PC and / or Android Chart Plotters using WiFi for input

Refueler

Refueler

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I have a neat multiplexer which has 2 NMEA0183 inputs (one can accept Seatalk) .. has USB in / out, WiFi out and 3rd NMEA output.

"Vela-Navega nmea2wifi unit"

I'm already fine for cabled connection of Plotter or GPS Puck for input to an Acer One PC. But am looking to utilise the WiFi instead.

Looking for users who are using WiFi to connect Plotter GPS / AIS data to a PC or Android. (I don't have iOS ... iPad etc).

The PC plotter S/W I use asks for Serial Port .. which makes me think WiFi is not going to work with it ... Seaclear.

I'm a cheapskate - so only looking for free versions of S/W that can have WiFi ... ;)
 
OpenCPN for PC or for Android take wifi info. Android - Marine Navigator (VMH charts) uses wifi AIS info, but think you might need onboard GPS data. Ditto Imray app.
 
I don't think that there is any better offerings either commercial or opensource than Open CPN for ais anti collision display.

The only other open source pc software that might be useful for other requirements is NavmonPC. It will log and display any of the NMEA data that you have on your boat. It has a basic AIS radar screen.
 
Pal of mine is using the Navionics Boat and Lake app ...........

It was because of him and that my preferred program Seaclear does not work on Android - that I thought to ask ..

I cannot put my finger on it - but something about OpenCPN doesn't endear it to me ... but maybe over time ??

The tablets I have ... being a Drone owner - tablets are needed ! - I can use the built in GPS and only need feed the AIS data in ...
 
Marine navigator can happily use the tablet's GPS. As a hopeless non techie, I couldn't get open cpn to connect and it didn't feel instinctive to set up so I gave up, but marine navigator works nicely for me, with AIS on the wi-fi. Creating, editing and following a route is an ergonomic mess of backwards and forwards through menus, so better as just a moving chart with AIS.
 
Refueler said:
Pal of mine is using the Navionics Boat and Lake app ...........

It was because of him and that my preferred program Seaclear does not work on Android - that I thought to ask ..

I cannot put my finger on it - but something about OpenCPN doesn't endear it to me ... but maybe over time ??

The tablets I have ... being a Drone owner - tablets are needed ! - I can use the built in GPS and only need feed the AIS data in ...
Click to expand...
Navionics isn't free!
I have fed ais wirelessly to a tablet running navionics using a yakka from my transponder.
If you fancy an excercise in futility then fill your boots.

Navionics ais display is miles behind Open CPN. You might as well keep using your hand bearing compass when crossing shipping lanes?
 
Like others I use OpenCPN on a tablet with a Quark AIS receiver. I used it to cross the channel to France and back and it was brilliant. You can highlight each boat to check how close you are going to be. On the whole trip we only had to adjust our heading/speed once. I got my charts from Visit my harbour.
 
In previous life - I was ships navigator for 17yrs .,.... with paper charts ... Magnavox used our LNG ships trading out of Brunei as test bed for Transit satnav ... UGH !!
In those days ECDIS was being developed.
It was interesting that I had a Lat Long reading Decca on my small boat before it hit ships !
Last couple of years when I was working Gulf of Mexico - we had ships with auto tracking chart desks ... place paper chart under glass ... reference the borders and a pin light under shone through giving ships position based on GPS.
But AIS was still in infancy ...

Today - its mind boggling the evolution of electronics on board ...

I have all the charts I could ever need - paper and electronic ... but only a few Navionics .... reason I had the Navionics cards - there used to be a trick to changing the cards area and maps on it ... but they soon caught onto that !!

I will not pay for Navionics - I have to admit - so its not likely to be on my setup.
 
Major Tom said:
As a hopeless non techie, I couldn't get open cpn to connect and it didn't feel instinctive to set up so I gave up, but marine navigator works nicely for me, with AIS on the wi-fi.
Click to expand...
Preferences > Connections

Make a new TCP connection using the IP address of the wifi device and the usual port is 10110.

Screenshot
 
TSB240 said:
I don't think that there is any better offerings either commercial or opensource than Open CPN for ais anti collision display.
Click to expand...
Do you mean no better offerings on PC, please?

Or do you mean that OpenCPN is better than chartplotters or, for example, the i70's "AIS radar" view?

I like the way OpenCPN handles AIS, but it's been a while since I used a chartplotter with it, so I'm just interested in your opinion.

I like the way OpenCPN displays the estimated position of distant / class-B boats as a sort of grey shadow, and then the boat's green symbol leaps ahead when a new position is received.
 
KompetentKrew said:
Do you mean no better offerings on PC, please?

Or do you mean that OpenCPN is better than chartplotters or, for example, the i70's "AIS radar" view?

I like the way OpenCPN handles AIS, but it's been a while since I used a chartplotter with it, so I'm just interested in your opinion.

I like the way OpenCPN displays the estimated position of distant / class-B boats as a sort of grey shadow, and then the boat's green symbol leaps ahead when a new position is received.
Click to expand...

Google Image Result for http://opencpnayudaes.yolasite.com/resources/images/ais11.png?timestamp=1294311737005

This is a link to a screen shot of how open cpn displays potential risks with cpa points. It also clearly indicates if you are passing close ahead or astern. This is overlaid on a chart not on a radar display as your example.

I have not seen any commercial offering on a chartplotter that presents this info in the same way.
 
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