GetGPSInfo()

Summary

Gets a reading from a GPS device.

Syntax

GetGPSInfo()

Returns

In case of a transient error (e.g., a timeout when reading from a GPS device), a one-element array is returned, containing a string describing the error. Otherwise, an array of eleven elements is returned, describing the current GPS reading. If particular information is missing, that field is null, otherwise the elements are:

Notes

• A GPS device must be initialized with StartGPS().

• The data from the device must be in the NMEA 0183 format.

• If only a partial reading is obtained, some of the fields may be null. Some GPS receivers never provide some of the information in this list; e.g., some devices use only degrees true north, others give magnetic north, and a few give both.

• A typical receiver only sends data once per second, so frequent readings result in transient timeout errors.

Example

// Most common settings
options = {{"Read From", "\\\\.\\COM1"}, {"Baud Rate", 4800},
{"Data Bits", 8},{"Stop Bits", 1}, {"Parity", "None"}}
StartGPS("Serial Port", options)
dim pos[10]
for i=1 to 10 do
gps_data = GetGPSInfo()
if gps_data.length = 1 then
ShowMessage("An error while reading: " + gps_data[1])
else if gps_data[1] <> null && gps_data[2] <> null then
// Store the location as a coordinate
pos[i] = Coord(gps_data[1], gps_data[2])
end // for
StopGPS()

Error Codes

See Also