[C320-list] AIS

[Mark Cole]

Jeff;

I installed the Vesper XB8000 AIS unit, the Vesper antenna splitter and a Standard Horizon GX1600 DSC VHF on Fiddler’s Green a few years ago and that system has worked great for me since.  You can take a look at my installation on my Fiddler’s Green album on the C320 website.  Like you, I have had commercial vessels contact me by name, so I know my AIS transmission makes a difference.

I went with the XB8000 model because it creates a local area WiFi network and broadcasts all NMEA 2000/0183 data to up to 5 devices.  I’m currently using an iPad with a free charting app to display AIS information on my navigation chart until I can get a new NMEA 2000 MFD.  Both Vesper units include a multiplexer to convert and combine the two NMEA sentences.  My VHF wants a NMEA 0183 sentence for DSC location info and the XB8000 outputs this just fine.

If you are thinking about replacing your VHF too, you might want to take a look at the Vesper Cortex V1.  It combines VHF and AIS functions in one box, including an antenna splitter.  While it is still a class B AIS unit, it uses SOTDMA broadcast technology, like mentioned in the article Graeme linked to.  You get either wired or non-wired VHF “mics” that are about the size of a smartphone to control the VHF and AIS info.  It is expensive, but rolls two units into one (three, if you include the splitter…) with all the new technology.

Mark
Fiddler’s Green, #8

> On Jan 9, 2021, at 8:52 AM, Jeff Smith <jeffreyssmith at live.com> wrote:
> 
> To all,
> 
> Lot’s of good information here. Thank you for your helpful suggestions. I have much to think about. Based on your conversations, option A involves converting to NMEA 2000 and connect NMEA 0183 (my estimate using raymarine multiplexer and two antisense converters is about $600). Currently, all of my devices are NMEA 0183, to include my Garmin chart plotter. Option B, upgrade all instruments and chart plotter to NMEA 2000 is approximately $1,800. $600 is still cheaper than new instruments and chart plotter. I could have my two sons build the stuff for me (one is a sound engineer and one is a computer engineer) but troubleshooting would be problematic (they do not live close). Then approximately $200 to either option for the NMEA 2000 backbone. These are in addition to the AIS install. Option C would be continue to use the NMEA 0183 network.
> 
> It looks like for me it makes sense to buy the Vesper XB-6000 (both 0183 and 2000) and an antenna splitter. Then I can connect to the chart plotter using NMEA 0183. Once I decide to upgrade my instruments to NMEA 2000, the AIS transponder will be forward compatible. I am not sure I can justify the $800 (Option A) to go NMEA 2000 with old instruments just to get the data on the chart plotter given that the instruments are 20+ years old and certainly not the additional $2,000 to upgrade now given that all instruments work fine (even though they are 20+ years old). I won’t have wind speed and direction on my chart plotter but my chart plotter sits above my instrument pod anyway and my main concern is getting the AIS info on my display.
> 
> Now I see why the Garmin chart plotter was on sale when I purchased it a few years ago. Had I known more about the internal communication network, I would not have purchased it. 
> 
> Graeme - one thought about the article that you provided (re: receive versus receive/transmit). We did have a large cargo ship contact us by name as we were transiting the Delaware Bay and just about to enter the Chesapeake and Delaware canal. It was about 0100; we were changing the watch; we were unfamiliar with the area and there was an obstruction marked on the chart. The cargo ship called us by name to politely ask us to get out of his way and informed us that we had plenty of clearance . Same trip leaving Newport, R.I., it was extremely foggy (approximately 15 feet of visibility). There was almost a collision between two ships as a commercial ship kept calling on VHF to identify targets on his radar. Had the smaller boats been transmitting on AIS, he could have identified by name. The main reason, though, is the Admiral has ordered that we will have both capabilities. 
> 
> Again, thanks to all for helping me think through this by identifying issues and solutions.
> 
> Jeff
> ’94, #121
> 
>> On Jan 9, 2021, at 7:16 AM, Graeme Clark <cg at skyflyer.co.uk> wrote:
>> 
>> To add to what Doug has said, if you don't want to go the whole hog and replace everything then my experience may be useful
>> 
>> I use an Actisense converter and for under $100 it is a bargain, simple to install and works without any input from me.
>> 
>> If you have several 0183 signals to convert you can buy an NMEA0183 multiplexer (raymarine or Actisense do these) which greatly simplifies things
>> 
>> Looking to save a few bucks  I made my own by   programming a small Arduino processor to read in the 0183 signals (sentences) from the various pieces of 0183 kit and then output them in a single  sentence to the Actisense.
>> 
>> When i say “I” I mean that i co-opted a clever friend who understands electronics and  programming microprocessors!  Not sure I could do it on my own, even second time around.
>> 
>> All this was necessary because of installing a new Evo below deck a/p. (which is 2k). I got over the problem of too many wires in the pedestal tubes by buying a multicore cable (30 cores if I recall correctly) and then making the necessary connections to each end of that in the instrument pod and in a waterproof connection box I mounter on the rear of the aft cabin bulkhead (i.e just in front of the rudder post) The only other wires I had to run up the tubes was the 2k backbone cable and power supply cabling so there was plenty of room.  I have had  no ‘cross-talk’ problems at all from one signal wire to the other but I know some people have used Cat6 network cable or telephone cable which has twisted pairs inside it - supposedly these reduce interference.
>> 
>> Hope that helps
>> 
>> Graeme 
>> 
>> 1996, #366
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>>> On 9 Jan 2021, at 01:38, Doug Treff <doug at treff.us> wrote:
>>> 
>>> And the problems below outlined by Troy are part of the reason I did my entire suite over from scratch. Most of my gear was vintage 1996 and I wanted all new anyway, and didn't want to piece-meal it because of compatibility issues between 0183 and 2K, and I also didn't want to deal with running wires in my pedestal guard tubes more than once. So I ripped out all the old devices and wiring, and did the entire project at once.
>>> 
>>> Actisense does make a gateway that will translate between the two protocols, but I viewed that as an intermediate step and ultimately decided that the money would be better spent on going all 2K at once.
>>> https://actisense.com/products/nmea-2000-gateway-ngw-1/
>>> 
>>> It was a lot of work, kind of expensive, but I'm really glad I did it this way. Any new devices I add now will be easy to add to the 2K backbone. Lots of decisions for you. There are quite a few folks who have done similar projects. If you're handy at all, it's not too difficult.
>>> 
>>> --
>>> Doug Treff
>>> doug at treff.us
>>> 
>>> On Fri, Jan 8, 2021, at 6:26 PM, Troy Dunn wrote:
>>> 
>>>> In general when I think NMEA 0183 and NMEA 2000, I'm usually thinking about
>>>> how to get an old standard data source onto the new standard backbone.
>>>> Generally speaking the MFD will be the new standard and the data sources
>>>> will be a combination of new and older standard data sources with an
>>>> electronic translator (it's not a simple matter of wiring) to get from the
>>>> older standard to the newer.   In your case you are talking about
>>>> purchasing a new data source and wiring it to the old standard backbone.
>>>> I think that's probably not a good idea.   It would be better to purchase a
>>>> data source that is backward compatible with NMEA0183 and wiring using the
>>>> 0183 port on that device.  If it is possible to somehow get the new
>>>> standard device wired to the old backbone using the NMEA2000 port would be
>>>> more expensive because you would have to purchase a 2000 to 0183
>>>> conveter...again...if that exists...i'm not sure.
>> 
>