Selecting an AIS

[petegill]

I want to install an AIS transceiver. I have a Raymarine C90W Multifunction display with digital radar and an Icom 504A VHF radio. I'm considering a Raymarine AIS650; Icom MA-500TR; Garmin AIS600 and Digital Yacht 2000. Does anyone have experience with any of these systems?

Pete

 

[artboas]

I want to install an AIS transceiver. I have a Raymarine C90W Multifunction display with digital radar and an Icom 504A VHF radio. I'm considering a Raymarine AIS650; Icom MA-500TR; Garmin AIS600 and Digital Yacht 2000. Does anyone have experience with any of these systems?

Pete

I would go with Raymarine as it will integrate with your C90 quite well

 

[brigadoon340]

I have a ACR Nauticast B AIS system that I'm very pleased with. It's connected to a Garmin GPS Map and the wiring for NMEA 0183 is pretty easy so you can mix brands easily.

 

[ANNACOL]

Re AIS

We have a Raymarine AIS500 Transceiver. Works well with all our other Raymarine gear. We run an E-Series system. Coming down the coast an alarm went off and on checking the screen there was a 1000 ft ship right up my stern which was going to hit in 15 minutes. I changed course 10 degrees to port. Next I saw the ship change course 10 degrees to starboard. In 15 minutes the ship passed on my starboard at 2 Nm. When the alarm went off I could not see the ship behind us. It was steaming at 18Knts we where doing 6knts. Was glad it was looking after us.
Colin

 

[Buck420]

AIS transceiver

Pete,
Just a question ....
Unless you are planning to do significant offshore cruising, why do you feel it necessary to install an AIS-B transceiver on your H-36?
An AIS ... receiver ... by all means, yes.
But, considering that the AIS equipment on most commercial shipping is usually set to filter out AIS-B contacts (in/near port, anyway), if your reasoning is that you wish to be seen and avoided by large ships, IMHO, you are spending money for a false sense of security.
"ANNACOL's example of collision avoidance needs only an AIS REceiver.

But even more importantly, as more and more small boats equip themselves with AIS-B trancevers, all of our chartplotter screens will (and already have) become excessively clutttered with unnecessary (and IMHO, 'vanity') AIS contacts.... You will see what I mean when your chart plotter begins to display AIS contacts.
My current (older) AIS receiver cannot filter out AIS-B contacts. As I see more and more small boat AIS contacts cluttering up my chartplotter, it has become a real annoyance to disregard them while looking for the important contacts on an ever increasingly cluttered display.
The solution, (at least, for me), is having to spend more money to buy an upgraded AIS receiver that CAN filter out AIS-B contacts....
So, as AIS-B is simply filtered out by more and more operators, to get rid of its "clutter", ... what's the point ??

 

[Bowedtoothdoc]

If you did not already have a relatively new VHF radio I would have recommended that you look into the new Standard Horizion GX2150 which has AIS capability and will integrate with your existing Raymarine equipment and work off of your existing VHF antenna. So for anyone like me who could benefit from a new VHF radio this is worth looking at.

 

[chuckwayne]

We've got a West Marine AIS1000 on our 356, interfaced with our SIMRAD NX-45. works well. Buck is missing the point - most AIS A sets do not filter out Bs - in fact, Sailing in fog and snotty stuff in Maine we are frequently hailed-and thanked for having a transponder by the big stuff-even with a good radar reflector, they couldn't see us without AIS. Last summer, in pea soup, we were even hailed by name by the Monhegan Island light house asking what the conditions were like at water level (they're high up on a hill)

 

[deacm]

@BowtoothedDoc: So does the Standard Horizon unit have a Seatalk interface into the Raymarine (C series? E series?). Some people say on the Raymarine etc units you need a second VHF antenna for good reception as splitters are not optimal. Does the Standard Horizon get around this problem somehow?

 

[Bowedtoothdoc]

@BowtoothedDoc: So does the Standard Horizon unit have a Seatalk interface into the Raymarine (C series? E series?). Some people say on the Raymarine etc units you need a second VHF antenna for good reception as splitters are not optimal. Does the Standard Horizon get around this problem somehow?

Yes, the GX2150 will interface with the Raymarine C & E series units and does not require a second VHF antenna. So far I have no personal experience with the unit and its performance but I am looking into getting one as I am already in the market for a new VHF with DSC capability.
Here is a link with more info:
http://www.standardhorizon.com/inde...075389DC4199A79B6C1&DivisionID=3&isArchived=0
So far this is their only unit that can interface with the C & E Raymarine units and it functions only as an AIS receiver.

 

[Maine Sail]

@BowtoothedDoc: So does the Standard Horizon unit have a Seatalk interface into the Raymarine (C series? E series?).

No it goes though NEMA 0183...

Some people say on the Raymarine etc units you need a second VHF antenna for good reception as splitters are not optimal. Does the Standard Horizon get around this problem somehow?

If you want a "transceiver" RX & TX AIS then you'll need a second antenna and GPS signal. For the GX2150 it is RX only and uses your existing VHF antenna.

My BIG problem with AIS B TX is that they are often VERY slow to update and boats are very often NOT where they show on your screen. In thick Maine fog you had better have radar to confirm the actual position of the AIS target and NOT trust blindly the on-screen location.. I have seen update delays of over 90 seconds. In 30 yards of visibility that can be the difference between a collision and avoiding one.

I have actually taken photos of my screen, see below, showing the vessel off my beam when the vessel TXing is now actually off my bow and already well passed me.

In real fog this is an UNSAFE feel good device that could potentially cause real harm if not used in conjunction with radar as a supplement or very carefully tracked during the refresh blips. The AIS refresh rate can range from as long as 3 minutes to as fast as 2 seconds for a fast moving vessel. The big problem is that not all boats are supplying SOG/STW info and you can be often guessing at the refresh rate. AIS class A boats are more accurate relative to what they are doing and tend to give the most information.

AIS needs to be used with respect if using them in an area that gets fog and with the understanding that at this point only some commercial ships and a small handful of pleasure vessels use and TX AIS.

These photos should give you an idea of how inaccurate, compared to radar, AIS can be. We were doing 6 - 6.2 under sail and that boat was moving slightly faster than us but not TXing SOG or course data. Look at my position on the chart at .3 nm range compared to the AIS vessel in red. If this was in fog, and your only device for collision avoidance was AIS, this could be very dangerous if you had not been tracking it for a while or they made a sudden course change. This was in bright sun so no danger and I only wish I had been spinning my dome. I moved less than .1 of a nautical mile when the AIS boat went from photo position #1 to position #2 in a split second refresh rate. Not real cool if in pea soup. AIS is still very useful but I do often hear folks asking the question AIS or Radar and this is not an either or...

Sorry for the blurry photo.

 

[chuckwayne]

I agree with MaineSail, it's not an either/or. My radar is always running in fog and The AIS mainly serves to identify what the other ship is-and knowing the name of an approaching ship seems to actually get your hails answered by the big boys

 

[Maine Sail]

I agree with MaineSail, it's not an either/or. My radar is always running in fog and The AIS mainly serves to identify what the other ship is-and knowing the name of an approaching ship seems to actually get your hails answered by the big boys

This is one of the best features!!!