RedNavi: Building a 3D Scene of the Current Sea from AIS Data

The Automatic Identification System (AIS) is a kind of navigation equipment that exchanges a wealth of essential information among vessels and between ships to shore through Very High Frequency. Currently, identification and other navigational information can be obtained in real time with AIS data integrated into other shipborne systems, such as the Electronic Chart Display and Information System and radar. However, at present, AIS information is represented in a two-dimensional (2D) way, which is not the same as the three-dimensional (3D) world people perceive visually. In this paper, we introduce RedNavi, a sustainable computer 3D scene building system that visualizes the current sea, specifically the environment and traffic conditions around the ownship, using received AIS data. RedNavi has a wide range of application scenarios. Applying to the maritime education and training field, it can serve as a bridge between the 2D and 3D worlds, helping less experienced trainees build up their capabilities. Applying to actual navigation, it can provide the deck officer with another visual aid to their lookout in addition to existing 2D information systems. In addition, given the microservices architecture RedNavi adopts, the development, deployment, and maintenance processes become relatively lighter, faster, and easier, and therefore more sustainable than traditional monolithic systems.