Altimeter recordings while running

[Brad_Olwin]

@surfboomerang I think that has changed now and it will work.

[Tadas Linge]

@pilleus correction to false altitude was done maybe 10 hours or more before the activity…

[Redbeard_ranger]

Automatic alti-baro profile,

Interesting observation on my Suunto Race. I live by the coast which is affected by high winds. I also live in an apartment on the 8th floor and unfortunately happen to be in a direction that when it is windy my apartment becomes a wind tunnel. I noticed quite a big change in altitude of 25m from 109m down to 84m, which is close to accurate altitude, all just from the change in air pressure.

In the manual it states, " If you are at a constant altitude (less than 5 meters of vertical movement within 12 minutes), your watch interprets air pressure changes as weather changes and adjusts the barometer graph accordingly."

However in the linked video below the watch thinks I’m changing altitude.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Suunto/s/J3SDGbXtYL

[Tadas Linge]

@Brad_Olwin Hello,
so while my Vertical being checked, they gave me Race as a replacement. i never thought i might like it so much. it is very fun device, because i always run in the dark and that screen is just pleasing. i have done two runs so far. first one had extraordinary altimeter performance (day before run i have adjusted altitude manually to correct one), but for today’s run i have set altitude off again by +115m and watch did not correct it either (last two runs in the table):

[Brad_Olwin]

@Tadas-Linge hard for me to interpret your table, but from the trace on the initial post on your Vertical there are a lot of small spikes in the trace. It would be helpful to see the trace for the Race as well. I do not know what the actual altitude is for your run. Below is an example from me for yesterday, a SkiMo with my 9PeakPro underneath all clothing on my wrist and my Vertical outside my jacket exposed to snow, wind etc. They both show identical profiles. 9PP/Vertical Ascent 878/890; Descent 879/877.

[Tadas Linge]

@Brad_Olwin Hello,
yes sure,

this is the first run with manually correctly adjusted altitude:

and this is second run with manually not correctly adjusted altitude (+115m):

[Brad_Olwin]

@Tadas-Linge So, I assume 48m is correct and starting at 115 is way off. What does the barometric trace look like on your watch for the time you are not exercising?

[Tadas Linge]

@Brad_Olwin Hello,
but just to be on the same page, i have entered manually wrong altitude (+115m) to see if watch will correct it.
during the whole exercise watch was showing the same altitude which is in the graph and i was waiting and waiting when will it be readjusted, but it did not happen.

[Mauerwegler]

@Tadas-Linge said in Altimeter recordings while running:

@Brad_Olwin Hello,
but just to be on the same page, i have entered manually wrong altitude (+115m) to see if watch will correct it.

I have read here that it matters when you manually set the altitude: apparently at least 15 minutes before training start. Otherwise the watch assumes you know your current altitude and accepts your manual altitude setting.

[A Former User]

@Tadas-Linge looking at the graphs they are almost overlapping (execept for the offset) so it’s a mistery why FA does not (always) trigger in your case

[Mff73]

@Mauerwegler said in Altimeter recordings while running:

@Tadas-Linge said in Altimeter recordings while running:

@Brad_Olwin Hello,
but just to be on the same page, i have entered manually wrong altitude (+115m) to see if watch will correct it.

I have read here that it matters when you manually set the altitude: apparently at least 15 minutes before training start. Otherwise the watch assumes you know your current altitude and accepts your manual altitude setting.

It was true long ago, but seems no more (I read it somewhere here).
I tried this few days ago, but I didn’t offset “only” 115m but 1000m (for the same price ), and my watch was fixed during the first 10/15min of my run.

[Brad_Olwin]

@Tadas-Linge To me the 45m trace is not bad, but my outdoor exercises typically involve gains or losses of ~300m or more. What does the barometric trace on the watch look like for you or on a website for your area?

I see a lot of small spikes in your original and posted traces. Where do you wear the watch? Is it on top of clothing or underneath? Is it possible that the clothing or skin is pressing up against the sensor?

[Mauerwegler]

@Mff73 said in Altimeter recordings while running:

@Mauerwegler said in Altimeter recordings while running:

I have read here that it matters when you manually set the altitude: apparently at least 15 minutes before training start. Otherwise the watch assumes you know your current altitude and accepts your manual altitude setting.

It was true long ago, but seems no more (I read it somewhere here).
I tried this few days ago, but I didn’t offset “only” 115m but 1000m (for the same price ), and my watch was fixed during the first 10/15min of my run.

I tried it yesterday with my Spartan Ultra:

• Offsetting the altitude by 60 m half an hour before training: altitude is correct in SA.

• Offsetting the altitude by 60 m directly before training: altitude is off by 60 m in SA.

So I guess the behavior depends on the watch generation?

[A Former User]

@Mauerwegler said in Altimeter recordings while running:

So I guess the behavior depends on the watch generation?

yep!

[Mff73]

@Mauerwegler
Oh, i didn’t see you have a spartan (it is what i called : “long time ago” )

[Mauerwegler]

@Mauerwegler said in Altimeter recordings while running:

I tried it yesterday with my Spartan Ultra:

• Offsetting the altitude by 60 m half an hour before training: altitude is correct in SA.

• Offsetting the altitude by 60 m directly before training: altitude is off by 60 m in SA.

So I guess the behavior depends on the watch generation?

I did another experiment yesterday, and now I am really confused:

• Commute to work with the bicycle without setting the altitude: everything as expected: altitude is quite accurate because I adjusted it the evening before because it had been off, see my quote above.

• Upon arrival at work I ended the training recording and maybe 15 minutes later I again increased the altitude by 60 m – I expected that the SSU would correct the offset during my commute home as it was offset more than 15 minutes before the commute home.

• In the evening I commuted home and in SA, the altitude is off by around 60 m although the manual altitude change was done in the morning, 9 hours before the ride home. The watch did not correct the altitude. Hm. I want to see the source code now.

Edit: I have a theory: after the end of a training the watch assumes that manual altitude changes are intended because the user arrived at a point with known altitude (summit, mountain hut, known location on map).

[isazi]

@Mauerwegler at this point, it would be more appropriate to leave this topic for the Vertical and move the Spartan thing in the right section of the forum. The software is different and so discussing them together does not make much sense.

[Clément Lavabre]

Hi, I think I have a similar thing with Race.
In activity, hiking, skiing, the watch has too much elevation gain. Particularly at low speed and especially when stationary

This has been happening since the December 18 update.
What do you think ? bug fixed soon? or sensor fault?

[Egika]

@Clément-Lavabre said in Altimeter recordings while running:

Hi, I think I have a similar thing with Race.
In activity, hiking, skiing, the watch has too much elevation gain. Particularly at low speed and especially when stationary

This has been happening since the December 18 update.
What do you think ? bug fixed soon? or sensor fault?

Neither fault nor bug.
What do you expect from this device?

I am seeing a change of around 2m in altitude over the time of 3 hours.
The accuracy of barometric altitude measurement lies within the range of 1m or so.
If this break during a skiing activity maybe you went indoors, there is also a temaperature change, and the baro sensor (while generally calibrated against the sensor temperature) might see some drift.

Conclusion: this very small altitude drift lies within the resolution of the sensor and maybe additionally affected by temperature change.

[Clément Lavabre]

@Egika Yes, the example is poorly chosen, the output is only 30 minutes.
But it is even more obvious on a long outing, where the normal altitude difference is around 700 m and the watch displays 1200 m.
And as soon as I stop, the altimeter goes back and forth.
You see it’s the alti measure during a break. All these variations are recorded in positive and negative gain.


And it is even more visible on the altimeter curve. As soon as I’m at low speed or stopped, everything changes.

And to compare, that’s a curve before update 2.30.38

No altitude variation during breaks, precise elevation change