Note: This is a brand new product with documentation still work in progress. Don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

The dAISy FeatherWing is a dual-channel AIS receiver with integrated low-noise amplifier (LNA). Thanks to its small size and low power consumption the dAISy FeatherWing is ideally suited for embedded applications.

AIS (automatic identification system) is an automatic tracking system for ships. Ships broadcast their position and other information over VHF. The dAISy FeatherWing allows you to receive these transmissions, enabling real-time tracking of nearby vessels.

The dAISy FeatherWing outputs the AIS data as a stream of ASCII messages, which are encoded in a marine standard format known as NMEA AIVDM sentences. This format is understood by applications and devices like chart plotters, marine traffic aggregators, and can be processed by many opensource libraries.

While the dAISy FeatherWing is designed to be mounted directly on top of any Adafruit Feather development board, it can also be used with other microcontrollers and single board computers.

Documentation for the dAISy FeatherWing is available here.

Specification

• Dual channel AIS receiver with two independent radios
• Continuously receives on two configurable AIS channels
• Outputs AIS data in industry standard NMEA sentences (AIVDM)
• Supports all AIS frequencies (161.975 MHz, 162.025 MHz, 156.775 MHz, 156.825 MHz)
• Supports all AIS message types (1-27)
• Sensitivity of -113 dBm @ 20% PER with LNA enabled, -103 dBm with LNA disabled
• Female SMA connector for 50 Ohm VHF antenna (antenna not included)
• 38400 bps primary serial interface for AIS output and device configuration
• 4800-38400 bps secondary serial interface configurable as NMEA input or AIS output
• I2C interface for AIS output
• Two I/O with configurable function (sleep mode, LNA on/off, AIS msg received, etc.)
• Low power: 70 mA w/ LNA enabled, 35 mA w/ LNA disabled, 0.35 mA sleep mode
• 3.3 V power and logic
• Pinout, shape and size of the dAISy FeatherWing are compatible with the Adafruit Feather specification

See documentation for detailed specification.

Warranty, shipping, etc.

The dAISy FeatherWing is professionally manufactured in the USA. We offer a 12 month warranty on the product (excluding physical or water damage). Please contact us if dAISy prematurely fails or if you encounter any other technical issues.

We ship with USPS First Class or Priority Mail. International delivery is very reliable, however end-to-end tracking is only available for a few countries. Please contact us if you have special shipping requirements.

We also offer international shipping with DHL and UPS for US$30 to US$120 depending on your location. Please contact us for a quote if interested.

Note: For international shipping, VAT and other import or handling fees may be applied by your local customs. These are the responsibility of the recipient. We will always declare the purchase price excluding shipping.