Guidelines Recommendations I.P.R. IMO ITU-M1371-1 ITU FAQS
 

Automatic Identification System (AIS) is a system that makes it possible to monitor ships from other ships, and from shore based stations. AIS equipped ships continuously transmit a short message containing information of position, course over ground (COG), speed over ground (SOG), gyro course (heading), etc. Ships equipped with AIS meeting anywhere on earth will be able to identify and track each other without being dependent of shore stations.

Shore stations receive the same information from AIS equipped ships within the VHF area of the station when monitoring the coastal areas and the ports. The AIS uses a broadcast and interrogation technology that operates ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore including limited communication capabilities.

The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has established carriage requirements for merchant ships. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has defined the technical standard and ratified the global frequencies. In addition, the International Electrotechnical Commision (IEC) has developed methods for testing AIS for global interoperability.

AIS is making navigation safer by enhancing situational awareness and the possibility of detecting the location of other ships, even if they are behind a bend in a channel or river or behind an island in an archipelago. AIS also solves the inherent problem with all radars, by detecting boats and smaller ships, fitted with AIS, in sea-clutter and in heavy rain.

Innovative technologies like ECDIS and ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore AIS improve safety in the maritime field. It also makes it possible to identify, track and supervise ships from shore.

Specifically, SOLAS Chapter V, Regulation 19, section 2.4.5 states that:

"AIS shall

  1. provide automatically to appropriate equipped shore stations, other ships and aircraft information, including ship's identity, type, position, course, speed, navigational status and other safety-related information;

  2. receive automatically such information from similarly fitted ships;

  3. monitor and track ships; and

  4. exchange data with shore-based facilities."

In addition, the IMO Performance Standards for AIS state: "

  1. The AIS should improve the safety of navigation by assisting in the efficient navigation of ships, protection of the environment, and operation of Vessel Traffic Services (VTS), by satisfying the following functional requirements:
    .1 in a ship-to-ship mode for collision avoidance;
    .2 as a means for littoral States to obtain information about a ship and its cargo; and
    .3 as a VTS tool, i. e. ship-to-shore (traffic management)

  2. The AIS should be capable of providing to ships and to competent authorities, information from the ship, automatically and with the required accuracy and frequency, to facilitate accurate tracking. Transmission of the data should be with the minimum involvement of ship's personnel and with a high level of availability.”