MR33 Location and scanning API post frequency

[Lewis]

I'm having issues with the data sent out via POST by the meraki MR33. 

Even though the device posts frequently (1-2 mins intervals), [some] devices are only reported every 4-15mins, even when the device is in range, with good signal, screen turned on, etc.

An Android phone with screen turned on located very close to the AP will not get reported in every POST made by the MR33 but rather only once every about 5 mins.

This says the device is queried multiple times a minute: https://documentation.meraki.com/MR/Monitoring_and_Reporting/Location_Analytics#CMX_Location_API

Why don't I get multiple "observations" for that device every few minutes?

[Lewis]

After running packet captures on the AP in question, I see it receives Probe Requests consistently every 40-100 seconds from specific devices. When looking at the data received via POST from the location API, there are still huge gaps, making it impossible to have reliable presence data.

[colo]

Hi Lewis,

If you feel like there is an issue here, please open a case with Meraki support (support@meraki.com). If it's urgent, call the help desk.

I encourage you to check out the existing sample code on our developer website: http://developers.meraki.com/tagged/scanning as well as check out Cory Gyunn's GitHub full of samples and more samples.

Meraki's own analytics on our dashboard actually handle some of the inconsistency with wireless devices by identifying a visit as 5 minutes (~5 observations) over a 20 minute period of time. Check out this section on data aggregation on our documentation portal for more on how we handle this data.

We also have hundreds of companies that integrate with the Scanning API and can provide very relevant analytics based on the data from Meraki. These companies could not be successful if Meraki's Scanning API was not reliable. They are indeed very successful - Yelp acquired one for $20 million. Here is a list of them: http://developers.meraki.com/tagged/Analytics/

Thanks,

Colin Lowenberg

developers.meraki.com

[SamanthaBandini]

Has anyone found an answer to this question until today?

I also encountered the same problem, and I wondered the same thing.

Could it all be derived from the fact that more access points are needed to get useful information for the analytics?

Even using third-party tools such as those listed in the link shared by @colo I imagine the use of multiple APs is required, even if this is not specified.
Maybe @Lewis, as in my case, had only one AP available?

[Lewis]

No answer, this is entirely in the hands of Meraki. They need to fix their API to make sure it returns all the data instead of one data point per client device, batched at inconsistent and unreliable intervals.