Proximity Triggers Follow
Proximity Triggers is a feature that allows a notification to pop up when a user is at a specific location. Some example use cases for this are welcoming customers to a sports stadium, showing customers the current sales at a store you are walking past, or beginning the check-in process for someone who just arrived at a venue.
How do Proximity Triggers work?
The Meridian iOS/Android SDK constantly scans for specific Bluetooth beacons and when the beacons are heard loud enough (RSSI signal strength) a trigger will occur and a notification or any other developer-defined action will occur.
How do I manage my Trigger subscriptions?
Meridian does not manage trigger subscriptions. In your app you need to define what beacons are associated with what trigger subscriptions and what corresponding behavior happens when a trigger happens. This can be hard coded in the app but it would be best practice to have the code reference a non-Meridian API to get this data so it can be updated without having to update the app.
For more information on managing Proximity Triggers please see the Triggers example in the Samples app that is downloaded alongside the iOS/Android SDK.
SDK documentation on Trigger subscriptions can be found at the following links for Android and iOS
Do Triggers work when the app is in the background?
Android
Background Triggers in Android requires the Google Play Store to approve the Background Location Permission which can be very difficult to get. As such, for most customers Triggers do not work unless the app is actively open.
iOS
For 20 beacons or fewer Triggers will work if the app is in the background. If the app is killed in the background to save memory or fully closed, Triggers will no longer function.
For more than 20 beacons, Triggers will work but the behavior can be unpredictable depending on the layout of the beacons.
How do I debug Triggers?
To deploy and to debug Triggers please use the Meridian Manager app. This app has a debug mode allows you to see the RSSI value of beacons as they trigger. See this page for further details.
What are RSSI Values?
Your trigger subscriptions need to have an associated RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) value that roughly defines how close a phone needs to be to a proximity beacon to trigger. RSSI values vary greatly between devices but are generally more consistent on iOS than Android.
What RSSI Values should I use?
This number can vary greatly based on a number of things such as devices, phone cases, how many people are in a room, and more so please test this using the Meridian Manager app to get specific numbers. A good starting point for proximity notifications is to set the RSSI thresholds to:
-50 to trigger within 1 foot of the proximity beacon
-60 to trigger within 5-10 feet of the proximity beacon
-75 to trigger within the same room as the proximity beacon
-95 to trigger in the same building wing as the proximity beacon
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