Android ARCore Geospatial Device Movement

Question

I started out using this sample project https://developers.google.com/ar/develop/java/geospatial/quickstart. I am able to place the anchors and view them in the ar view and on the map view as demonstrated in the sample project.

I have also added the accuracy

const val LOCALIZING_HORIZONTAL_ACCURACY_THRESHOLD_METERS: Double = 5.0
const val LOCALIZING_HEADING_ACCURACY_THRESHOLD_DEGREES: Double = 5.0

as mentioned here https://developers.google.com/ar/develop/java/geospatial/quickstart#run_the_sample_app to only start displaying the objects when the accuracy is within the threshold.

The problem is that sometimes after placing the object it moves the phone to a new location, which in turn moves all the placed objects to different locations which is a very jarring experience.

Is there a way to stop or slow down this movement so that it is less jarring to the user? I suspect it moves the phone as it gets new gps data and re positions itself.

Here is a slightly modified version from the example app to demonstrate the issue:

This can happen multiple times per session.

Andy Jazz · Accepted Answer · 2025-06-13 13:37:00Z

0

An accurate geo-tracking and stable positioning of 3D objects using the ARCore Geospatial API is only possible outdoors when you're receiving a straight GPS signal without physical obstructions. While ARCore also offers capabilities for indoor geo-location and navigation, its stability in dense urban environments can be an issue.

answered Jun 13 at 13:37

Andy Jazz

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7 Comments

Francois Jun 18 at 16:30

I added horizontal and vertical accuracy indicators. The accuracy is less than 2m for both H and V accuracy. If the accuracy is high, should that not prevent the device from moving so far? Is there a way to override the device location in order to slow down this movement?

Andy Jazz Jun 18 at 17:28

GPS signal interference in urban environments is caused by obstacles and reflections from tall structures, which results in inaccurate positioning or signal loss. This phenomenon, known as multipath interference, occurs when GPS signals bounce off buildings before reaching the receiver, causing errors in position calculations. It's impossible to predict how the GPS signal will behave in a urban apartment. For this reason, it is difficult to imagine that we could create a sensible algorithm that would smooth out the sensor’s response to signal interference.

Francois Jun 19 at 7:32

Are you saying nothing can be done to smooth out that location jump?

Francois Jun 19 at 7:41

Would the Virtual Position System (VPS) make any difference in urban envs to help with accuracy?

Andy Jazz Jun 19 at 7:57

1. But how can we slow down or smooth out values that change unpredictably over milliseconds? I wish I could see it.

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