Garmin Edge 500 - changing satellites?
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My Garmin Edge 500 can take several minutes to acquire satellites, whereas I have previously used a Garmin Edge 200 which always acquired satellites immediately. I remember when I set up my Garmin 500 it gave me the option of a default satellite setting which was just a number which meant nothing to me, so I chose to accept Great Britain satellites as it also gave me that option. I just wondered if doing that it has restricted the satellites that I can pick-up. However I can't find out how to get that screen back where there is different satellite options. I have looked in the manual and it doesn't say anything about it. Can anyone help or advise me.
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to change satalites
menu > settings > system > initial setup0 -
to change satalites
menu > settings > system > initial setup0 -
Thanks xchudy. I've now done that and chosen the Default setting rather than British Grid. Hopefully that might make a difference. Thanks again for yout quick response.xchudy_1325 wrote:to change satalites
menu > settings > system > initial setup0 -
To be honest I'm not sure that I actually understand the question, or the response that you've been given, and I work in the space industry!!
What I think you are doing with that menu setting (I haven't got and edge 200 or 500) isn't changing the way that the device is picking up and using GPS signals, rather it's giving you an option to tell you your position in either the global WGS84 coordinate system (the standard system that the GPS satellites use - quoted in terms of latitude and longitude), or to convert that position to a British National Grid position that is the system that the Ordnance Survey use (i.e. meters of easting and northings from the British datum - somewhere near the Scilly Isles). That conversion won't hold up the time it take your device to "lock on" to the GPS satellites.
I won't go into a huge amount of detail here this post, but you can read the (somewhat surprisingly) good wikipedia entry on GPS signals here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GPS_signals The bit about demodulation and the almanac is the section that refers to lock-on problems. Essentially if you haven't used your device for a reasonably long time, it will need to spend a lot more time searching and receiving data from the satellites before it can "lock-on" and give you an accurate position. If during the time it is receiving the longer messages from the satellites the signal is interrupted (built up area etc) then it has to start again with that satellite. Keeping the almanac files up to date is what people like tomtom used to (still do?) offer as a free download to speed up the time to lock-on.
Essentially there's nothing that you can do to speed up the process other that to use the device regularly to minimise the amount of listening that the device has to do, and also to try to start to use the device away from tall buildings to minimise signal reflections (which yield inaccurate positions and hence lock-on delays) whilst simultaneously increasing the number of satellites that it can use via offering it more of the sky. i.e. the more satellite that it can see the greater the chance of an uninterupted signal being received and hence the "lock-on" will be achieved much faster0 -
I much prefer the above logical explanation by rich164h, but if it makes you feel any better, I've only had my 500 about 3 months, haven't changed any settings at all, and have been thinking that it's taking an awful long time to find the satellites these past couple of weeks myself :shock:
No idea why though :oops:0 -
I blame the space monkeys
But yeah, my Garmin 500 takes about 30s to get a signal. Just turn it on before you start pre-ride faff, when you've completed your faff the Garmin will be ready to roll.0 -
There's a file on the device that assists with locating the satellites and sometimes this needs to be updated. Just plug in to a computer and run the update program - that might improve things for you.0
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The number you mention, was it FOM or Figure of Merit? This is the accurancy of a gps location and requires more satellites for a more accurate reading, could be why you take longer to lock onto a signal0
