Mobile - How does location services and punching from the app work?
Updated
by
Daniel Sjögren
How and why the app uses your location
Your employer may choose to enable geofencing in Quinyx in order to ensure that you are at your workplace when punching in from your phone. If your employer has configured coordinates on any of the units you work on, you will be asked to enable Location Services when you first open the Time view. This way your phone will know when you are at your workplace, and it can tell the Quinyx app that you are allowed to punch in.
The Quinyx app does not process location data and does not share your location or movements with the Quinyx platform or your employer. Instead, the Quinyx app provides your phone with a set of coordinates for the unit(s) you work on, and the phone tells the Quinyx app when you are within the allowed range of your workplace for punching in. The Quinyx app does not track, store or share your location.
Location Services and Location settings
If your employer has enabled geofencing in Quinyx by configuring coordinates on any of the units you work on, you will be asked to enable Location Services when you first open the Time view in the app. After enabling Location Services, depending on your device, you will have a few different options to choose from.
Always or Allow all the time
This option lets your phone determine if you are at your workplace in the background, so the “Punch in” button is enabled before you even open the Time view, allowing you to punch in faster. Until your location has been established, the “Punch in” button will be disabled (greyed out). If you’ve enabled punching notifications in the app’s settings, this option will also trigger reminders to punch in when you reach your workplace, and to punch out when you leave your workplace.
Allow While Using App
With this setting, the app will ask your phone if you are at your workplace as soon as you enter the Time screen. Until your location has been established, the “Punch in” button will be disabled (greyed out). Here are some of the factors that may make it more difficult for your phone to get a fix on your location:
- Being in an area with spotty mobile coverage
- Being in a remote area with few cellular base stations
- Having Wi-Fi disabled
- Having GPS disabled
Allow once
Works just like “Allow While Using App”, but the next time you enter the Time view you will again be asked to allow Location Services in the app.
Never or Deny
If you select this option, you will not be able to punch in using the app until your employer chooses to disable geofencing.
Punch In reminder
If the user enters the monitored region, Quinyx first checks whether the user has already punched in. If the user is not punched in, Quinyx will check whether a shift is connected to that region. If there is a shift or task connected, Quinyx will check the time the shift starts and ends, and if it is not too early (one hour before the shift starts or less) or too late (the time the shift ends or later), Quinyx will send the local notification to remind the user to punch in. If there is no shift or task connected and Quinyx monitors regions according to unit coordinates, Quinyx will not send the notification.
If the user comes to a workplace more than one hour before or after the shift ends, Quinyx will not send the notification. Also, if the user is already punched in, Quinyx will not send the notification.
If the user has a Leave reason popup enabled, Overlapping time, Unapproved device, or some other validation that will not allow him to punch in. In that case, the user will receive a message that he must punch in manually from the application.
Why can't I punch in?
The “Punch in” button will remain disabled (greyed out) until your phone has successfully determined that you are within the allowed range of your workplace for punching in. Usually, phones are fast at determining your approximate location, but it may take longer to get an exact location. Your employer decides how far from the workplace you are allowed to punch in, and if they set a very short range (e.g. 50m), it will generally take longer for the "Punch in" button to activate as it will take longer for the phone to confirm that you are within that small area.
How can I fix this?
As stated earlier, there are several factors that may make it more difficult for your phone to get a fix on your location. Some things you can do to improve the location speed and accuracy are:
- Ensure Wi-Fi and GPS are enabled
- Make sure you have a strong cellular signal. If not, try moving to another area with a stronger signal.
- Try pressing the refresh button in the top-right of the Time view. This will ask your phone to try to get a new fix on your location.
- If you are not using it already, consider changing to the "Always" or "Allow all the time" option so that your position is determined before you open the Time view.
- Check if your colleagues also have trouble punching in. If you are all having issues, the problem is likely that your workplace is in an area with a weak cellular signal and/or few Wi-Fi networks. If you are the only one having problems, your phone might be the issue.
- Ask your employer to increase the allowed range for punching.
