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AIS

The AIS feed type in ArcGIS Velocity connects directly to a TCP source that streams Automatic Identification System (AIS) data for marine vehicle tracking. AIS is a maritime standard used to obtain vessel information, such as vessel position, and navigation information for vessel tracking, port operations, and defense and security use cases.

Examples

The following are example use cases for the feed:

  • A maritime security analyst uses an AIS feed with an MMSI allowlist to track a specific set of vessels of interest.

  • A port operations analyst uses an AIS feed to monitor vessel traffic and berthing activity in real time.

  • A defense or maritime domain awareness analyst uses an AIS feed to study vessel tracks over time.

Usage notes

Note the following when working with the feed:

  • To use this feed, you must have an AIS data provider, subscription, or sample data.

  • You must provide a valid host and port to establish a TCP connection and receive maritime data. Consult your AIS data provider for these values.

  • This feed receives data directly from a TCP source. It does not poll on a recurring schedule.

  • The AIS feed creates WGS84 point features from valid vessel positions and includes AIS identity, position, and voyage attributes such as MMSI, vessel name, IMO, speed, heading, destination, and ETA.

  • AIS data sources using port 80 are restricted in Velocity.

Parameters

The following table describes the parameters for the feed:

Parameter

Description

Data type

Host

(Required)

The hostname of the TCP server that streams AIS data.

String

Port

(Required)

The port number of the TCP server that streams AIS data.

Integer

Message Type Allow List

(Optional)

A comma-separated list of message type ID numbers, for example, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 18, 19, 21, 24, and 27.

If the list is empty, the feed allows all message types.

Learn more about AIS messages and their priorities

String

MMSI Allow List

(Optional)

A comma-separated list of Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI) values to allow through.

The feed drops events with MMSI values that are not in this list.

The default is an empty list, meaning all MMSIs pass.

String

IMO Allow List

(Optional)

A comma-separated list of International Maritime Organization (IMO) identification numbers.

The feed allows events with an IMO number in this list to pass through.

If the list is empty, all events pass through regardless of their IMO number.

String

Spatial Extent

(Optional)

Defines the bounding coordinates for the area of the map you want to work with.

You can configure a map frame to monitor vessel activity in a specific area.

To configure the map frame, complete the following steps:

  1. Click the Configure extent drop-down menu to open the map.

  2. Adjust the map view by panning and zooming.

  3. To add an extent, click Edit and draw the desired area.

The drawn area becomes the feed's Spatial Extent value.

Spatial extent

Static Data Cache Maximum Entries

(Optional)

The maximum number of vessels, by MMSI, held in memory.

The default is 100,000.

Integer

Static Data Cache Time to Live (minutes)

(Optional)

The number of minutes a vessel's cached static data remains in memory after its last update.

The default is 1440 (24 hours).

Integer

Considerations and limitations

Consider the following when using the feed:

  • The TCP server must be externally accessible on the internet. Ensure that your firewall and organization allow traffic through the port.

  • The AIS feed connects to a host and port over a TCP server and requires newline-delimited NMEA-0183 !AIVDM or !AIVDO sentences with valid checksums.

  • Authenticated, TLS, UDP, and WebSocket connections are not supported.