knotflying":1grwptvd said:
Just keep in mind that transmit, in my opinion, is a false sense of security unless everyone has and uses AIS. See and avoid is the best. I went with receive only so I can see and communicate with the vessels requiring transmit. It is especially useful on the river systems. I never had an issue. Something to think about.
As a proponent to AIS, allow me to add a few points.
To me boating is a fun hobby and I enjoy the gadgets that come along with it, or sometimes not, just to be added by myself. We live in a time where everything has to be guaranteed to be safe, if not you call a lawyer and and try to get compensation, or at least some do, like a coffe to hot or some medical procedure not to ones liking. We drive in cars with side airbags, side impact protection, frontal airbags, seat belts, collision avoidance electronics etc.
On the water, collision is perhaps less of a risk, unless encountering one of those speed boats. But those operators probably have their eye's on the water instead of instruments. Then there is the risk of being bumped into by some of those 100ft tall walls of steel, commonly referred to as container ships or tankers, where visibility from the bridge the best and the worst condition is very limited. Being "seen" is important, and a radar cross section of our small boats is very tiny even with reflector.
AIS puts you on par with the big boys, and before long, I predict all boats to be required to have some form of AIS. Often entry of some technology is slowed due to cost. A radar unit of decent quality costs $1500+, plus installation and the required realestate to mount it, mast, dashboard, etc. Along with that, small boats bounce up and down. Not a good platform for a radar even if it was rotating very fast. Sailboats are a bit better off, with a high mast and reflectors, but still small compared to a large commercial vessel. Active AIS costs about $600 plus some very inexpensive display units that are on the market. Radar display units are on top of the $1500 referred above. So on the bottom line AIS doesn't look so bad as an entry to boating collision avoidance.
Now there is the question of congestion on AIS frequencies. I don't have the technical details ready, which was conducted by the coast guard if I recall correctly, which stipulated that a certain maximum amount of ais transmitters can be in one space before technical limitations of transmit windows saturate that space. I am sure the industry will address this quickly with a new standard if and when this becomes an issue.
Perhaps this post stimulates this subject a bit further. Enjoy
