Get Heart Rate from External Sensor in a Widget

I have a number of apps and widgets that get the current Heart Rate using:

Activity.getActivityInfo().currentHeartRate

This usually works well.

However when the watch is paired with an external Heart Rate sensor (and Wrist Heart Rate Sensor is swithced off). the Apps work fine, but the Widget fails to read the heart rate and I get null back from this function.

The Garmin Official Heart Rate Widget can still read the Heart Rate.

I would have thought calling Activity.getActivityInfo().currentHeartRate would be ok, and Garmin would sort out returning the Heart Rate from whichever source. Are there any restrictions using HR in User Created Widgets?

0 jim_m_58 over 1 year ago

Are you using

Sensor.setEnabledSensors()

to enable Sensor.SENSOR_HEARTRATE?

0 Nighflame over 1 year ago in reply to jim_m_58

No I do not have that code in my Widget.

But I do not have this code (or the sensor permission) in my Apps and they can read the Sensor HR with Activity.getActivityInfo().currentHeartRate.

So I added Sensor.setEnabledSensors([Sensor.SENSOR_HEARTRATE]); plus Sensor permission to the Widget and now Activity.getActivityInfo().currentHeartRate returns a value.

So thanks. But I do not understand why the code and permissions differ for App and Widget to read the HR from an external sensor.

0 jim_m_58 over 1 year ago in reply to Nighflame

In a DF the native app enables the sensors.

If you do not enable the sensor in an app or widget, it uses the OHR, but uses it in 24/7 mode (lower accuracy). You can tell the mode of OHR by looking under the watch. If the leds are flashing, it's 24/7 mode. If soldi green, it's in activity mode.

if you don't enable, it won't even look for an external sensor,

0 Nighflame over 1 year ago in reply to jim_m_58

I mean when I turn the wrist HR off, so no green lights at all, and connect an external HR Sensor, the Apps that I have written get a HR reading from Activity.getActivityInfo().currentHeartRate without Sensor.setEnabledSensors([Sensor.SENSOR_HEARTRATE] or even Sensor permission!

A Widget on the other hand works exactly as you say and requires Sensor.setEnabledSensors([Sensor.SENSOR_HEARTRATE] AND Sensor permission to get any values back from Activity.getActivityInfo().currentHeartRate.

I do not understand the difference. I would expect Widget and App to work the same with an external HR Sensor.

I have a Forerunner 245.

0 jim_m_58 over 1 year ago in reply to Nighflame

fg you turn it on by way of sensors and accessories, that's like turning it on from within the app

in both apps and widgets you want to call setEnabledSensors()

0 Nighflame over 1 year ago in reply to jim_m_58

Sorry, I am a bit of a noob, what are "DF" and "fg" ?

0 jim_m_58 over 1 year ago in reply to Nighflame

DF is a data field, not a device app or widget..