I have installed an AIS receiver in our vessel with which we travel
Long Island sound NY. So far I have never seen an AIS contact, I am
beginning to wonder if the unit even works. It is a millitech SR161.
Has anyone seen a contact in this area?

Bob

dansk wrote in news:1183730944.119497.309510
@g4g2000hsf.googlegroups.com:

I have installed an AIS receiver in our vessel with which we travel
Long Island sound NY. So far I have never seen an AIS contact, I am
beginning to wonder if the unit even works. It is a millitech SR161.
Has anyone seen a contact in this area?

Bob



Make SURE its NOT connected to the same antenna as a VHF transmitter! I
keep finding little AIS receivers T'd into the coax with a 25W
transmitter, the AIS receivers burned all to hell!

To check out your AIS VHF antenna, unplug the AIS receiver from it and
plug in a VHF marine transceiver or walkie-talkie. Make a radio check
call and see if anyone can hear you. Check the SWR if you have a meter.
AIS uses the same band/antenna. If the antenna won't work for your VHF
radio, it won't receive AIS signals, either.

Now....How are we receiving the data from the SR161? AIS receivers do
NOT run the same speed as NMEA data networks and cannot be used with them
unless you have a special multiplexer that can convert the data speed.

With so many laptops NOT having an obsolete RS-232 serial port any more,
you need an RS-232C to USB adapter cable AND THE DRIVER TO GO WITH IT so
the computer tricks the AIS software into THINKING it has a COM (serial)
port. The RS-232C MUST BE CONFIGURED FOR 38,600 BAUD, No parity, 8 bits,
1 stop bit. (N-8-1)...

You can use a dumb terminal program like Windows' Hyperterm (Click START
then ACCESSORIES then COMMUNICATIONS then HYPERTERM to wade through
Windows XP to boot it.) Once Hyperterm is up click CALL then CALL again
and just give it any name. When the speed window comes up pick 38,400
baud N-8-1 and the COM port the USB driver is watching.

Sure wish the damned fools who make AIS weren't living in the 1970's and
just put a USB jack on the damned receiver....Sure make life easier for
all.


Larry
--
While in Mexico, I didn't have to press 1 for Spanish.
While in Iran, I didn't have to press 1 for Farsi, either.
It just isn't fair.

Hi,

I Think everybody has this problem until he receives the first ship
with his AIS receiver. This happen to me me and many friends, do not
worry.
1) The first thing you must do is tune your normal VHF radio to
channel 87 or 88 and ear the AIS bip sound; if you do not ear the
"tlack" every few seconds, probably you do not have any ship near
transmitting AIS signals.
2) Second, if you ear the AIS sounds on your VHF radio channels 87/88,
them see that your plotter or laptop is set to NMEA 38400 bauds.
3) The SR161 has two lights, one blips when it receives an AIS radio
signal, the other blips only when and it has success decode the AIS
signal and are transmitting the NMEA AIS signal decoded to the
plotter.

Good luck

Pascal






On 6 jul, 13:09, Larry wrote:
dansk wrote in news:1183730944.119497.309510
@g4g2000hsf.googlegroups.com:

I have installed an AIS receiver in our vessel with which we travel
Long Island sound NY. So far I have never seen an AIS contact, I am
beginning to wonder if the unit even works. It is a millitech SR161.
Has anyone seen a contact in this area?

Bob

Make SURE its NOT connected to the same antenna as a VHF transmitter! I
keep finding little AIS receivers T'd into the coax with a 25W
transmitter, the AIS receivers burned all to hell!

To check out your AIS VHF antenna, unplug the AIS receiver from it and
plug in a VHF marine transceiver or walkie-talkie. Make a radio check
call and see if anyone can hear you. Check the SWR if you have a meter.
AIS uses the same band/antenna. If the antenna won't work for your VHF
radio, it won't receive AIS signals, either.

Now....How are we receiving the data from the SR161? AIS receivers do
NOT run the same speed as NMEA data networks and cannot be used with them
unless you have a special multiplexer that can convert the data speed.

With so many laptops NOT having an obsolete RS-232 serial port any more,
you need an RS-232C to USB adapter cable AND THE DRIVER TO GO WITH IT so
the computer tricks the AIS software into THINKING it has a COM (serial)
port. The RS-232C MUST BE CONFIGURED FOR 38,600 BAUD, No parity, 8 bits,
1 stop bit. (N-8-1)...

You can use a dumb terminal program like Windows' Hyperterm (Click START
then ACCESSORIES then COMMUNICATIONS then HYPERTERM to wade through
Windows XP to boot it.) Once Hyperterm is up click CALL then CALL again
and just give it any name. When the speed window comes up pick 38,400
baud N-8-1 and the COM port the USB driver is watching.

Sure wish the damned fools who make AIS weren't living in the 1970's and
just put a USB jack on the damned receiver....Sure make life easier for
all.

Larry
--
While in Mexico, I didn't have to press 1 for Spanish.
While in Iran, I didn't have to press 1 for Farsi, either.
It just isn't fair.

On Fri, 06 Jul 2007 07:09:04 -0700, dansk
wrote:

I have installed an AIS receiver in our vessel with which we travel
Long Island sound NY. So far I have never seen an AIS contact, I am
beginning to wonder if the unit even works. It is a millitech SR161.
Has anyone seen a contact in this area?

I have not yet tried to get an AIS receiver working but virtually all
commercial shipping is transmitting AIS info these days, and there is
a *lot* of commercial shipping on Long Island Sound - tankers, tugs,
freighters, etc.

If you are within visual sight, you should be receiving a signal if
everything is OK.

On Jul 6, 8:42 pm, Wayne.B wrote:
On Fri, 06 Jul 2007 07:09:04 -0700, dansk
wrote:

I have installed an AIS receiver in our vessel with which we travel
Long Island sound NY. So far I have never seen an AIS contact, I am
beginning to wonder if the unit even works. It is a millitech SR161.
Has anyone seen a contact in this area?

I have not yet tried to get an AIS receiver working but virtually all
commercial shipping is transmitting AIS info these days, and there is
a *lot* of commercial shipping on Long Island Sound - tankers, tugs,
freighters, etc.

If you are within visual sight, you should be receiving a signal if
everything is OK.

I will try the trick above with the VHF radio, thanks for the clue! I
know my installation is correct.

Regards,

Bob

dansk wrote in news:1183815370.844187.80660
@g4g2000hsf.googlegroups.com:

I
know my installation is correct.


Oops! Am I the only one that sees a big problem, already?!

Larry
--
While in Mexico, I didn't have to press 1 for Spanish.
While in Iran, I didn't have to press 1 for Farsi, either.
It just isn't fair.

"Larry" kirjoitti viestissä
...
dansk wrote in news:1183730944.119497.309510
@g4g2000hsf.googlegroups.com:

I have installed an AIS receiver in our vessel with which we travel
Long Island sound NY. So far I have never seen an AIS contact, I am
beginning to wonder if the unit even works. It is a millitech SR161.
Has anyone seen a contact in this area?

Bob



Make SURE its NOT connected to the same antenna as a VHF transmitter! I
keep finding little AIS receivers T'd into the coax with a 25W
transmitter, the AIS receivers burned all to hell!


It is also possible to use an antenna splitter with an AIS receiver and a
VHF radio, for example:

http://store.milltechmarine.com/smravhfansp.html

Jukka

"Jukka Lavonen" wrote in
:

It is also possible to use an antenna splitter with an AIS receiver
and a VHF radio, for example:

http://store.milltechmarine.com/smravhfansp.html

Jukka




Ask 'em if they'll replace any receivers this plastic PoS blows the front
end MOSFET out of.

DON'T TRUST IT!...

Larry
--
While in Mexico, I didn't have to press 1 for Spanish.
While in Iran, I didn't have to press 1 for Farsi, either.
It just isn't fair.

Larry wrote in
:

"Jukka Lavonen" wrote in
:

It is also possible to use an antenna splitter with an AIS receiver
and a VHF radio, for example:

http://store.milltechmarine.com/smravhfansp.html

Jukka




Ask 'em if they'll replace any receivers this plastic PoS blows the
front end MOSFET out of.

DON'T TRUST IT!...

Larry

I use the MillTech splitter and have no problems with it.

-- Geoff

On Jul 7, 11:09 am, Larry wrote:
dansk wrote in news:1183815370.844187.80660
@g4g2000hsf.googlegroups.com:

I
know my installation is correct.

Oops! Am I the only one that sees a big problem, already?!

Larry
--
While in Mexico, I didn't have to press 1 for Spanish.
While in Iran, I didn't have to press 1 for Farsi, either.
It just isn't fair.

Larry,

I use the millitech splitter. It is designed using a pin diode in a
half wavelength splitter. It actually does protect the AIS receiver
from the VHF Tx.

Bob