VHF Antenna:
Connection to a suitable VHF antenna will be required for the AIS transceiver to receive and transmit. The AIS unit will require an VHF antenna (tuned to 162MHz) for optimum performance. For your splitter installation, we recommend a VHF antenna suitable for 156MHz and 162MHz.
VHF Antenna Cable:
Please check that the VHF antenna you intend to use has sufficient cable to reach between the VHF antenna and the AIS transceiver unit. If it is not enough you will need an extension cable. RG-58 or RG-8X can be used for short distances, however for longer runs we would recommend a low loss cable like RG-213. For reference the VHF antenna connector type on the AIS transceiver unit is SO 239 and is intended to mate with a PL 259 connector.
Power Cable:
The AIS transceiver unit is supplied with a two metre long power and data cable. If you require longer cables to reach your power supply, please ensure the cables are capable of carrying currents of up to 2A peak and 200mA on average. Means of connecting the cables together will also be required.
Chart plotter:
To display received AIS messages from other vessels on your chart plotter, you will need to connect your AIS transceiver to your chart plotter. Please refer to the user manual supplied with your chart plotter for details of how to connect and configure your chart plotter for use with AIS devices. For general guidance your chart plotter should be configured to accept NMEA data at 38400 baud (sometimes referred to as 'NMEA HS' in the plotter configuration menu). You may also need to enable the display of AIS targets in the chart options.
Alternatively if you use an NMEA2000 network on your vessel it is possible to connect the AIS transceiver to the NMEA2000 network via a suitable cable. Please refer to your dealer for details of NMEA2000 cables.