Whether you want a vessel tracker, AIS receiver, converter, or….
The key is to use exactly the right type of equipment at the right time.
New to AIS receivers ?
An AIS receiver (‘Automatic Identification System’) is simply an automatic tracking system used on ships (small & large) to find out where they are and what other ships are in the neighbourhood. The system is key to your safety and making sure you avoid collision with other other ships.
The key to choosing the right AIS receiver will also depend on the source of power you have available on your boat, the type of software (if you connect it to a laptop) whether you want to link it to other sensors or wifi and if you want to communicate with others.
In addition, choosing the right AIS receiver will not only help you if you get into problems, but will also help with accident investigation as it will provides accurate historical data on time, identity, GPS-based position, compass heading, course over ground, speed (by log/SOG), and rates of turn, rather than the less accurate information provided by radar
Hopefully our quick guide below will help,
| Features | A021 | A024/026 | A026+ | A027 | A027+ | A028 | A051 | |
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| Description | Function | Entry level AIS Single channel auto-hopping USB dongle | Dual channel AIS receiver (+GPS in A026) Combines AIS (+GPS) and NMEA 0183 input Outputs WiFi, USB and NMEA 0183 | QK-A026-plus NMEA 2000 AIS Receiver with NMEA Multiplexer+N2K Converter + WiFi + GPS Outputs to USB/WiFi/NMEA 0183/NMEA 2000 | Dual channel AIS+GPS receiver, with SeaTalkTM to NMEA converter Combines AIS, GPS and SeaTalkTM input Outputs WiFi, USB and NMEA 0183 | QK-A027-plus NMEA 2000 AIS + GPS receiver with NMEA multiplexer and ethernet Outputs Ethernet, Wifi, N2K, USB | NMEA 2000 AIS receiver + GPS Outputs USB, NMEA 0183 and NMEA 2000 | WiFi AIS Transponder Class B Outputs WiFi, USB and 2 x NMEA 0183 |
| INPUT connections | AIS dual channel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| AIS channel hopping. (A single channel receiver that ‘hops’ between two AIS channels)[1] | ✓ | |||||||
| AIS sensitivity (@30% PER) | -104dBm | -105dBm | -112dBm | -104dBm | -112dBm | -105dBm | -109dBm | |
| AIS range[2] up to... | 12nm | 22nm | 50nm | 20nm | 50nm | 20nm | 40nm | |
| AIS antenna connection | SMA (+BNC adaptor) | BNC | SO239 | BNC | SO239 | BNC | SO239 | |
| NMEA 0183 input | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||||
| SeaTalkTM bus input (SeaTalk converting) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||||
| GPS module integrated (requires GPS antenna) | ✓ SMA (A026 only) | ✓ | ✓ SMA | ✓ | ✓ SMA | ✓ TNC |
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| Power source | Powered through | USB | USB | 12V - 15V | SeaTalkTM bus (12V) | 12V - 15V | N2K bus (12V) | 12V - 35V |
| Multiplexing | Multiplexing | ✓ (A024) AIS+NMEA (A026) AIS+GPS+NMEA | ✓ AIS+GPS+SeaTalk+NMEA 0183 | ✓ AIS+GPS+SeaTalk | ✓ AIS+GPS+SeaTalk+NMEA 0183 | ✓ AIS and GPS | ||
| OUTPUT connections | USB NMEA 0183 output | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| NMEA 0183 output (RS422) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓x2 RS422 + RS232 |
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| NMEA 2000 network | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||||
| Ethernet | ✓ | |||||||
| WiFi | Ad-hoc and Station modes | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Option to disable WiFi | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||||
| Configuration | Configuration through USB port. Configuration requires Windows PC | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | not required | ✓ |
| Compatible devices and software | Windows/Mac/Linux through USB | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Chart Plotters | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Android/iOS | USB OTG | WiFi | WiFi | WiFi | WiFi | WiFi | ||
| [1] Manually adjustable hopping interval rates (0.25 seconds, 1 second, 30 seconds and auto-hopping) Channel hopping will increase the number of messages received, in comparison with single channel receivers. However, part of some multi-AIS messages may be lost, due to the hopping nature of the product. If both the quantity and the completeness of AIS messages is important to you, we recommend the dual channel receivers. [2] Mounted on a masthead, 20 feet above sea level. * SeaTalk™ is a registered trademark of Raymarine. |
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All the AIS receivers in our guide can be found in our maritime AIS receivers shop or please don’t hesitate to ask for help on our forum or through our facebook page.
