A DGPS-Based Vessel Tracking System (VTS) Using UHF and Geographic Information System (GIS) Technologies

Sam Porgess, Michael Gallistel, Nancy Cohen-Joseph, and Richard Thompson

Abstract:	A Vessel Traffic Surveillance (VTS) System that uses Differential GPS (DGPS) data as its sensor was designed for coastal applications. The system consists of shipboard Portable Tracking Units (PTUs), a VI’S Workstation with a resident Geographic Information System (GIS), ‘and a DGPS Reference Station. The system’s flexible communications design can be integrated easily with existing transmission equipment. The PTUs include a GPS receiver, communications transceiver, modem, and a protocol switch programmed to control communications. Although designed to use GPS data, the VTS workstation can combine data from other sensors to improve data accuracy and integrity. The DGPS Reference Station transmits pseudorange corrections in Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services (RTCM) format to the VTS Workstation, which computes and applies the corrections to data from all active PTUs. Intelligent polling protocols automatically query the PTUs without user assistance. The paper begins with a discussion of the system’s requirements, followed by a description of the system architecture, the design of the system’s components, and a description of its application at the Panama Canal. The unique operational requirements and geography of the Canal are described. The paper concludes with technical analyses of data resulting from its operation at the Canal.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 49th Annual Meeting of The Institute of Navigation (1993) June 21 - 23, 1993 Royal Sonesta Hotel Cambridge, MA
Pages:	631 - 640
Cite this article:	Porgess, Sam, Gallistel, Michael, Cohen-Joseph, Nancy, Thompson, Richard, "A DGPS-Based Vessel Tracking System (VTS) Using UHF and Geographic Information System (GIS) Technologies," Proceedings of the 49th Annual Meeting of The Institute of Navigation (1993), Cambridge, MA, June 1993, pp. 631-640.
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