AIS COMAR SYSTEMS R500NGi User manual

USER MANUAL R500NGi
INTELLIGENT AIS RECEIVER WITH WiFi & GPS
SKU 001-1049
R500NGi-MA-v06r03
2019-11-06
ENGLISH

R500NGi
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CONTENTS
1R500NGI INTELLIGENT AIS RECEIVER WITH WIFI & GPS.............5
2DOCUMENT.......................................................................................6
2.1 About This Manual .......................................................................................... 6
3NOTICE..............................................................................................7
3.1 Copyright ......................................................................................................... 7
4GENERAL NOTICES..........................................................................8
5INTRODUCTION ................................................................................9
5.1 Parts List.......................................................................................................... 9
6MAJOR DIMENSIONS......................................................................10
7INSTALLATION................................................................................11
7.1 Mounting........................................................................................................ 11
7.2 Power Supply ................................................................................................ 11
7.3 AIS Antenna Installation................................................................................ 11
8CONFIGURATION............................................................................12
8.1 Installing Open Source Software.................................................................. 12
8.2 Requirements................................................................................................ 12
8.3 Installing the Raspbian OS ........................................................................... 13
8.4 Enabling the Serial Port................................................................................ 13
8.4.1 Setting and testing the serial port to receive AIS data .................... 15
8.5 Installing OpenCPN....................................................................................... 16
8.5.1 Option 1: A complete installation including the Raspbian OS......... 16
8.5.2 Option 2: Installing OpenCPN after installing the Raspbian OS ..... 16
8.5.3 Configure the OpenCPN................................................................... 17
8.5.4 Option 3: Installing OpenCPN with all available plugins.................. 18
9FAULT FINDING ..............................................................................19
9.1 Power LED not illuminating........................................................................... 19
9.2 Channel Indicators A & B do not flash.......................................................... 19
10 GPS RECEIVER...............................................................................19
10.1 GPS Receiver Technical Specification......................................................... 19
11 SPECIFICATION ..............................................................................20
11.1 Physical ......................................................................................................... 20
11.2 Electrical and Electronic................................................................................ 20
11.3 Operational.................................................................................................... 20

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11.4 Environmental................................................................................................21
11.5 Additional Information....................................................................................21
12 SAFETY AND SECURITY ................................................................22
13 LIMITED WARRANTY......................................................................22
14 APPENDIX 1 –BACKGROUND TO AIS ..........................................23

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1 R500NGi INTELLIGENT AIS RECEIVER WITH WiFi &
GPS

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2 DOCUMENT
2.1 About This Manual
This Manual provides installation, operating Instructions and fault-finding procedures for the
equipment to which it relates.
This manual may also be made available in electronic Portable Document Format (PDF). In PDF
format, the following categories are all enabled as active hyperlink references: (1) The titles of
each section; (2) document cross-references; (3) the table of contents.
This document may therefore be navigated quickly and effectively by using a mouse or other
pointing device to activate each of these hyperlinks. This is a printer friendly document, designed
to be printed 2-sided as a booklet with A5 pages on A4 stock paper.
Document name:
Date:
Details:
Author:
R500NGi-MA-V6r01
2019-04-02
First Release
TSI
R500NGi-MA-V6r02
2019-04-24
Update to specifications & logo
TSI
R500NGi-MA-V6r03
2019-11-06
FCC Statements / Formatting
TSI

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3 NOTICE
3.1 Copyright
The copyright and all rights of a like nature in respect of this publication in any part of the world
are the property of COMAR SYSTEMS LTD. (COMAR).
No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, whether
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, nor stored in any information
retrieval system of any kind, nor used for tendering or manufacturing, nor communicated to any
other person without the written permission of COMAR.
The recipient of this document, as its registered holder, must exercise due diligence in ensuring
that the above conditions are observed (Errors and Omissions Excepted).
Any enquires relating to this document or its contents should be addressed, in writing, in the first
instance to COMAR SYSTEMS LTD.
COMAR SYSTEMS
Vittlefields Technology Centre
Forest Road
NEWPORT
Isle of Wight
PO30 4LY
UNITED KINGDOM
tel: [phone]
email:
[e-mail]
web: www.
comarsystems.com
COMAR SYSTEMS reserves the right to make changes to its products and specifications without notice

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4 GENERAL NOTICES
SAFETY: Make sure the power supply is switched off before you make any electrical
connections to the unit.
INSTALLATION: This equipment must be installed in accordance with the instructions
provided in this manual. Failure to do so could result in poor performance, personal injury
and/or damage to your vessel and/or connected equipment.
CABLES: The supplied cables should only be cut, shortened or lengthened by an
appropriate supplier.
In accordance with a policy of continual development and product improvement, hardware and
software may be upgraded from time to time, and future versions of equipment may therefore not
correspond exactly with this manual.
When necessary, upgrades to the product will be accompanied by updates or addenda to this
manual. Information contained in this manual is liable to change without notice.
Comar Systems Ltd. disclaims any liability for consequences arising from omissions or
inaccuracies in this manual and any other documentation provided with this product.
This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two
conditions: (1) This device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must accept
any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.




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5 INTRODUCTION
The R500NGi from Comar Systems is a compact, dual channel synthesized VHF AIS Receiver
equipped with Ethernet, WiFi, GPS and USB Interfaces for land-based, shore side monitoring. It
is designed to receive and decode all AIS transmissions from vessels fitted with Class ‘A’ or ‘B’
AIS transceivers, Aids to Navigation, and SART.
The R500NGi is based on the popular Raspberry Pi™3
1
mini-computer and is optimised for
coastal monitoring of AIS equipped marine traffic. The R500NGi is primarily intended for
developers to implement within their own AIS monitoring networks. With compatible plotting
software - for example, OpenCPN
2
- AIS data can be received from vessels within range of the
antenna and displayed on a monitor in a visual representation.
Before operating the unit you should familiarise yourself with this user manual
The R500NGi is intended to be developed continually, therefore this manual should be considered
as a guide
5.1 Parts List
On delivery, carefully inspect the contents of the packing case. Note any damage or any missing
items. Ensure that the correct parts are included for your application.
1
For the latest information on Raspberry Pi™computers and operating systems please refer to
raspberrypi.org
2
OpenCPN: Open source Chart Plotter Navigation software. For the latest information on
OpenCPN software please refer to opencpn.org
Item:
Description:
No.
included:
COMAR
SKU Number:
1
R500NGi AIS Receiver - Unit
1
001-1047
2
Universal Power Supply
1
004-7128

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6 MAJOR DIMENSIONS
All dimensions mm: