From the Sensor Data Table, click on the icon below to view the participant's GPS data:
The table lists samples in reverse chronological order, i.e. starting with the most recent. Only the first 100 samples are displayed. To download the complete data file for the participant, click on the "Download CSV" link.
Notes:
- If your account is set up to only collect GPS at the time of survey completion then the GPS coordinates will be in the Rapid Report File along with the survey data.
- You may see more columns than are outlined in this guide. Different phones and services provide additional GPS data types. Here we cover the main ones.
Data Type | Definition |
sbj_id | mEMA App internal id for tracking participant. |
rsp_id | Same as sbj_id. |
mbl_cod | mEMA App participant code. |
dte_tme | Local date and time of when location was captured as provided from user/participant phone. |
ts | Time stamp of when the location data was captured as provided from the user/participant phone. This is the same time as dte_tme but in UNIX timestamp. |
timezone_offset | Time zone of the user/participant as provided by the user/participant phone. Variable represents the offset in seconds from Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) (also known as UTC) |
event | App status of when the location was captured, which will be either "Location-Changed FG" or "Location-Changed BG". Location-Changed FG: Location was captured while the app was in the foreground—meaning the user had the app open and active on their screen. Location-Changed BG: Location was captured while the app was in the background—meaning it was running but not actively in use by the participant at that moment. |
enabled | Status of location tracking if it's enabled or disabled. A value of 0 typically came from Android and meant that location tracking was enabled. This variable is no longer in use, but its behaviour can be helpful to understand when reviewing historical data. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
event_type | Status of location activity. The event_type field is actually a legacy field that was originally intended to indicate the source of the location event (e.g., GPS, Network, Satellite). However, this usage has since been deprecated and replaced by the event field. As it stands now, the value "active" in event_type simply indicates that location activity is enabled. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
source | Which type was the source, Network, GPS or both. The values "Network," "GPS," or "both" are specific to Android and represent the raw location providers used. "fused" is also from Android and refers to the Fused Location Provider, which intelligently combines GPS, Wi-Fi, and cell network signals to determine location. So in this context, "fused" is effectively equivalent to "both", but it's the actual term returned by the Android API. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
accuracy | In meters. As supplied by source. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
latitude | Location coordinate |
longitude | Location coordinate |
place | Location place as provided by Phone. *currently empty field on data from Android devices. Android typically does not provide place names (like city or venue) directly through its location APIs, which results in empty fields. |
seconds_on | Current settings (If Periodic Geotracking is enabled). The seconds_on and seconds_off values correspond to the user’s Geotracking configuration settings. Specifically: seconds_on indicates how long Geotracking is active during each cycle. seconds_off indicates how long Geotracking is inactive before the next cycle begins. If either value is 0, it usually means that Periodic Geotracking hasn't been enabled or used — not that Geotracking is always on. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
seconds_off | Current settings (If Periodic Geotracking is enabled). The seconds_on and seconds_off values correspond to the user’s Geotracking configuration settings. Specifically: seconds_on indicates how long Geotracking is active during each cycle. seconds_off indicates how long Geotracking is inactive before the next cycle begins. If either value is 0, it usually means that Periodic Geotracking hasn't been enabled or used — not that Geotracking is always on. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
time_interval | In seconds. Minimum time interval between updates. The time_interval value refers to the user-configured setting under Geo Tracking, which specifies the minimum time interval (in seconds) between location updates — not the actual observed interval between location records. The default value is often set to 10, which is why you may see that in the data, even if the setting wasn't actively used. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
distance | In meters. Minimum distance between updates. The distance field refers to the user-configured minimum distance (in meters) between location updates, as set under Geo Tracking in the user settings. The default value is 2, which is why you might be seeing that consistently across participants — even if for those users the setting wasn't adjusted or enabled for periodic geotracking. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
geofence_count | Number of Geofences active at time. The geofence_count value reflects the number of geofences that were active on the mobile client (MC) at the moment the location data was collected. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
recorded | Local date and time of when the data was recorded. *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
satellite_count | Refers to the number of satellites that a GPS receiver is connected to or using to calculate its position. *currently deprecated |
distance_change | Change in distance since last location data was captured. Please note that the latitude and longitude data is registered in the table up to 6 decimal points, so if you see the same coordinates but with a difference "distance_chnage" that could be happening because: 1. Floating-point precision Even if the lat/long values appear the same when rounded or displayed, they might differ slightly at a more precise decimal level—e.g.: Point A: 37.7749295, -122.4194155 Point B: 37.7749294, -122.4194154 These would appear identical when rounded to 4–6 decimal places but still produce a small distance calculation. 2. Sensor noise or system-level drift Even when stationary, phones can report micro-shifts in position due to: GPS jitter Variability in sensor readings Fused location services adjusting estimates slightly over time *currently empty field on data from iOS devices |
added | Date and time of when the location data was added into the table in UTC timezone. |
upload_ts | Timestamp of when the location data was uploaded to the server. Same as "added" but in UNIX |