McMurdo increases marine safety with u-blox GPS

“Our waterproof and compact AIS beacons can make all the difference when an individual is in difficulty at sea. The chances of being located and retrieved are greatly increased thanks to their ability to transmit both AIS and GPS data to the vessel the individual has come from, as well as to other AIS equipped vessels within a 4 mile radius,” said James Turner, McMurdo Product Manager, “for this extremely important application, sensitivity, power consumption and reliability is of utmost importance. That is why we continue to rely on u-blox for their advanced GPS receiver technology.”

“We are pleased to be a long-time positioning partner of McMurdo Ltd for their cutting-edge marine safety equipment” said Huub Robroek, Area Sales Manager at u blox, “this type of application demands the highest performance, highest-quality GPS receiver. It really underscores the advantages of our industry leading positioning technology.”

The handheld S10 and life-jacket mounted R10 can be activated when urgent assistance is needed. They transmit target survivor information for 24 hours to nearby vessels, including both GPS location and tidal drift. The Automatic Identification System (AIS) is an automated tracking system used on ships and by Vessel Traffic Services for identifying and locating vessels. By transmitting position and heading data over 2 parallel systems, potential rescuers have all the information they require to carry out swift retrieval of an individual. Both beacons feature a flashing LED light to assist with visual fixing and night-time location.