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Automatic Identification System Final Version 1
Automatic Identification System Final Version 1
Abstract: This document is devoted to describe the Automatic Identification System and its operation mode
Keyword list: AIS, radar, SOTDMA, ITDMA, CSTDMA, VHF, vessel, DSC, collision avoidance, ARPA, ESDIS, IMO, ITU-R, COG, ROT, ITDMA, FTDMA, RTDMA, GMSK -FM, BTS, GNSS, DGNSS, SOLAS.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Executive Summary...................................................................................................................................... 3 1. Introduction................................................................................................................................................ 4 2. Operation of AIS........................................................................................................................................ 7 2.1. Transmission of Data............................................................................................................ 7 2.2. Frequency Channels and Modulation............................................................................ 9 2.3. Data Link Capacity................................................................................................................. 9 2.4. Channel Management......................................................................................................... 10 2.5. Update Rates.......................................................................................................................... 10 2.6. Class A and Class B Ship-Borne Mobile Equipment.............................................. 11 2.6.1. Class A Ship-Borne Mobile Equipment..................................................... 11 2.6.2. Class B Ship-Borne Mobile Equipment..................................................... 13 2.7. Data Types.............................................................................................................................. 14 2.7.1. Static Data............................................................................................................. 14 2.7.2. Dynamic Data...................................................................................................... 15 2.7.3. Voyage Related Data........................................................................................ 15 2.8. Display Requirements....................................................................................................... 15 3. Application and Modes........................................................................................................................ 17 3.1. Collision Avoidance............................................................................................................. 17 3.2. Marine Search and Rescue............................................................................................... 18 3.3. Heading.................................................................................................................................... 18 3.4. Path Prediction..................................................................................................................... 19 3.5. Route Planning..................................................................................................................... 19 3.6. Short Message Communication..................................................................................... 19 3.7. Ship-to-Ship-Mode for Collision Avoidance............................................................. 20 3.8. Ship to Shore Mode............................................................................................................. 20 3.9. Ship to Shore Mode Integrated with VTS.................................................................. 21 4. Benefits and Drawbacks of AIS........................................................................................................ 22 4.1. Benefits.................................................................................................................................... 22 4.2. Drawbacks.............................................................................................................................. 23 5. Bibliography............................................................................................................................................ 25 Annex 1........................................................................................................................................................... 26
Antonio Villavicencio
Executive Summary
This document presents a description of the Automatic Identification System (AIS). The introduction defines the general idea about why this system is important for marine navigation and specially for collision avoidance. Secondly, the operation and protocols about how the system works are proposed. Then, the applications and modes of the AIS mode are explained. Finally, a series of equipment are presented in order to observe the devices and their features.
Antonio Villavicencio
1. Introduction
Controlling the maritime traffic is a key element to prevent accidents in the nautical environment. A significant part of maritime activities relates to the movement of vessels. Moreover, accidents caused by commercial vessels are extremely challenging to remedy. Namely, larger ships are easier to see but require more time to change speed or track. Besides, when many ships are in a small area, an ambiguous action taken to avoid a collision may endanger other ships. For instance, an impact on the sea leading to an oil spill incident, no matter how small, may affect the lives of hundreds of people. That is why, the dreadful shipwrecks of Exxon Valdez in 1989, the Aegean Sea in 1992 and the Braer in 1993 brought forward the discussion of the marine safety and how important it is to prevent any maritime disaster. Namely, it has been argued, that most of shipwrecks and disasters are linked to human errors and the difficulty to locate on a radar a particular vessel when several targets are being tracked, especially when the visibility conditions are reduced. The occurrence of these incidents yielded in the improvement of navigation technology. The radar has been the traditional means to prevent marine collisions under restricted visibility conditions. However, there is a strong necessity to use a plotted ships course and speed through water to be able to obtain an actual heading as accurate as possible in order to avoid any collision. Therefore, a growing demand for technically advanced devices aiming the goal to provide always better performance in terms of navigation prediction and speed in the information distribution is soaring. One of the main improvements in navigation technology is the Automatic Identification System (AIS), which is a technical system which allows to monitor vessels from other vessels, avoiding the problem of confusing ships. AIS was developed as a collision prevention instrument to enable commercial vessels to notice each other more clearly. AIS does this by constantly broadcasting: vessel identity, position, speed and course along with other appropriate information to all other AIS equipped vessels and base stations on the shore. Not only can the position of a ship be plotted in real time, the units also transmit data like Course Over Ground (COG) or Rate of Turn (ROT). One of the key features of AIS is the provision of detailed traffic information in real time due to its operation on VHF radio frequency, detecting other equipped targets in situations where the radar detection is limited such as around bends, behind hills, and in conditions of restricted visibility by fog, rain, etc. AIS exchanges data regarding navigational and voyage related information of ships and other related messages with other ships and shore stations. The exchange of information is received and then used to create a real-time graphical display of traffic in the area. A transponder can be attached to many types of chart plotters or a PC charting software to spread over the surface vessel positions on the chart. It can similarly be overlaid on many radar screens. In the simplest application, target information is displayed on a text screen.
Juan Pablo Lasso Automatic Identification System Antonio Villavicencio
The IMO (International Maritime Organisation) is a specialized agency of the United Nations in charge of improving the safety and security of international shipping and to prevent marine pollution from ships. In 2000, IMO approved the requirement for all ships to implement AIS with the following goals: Improving maritime safety and efficiency of navigation Protecting the maritime environment and life at sea
IMO approved a regulation which became effective by the beginning of 2005 requiring AIS to be fitted aboard on all ships of more than 300 gross tonnage covering international voyages, cargo ships of more than 500 gross tonnage not engaged on international voyages and all passenger ships irrespective of size. Ships fitted with AIS should maintain AIS in operation at all times except where international agreements, rules or standards provide for the protection of navigational information. AIS employs Self-Organizing Time Division Multiple Access (SOTDMA) technology to meet this high broadcast rate and ensure stable and reliable ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore operation. Besides, It can handle multiple reports at different update rates, which vary according to speed and status of the ships. The information can be received by anyone equipped with a relatively low cost receiver. The AIS information consists of different types of data classified as static, dynamic, voyage related information, and short safety messages. Static data are entered into the AIS on installation and need to be changed only if the ship type changes by a major conversion or if her name or call sign changes. AIS uses digital VHF signals to transmit its packets' information. The range of the system is similar to VHF radios. These VHF radio signals can be picked up in recondite corners, over islands and through heavy raining conditions, giving better coverage than RADAR in some conditions or enhancing a RADAR picture when used together. AIS systems are one of the most flexible instruments in the maritime area. Ships, shore stations, and even aids to navigation can transmit and receive a wide variety of information. Furthermore, these systems have ability to expand as new technologies come out. By using a binary data stream it is possible to encode almost any type of information. In addition, the data exchange is entirely automatic and transparent to the users. So, the result is a remarkable enhancement in situational awareness for the people who control and operate the instrument on board.
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One of the first uses of AIS binary data was the transmission of lock status along the Saint Lawrence Seaway in North America. The Panama Canal also uses AIS data to transmit wind information to ships as they make passage.
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2. Operation of AIS
The operation of AIS is defined by several standards, including the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) recommendation ITU-R M. 1371-1, named "Technical Characteristics for a Ship-Borne Automatic Identification System(AIS) Using Time Division Multiple Access in the Maritime Mobile Band", approved in November 1998. It specifies technical communications characteristics concerned in the operation of AIS, including: transceiver characteristics, modulation, the type of TDMA used, channel management, data format, messages, and packaging.
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transponders not to interfere with communications started by Class A ones, which should have more priority in the usage of the VHF channels. The system must provide transmissions in a short range of distance, while having an increased data rate, and a certain robustness to prevent the messages from suffering interference. In this manner, two VHF frequency channels are utilized, which are inside the maritime mobile band. These channels may be used in parallel. The time multiplexing of these channels allows for 2250 slots to be allocated within a period of one minute. The combination of these slots will form one frame per minute. This means that each slot will have a duration of 26.6 milliseconds. A position report message from an AIS station fits in one of these slots. Every AIS station is responsible for determining its own transmission schedule, based on the knowledge of future actions of other stations and data link traffic history. The synchronization of this time structure is achieved using Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) time information as a first phase time mechanism. For this, AIS transponders include one or more GPS/DGPS receivers that provide both timing and positional information. Thus, GPS plays a key role in AIS. Nevertheless, the system counts with a secondary time mechanism that may provide an accuracy of at least 10 microseconds. Figure 1 below shows the slot allocation mechanism used in AIS.
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Ship Condition Reporting Interval Ship moving slower than 2 knots 3 minutes Ship moving at 2-14 knots 30 seconds Ship moving at 14-23 knots 15 seconds Ship moving at more than 23 knots 5 seconds Search and Rescue Aircraft (airborne mobile equipment) 10 seconds Aids to Navigation 3 minutes AIS Base Station 10 seconds
Table 2. Update Intervals for Class B Ship-Borne Mobile Equipment
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A Class A transceiver deals with all AIS information, without omitting any parameters. Information broadcast includes: MMSI number: An unique reference identification number for every ship. Navigation Status: Which may be "at anchor", "under way using engine" or "not under command". Rate of Turn: Ranges from 0 to 720 degrees/minute, right or left. Speed Over Ground (SOG): Ranges from 0 to 102 knots, with a resolution of 1/10 knots. Position Accuracy: An estimate of the error given in current position. Latitude and Longitude: with a resolution of 1/10000 minutes. Course Over Ground COG): Relative to true north, with a resolution of 1/10 degrees. True Heading: 0 to 359 degrees derived from gyrocompass input. Time Stamp: The time (according to universal time, UTC) this information is generated, in hours, minutes, seconds.
The information above is transmitted every 2 to 10 seconds while the ship is moving, and every 3 minutes at anchor, as defined in tables 1 and 2.
Automatic Identification System
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Additionally, the following information is transmitted every 6 minutes: MMSI Number: An unique reference identification number for every ship. IMO Number: Unique reference identification, related to ship's construction. Radio Call Sign: International call sign assigned to the ship, used in voice radio. Name: Name of the ship, which may be up to 20 characters long. Type of Ship/Cargo: Data about the kind of load in the ship, according to certain defined tables. Type of Position Fixing Device: GPS, DGPS, or others. Location on ship where reference point for position reports is located. Draught of Ship: Ranges from 0.1 to 25.5 meters. It determines the vertical length between the bottom of the ship and the waterline (how much the ship is sunk in the water). Destination: Name of the destination where the ship is headed. It may be as long as 20 characters. Estimated Time of Arrival at Destination: Month, day, hour, and minute, synchronized to UTC time.
Reporting rates are smaller than those of Class A, as seen in the tables presented in the previous section of this chapter. IT does not transmit the vessel's IMO number, nor the Radio Call Sign. It does not transmit the Estimated Time of Arrival at Destination, nor the destination. It must only to receive, but not necessarily transmit safety text messages. It is required to receive application identifiers (binary messages), but not to transmit them. It does not transmit the Rate of Turn of the ship.
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It does not transmit the Draught of the Ship. Transmission power is restricted to 2 Watts, providing a coverage of 5 to 10 miles (8 to 16 Km). In this case, it is forbidden to take external GPS data. Therefore, it is a requirement for them to have a built-in GPS. They may use CSTDMA instead of SOTDMA. As it may be obvious, they are less costly.
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The information displayed classifies other vessels as "targets", and according to their distance and direction from the ship. This classification sees targets as: sleeping target, activated target, selected target, dangerous target, and lost target. The targets of interest are selected and dangerous targets, because they represent those that will have a risk of collision with the ship. For these targets, a Closest Point of Approach (CPA), and a Time of Closest Point of Approach (TCPA) are calculated. CPA and TCPA limits are set uniformly for all the sensors in the ship. If a CPA or TCPA calculation surpasses these thresholds, a dangerous target symbol is displayed, or an alarm is triggered. Different standard symbols are defined in AIS standards in order to identify targets and other parameters relevant to navigation. The actual display of information may be done using one of the following options: A display integrated in the transceiver Electronic Chart and Display Information System (ECDIS) Automatic Radar Plotting Aid (ARPA) Electronic Chart Display (ECS) In a laptop.
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3.3 Heading
Heading or shore based pilotage is a method that enables ships to be directed from the shore. So, the captain's ship with no radar or a radar disturbed by difficult weather conditions and with a very weak radar return from shore and navigational aids, may today be assisted with the navigation if the capitan is able to obtain navigational assistance from shore. Shore based pilotage with radar is normally limited to small and moderately sized ships which generally are more maneuverable than, for example, huge tankers. The limitations of radars, makes shore based pilotage suitable only in areas where the navigable water is sufficient to separate the traffic. If only the Differential Global Positioning System position from a ship, but no heading is transmitted via the AIS, the VTS operator will get an exact position of the ships antenna at the moment, as well as the speed and course over ground for the same antenna. The ship's heading and the position of other parts of the same ship, at the same moment is, however, unknown. This uncertainty of the real situation could lead to mistakes of importance. For instance, a 350 meter long tanker with the antenna situated on top of the wheelhouse at the stern, starts to turn to starboard. The ships course will then change to starboard, but initially the stern with its antenna will swing slightly to port, as the ship is turning around its so called pivot point.
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There is obviously, besides the need to determine and transmit the exact position of the antenna, a need to include the heading in the transmission. The ARPA radar tracks the part of the ship that gives the best radar return, which normally on a loaded tanker is the superstructure at the stern. A big tanker, turning with the superstructure at the stern tracked by radar, could have turned 30-50 degrees before this is detected by the ARPA radar on another ship or at the VTS, and now up to 4-5 minutes have passed since the turn started.
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Furthermore, AIS can operate in one of the following modes: Ship-to-ship mode for collision avoidance. Ship-to-shore mode to obtain information about a ship and its cargo. Ship-to-shore mode as a traffic management tool when integrated with a Vessel Traffic System (VTS) ship-to-ship data exchange.
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Coastal nations may use AIS to monitor the movement of hazardous cargoes and control commercial fishing operations in their territorial waters. AIS data can be logged automatically for playback in investigating an accident, oil spill or other event. AIS will also be a useful tool in search and rescue (SAR) operations, allowing SAR coordinators to monitor the movements of all surface ships, aircraft and helicopters involved in the rescue effort.
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4.1. Benefits
By far the most important advantage of AIS is unambiguous identification of other vessels, AIS system shows the MMSI number and description (and the call sign for Class A AIS systems). This allows users to easily establish VHF voice contact (by name or call sign) or to initiate a DSC VHF communication, facilitating discussion of joint actions, rather than having to call big ship near the Bay Bridge and hoping the right vessel answers. The ability to know the ships MMSI number is valuable because it allows you to send a DSC message directly to them that will ring an alarm in the deckhouse and possibly be noticed by the OOW even if the VHF volume is turned down. The AIS system provides real time information about any changes in the acceleration , rate of turn or heading of other vessels The AIS system detects better through rain squalls, over islands and around corners than recreational radar systems. The AIS system is aware of vessels that might otherwise be hidden in another vessels radar shadow The AIS system expends less power than a radar system. But the difference is not so big. A 2.2kW (small) radar will draw about 3.5 amps (at 12 V) and a 4kW unit, about 4 amps. On the other hand, a class B unit will draw about 2 amps. Most radars also have watch functions which scan only every 30 or 60 seconds, further reducing the energy gap.
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4.2. Drawbacks
The most drastic drawback is that AIS only shows other targets that have functional AIS systems. This means that sailors on board do not observe all the other traffic. For example, pleasure vessels, small fishing vessels, commercial vessels with failed AIS (really uncommon), foreign flagged vessels offshore not in compliance with the IMO requirements, large weather buoys, long line marker buoys, among others, do not use AIS. Thus AIS is in no way a replacement or a substitute for a visual deck watch and, in low visibility, a radar watch. AIS can only be viewed as a supplement to other watch keeping. This is easy to say, but poses a difficult practical problem because modern AIS and plotter displays can be mesmerizing. They look very real, much more real than a RADAR screen. AIS was developed for commercial ship use. There is some concern that if thousands of pleasure vessels start transmitting AIS signals it will clutter the system to the point that it will be less useful. Near very busy harbors there can be so many targets (mostly boats at anchor or on docks) that it can be difficult to see if one is coming out the entrance without zooming way in. Recreational vessel should definitely turn their AIS off when they are not navigating. AIS is a relatively complex system. It is mechanically simpler than the moving parts of a radar, but with AIS, users are depending on the other vessel having properly maintained, interfaced and functional equipment. For the system to function you must have at least one AIS transceiver and one receiver working on two different vessels. Each transceiver must have a functional multi-channel digital VHF and GPS. As the system has evolved, there have been both interfacing and compatibility problems. These will hopefully be minimized as the system matures. The power requirements, while much lower than for full time RADAR, will still be significant for a sailboat. Furunos specs call for 7.3 amps (at 12 V) for a Class A, 2 amps for a Class B, and 1.2 amps for a receive only. Running a Class B unit for 24 hours will require 50amp-hrs, which could easily be a 33% increase in power usage for a simple boat. And that power does not include the draw of the screen (plotter/PC or radar) necessary to display the AIS data, which could be from 1.1 amps (for a small 6 screen) to 3 amps (for a 15 screen).
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Data received is only as good as the data entered into the AIS. To ensure that correct AIS information is broadcast to other vessels and shore authorities, mariners are reminded to enter current voyage related data such as draught, type of hazardous cargo, destination and ETA properly at the beginning of each voyage and whenever changes occur. The AIS unit may not, in all cases, be installed in accordance with the IMO Guidelines. This can result in poor performance and erroneous transmissions. The OOW should always be aware that AIS fitted on other ships as a mandatory carriage requirement may, under certain circumstances, be switched off, particularly where international agreements, rules or standards provide for the protection of navigational information. AIS is subject to the vagaries and limitations of VHF-FM propagation. Mariners should be aware that the accuracy of AIS positional information is the accuracy of the Electronic Position-Fixing Device (EPFD) connected. For example, LORAN C can be used, but it will typically have a far lower accuracy than GNSS. Mariners are reminded to periodically check that correct information is being broadcast by their own vessel, particularly position, heading (provided by the ship's master gyro) and speed. The mariner must always remember that AIS is just one of the several tools available to watch-keepers, to fulfill their obligations under the Collision Regulations.
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5. Bibliography
[1] S. J. Chang, "Use of the Automatic Identification System (AIS) on Autonomous Weather Buoys for Maritime Domain Awareness Applications", September, 2006. [2] S. J. Chang, "Development and Analysis of AIS Applications as an Efficient Tool for Vessel Traffic Service" , November, 2004. [3] Transportation Research Board of the National academies , "Shipboard Automatic Identification System Displays: Meeting the Needs of Marine", September 2004. [4] Leica Geosystems Inc, "The Complete Guide to Automatic Identification Systems", 2001, www.siitech.com/files/ais/ais_guide.pdf. [5] AISM, "IALA Guidelines on the Universal Automatic Identification System" Volume 1, Part I Operational Issues. Edition 1.1 Systems, December 2006. [6] Swedish Maritime Administration, "AIS for ships in the future", February 2004 2008, www.sjofartsverket.se/upload/1486/a171_2.pdf [7] Marine Ship and Supplies, "Universal Shipborne Automatic Identification System (AIS), December 2003, http://www.mss-marine.com/contactus.html
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ANNEX 1
PRODUCT DATASHEETS
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