Volume 14 Issue 3 Article 7

COMPARISON BETWEEN ARPA RADAR AND AIS CHARACTERISTICS FOR

VESSEL TRAFFIC SERVICES
Bin Lin
Merchant Marine Department, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung, Taiwan 20224, R.O.C.,
[email protected]

Chih-Hao Huang
Merchant Marine Department, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung, Taiwan 20224, R.O.C.

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Recommended Citation
Lin, Bin and Huang, Chih-Hao (2006) "COMPARISON BETWEEN ARPA RADAR AND AIS CHARACTERISTICS FOR
VESSEL TRAFFIC SERVICES," Journal of Marine Science and Technology: Vol. 14: Iss. 3, Article 7.
DOI: 10.51400/2709-6998.2072
Available at: https://jmstt.ntou.edu.tw/journal/vol14/iss3/7

This Research Article is brought to you for free and open access by Journal of Marine Science and Technology. It has been
accepted for inclusion in Journal of Marine Science and Technology by an authorized editor of Journal of Marine Science and
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COMPARISON BETWEEN ARPA RADAR AND AIS CHARACTERISTICS FOR
VESSEL TRAFFIC SERVICES
Acknowledgements
We are grateful for the financial support offered by the National Science Council, Taiwan, R.O.C. under
contract No. NSC 93-2211-E-019-016.

This research article is available in Journal of Marine Science and Technology: https://jmstt.ntou.edu.tw/journal/
vol14/iss3/7
182 Journal of Marine Science and Technology, Vol. 14, No. 3, pp. 182-189 (2006)

COMPARISON BETWEEN ARPA RADAR AND AIS

CHARACTERISTICS FOR VESSEL TRAFFIC
SERVICES

Bin Lin* and Chih-Hao Huang*

Key words: navigation safety, vessel traffic services, ship identity. large ports and congesting coastal waters in the world in
order to help sailing ships to avoid navigational faults.
More than 400 of these services have been established
ABSTRACT in about 50 countries [15].
The International Maritime Organization’s (IMO)
Recently most maritime countries in the world have fitted auto- Guidelines for VTS define VTS as follows [7]:
matic identification system (AIS) in vessel traffic services (VTS) in
“A VTS is any service implemented by a compe-
compliance with regulations of International Convention in order to
identify ship name and collect ship information. Traditionally VTS tent authority, designed to improve safety and
operators use automatic radar plotting aids (ARPA) to get ship maneu- efficiency of traffic and the protection of the
vering information for preventing ships from navigational faults. environment. It may range from the provision of
Although the two equipments can provide similar functions for VTS, simple information messages to extensive man-
the operational theory of them is quite different. In this study an
agement of traffic within a port or waterway.”
experimental observation was carried out by means of ARPA radar
and AIS fitted in the building of Merchant Marine Department, Therefore a VTS is a combination of personnel,
NTOU. The detected information was analyzed for comparison of operational procedures, equipment, and regulations for
their difference on characteristics. Results reveal that AIS can detect the purpose of marine traffic management in a specific
target ships with wider area coverage, larger quantity and more water area [9]. Generally one or more of the following
voyage information than ARPA radar. The latter can provide an
services is provided in a port VTS: information service,
active monitor to detect small ships that can not be done by AIS.
Consequently for navigation safety VTS operators must concentrate navigational assistance and traffic organization service
on ARPA radar in priority and use AIS as supplementary installation [4]. To implement these services, the VTS uses VHF
for identification of ships. radiotelephone communication and shore-base radar in
obtaining data on the identification of ships and their
INTRODUCTION movements.
In accordance with VTS operational procedure,
During the past thirty years there has been a con- when a ship navigates into the VTS area, the ship officer
siderable increase in the number of merchant ships, and has to report ship’s name, position and voyage informa-
the greatest increase has been in large ships. The result tion to the VTS center by VHF. The center immediately
is that more ships and larger ships are congesting in identifies the ship on radar screen and starts to monitor
coastal waters and ports, requiring larger maneuvering her movements until the ship completely berths or leaves
room at sea. Consequently ships are inevitably exposed the area. During her voyage the center provides naviga-
to the risk of a collision at sea. Some papers indicated tional information to the ship, for example, meteoro-
that many marine casualties could be attributed to hu- logical conditions in the area, the movements of ship-
man error on navigational faults, and most of them were ping including fishing ships and the utilization of re-
incurred due to incorrect judgment of ship movement or sources such as tugs, pilots and berths. In case there is
surrounding environment by ship duty officers [1-2, any navigational risk to the ship been monitored, the
14]. For improvement of navigation safety and reduc- center can transmit a warning or advice regarding the
tion of potential environmental pollution, vessel traffic risk to the ship in time. Therefore monitoring the
services (VTS) have been gradually established in many process of a VTS participant has to be done with radar
tracking and voice reporting. Ships are identified by
means of VHF calls, and then the radar echoes of the
Paper Submitted 02/08/06, Accepted 03/13/06. Author for Correspondence:
ships can be consequently identified.
Bin Lin. E-mail: [email protected].
* Merchant Marine Department, National Taiwan Ocean University, After automatic radar plotting aids (ARPA) was
Keelung, Taiwan 20224, R.O.C. developed and installed on board in 1980s, course and
 B. Lin & C.H. Huang: Comparison Between ARPA Radar and AIS Characteristics for Vessel Traffic Services 183

speed of target ships on radar screen could be easily and ment information from ARPA radar or AIS, and all
accurately measured. This function is also convenient information are useful for VTS on traffic management,
for VTS operators to monitor ship movements. Thus but most contents of the both data are different except
ARPA radar has become the necessary equipment for ship course, speed and position. The method of receiv-
surveillance, and its output data has associated with ing the data in the two equipments is quite different.
electronic chart by computer processor in a modern The old VTS already equipped with ARPA radar has to
VTS. Although navigational risk can be significantly put AIS on another console table with separated display
emphasized on displays in VTS center due to effective- from the radar. The addition of AIS information for the
ness of using ARPA radar, the identification of ships by existing VTS center adds to the problem of information
VHF calls occasionally has troubles, such as a mistake overload.
of identification, no call from a ship, not in compliance Let us take Kaohsiung VTS as an example. The
with the requirements, etc., which create potentially AIS display is located about 5 meters apart from the
dangerous situations and decrease VTS functionality. ARPA display because the new AIS system can not be
The similar problems are also a concern to ship- integrated with the old ARPA system. A VTS operator
ping industry. Many marine collisions could have been can not simultaneously watch both ARPA display and
possibly avoided if the encountering ships had identi- AIS display. When he identifies ship’s name from AIS,
fied each other and had had good communication by probably there is a risk of delaying the surveillance of a
VHF between the ships [3]. In early 1990 some mari- navigational fault due to neglect of watching the ARPA
time countries developed a new technique, named as display. On the contrary, when concentrating to moni-
automatic identification system (AIS) by IMO in 1996, tor the ARPA display, he can not realize ship voyage
on automatic transmission and acquisition of ship data data from AIS, and has to identify ship name through
and navigational status. Ships equipped with AIS could VHF call. For VTS operators, all data via ARPA radar
be more benefit in better information for assessment of and AIS are important, but only one choice from them
dangerous situations. Gradually the AIS has been ac- for priority at a time. The differences really cause a
cepted as an important installation to in modern com- problem for the safety of navigation. What are the pros
munication and identification systems for ships. The and cons of using ARPA radar or AIS?
two-way communication provided by AIS between ships This paper is focused on the comparison of the
would obvious reduce navigational faults [5]. Thus difference of function and operation between ARPA
IMO amended the 1974 Safety of Life at Sea Conven- radar and AIS through experimental observation, and to
tion (SOLAS) in 2000. AIS had to be fitted on certain find which data should be received first for require-
types of ships through a phased implementation period ments of VTS operators. The approach of using real
spanning from 1 July 2002 to 1 July 2008. ARPA radar and AIS to simultaneously collect naviga-
Following the tragic events of 11 September 2001 tional data of ships within Keelung port approaches
in the United States of America, IMO seriously consid- provided a unique method to compare their quality and
ered that AIS could effectively identify ships which quantity in this study. Most significantly the observa-
violated navigation regulations or offense against sail- tion has enabled evaluation of the accuracy of ship
ing orders through malice, and could prevent the ship in position received from the two equipments. The col-
acts of terrorism from entering ports to attack facilities. lected data were analyzed by analysis of variance. And
Due to AIS equipped with GPS function, third party finally, the practical implications of the main results
could easily trace a ship position when the AIS signal derived from the analysis are addressed in conclusions.
was transmitted. IMO amended the regulation of SOLAS
in 2002 again. The deadline date of AIS fitted onboard ARPA RADAR FUNCTIONALITY
was shifted early before the 31 December 2004.
Virtually all commercial ships moving within port Basically ARPA radar is the equipment by means
waters are the primary users of VTS, and have now of a computer system operating in conjunction with
fitted with AIS. In general, data received via AIS can radar. Radar transmitter generates very short pulses of
enhance the quality of the information available. That radio waves. When the waves of one of these pulses
is helpful to improve traffic management and naviga- encounter any obstacle, such as a ship or shore line, part
tion safety [11]. The International Association of Light- of the radiated energy is reflected and received by the
house Authorities (IALA) also suggests the installation original radar. The reflected pulse constitutes a radio
of the AIS in VTS that can receive AIS signals to echo. The time between radiating the pulse and receiv-
identify ships’ name and obtain other navigational sta- ing the echo can be accurately measured. Therefore the
tus not only through communication by VHF [5]. After distance between the radar and the ship is calculated.
AIS is fitted in VTS, operators can obtain ship move- The direction of the ship is the direction of the pulse
184 Journal of Marine Science and Technology, Vol. 14, No. 3 (2006)

transmitted [12]. With modern ARPA radar, traffic routes, fairways

All radar installations should comply with IMO and other marks of importance can be delineated on the
minimum requirements. The variable range marker display. No matter the above limitations, ARPA radar
should enable the range of an object to be measured with currently has become required equipment for surveil-
an error not exceeding 1.5 per cent of the maximum lance of ship movements in VTS. To achieve the
range of the scale in use, or 70 meters, whichever is the operational purpose the ARPA radar should be able to
greater. The means provided for bearings should enable detect all moving or stationary targets which satisfy the
the bearing of a target whose echo appears at the edge of detection criteria within VTS coverage area during all
the display to be measured with an accuracy of plus or specified operating circumstances. Any target should
minus 1 degree or better [6]. be acquired and maintain tracking in at least 5 out of
Traditionally when finding a target echo showing every 10 scans average over a period of 2 minutes [9].
on radar screen, a ship officer plotted the relative mo- Navigation data of target ship should be displayed ei-
tion of the echo in order to get target’s course, speed, the ther on the VTS display using synthetic symbols near
closest point of approach (CPA) and the time to CPA the ship or in tabular form in an un-used part of the VTS
(TCPA) by hands. Usually that took much time to display. A failure to reacquire a target automatically in
complete the plotting task. Owing to the error of a limited time should be brought to the attention of the
remarking the echo’s bearing and distance, results of VTS operator.
measurement were not very accurate. Sometimes a
large mistake in the radar plotting might lead the office AIS FUNCTIONALITY
to take an incorrect judgment of target ship movements
and cause navigational faults. The situation has been Functions of the AIS should satisfy the following
improved after ARPA radar fitted onboard. All data are requirements: in a ship-to-ship mode for collision
calculated by computer and clearly showed on the ARPA avoidance, as a means for littoral States to obtain infor-
display. The benefit is not only reduction of plotting mation about a ship and its cargo, as a VTS tool, i.e.
time in less than 2 minutes for the whole process but ship-to-shore (traffic management) [8]. The AIS is a
also accuracy of the data. Furthermore, ARPA radar can shipboard broadcast system operating in the VHF radio
provide navigational warning, when a ship is approach- maritime frequencies: 161.975 MHz (channel 87B) and
ing a defined dangerous area or the CPA to another ship 162.025 MHz (channel 88B). The universal VTS using
is less than the limited CPA. self-organized time division multiple access (SOTDMA)
Although it is apparent that ARPA radar is a very technology was adopted by IMO in 1998 for high broad-
effective aid to navigation, especially for anti-collision, cast rate and reliable operation. The system is charac-
the limitation of radar function still exists when pulses terized by a transmission schedule. The transmission
of radio wave are transmitting. The first is that the time in the radio channel is divided into time slots of a
maximum distance of an object detected is affected by constant length. The spacing of the time slots for a
the height of antenna and the height of object due to the particular ship depends on its speed and maneuvering
curvature of the earth. Secondarily, some objects, such status [3]. AIS is to be capable of handling over 2,000
as small wooden fishing boat, may not be detected until time slots per minute per channel and updates as often
a short distance due to the reflecting power of the pulses as very two seconds [5].
affected by the surface and material of the objects. The AIS should automatically provide to appropri-
Thirdly, the accuracy of object’s bearing is affected by ately other ships and shore stations equipped static
the horizontal beam width of the pulses. In modern information, dynamic information and voyage related
marine radar the bearing discrimination is from 0.6 to 2 information. Static information, such as ship call sign,
degrees [10]. Fourthly a more obvious effect is blind name and Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI) is
areas and shower areas. For radar radiation a mountain- permanently stored in the AIS. Dynamic information,
ous island will cause a blind area, and objects behind the such as ship’s position, course and speed, is collected
island will not be detected on radar screen. A big ship from ship equipment, such as GPS, gyro compass and
at close range may cause a shadow, and small objects speed log. Voyage related information, such as ship’s
will not always appear on the screen, especially in a draught and hazardous cargo, is input by ship officers in
short distance because of the reduction of the echo manually each voyage. It should also receive automati-
energy. The shadow effect will reduce the range of a cally such information from similarly fitted ship.
small object detected from 4 miles to 0.5 miles [10]. The information is autonomously sent at different
The loss of tracking will result in the need to reacquire update rates depending on the type of message. The
and re-identify. Heavy rain or snow sometimes also reporting interval of dynamic information is dependent
affects the effectiveness of radar tracking. on speed and course alteration. When a high speed ship
 B. Lin & C.H. Huang: Comparison Between ARPA Radar and AIS Characteristics for Vessel Traffic Services 185

is changing course, the information update interval is 2 passively by AIS because required data have to rely on
seconds, but it is 3 minutes for the ship at anchor. The AIS transmitting from target ships. But the latter can
interval of static and voyage related information is provide ships identity and voyage data automatically.
every 6 minutes or on request [5]. Dynamic information As a VTS operator, facing the two sets of information
must be apparently sent at a shorter interval than others. obtaining from ARPA radar and AIS what should be
The status of ship movement is changing faster the read first needs a careful consideration. It is necessary
interval of update rate is shorter. Other ship can find the to compare which of these two sets of data is more
change early. Therefore AIS can provide ship officers important, useful and accurate for VTS.
with sufficient additional information of the ship en- Although the effectiveness of receiving data is
countering that is potentially extremely valuable for related to VTS location and ship pattern within the area,
taking action to avoid collision. it is impossible to use the equipment in VTS for the
Every message containing the ship identity is a comparison, which must operate uninterrupted for navi-
great value to VTS. Most of ship identifications tracked gation safety. Therefore it was decide to complement
by VTS rely on approaching ships reporting their name this study by means of experimental observation for
and location through VHF call, and the VTS operator obtaining a comprehensive understanding of the effec-
then correlating this information with an unassigned tiveness of data from ARPA radars and AIS fitted in the
ARPA track. After VTS is fitted with AIS, as the name building of Merchant Marine Department (MMD), Na-
implies, ship identity can be automatically and immedi- tional Taiwan Ocean University (NTOU). In the
ately provided that help overcome time consuming pro- observation, two ARPA radars of JRC maker and two
cedure and misunderstanding messages, inherent in the AIS of Nauticast maker were used. The building facing
VHF communications due to the problems of different ocean is one mile east off Keelung VTS center. Ships
languages and accents [13]. Another great benefit for moving within Keelung approaches can be scanned by
VTS is ship tracking improved. VTS receiving AIS the ARPA radar and identified by the AIS fitted in the
messages from a ship at the maximum range of the VHF building. Use of the equipments at NTOU provided a
communications usually in excess of detecting range of unique opportunity to compare present VTS operations
conventional radar. As a consequence, VTS can extend in Keelung harbor.
detection range and the detection is contained in AIS Wave lengths of the two ARPA radars were 3 cm
messages. (X-band) and 10 cm (S-band) respectively. Therefore
The multiple functions of AIS on navigation safety during the period of the observation, screens of the two
have had a major impact on maritime industry. Al- radars were controlled in 6 miles and 24 miles
though there are many advantages of using AIS receiv- respectively. The maximum number of ship targets
ing ship information: accurate ship position, automatic detected by the ARPA radars was 6 in manual acquire,
and prompt update, good quality during adverse weather, and information including bearing, distance, course and
reliable ship tracking without shadow effect, etc., there speed of three targets could be displayed each time. The
are also some disadvantages in use of AIS. When a ship information was photographed at 6 minute internal by a
shuts off the AIS, or does not fit the AIS, such as fishing digital camera, and then keyed and stored in a computer.
boats, the VTS operator can see the ship in sight but no Latitude and longitude of target position had to be
information on AIS display. Under this situation, accu- calculated according to its bearing and distance from
rately monitoring ship movement could not achieve the known position of MMD building, as shown in Table
with AIS, has to use other equipment. If the operation 1.
still concentrates on the AIS display and neglects exist- One of the two AIS equipments was fixed in the
ence of the ship, it will be a seriously critical time. building, and another one was a portable. Both AIS
Another problem is that ship equipment in conjunction were connected with a computer. All received informa-
with AIS, such as GPS or gyro compass, has trouble so tion automatically transferred and stored in the comput-
that the information delivering to VTS and other ships ers with ACCESS data base format, as shown in Table
is incorrect or inaccurate. 2. Because the information of any target ship was re-
ceived every 2 seconds, the stored information was a
EXPERIMENTAL OBSERVATION large quantity. There were many repeated information
or the information with small change for the same
For surveillance requirements VTS must realize target. Therefore the original files of the information in
ship movements within the severed area. In VTS center, data base had to be sorted out in accordance with the
maneuvering information of ships can be detected ac- MMSI of target ships. For the comparison with ARPA
tively by ARPA radar without the need of transmission radar information, each hour was divided into 10 time
by other equipments from target ships, and received points so that the information was read in 6 minute
186 Journal of Marine Science and Technology, Vol. 14, No. 3 (2006)

Table 1. Example of ARPA radar information in the observation

Obs. no Time Latitude Longitude Bearing Dist. Course Speed

R0128001 2005/1/28 09:06:00 26.45001231 118.5283896 326 3.5 199 8.9
R0128002 2005/1/28 09:06:00 22.59564993 124.9850697 342 4.1 154 0
R0128003 2005/1/28 09:06:00 22.04544107 124.6067301 028 4.2 300 9.3
R0128004 2005/1/28 09:06:00 29.10156108 122.871236 051 4.1 118 2
R0128005 2005/1/28 09:06:00 30.18180072 120.946747 038 5.1 145 0.3

Table 2. Example of original AIS information in the observation

Index Time MMSI Navigational Position Longitude Latitude SOG COG True
status accuracy heading
1 2005/1/28 08:42:21 351056000 Default Low 121.752 25.148 0 150 241
2 2005/1/28 08:42:22 352388000 Under way Low 121.752 25.145 0 248 511
using engine
3 2005/1/28 08:42:23 416337000 Under way High 121.75 25.143 0 103 234
sailing
4 2005/128 08:42:23 538090053 Not under Low 121.73 25.334 0 229 96
command
5 2005/1/28 08:42:25 416207000 Under way Low 121.751 25.154 0 47 279
sailing

Table 3. Example of sorted AIS information in the observation

Index Time MSSI Lat. Long. Speed Course Heading Distance

2125 2005/01/28 09:00:00 1130504 121.778 25.149 0 0 511 0.549295003
2124 2005/01/28 09:00:00 215300000 121.724 252.0 12 51 130 3.9665911.6
2128 2005/01/28 09:00:00 309764000 121.617 25.368 16 269 227 15.86499307
2126 2005/01/28 09:00:00 351056000 121.752 25.148 0 178 241 1.063393154
2127 2005/01/28 09:00:00 352388000 121.752 25.145 0 284 274 1.116407184

interval. The repeated information, except the first data MapInfo computer software all target position in accor-
set, was deleted. The sorted information included time, dance with their latitude and longitude were plotted on
ship MMSI, latitude longitude, speed, course, heading a base chart of coast line with Keelung harbor and
and distance, as shown in Table 3. The distance was adjacent waters. Figures 1 and 2 only show parts of
calculated from ship position and the building position. targets near Keelung harbor.
In the Tables 2 and 3, there was a target with heading In the second part, the observed target was a fixed
511, which represented the AIS installed in the Trans- target having known accurate location in order to test
portation Department building. To avoid incurring the accuracy of both equipments. The fixed target at an
confusion to other ships, the AIS was input a special adequate distance had to be detected by ARPA radars
heading by the Department. and received by AIS from the MMD building at the same
Before the observation, all equipments had to be time. Keelung Island was finally chosen as the fixed
synchronized with Universal Time Co-ordination (UTC). target. The portable AIS was fitted at Coast Guard
The observation was divided into two parts. In the first building on the island and in conjunction with GPS. The
part, the observed targets were moving ships approach- Fixed AIS in the MMD building could receive the
ing or leaving Keelung port in order to compare the position information transmitting form the portable AIS.
coverage and effectiveness of receiving information in At mean time the ARPA radars in the building could
both equipments. It was a 72 hour observation, 36 hours also monitor the island and detect the bearing and
in day time and night time respectively. Through distance of its echo in order to calculate its latitude and
 B. Lin & C.H. Huang: Comparison Between ARPA Radar and AIS Characteristics for Vessel Traffic Services 187

material and size. Therefore the adequate range of

ARPA screen in VTS center had better be set within 24
miles. When the target echo is weaker, the range has to
be decreased even less than 6 miles, especially for small
targets. Relatively, information via AIS can be trans-
mitted to a longer distance due to lower frequency, but
the received signal at distance under 40 miles was more
clear in the observation. Target’s material and size did
not affect AIS performance.

2. Blind area

It was apparent to find a blind area at north-west

coastal waters from Keelung harbor due to obstacle of
Fig. 1. Locations of targets detected by ARPA radars.
Ho-pin Island in the observation, as shown in Figure 1.
The waters between true bearing 336 degrees from the
MMD building and coast line had nearly no targets
detected by ARPA. There was also a shadow area
behind Keelung Island. The density of targets was less
than other areas. After radio waves transmitted by radar
met a very close geographical obstacle, Ho-pin Island,
the waves could not continuously proceed and reflected
back. The screen of the ARPA radar only displayed the
obstacle feature without target echo behind the obstacles.
AIS tracks could avoid the majority of such effects.
Even targets in Keelung harbor which could not be seen
in sight from the MMD building were detected, as
shown in Figure 2.

3. No signal target

Fig. 2. Locations of targets received by AIS.

When a line connected from Keelung Island to
Cape Bi-tou, there were 74 targets within the water area
between the line and coast, as shown in Figure 1, but
only one target in Figure 2. Water depth of the area is
longitude. Both positions could be compared to analyze less than 20 meters and shallow water exists from
their stability and variety for VTS effectiveness. The Keelung Island extending to Ho-pin Island. Merchant
criterion of the fixed position was Latitude 25°11.7’N, ships can not navigate in the area, except ships anchor-
Longitude 121°46.7’E in accordance with the position ing for awaiting berth. However the area is a good
of Keelung Island in China Sea Pilot Volume III, pub- fishery for fishing boats. These boats are exempted to
lished by British Hydrographer of the Navy. fit AIS from SOLAS. That is the reason why no target
could be detected by AIS, but lots of targets be detected
DATA ANALYSIS by ARPA radars due to active requisition. Furthermore
there were probably a few merchant ships turn off their
1. Geographical overage AIS and could not be detected during the period of the
observation.
The longest target detected by ARPA radars was
33.35 miles in day time, and 29.67 miles in night time. 4. Target quantity
That was 56.16 miles in day time and 46.75 miles in
night time by AIS. Because the frequency of radio In the first part of the observation, the average
waves of radar is higher than that of AIS, the distance of number of total targets detected by AIS was 2,581 ships
the wave transmitting of the former is shorter than that each day in day time, and the average number at each
of the latter. Furthermore the detecting distance for time point was about 21 ships. By ARPA radars that was
ARPA radar is affected by the height of antenna, target’s 489 ships each day, and 4 ships at each time point. In
188 Journal of Marine Science and Technology, Vol. 14, No. 3 (2006)

Table 4. Pros (+) and cons (–) of ARPA radar and AIS characteristics

ARPA AIS
(+) Active detection. (–) Passive detection.
(–) Effective coverage under 24 nautical miles. (+) Effective coverage under 40 nautical miles.
(–) Area coverage limited by radar blind and shadow areas. (+) Full area coverage.
(+) All targets visible. (–) Only AIS ships visible.
(–) Total target quantity smaller. (+) Total target quantity larger and reaching 5 times compared
with ARPA.
(–) Information simple. (+) More voyage information
(+) Position accurate. (+) Position accurate.
(–) Echo various slightly. (+) Signal stable.

night time, there were 2,735 ships each day detected by CONCLUSION
AIS and 499 ships by ARPA radars. The largest number
was 30 ships detected by AIS at each time point, and the For requirements of VTS functions, both ARPA
smallest was 15 ships. But that was 15 ships by ARPA radar and AIS equipments can provide accurate position
radars, and usually the record was one ship. The target of detected target ships. AIS can detect a larger number
quantity of AIS was about 5.38 times to that of ARPA of targets without considering shadow effect and can
radars. Generally speaking, factors, such as strength of provide more voyage information for VTS center. ARPA
radio wave detecting range, shadow area and blind area, radar can detect targets actively even buoy or rock no
affecting the detecting quantity of ARPA radars were matter ship size or fitted any equipment. One of major
larger than factors, such as small ships without fitting purpose for VTS is to prevent ships from collision,
AIS and large ships turning off their AIS, affecting the including a ship colliding with a fishing boat or a buoy.
quantity of AIS. There was no significant difference Sometimes fishing boats are working in fairway that
between the quantity of targets detected at day time and obstructs ships moving and increases navigational risk.
night time for both equipments. From AIS information these kinds of situations can not
be found so that VTS can not sound collision warning to
5. Contents of information the related ships. Therefore AIS can not replace ARPA
radar in VTS operation.
Information display on ARPA radars was simple, Although ARPA radar still has deficiency on its
including ship position, course, speed, bearing, distance, characteristics for VTS requirements, some deficiency
CPA and TCPA. Except position, course and speed, can be improved. For Keelung VTS, an additional
there were some others on AIS display, such as ship radar is installed in Keelung Island can reduce shadow
MMSI, name, type and navigational status. Some ships effect, lessen the blind area and increase the coverage
transmitted voyage information via AIS, such as ship of area and the number of target ships. As for ship
draught, dangerous cargoes, etc, that depended on the identity and voyage information, AIS can be used in
input of ship officers. VTS center as an auxiliary installation for these
functions. From this study the suggestion to VTS is
6. Position accuracy that when a ship moving outside a harbor over 20 miles
off, it is necessary to identify her name and receive
In the second part of the observation, the standard more information by AIS; after the ship entering the 20
deviation of latitude and longitude of the fixed target mile boundary, VTS operators have to watch the ARPA
detected by ARPA radars compared with the criterion display carefully and uninterrupted. Consequently
position was 3.7 meters, and 9.26 meters by AIS. The VTS functions can be realized and safety of port water
deviation of both was acceptable. There was no signifi- area can be maintained.
cant difference between the positions of the two
equipments. The position in AIS received from GPS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
was more stable than that in ARPA radars by manual
acquired. We are grateful for the financial support offered by
Table 4 elucidates the pros and cons of the two the National Science Council, Taiwan, R.O.C. under
equipments from the observation in this study. contract No. NSC 93-2211-E-019-016.
 B. Lin & C.H. Huang: Comparison Between ARPA Radar and AIS Characteristics for Vessel Traffic Services 189

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