Your Vesper Marine XB-6000 is a high performance AIS transponder with built-in NMEA 2000 gateway and fast navigation GPS.
If you haven't registered your product with us, please register now. By registering your Vesper Marine XB-6000 AIS Transponder we'll be able to provide you with fast technical support and warranty service. You'll also be able to keep up-to-date with free firmware updates.
Sections:
- Installation
- Installation on fast vessels (>45 knots)
- XB-6000 LED status indicator
- Configuring your vessel details
- NMEA 2000 status and configuration
- Current NMEA 2000 PGN list
- Downloads
- Firmware updates
- What PC and MAC navigation software can I use with it?
Installation
The XB-6000 Installation Guide has important information about wiring and antenna placement.
The install guide shows how to connect an optional switch to place your XB-6000 in Silent Mode. This mode allows your XB-6000 to continue to function as a GPS and AIS receiver but will not transmit your vessel's position or other information. This is useful for those times when you wish to remain private. You can also control silent mode from the vmAIS Configuration and Status Utility (see downloads section).
Installation on fast vessels (>45 knots)
The GPS smoothing feature is optimized for vessels that do not exceed 45 knots. If you have a fast vessel then you must disable the smoothing feature. Otherwise, you will lose your GPS position when travelling in excess of 48 knots.
To do this, download the vmAIS Configuration and Status Utility (see downloads section) and install it on your your PC, Mac or Ubuntu. Connect to your XB-6000 using the provided USB cable. Select the GPS tab and untick the Smoothing option.
XB-6000 LED status indicator
Refer to the XB-6000 Installation Guide for details about the Status LED. In normal operation the Status LED will be solid green. During the first minute startup period it will be solid orange and flashing orange when it is acquiring a GPS fix.
For further details and troubleshooting you can use the vmAIS Configuration and Status Utility (see downloads section). To use the utility, download and install it on your PC, Mac or Ubuntu computer. The connect to your XB-6000 using the provided USB cable.
Select the Status tab to determine why the Status LED is not green. All status items must be ticked. You can also use this page to view the antenna VSWR and various statistics for each AIS channel.
The GPS tab is used to view the current satellite status and may be used to help determine the best location for the GPS antenna.
Configuring your vessel details
Your XB-6000 will not transmit until your vessel details have been configured. Your dealer may have already configured this information for you and this procedure can be used to verify the information is correct.
You must have an assigned MMSI number for your vessel. If you don't have an assigned MMSI, contact the relevant authority in your country.
Once you configure your MMSI number you cannot change it. If you need to change the MMSI, please contact an authorized dealer or Vesper Marine.
Your vessel details may be configured viewed using the vmAIS Configuration and Status Utility (see downloads section). To use the utility, download and install it on your PC, Mac or Ubuntu computer. Connect the XB-6000 to your computer using the provided USB cable.
Once you have connected, choose the "Configure Vessel Data" tab where your current details will be displayed. Enter your MMSI and other details carefully since this information is transmitted to all vessels within range. Select the most appropriate vessel type and enter the location of the GPS antenna. You may enter the location in either metres or feet. Measurements in feet are converted to whole metres for transmission. As a result, not all measurements in feet can be represented.
NMEA 2000 status and configuration
For troubleshooting and advanced installations, you can view the status and adjust the NMEA 2000 configuration. To do this, download the vmAIS Configuration and Status Utility (see downloads section) and install it on your PC, Mac or Ubuntu computer. Connect your XB-6000 to your computer using the provided USB cable.
Once you have connected, choose the "NMEA 2000" tab. This tab shows the current NMEA 2000 connection state. It will be green when the XB-6000 is connected to the bus and working properly. If there is a problem detected on the bus, the status indicator will be orange. If the XB-6000 is not operating on the NMEA 2000 bus the status indicator will be red.
Note: It is normal for the red and orange indicators to flick back and forth every few seconds when there is no NMEA 2000 connection to the XB-6000.
From this tab you can select which individual PGNs you wish to receive and transmit. For example, you might choose to not output GPS data if your NMEA 2000 network already has another source of GPS data. You can also select the output rate for each PGN in milliseconds.
Note: GPS data is updated either once per second or five times per second depending on your configuration settings. If you choose to output the data more frequently the same data will be repeated each time until the next update.
Current NMEA 2000 PGN list
PGN's Received:
127250 Vessel Heading
128259 Speed
128267 Water Depth
128275 Distance Log
130306 Wind
130310 Water Temperature
130311 Water Temperature
130312 Water Temperature
130316 Water Temperature
129283 Cross Track Error
192284 Navigation Data
129285 Route/WP Information
PGN's Sent:
129025 Position
129026 COG & SOG
129029 GNSS Positions
129540 GNSS Satellites
129038 AIS Class A Position
129039 AIS Class B Position
129040 AIS Class A Extended Position
129041 AIS Aids to Navigation Report
129794 AIS Class A Static Voyage
129798 AIS SAR Aircraft Position
129801 AIS Addressed Safety
129802 AIS Safety Related Broadcast
129809 AIS Class B "CS" Static, Part A
129810 AIS Class B "CS" Static, Part B
129283 Cross Track Error
192284 Navigation Data
129285 Route/WP Information
Downloads
| XB-6000 Installation Guide |
Here's where you'll find wiring diagrams, how to interpret the status LED, information about antenna placement, and connecting NMEA 2000. In this guide there's also troubleshooting information and technical specifications. |
| Windows: vmAIS Configuration and Status Utility |
Install this utility on a PC running Microsoft Windows (XP or later) to configure or check your MMSI & vessel details, update your NMEA 2000 configuration, monitor GPS and transponder status, assist with troubleshooting and provide for future firmware updates. |
| Mac OS X: vmAIS Configuration and Status Utility |
Install this utility on Mac OS X (10.7 "Lion" or later) to configure or check your MMSI & vessel details, update your NMEA 2000 configuration, monitor GPS and transponder status, assist with troubleshooting and provide for future firmware updates. |
| Ubuntu: vmAIS Configuration and Status Utility |
Install this utility on Ubuntu (12.04 or later) to configure or check your MMSI & vessel details, update your NMEA 2000 configuration, monitor GPS and transponder status, assist with troubleshooting and provide for future firmware updates. |
| USB drivers for Microsoft Windows |
Recent versions of Microsoft Windows includes the USB drivers. However, if your system does not have them installed you can download them from here. |
| USB drivers for MAC OS X |
The latest USB drivers for MAC OS X. |
| USB drivers for Linux |
Support is included in Ubuntu 11.10, kernel 3.0.0-19. These are the USB drivers you can build for other Linux versions. |
What PC and MAC navigation software can I use with it?
You can use any PC or MAC navigation software that accepts AIS and GPS data over a serial port. For the serial connection use the USB port on your Vesper Marine transponder.
Some examples of navigation software that supports the XB-6000 are Rose Point Coastal Explorer, openCPN and macENC. Expedition. MaxSea.
There are many other computer navigation software packages that work with AIS data. Check the manual for your software about its support for AIS and how to configure it.
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