Getting Started: Working with Motion

Okay, so now that we’ve taken a look at the first kind of input, touch, let’s look at the other: Acceleration!  Every Android machine includes an accelerometer that can measure movement of the device in 3 directions- assuming you are facing the device, the X axis tracks movement tilting to the left and right, the Y axis tracks movement tilting up and down, and the Z axis registers movement forwards and backwards.

  (Image from Google)

What this means for you as a developer is that, given the right code, you can detect any movement in any direction on the device.  So the next question is: how?

Including Accelerometer Input

Using the accelerometer is quite simple.  First things first: your app needs to include accelerometer input.  To make this happen, start by implementing it in your class definition like this:

public class myClass extends BaseGameExample implements IAccelerometerListener {

This bolded section tells your game that you will be using the accelerometer, so it should include the code that makes it listen for that input.

Enabling and Disabling the Accelerometer

There’s another thing concerning the Accelerometer that you need to know about: enabling and disabling it.  At some point (likely in the onLoadResources section of your code), you’ll need to enable the accelerometer in code.

		this.enableAccelerometerSensor(this);

If for some reason, you want to stop or start using the accelerometer temporarily, you can use the code:

		this.disableAccelerometerSensor();

Now, the next question is: how do we use it?

Reading Accelerometer Input

Once your activity is setup to implement IAccelerometerListener, include code like this in the base of your class:

	public void onAccelerometerChanged(final AccelerometerData myAccelerometerData) {
		mySprite.setPosition(mySprite.getX() + myAccelerometerData.getX(), mySprite.getY() + myAccelerometerData.getY());
		if (myAccelerometerData.getZ() >= 0) { mySprite.setVisible(true);}
		else {mySprite.setVisible(false);}
	}
And that's really all there is to it.  In this example, whenever the user moves the device, this code is called.  It moves mySprite along with the orientation of the device (on the X-Y axis, at least), simple as that.  It then sets the device to visible if the device is moved forwards, and invisible if moved backwards.  One thing users often do with this is to use the device to set the gravity relative to the accelerometer- for more information on how to do this, take a look at AndEngineGuides, or stay tuned- getting started with Physics is coming soon!  
With this, you have the tools needed for multiple activities- movement based on device orientation (such as in  doodle drop or a ball labrynth) or action when the device is shaken (such as rolling a die).

And with that, you should have the tools necessary to begin experimenting with the accelerometer!  Up next: Getting Started: Sound and Music