AIS

Tecmarine can supply Class A and Class B AIS units.

AIS is a system used by ships and vessels for identification at sea. AIS helps to resolve the difficulty of identifying ships when not in sight (e.g. at night or at distance) by providing ID, position, course, speed and other ship’s data with all other nearby ships and VTS stations. The IMO SOLAS requires AIS to be fitted aboard all ships. The ship’s data is displayed on an AIS data capable chart plotter with a ship symbol or on AIS data capable navigation software.

AIS transponders automatically transmit the position and velocity of the ship at regular intervals via a VHF radio built into the AIS. The position and velocity originate from the ship’s GPS or from an integral GPS receiver.

The AIS can also receive heading information from the ship’s compass and transmit this at the same time. Other information, such as the vessel name and VHF call sign, is entered when installing the equipment and is transmitted less frequently. The signals are received by AIS transponders fitted on other ships or on land based systems, such as VTS systems.