1.) News
Major performance improvements, whole new iOS7 look and feel and a commercial feed is available as in-App purchase.
2.) About
The maritime world is a fascinating world. The amount of ships that sail the seas is incredible, and the number of people involved or enthusiastic about sailing is beyond imagination. Stevedores, pilots, VTS operators, mariners, lock controllers, boatmen, cargo handlers, operators, mariners and fans alike: would it not it be great to know, what ships are out there? Well now you can.
3.) The App
SeaHawk is great app which can show you the maritime traffic overlaid on an online map. The traffic can be refreshed automatically (live feeds) or manually (refresh button). Labels can be toggled to avoid cluttering the display.
It also includes a list of vessels that have been detected by the application. This list can be searched and can be used to find a certain vessel by filtering on the name, call sign, IMO or MMSI number. SeaHawk uses different colors to distinguish between different types of ship which allows for easy discrimination between the ships.
4.) The data
We believe in open applications, we believe in a flexible approach. Rather than limiting your view to the feeds that we can provide for you, we are giving you the ability to incorporate your own data. SeaHawk supports the following data formats:
KML
Many people throughout the world also believe in open information, that is why they have setup their own AIS receiver and are offering the resulting information as KML feed to the world. KML is usually sent over HTTP with the GET protocol. Typical sources are:
http://playa.tbusftl.com:4185/pp_google.kml
http://www.fleetmon.com/data/kmz/global.kmz
http://marinetraffic2.aegean.gr/ais/getkml.aspx
AIS
SeaHawk supports ITU-1371 messages over IEC-61992 encapsulation. This data format is used by all Class A and Class B transponders to transmit data over the VHF link or output through serial or Ethernet connection. This format is usually used in combination with a TCP/IP connection. Typical sources are
http://www.aislive.com
http://data.aishub.net/xml.php?username=XXXXXXXX&human=1
IVEF
The Inter VTS Exchange Format is an IALA Recommendation for the exchange of VTS (Vessel Traffic Service) data by the competent authority. This type of feed is available in all major Dutch sea ports, as well as in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Lobito, Tallinn and Singapore. To use this data you will need permission from the port authority and a valid user account. (Typically this means you are a stakeholder in the port). SeaHawk can receive IVEF over HTTP GET or PUT and also streamed over TCP/IP (port 8043) for real-time updates.
Mermaid (Commercial)
A global commercial feed providing real-time precise coverage is available.
4.1) ShipPlotter
The folks at http://www.shipplotter.com have done a tremendous job in creating a simple application that allows you to create a simple AIS receiver station and put the information on the web. Once you enabled the built in Googl Earth server in ShipPlotter (in the I/O settings), ShipPlotter will create a small http server running on your computer at port 4185. You can display this information on SeaHawk by configuring the following live link:
Connection: HTTP GET
5.) Maps
Available as an in-app purchase is the functionality to download and show offline maps which you can use when you dont have a data connection (or dont want to use it due to roaming charges. The maps available are based on the http://www.openseamap.org data. Check for quality and availability on their website, it is under rapid community development. You can also send in your maps and they will be added to the server for the benefit of all.
5.) Feedback, ideas?
SeaHawk is under constant development, send us your ideas, problems and suggestions. We are looking forward to them.