AIS is a system used by ships to transmit their positions and information to other ships and Vessel Traffic Services (VTS). The information below is transmitted by AIS:
· Status of the Ship
· Ship's Callsign
· Name: Ship's Name
· Ship Type: Type of ship (Cargo, passenger etc)
· Destination
· Draught of the ship in meters
· Speed of the ship in Knots
· Course
· Heading
· IMO number of the ship
· MMSI number of the ship
· Latitude
· Longitude
· ETA
· Distance the GPS is from the bow
· Distance the GPS is from the port
· Distance the GPS is from the stern
· Distance the GPS is from the starboard
· Type of positioning system – such as GPS, DGPS or LORAN-C.
· DTE Flag
· Nav Status
· Rate Of Turn
· Position Accuracy
In addition to the information above Shiptrax can calculate the following:
· Distance from home.
· Bearing from home.
· Last Time (UTC) the Ship Information was changed
· Last Time (UTC) tracking information was received
· Length of the ship in meters
· Beam of the ship in meters
