Expedition Navigation Software 
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1 of 1- rbhun
- Expert
Offline - Registered: 7/05/2019
- Posts: 129
old boat, new headaches
Hi all
I am getting on a bouat just bought. Its a Farr 52 (Chocolate 3), and I am trying to figure out the system during the delivery to her new home. I figured this is as good place as any to look for answers...
The boat originally had an Ockam system with the Unisys brain, mast displays and magnum displays. Apart from the magnums, its suprisingly works. She was partially upgraded with an N2k system consisting of a Raymarine Axiom chartplotter, a Raymarine autopilot with its brain and controller, and a Digital Yacht AIS. It also runs an acient computer with an even more acient Expedition, and I stuck a Starlink on for network and netflix during transit.
So here is what I am trying to figure out:
The link between old and new is the ProAIS, which has USB feed into the PC and N2K connection. So far I only managed to have it send AIS and GPS over USB. Can it be used as an N2k gateway?
The Ockam is connected to the PC thru an ATEM serial to usb converter. For the last 2 hours I was pulling my hair as after a restart, the ATEM (I suppose) decided to treat the Ockam serial feed as a mouse input, and made it impossible to use the controller. I unplugged, replugged, restarted, disabled what I could, to no help. 10 minutes ago, that stopped after a restart of the Ockam, and I have no idea why. Anybody seen this behaviour?
most importantly, I am trying to have the old PC stream data over to my laptop. I have set up the ockam instrument to redirect to UDP, on port 6000. That worked, at least I have seen the incoming data in the Raw Data window on my laptop. And then I set the AIS/GPS feed to redirect over 5000. That is working, but since that, the Ockam feed is not. And even thoug I can see the incoming Raw Data feed, i dont have it in the number boxes.
I seem to remember a simpler solution to move data between, but cannot find it.
any help appreciated
- NoRay
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- Registered: 1/18/2019
- Posts: 40
Re: old boat, new headaches
I can only help you with the mouse problem, I think. I use this little program to prevent the pc from treating a com port as a mouse
- Nick
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- Registered: 9/16/2015
- Posts: 3,164
Re: old boat, new headaches
There is a note in the Exp help about NMEA appearing as a mouse, but I haven't heard of that for many years.
- rbhun
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- Registered: 7/05/2019
- Posts: 129
Re: old boat, new headaches
that would not be suprising, since this PC was running Windows XP...
We managed to do the delivery on this system, I'll be back with more questions for sure...also looking for Ockam spares if somebody has them 
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Thread Starter
- RocketScott
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- Registered: 6/19/2025
- Posts: 3
Re: old boat, new headaches
Looking back at your first post...
The AIS isn't designed to work as a bridge. It will output AIS data to the computer over USB but it would be better to connect the computer to the N2K network and get all the data from there
On our Ockam system I had an Actisense NGW-1-ISO connected to the RS-232 Interface box. One of the issues with Ockam is that it doesn't put a checksum on the NMEA0183 sentences. Some gateways, like from Quark-Elec, don't work because they don't see it as valid data
- Nick
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Re: old boat, new headaches
The Ockam T1 is 25 years old - we had some of the first ones in the 2001 AC.
Originally NMEA 0183 didn't have checksums (or maybe they were optional, I forget).
- rbhun
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Re: old boat, new headaches
Thank you for your answers.
I have given up the idea of using the AIS as a bridge.
As you can imagine, there are many places to spend money on this boat, so we are not gonna do a complete instruments rebuild. I need to save whatever's working. Actually, suprisingly the whole Ockam system works and sends data to Exp, but I need to be ready for when the T1 dies and salvage the good bits. It seems the best way is to wire everything into Exp since we are not getting a sailing computer any soon. Also, I am not sure the old system can still be calibrated. Its way off now.
-I dont supose the mast displays are working with anything apart from the T1, so when that goes, the screens go.
-the mast has a new B&G 3-phase sensor, plus the depth and paddle which all go to the Ockam multiplex interface. It would be interesting to see if I can get that data in somehow.
-Is there any reason to try to save the Honeywell HMR-3000 sensor, wiring it directly to Exp? It looks like a good instrument. There is a Raymarine EV1 already on board.
-Also, any way to get the Diverse Yachting HLA (analog) in directly?
thank you for your help (and understanding)
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Thread Starter- RocketScott
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- Registered: 6/19/2025
- Posts: 3
Re: old boat, new headaches
The main problem I ran into with the Ockam system was the connectors. After replacing all the BNC connectors on the modules and the wires connecting them it worked great
- Nick
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Re: old boat, new headaches
Yes, coax might not have been the wisest design choice in a salt water environment.
You can get waterproof BNC connectors now, which might be worth using whenever you replace something.