Wireless re-broadcasting AIS from PC

tudorsailor

tudorsailor

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I have a yacht with an on-board PC. I currently have an r. AIS receiver with integrated VHF splitte It has a USB connection to the PC.

I also own a wireless extender http://www.faculty-x.net/wl-usbwifirpt-3000.htm that I use to re-transmit wi-fi on an outdoor aerial.

The problem is that the PC is in the saloon and I would like to be able to see AIS information when at the helm. I was wondering if there was a way of re-transmitting the USB data so that I could pick it up wirelessly on my Android tablet!

Do any computer experts think that this would be possible?

Tudorsailor
 
nigelmercier said:
Surely you would need the chart as well as the AIS data?
Click to expand...

Presumably not if the OP is just after one of those retro radar like displays and the AIS unit chucks out GPS sentences too (unlike my stupid raymarine). A quick google suggests that there's more than one android app for that.

Assuming the wifi repeater thingy allows its clients to talk to each other (as well as the outside world) no reason why you can't do what you want. You'll need some software to convert your serial data (over USB) to network data. I don't do windows (which people who don't say what OS they're using are usually using) but looking back at previous threads on this subject navmonpc and polarcom are often mentioned. OpenCPN will also do it but maybe you don't want to run a full featured chart plotter in addition to what you're already running. If the android app you choose needs to connect to a TCP server, you need to know what address the PC is using: Ideally you'll want to configure a static IP address on the pc (or, if the wireless thingy allows, tell it to assign the pc the same address every time based on the pc's mac address). Worst case you can just check what address the PC is using each time you want to connect to it. If the android app gets data over UDP broadcast static addresses are probably not an issue.
 
I wonder if it would be better to use the PC as the processor and remote control the PC using the tablet - this way you don't need the tablet on all the time - which can drain batteries - and you get the better processing power of the PC.

Remote controlling a PC is easy with something like VNC.
 
nigelmercier said:
Something like TeamViewer?
Click to expand...

I believe teamviewer requires an active internet connection to work.

RealVNC, UltraVNC, TinyVNC etc etc all work on IP Addresses - so what I'd do is set up a Wifi Access point/hotspot on the boat, make sure the PC was connected to it and had a fixed IP address (or it was the hotspot) and then get a VNC viewer on the tablet.

I've done this using WinXP netbook and an iPhone - I think I just used peer2peer networking - but it was just "for fun" so didn't matter if it didn't work properly or consistently ...
 
Just done this using Connectify as a wireless extender for the laptop and Splashtop 2 as a remote viewer. Works without an internet connection after it has been first set up with one. Allows me to view and control the PC in the saloon from either Ipad or android device. very fast and streams audio as well so films ect can be viewed anywhere on the boat.
 
The VNC options may well offer benefits in a wider context, but if tudorsailor wants to do exactly what is stated in the original post then doing what is originally asked about (ie tablet app displaying a received AIS feed) will be the lowest bandwidth solution and probably best formatted for the tablet screen.
 
So here is the follow up to my initial posting

Firstly, I have discovered that there are gadgets to transmit NMEA wirlelessly and there are iPad apps to display the data. I am not so sure about Android.

However I have gone down the alternative route. I plugged my onboard PC into my wireless repeater and assigned a static IP address. I then installed Splashtop Streamer (great recommendation). I had to initially register on the internet, but once done, I can now view and control the onboard PC with any wireless device. So I now have my Asus Tablet in a RAM holder at the wheel and I can see OpenCPN which includes the AIS display

Pretty painless really

Hope that this is of interest

TudorSailor - currently in Porto Montenegro
 
TudorSailor - Your solution sounds good.. but you need that extra 'repeater' switched on and drawing power and your original question asked about getting the AIS (or NMEA can be done in the same way) data to the iPad/Android for use by an App on that receiving device.

There is a way to repeat the NMEA/AIS data onto WiFi just using the PC. Connectictify (as mentioned earlier) will do it but is again an extra cost. Microsoft's Virtual WiFi Miniport (free and built into Windows 7) together with a single DOS command will repeat your data to Wifi..

BTW - Android devices are not generally happy with Ad Hoc wifi network - but Virtual Wifi Miniport allows up to about five WiFi devices to see the NMEA/AIS data. Then you can display with something like the 'easyAIS' app on the phone..

No extra hardware or software is needed.. Check out the Microsoft feature and the netsh command for starting the share.. Feel free to ask for more details..
 
Unfortunately though - Boat Beacon uses the internal GPS in the phone for postion and relies on a connection to the internet for it to show your position (on other Boat Beacon Apps but not on true AIS receivers) and also on the internet to show others' postion information on your screen (which may or may not be out of date).

OP still wanted to get AIS 38400 data from the Comar to the Android / iPhone for use in an App.. although repeating the Laptop screen seemed to give them another perspective at seeing the AIS (with no requirement for internet)...
 
Resurrecting this...


An arduino might be a very low power option to multiplex and repeat nmea data, particularly ais, over wifi. Though the wifi shield is quite expensive at about 30 quid.
But first things first, sailtracker looks like, even an option to view the data on an Android tablet, https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=iacobus.sailtracker

So does anyone know of an Internet udp ais feed which is working? Opencpn lists one in San Francisco but it seems to be down. Isn't Sweden doing something? No luck with Google

Ta
 
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