Transas iSailor app now powered by Pocket Mariner’s live AIS service

Pocket Mariner’s real time AIS data and photo API service has been selected by Transas , a global leader in marine navigation systems, to use with their iSailor iPhone and iPad app. The latest version 1.7.0 of their app now provides a real time map view of ships around you with instant details including name, range and bearing together with a photo of the ship to help you recognise it.

You can get the latest version of iSailor from the app store now

Mikhail Andrianov, Product Manager at Transas says “We are really excited to provide our Transas iSailor users with live AIS data on their charts via the Internet. Pocket Mariner’s live AIS API, SDK and sample code made integration with our product easy and fast. This option makes it possible to show on charts the next AIS target types: AIS Class A, AIS Class B, AtoN (Aids-To-Navigation, virtual or real), Shore Base Stations. This functionality will be useful for users of different kinds: from sailors, boaters or water tourists, – who have no AIS Class B or receivers on board to ship owners, dockers and marine logistics personnel, who need to monitor vessel traffic in a given area. To use this functionality, you will have to have WiFi, 3G or 4G/LTE internet access on your Apple device.” Steve Bennett, Pocket Mariner’s CEO commented: “This is another great endorsement of Pocket Mariner’s “real time” AIS data service and API’s that we use to power our own Marine Navigation Apps and we look forward to providing additional AIS data services enabling Transas’ iSailor users to share their boat’s position and course in real time using our internet AIS transmit and track api’s”.

Portsmouth Pilots choose Pocket Mariner’s AIS Live and Replay services

Pocket Mariner’s real time AIS data service, FleetWatch, has been selected by the Pilots at Portsmouth International Port to use with their Portable Pilot Units (PPUs) running SevenCs ORCA Pilot G2 solution. The Pilots use Pocket Mariner’s real time enhanced AIS data feed to display live ship positions and courses on and around their client’s ship as they travel out to pilot it. The enhanced feed ensures all the vessel information including name (so you can call the ship via VHF radio) and dimensions is instantly available as soon as the PPU connects unlike VHF AIS where it can take several minutes to acquire the extra data. Ben McInnes, Harbour Master and Portsmouth Pilot said: “The real time internet AIS feed allows us to “virtually board” the ship and assess the situation before we even get there.” Portsmouth have also selected Pocket Mariner’s AIS Replay service to review and playback incidents and for training purposes.

Steve Bennett, Pocket Mariner’s CEO commented: “This is a great endorsement of Pocket Mariner’s “real time” AIS data service that we use to power our own Marine Navigation Apps and we look forward to them using our additional AIS data services including geo-fence event triggering and instant history replay capabilities “.

Please contact us at business@pocketmariner.com to learn more about how our FleetWatch and PortWatch service can help you.

Here is a screenshot of live ship traffic around Portsmouth using the Pocket Mariner AIS service and SeaNav charting app:-

To learn more about Pocket Mariner’s AIS data services, SDK and API’s please email us at business@pocketmariner.com

New NAVIOTAB+ tablet with built-in Boat Beacon for AIS

We have been working with IntelliWeather Inc. who have been developing an exciting new marine-rated rugged and waterproof navigation tablet device. The device is now launched and we are delighted they chose to build in our Boat Beacon AIS – Marine Navigation app to provide a fully operational AIS collision avoidance system. Here are some more details on this exciting new device.

A new IP66 rated waterproof and dirtproof Android tablet for marine use provides an all-in-one solution at a fraction of the cost of traditional separate marine electronic devices. It provides navigation, AIS collision avoidance, weather radar, weather bulletins, communications, entertainment, and optional fish finder/sounding capability in one portable device.

The NAVIOTAB+ tablet has been introduced by IntelliWeather Inc., a provider of weather instrumentation, weather display systems, and weather content and comes pre-loaded with ready to run applications and navigation charts for the United States. The user has options to purchase additional navigation charts for most regions of the world provided by Navionics. In addition, in an agreement with PocketMariner of the United Kingdom, the NAVIOTAB+ comes ready to use with a fully operational AIS collision avoidance system. Making use of the built-in GPS and Internet connectivity capabilities to provide a real-time AIS radar like display of vessels near your position in highly trafficked ports and navigable waterways worldwide. This provides an extra level of accuracy and protection allowing you to “see and be seen” with or without MMSI registration.

The NAVIOTAB+ also comes equipped with free weather radar plots and weather bulletins in the USA, including marine weather bulletins. The data is provided free by NOAA and has no subscription requirements. All that is required for live weather radar data and live AIS is an Internet connection via the built-in 3G/4G data capability of the NAVIOTAB+. This can be via a SIM card and most any cellular data carrier that supports a “bring your own” plan for connectivity. Alternately, NAVIOTAB+ can communicate via any 3G/4G capable cellphone that is WiFi hotspot enabled, or any other WiFi Internet connection.

When equipped with a SIM card and cellular data/voice plan, users can initiate and receive telephone calls using the built-in speaker/microphone, earphone, or use a Bluetooth enabled speaker or headset like they would with any cell-phone. Web browsing, email, and MMS messaging are also standard features.

As an entertainment system, NAVIOTAB+ provides a built-in FM radio tuner as well as streaming music services such as Pandora Internet Radio (free) and Sirius XM radio (subscription). Both come installed and can be operated without external antennas. Movies can also be played from streaming services such as YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, and others as well as locally stored files.

Unlike traditional marine electronics, the NAVIOTAB+ is not married to your boat, it can be taken “on the go” anywhere as a regular tablet and can also serve as an automobile navigation system via the built-in Google Maps application.

To round out the features, with the addition of a DEEPER Bluetooth enabled transducer, fish finding, water temperature, and depth sounding capability can be added to the NAVIOTAB+.
A powerful 10,000 mAH Lithium-Ion battery provides operation which can exceed 8 hours. The tablet can also be continuously charged/powered directly from your boat via the included Blue Sea Systems marine rated 12 volt cigarette lighter to USB power adapter and the included USB power cable.
Sporting a Quad-core 1.2 GHz A9 processor, 1 GB of RAM, and 8GB of FLASH storage, the NAVIOTAB+ is fast and responsive. Storage can be expanded up to an additional 32GB with insertion of a micro SD storage card. The bright 7″ screen is protected by toughened scratch resistant glass and can be seen in daylight, plus offers automatic dimming for night use. The built-in GPS receiver system does not require an external antenna, and is accurate to within 3 meters (10 feet).
Weighing just 1.36 pounds, NAVIOTAB+ is easily portable, and easy to secure to windshields, dashboards, and rails with a wide variety of readily available tablet mounting systems. It also comes with a palm rest/strap to enable portable use.
Tally up and compare the cost of all the separate marine rated devices that are replaced by the NAVIOTAB+ and you’ll understand why it makes the most sense for the recreational boater that doesn’t want to spend a fortune on getting their boat equipped. For the professional mariner, NAVIOTAB+ also makes a great backup system for your bridge, or as an emergency navigation system.
The NAVIOTAB+ has a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $649.00.

Dealer inquiries are invited.

For further information these resources are available.

PRODUCT WEBSITE: http://naviotab.com

SPEC SHEET: http://naviotab.com/docs/NavioTab+_flyer.pdf

Adding a set of waypoints or marks in SeaNav

Here is how to import a list of Latitude and Longitude positions as a set of waypoints and route into SeaNav.

Step 1. Create a spreadsheet with the Latitudes and Longitudes either in Degrees, Minutes, Seconds, Degrees Minutes or Decimal degrees with a header line including latitude and longitude and a name field like so:-

Latitude	Longitude	Name
28 52.634 N	95 14.139W	Test 1
43°38’19.39″N	116°14’28.86″W	Buoy 2
43 38 19.39	-116 14 28.86	SBH Buoy
43.63871944	-116.2413513	Finish

You can use any of the following formats for the coordinates

DMS, DM, Decimal Degrees etc.
DMS: 43°38’19.39″N
DMS with no symbols (use – sign for West or South): 43 38 19.39
DM : 28 52.634
Decimal degrees : 43.63871944444445

I use google docs to create the spreadsheet and then download it as an excel spreadsheet to my desktop.

Step 2. Then upload the xlsx file to

https://www.earthpoint.us/ExcelToKml.aspx (you do not need a login to use it)

By tapping choose file and browsing on your desktop to where you downloaded the spreadsheet. You can check it will convert ok before clicking “View on Google Earth” by tapping the “View file on web page, check for errors” button.

No errors found.

You then need to choose the file again and click “View on Google Earth”. This will download a kml file to your desktop.

Step 3. Convert the kml to a kmz file. Simply compress/zip the resulting kml file and rename the extension from .zip to .kmz.

e.g. ClubMarks.kml -zip-> ClubMarks.kml.zip -re-name-> ClubMarks.kmz

and then email the kmz to yourself so you can pick it up in email on your iPhone.

Open it in the iPhone email client. Here are screenshots of the final step of the import process:-

Open the email and tap the kmz icon.

Press the button at the top right to import the file.

Select your flavor of SeaNav (UK, US ) from the list of options to open the file with:-

And there are the three waypoints in SeaNav:-

Here is a set of Club marks for the Marina Del Rey Yacht club created using the technique above and displayed in google earth and in SeaNav

Latest US NOAA Charts update for SeaNav

As part of our regular chart updating the latest set of the US NOAA charts is now available for our SeaNav US apps.

There are over 40 new charts including new detailed coverage for the whole of Lake Champlain in VT (much requested) , Lake Mead and Lake Tahoe in CA, The St Lawrence river up to Brockville in NY and several new approach scale (5) maps for areas in the Great Lakes (MI).

Here is a screenshot of the new Lake Champlain chart around Burlington.

Screen Shot 2014-06-17 at 12.40.32

The full list of new charts is given below with their name, update date and NOAA ENC Chart number:-

Goodnews Bay, 2014-03-31|US4AK84M

San Francisco Bay to Antioch, 2014-06-06|US4CA17M

Gambier Bay, Stephens Passage, 2014-01-02|US5AK0BM

Bay of Pillars and Rowan Bay, Chatham Strait;Washington Bay, Chatham Strait, 2014-05-05|US5AK0FM

Southern Entrances to Sumner Strait, 2014-03-20|US5AK41M

San Christoval Channel to Cape Lynch, 2014-03-18|US5AK44M

Foggy Bay and Ryus Bay, 2014-03-13|US5AK49M

Northern part of Tlevak Strait and Uloa Channel, 2014-03-31|US5AK4DM

N. end of Cordova Bay and Hetta Inlet, 2014-05-08|US5AK4IM

Harbor Charts-Clarence Strait and Behm Canal Dewey Anchorage, Etolin Island;Ratz Harbor, Prince of Wales Island;Naha Bay, Revillagigedo Island;Tolstoi and Thorne Bays, Prince of Wales ls.;Union Bay, Cleveland Peninsula, 2014-05-28|US5AK4OM

Alitak Bay-Cape Alitak to Moser Bay, 2014-04-01|US5AK5MM

Bays and Anchorages, Kodiak Island Karluk Anchorage;Larsen Bay;Uyak Anchorage, 2014-05-27|US5AK5SM

Rockport Landing and Shelter Cove, 2014-03-07|US5CA15M

San Francisco Bay to Antioch, 2014-04-11|US5CA17M

Half Moon Bay, 2014-02-24|US5CA53M

El Segundo and Approaches, 2014-05-15|US5CA59M

Santa Monica Bay;King Harbor2014-04-11, 2014-05-15|US5CA63M

Santa Cruz Channel, 2014-03-27|US5CA66M

Anacapa Passage;Prisoners Harbor, 2014-03-18|US5CA67M

Trinidad Harbor, 2014-02-06|US5CA91M

Albion to Caspar, 2014-01-30|US5CA93M

Cape Mendocino and vicinity, 2014-03-04, 2014-05-22|US5CA95M

Bodega and Tomales Bays;Bodega Harbor, 2014-05-29|US5CA96M

Drakes Bay, 2014-04-17|US5CA97M

Lake Tahoe, 2014-05-12|US5CA98M

Lake Mead, 2014-04-08, 2014-05-27|US5CA99M

Suisun Bay Middle Ground to New York Slough, 2014-01-29|US5CA9AM

Ossabaw and St. Catherines Sounds , 2014-04-10, 2014-06-05|US5GA16M

St Marys River – Vicinity of Neebish Island, 2014-02-10|US5MI50M

Stoneport Harbor and Presque Isle Harbor, 2014-03-04|US5MI66M

South Haven;Port Sheldon;Saugatuck Harbor, 2014-01-30|US5MI89M

Morristown, N.Y. to Butternut, Ont., 2014-01-17|US5NY61M

Butternut Bay, Ont., to Ironsides l., N.Y., 2014-01-17|US5NY62M

Ironsides l., N.Y., to Bingham l., Ont., 2014-01-17|US5NY63M

Gananoque, Ont., to St. Lawrence Park. N.Y., 2014-01-17|US5NY64M

Round I., N.Y., and Gananoque, Ont., to Wolfe I., Ont, 2014-01-29|US5NY65M

Las Mareas, 2014-02-07|US5PR41M

Port Royal Sound and Inland Passages, 2014-04-10|US5SC21M

Riviere Richelieu to South Hero Island, 2014-05-01|US5VT01M

Cumberland Head to Four Brothers Islands, 2014-05-01|US5VT02M

Four Brothers Islands to Barber Point, 2014-05-01|US5VT03M

Barber Point to Whitehall, 2014-05-01|US5VT04M

Burlington Harbor, 2014-05-01|US5VT05M

SeaNav – Marine Charts & Nautical Navigation App for Mac OS X

The newest member of the SeaNav app family brings our acclaimed marine charts to Mac – letting you explore and plan your boating trips on your Mac, then export your route to your iPhone for navigation while at sea – or plug in a GPS unit, and navigate with your laptop and our hi-res vector charts. SeaNav for Mac US has the latest NOAA ENC Digital Vector Marine charts covering the whole of the USA and Great Lakes, SeaNav for Mac UK has the latest UKHO UK and Ireland vector charts. SeaNav for Mac is exclusively available on the Mac App Store.

Includes NOAA US Coastal, Great Lakes and USACE Inland Charts.
Buoys, lights etc. are tappable with bearing and distance.
Seamless fast panning and zooming across charts.
Route Planning and tracking with Waypoints, SOG, COG, ETA etc.
Charts work offline
Route export, import and sharing (KML, share via disk or Dropbox)
Live AIS Ship positions
Share routes and tracks with SeaNav on iPhone and iPad

SeaNav uses the latest Digital Vector charts providing a wealth of benefits and advantages over raster charts. Buoys, Lights, Bridges, Depth Contours, Depth Soundings, Rocks, Anchorage areas, NOAA Weather Buoys etc. are all selectable and have real time distance, bearing and detail information. Turn off layers to de-clutter the display and only show what is important at the time. Tides, moon and sun times and weather are also all available at your fingertips.

SeaNav lets you measure distances and bearings and record waypoints on routes. When at sea, the app’s Sailing HUD shows your position, Course over ground (COG), Speed over ground (SOG), Vector Made Good (VMG), Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA), Distance and bearing to next Waypoint. Waypoint reached alerts, auto-routing to the next waypoint and collision alerts.

SeaNav is also available for iOS, so you can plan a route on your Mac and share the route with your iPhone or iPad – or take your iPhone sailing, then send your track back to your Mac.

Plug in your GPS unit and go – SeaNav works with Bluetooth and serial GPS units, and those which provide location or AIS service via TCP or UDP or TCP, including devices from Lowrance, Simrad and B&G GoFree. But GPS is only required for real time route navigation, you can plan routes without GPS then send them to your iPhone for use while at sea. SeaNav’s optional Real time AIS, Tides and Weather information require an active internet connection.

Your purchase of SeaNav includes 12 months free updates to the included US chart set.

SeaNav for Mac is exclusively available on the Mac App Store.

Navionics Boating (free US NOAA Charts) vs SeaNav

Navionics have launched a new version (7.0) of their Navionics Boating app which now includes free US NOAA vector charts. If you are boating in the US you can now get a well respected and functional marine navigation app on your iPad and iPhone without spending a cent. What are they up to? Why should you go anywhere else? How can they give away a full blown marine navigation app for free? We hope the following comparison and charts around San Francisco can help you decide which route to follow.

Here is the view of San Francisco from SeaNav within a 3 mile radius – the horizon for most leisure boat users (6NM x 6NM square) :-

and the same scale on Navionics Boating with their free NOAA charts :-

What?

We zoomed in and eventually (at three times the scale) details appeared:-

Compare this with SeaNav at the same scale:-

We hope you will agree that its a lot less cluttered, has more relevant information and is a lot easier to view. Zoom in and more details and spot depths will be shown. You can also choose what level of detail to show in SeaNav.

Other key differences:-

SeaNav includes full live navigation features including COG, SOG, HDG, ETA, Waypoint distance and time, Cross Track error, Course and North up view etc. – it’s at least a $5 extra for Navionics and that doesn’t get you much of what SeaNav offers.
SeaNav includes Tides – Navionics Boating free doesn’t – you have to buy their USA chart set at $70.
SeaNav has a unique and highly recommended AR Camera view showing buoys, ships, landmarks etc. overlaid on the real time camera view.
SeaNav has free support for the amazing fully waterproof Pebble SmartWatch – forget a $500 Garmin Quatix!
SeaNav has live AIS Ship data overlay including collision detection. (via Boat Beacon).
SeaNav – buy once and runs at full HD on both your iPad and iPhone with no need to purchase another version.
SeaNav including full charts is just $19.99 in the US and £14.99 in the UK. See how this unfortunate user ended up paying over £70 ($100) for Navionics “Free”:-

And, SeaNav iPhone and iPad is now available for you to try for free. Click here to learn more.

(SeaNav is also available for Mac)

Boat Beacon now supports AIS and GPS from a VHF AIS receiver.

Boat Beacon now allows you to use AIS and GPS NMEA data directly from an AIS receiver and GPS on-board your boat via WiFi (over UDP or TCP) or Serial(USB). Boat Beacon seamlessly combines this with the AIS information it receives over the internet. If you travel outside mobile internet coverage or in an area where we don’t have good coverage from a local shore station, Boat Beacon can now continue to work displaying live ship data, calculating Closest Point of Approach (CPA) with alarms etc. from your VHF AIS receiver or AIS enabled VHF radio. On Android you can connect the NMEA serial or usb output from an AIS receiver or connect via WiFi. On iPhone you need to use WiFi. Here are some of the AIS receivers we have tested with Lowrance, Simrad, B&G, Digital Yacht, Comar NMEA-w2-Wifi, Weatherdock EasyAIS, Chetco Digital SeaSmart , dAISy AIS, Navico GoFree, Quark AIS (dual channel and usb stick) etc. More information on how to hook all this up is given below.

iPhone and Android AIS and GPS over WiFi.

If you already have AIS data available over Wifi on board then just enter the UDP port number (or ip address and port number for TCP) for the source and Boat Beacon will start using the data. With Navico GoFree and iPhone/iPad this is even more simple as there is a “GoFree” connect button in settings – just press and go. If you only have a usb or nmea output available you will also need a serial or usb to internet or Wifi adaptor. They range in price from $50 to $200. This is one example we have tested with at the $70 level – USR-TCP232-400 that we hook into our on-board WiFi hub.

Here are some specific instructions for connecting Boat Beacon on Android to GoFree – http://pocketmariner.com/?p=1538

Android AIS NMEA 0183 and GPS over USB or serial

Boat Beacon will automatically launch and use local AIS data (and GPS if available) when a USB cable is plugged in between the AIS receiver and your Android device. You can set the USB mode on or off in settings in Boat Beacon.

For an Android NMEA 0183 connection you will need the following:-

1. An Android device that supports USB host mode (typically OS3 or later)

2. If your receiver doesn’t have a USB output you can simply convert the NMEA 0183 2 wire output to USB for a few dollars more using an RS232 to USB cable. Typically $7 or so. The most common USB to RS232 cables use the Prolific 2303 driver which we support. The cable we tested with is this one :-

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00425S1H8/ref=cm_sw_su_dp

We also support many other serial usb drivers (see below).

3. You will also need an Android OTG micro usb adaptor which only cost a couple of dollars. Here are a couple of links to the type of OTG micro usb adapter you will need:-

http://www.amazon.co.uk/female-Micro-Adapter-Cable-Function/dp/B009DFCCKO/ref=cm_sw_em_r_awd_iuSgtb100Z2YZ_tt

and this one allows you to charge your device at the same time:-

20 cm Micro USB OTG Y-Cable + extra power supply http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00EJP5XR2/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_awdl_adfhtb0B8YQ4B via @amazon

More information.

You can get Boat Beacon from the iTunes or Android stores – Boat Beacon

If you have a problem connecting with Android over usb you can run this free simple serial usb tester program on your Android device once you have an OTG adaptor to report and test what driver is required and let us know :-

http://boatbeaconapp.com/ybw/app/usbtest.apk (just click on the link on your tablet to download the app).

Please email us if you have any questions or suggestions at support@pocketmariner.com

There is also a great article here about hooking up NMEA to serial :- http://cms.nobeltec.com/CMS/Files/Connecting%20instrument%20serially%20to%20the%20computer.pdf

Improved Live AIS coverage in Australia for Boat Beacon and Boat Watch

Thanks to the help of the Australian Volunteer Coastguard (AVCG) and Australian Navigation and Communications company, Electrotech we now have much improved real-time AIS coverage in Australia.

9 new stations are feeding us AIS data live directly from Sydney, Brisbane (3), Gladstone, Melbourne, Karratha, Cairns and Darwin.

We have been working on a pro-bono basis with the AVCG in Mooloolaba, Brisbane to provide enhancements to Boat Beacon to support their world leading computer based Radio logging service. Boat Beacon now enables users to automatically “login” their boat and trip details including MMSI, Destination, ETA and Persons on board when they start a trip and “logout” again when they arrive by simply tapping the Boat Beacon Sailboat icon at the bottom left to start and stop sailing mode. We have provided these enhancements for free and AVCG , Mooloolaba are recommending Boat Beacon for use with their Radio logging service (click the link to see the video about it).

Here’s a screenshot from Boat Beacon showing the Alexander Passenger ship right now in Sydney, last update 20s ago!

Win B&G Zeus Touch 7, iPad Mini, Pebble Watch and SeaNav

Your chance to win an awesome package we have put together with our SeaNav app and B&G. SeaNav automatically hooks up with the B&G Zeus Touch over WiFi and uses the navigation data from their system (gps, course, wind, speed, lay lines, depth, AIS etc.) to display in SeaNav and on the Pebble SmartWatch with our free Pebble SeaNav app. Check out the competition details here