to have done this anyway, though I normally transfer files directly using my network and Resco Explorer 2003, rather than via ActiveSync.

Indeed, Resco Explorer 2003 provides a way around this even if you don't have a network, as you can copy the .zip file directly to your Pocket PC and open it using Resco Explorer 2003, extracting the files directly on your Pocket PC.

Hopefully this gets you going!

David

daz205 · Occasional Visitor Joined: 17/06/2003 22:42:05 Posts: 4

yup thats it cheers

DavidW

Out of interest, which of the two solutions I gave was it? Was it unwanted conversion to .2bp or failure to restart TomTom Navigator?

David

daz205 · Occasional Visitor Joined: 17/06/2003 22:42:05 Posts: 4

unwanted conversion to .2bp

mattster

Chaps,

I've been doing that extremely dangerous thing again: thinking!

The thinking goes like this. There's loads of extra info we'd kind of like to be able to squeeze into the database. But there are no spare fields, and there are info capture issues.

On the spare fields front, would it be possible to use the identifier field more efficiently? For example, instead of simply saying "GATSO001" (forgive me if that's not quite right - don't have it in front of me), it should surely be possible to use the spaces currently used by the word "GATSO" more effectively. The letters could be used as codes instead.

For example, the first character could signify TYPE, the second direction (perhaps 8-point compass would be adequate), the third limit in force... and we've got some to spare! OK, so maybe the first three should signify type or something, but you get the picture I guess.

Anyhow, the numeric portion would remain as a unique identifier for this db, allowing for updates, etc.

This may be complete cobblers of course.

Best regards,

Matt

mattster

Forgot to mention: using the first few letters for TYPE would mean that that part, at least, would be decodable by humans on the fly.

nicknick · Regular Visitor Joined: 03/02/2003 17:18:53 Posts: 154

You can actually put more info in there, a good example of this is the info stored by Checkpoint which includes type and speed.

However, now the sync service is up and running, a better idea will be mutiple POI files (for different types and speeds) which will then allow us to use the speed related warnings in Checkpoint etc.

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Nick

DavidW

It would be great if we could persuade the author of CheckPOInt to include some support for direction of travel (with an option to designate a camera as 'bidirectional' at capture). This, of course, assumes that the SDK allows the supply of appropriate data (I haven't checked, but I think it will, not least because I think the TomTom version of Trafcam uses the direction of travel).

I've got some data I'll try to tidy up and submit later on today. I've captured the locations and speeds of quite a few cameras in mid and south Bedfordshire (particularly the Dunstable area), also I've done what I hope is a comprehensive survey of bits of the A41 and A5 in London yesterday (there's a load of red light cameras in the current database - particularly on the A41 Hendon Way). I've also identified 4 cameras in the current database that are red light cameras on the A10 north of London.

Does anyone happen to know if the 'narrow' Gatso red light cameras are always red light only - or if Gatso produce any red light and speed combined units? I suspect they're all red light only, as I don't think any Gatso speed units use the speed sensors embedded in the road (like Truvelo cameras).

When I submit these, I'll try to indicate whether they're Gatso or Truvelo and whether, to my knowledge, they're bidirectional sites - hence the delay whilst I go through the data by hand to sanitise it.

David

Parky

This topic is getting a bit long in the tooth, but hopefully someone is watching and may give me the answer to the following, How often is the Pocket GPS database updated on the web site. It seems we have been on the same version for ever. I know I have sent several updates of new cameras over the last few weeks. I have started using the POI sync service from Pocket GPS, and my fear is that I will update, and wipe out all the ones I have manually put in my ov2 file. I maybe should adress this also to that forum also.

Sorry it's a bit long and drawn out, but I'm interested in an answer.

regards

Alan

Dave

We update the database once a month, but due to some heavy reviewing recently, also planning for the Pocket GPS Summit and also rearranging the database to future some future functions we are a little late this month.

We're hoping to get an update out shortly.

Dave

June Edition is now on our POI-Sync Service and also on the Safety Camera page.

Parky

Thanks Dave,

Just uploaded by POI Sync.

Fantastic work, all my latest additions I sent, in there as well. Great work.

Regards

Alan

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