2009 WASE International Conference on Information Engineering

Shipping Monitoring System Based on GPS and GPRS Technology

Zhenhua Zhao
School of electronical and information technology Wuhan institute of technology Wuhan, Hubei, China zhzhaocn@sohu.com
AbstractA scheme of constructing shipping monitoring and control system has been provided: consists of monitor and control center, data communications, ship-borne terminals and user terminals; Hardware Structure of ship-borne terminal has been discussed: consists of central processing unit, GPS module, GPRS module, memory modules, I / O interfaces, keyboard and display modules etc. And the overall structure of ship-borne terminals, two types of memories and their connections with the microprocessor and LCD biasing voltage circuit etc. have been given after introducing related devices and modules; Highlights the initialization statement of GPS module and positioning information acquiring statement in the software design, and the related examples are given to illustrate it. IP is determined for network layer protocol and DUP for application layer protocol for communication after analyzing IP, TCP and DUP communication protocols. Keywords-GPS; GPRS; TCP/IP; Monitoring and controlling system; Ship-borne terminal

Wei Zhou, Na Wang

School of electronical and information technology Wuhan institute of technology Wuhan, Hubei, China Nessee123@163.com information to the moving ships, and it also provides related data and dynamic information to scheduling, the maritime, channel, ports and other management departments. 2) Data Communication Take advantage of existing wireless communication networks and the GPRS technology to build dedicated network, construct communication network between monitoring center and ship-borne terminals. Ship-borne terminal connects with GPRS communication module through RS-232 serial interface, GPRS communicates with the Base station, and then the Base station transmits the information to the Internet or network X2.5. Conversely, IP packet marked with mobile address from the Internet transmits to ship-borne terminal through Base station. 3) Ship-borne terminal Ship-borne terminal is an integrated information platform equipped with GPS navigation and positioning, navigation information reporting and channel information receiving etc. 4) User terminal User terminal is remote terminal of system, connects with system through the Internet network, equipped with e-map inquiry, download service, ship dynamic information inquiry etc. B. System Working Principle The process of ship-borne terminal sending information to the monitoring center is: ship-borne terminal packages the data into TCP / IP or UDP data packets through the GPRS module, and then transforms to GPRS data packets transmitting in GPRS network. Then transmit to wireless data exchange center (WDEC) through GPRS wireless link, stripping out the GPRS packets by WDEC and sending TCP / IP packets to Internet through GGSN gateway, finally send to Control Center server by Internet. Server receives TCP / IP packets and restores them to the original data. The process of monitoring center sending information to the ship-borne terminals is: Server packages data into TCP / IP or UDP packets by sockets and sends to the WDEC via Internet, WDEC receives TCP / IP packets through GGSN Gateway and converts TCP / IP packets into GPRS packets, and finally sends the information to the ship-borne terminals through the GPRS wireless link. Ship-borne terminals receive GPRS data packets through the GPRS module and restore them to the original data.

. INTRODUCTION China is a highly developed country in inner river shipping. Strengthening shipping management, improving shipping efficiency, and ensuring the safety of shipping are the hard task we are facing. At present, GPS global navigation and positioning system has been widely used in national defense, transportation, environmental monitoring and other fields. Combining GPS with GPRS technology, Geography Information System, database and other technology can achieve a dynamic integration between running ships, channel status, weather condition, ship lock status etc. and management of scheduling, the maritime, ports, channel and other transportation business. And it can build a modern shipping monitoring system which can implement data acquisition, enquiry, control, management, decision-making, service and so on. . STRUCTURE OF SHIPPING MONITORING SYSTEM A. System Structure The system consists of monitoring center, data communications, ship-borne terminals, user terminals. 1) Monitoring Center Monitoring Center conducts the real-time monitoring of the voyage condition of ships within its domain and provides weather, river condition, ship channel and other

978-0-7695-3679-8/09 $25.00 2009 IEEE DOI 10.1109/ICIE.2009.186

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. HARDWARE DESIGN OF SHIP-BORNE TERMINAL A. Main Functions of Ship-borne Terminal Ship-borne terminal consists of microprocessor, GPS module, GPRS module, memory and other components, its main functions are as follows: 1) Ship positioning, receiving GPS information to fix location of ship. 2) Data reception and transmission. Sending ship positioning and other relevant information, and receiving control instructions from monitoring center. 3) Synthesized information display. Real-time displaying ships location, operating status, and monitoring center instructions etc. 4) Monitoring and Alarming. Issuing sound and light alarm signal in emergency, sending SOS signal to the monitoring center automatically if required. 5) Automatic connecting. Ship-borne terminal initiatively launches connection to the monitoring center when starting or losing communication during run due to error. Hardware Design of Ship-borne Terminal Ship-borne terminal consists of central processer, GPS module, GPRS module, memory, I/O interfaces, keyboard and display modules etc, its structure as shown in Figure 1. 1) Central microprocessor Considering the ship-borne terminal taking charge of GPS receiving, data acquisition, processing, Storage, communication and many other tasks, and definite real time requirement, SAMSUNG S3C44B0X[3] is used as microprocessor. Its a high performance 32-bit MCU with rich internal resource, high operating frequency, and simple system architecture, suitable in multi-functional, high performance requirement system.
Flash ROM SDRAM

B.

KeyBorad S3C44B0 LCD Control Signal Interface

RS-232

GPRS

RS-232 JTAG Debug interface

GPS

General I/0 Port

Figure 1. Hardware Design of Ship-borne Terminal

2) GPRS communication module ITM100 wireless communication module [4] from Simcom Company is used as GPRS communication module of ship-borne terminal. Its a GSM/GPRS tri-band module, primarily used in voice transmission, short messages and data services. ITM100 is integrated with complete radio

frequency circuits and GSM base band processor, suitable for developing GSM/GPRS wireless application products. ITM100 provides full-featured system interfaces: built-in RS-232 interface is very convenient to connect with the microprocessor. ITM100 module provides users a full-featured AT instruction set, command format as shown: a) AT + CIPSTART, connects with SERVER commands: Format: AT + CIPSTART = "SERVER IP ADDRESS", "SERVER PORT" Return OK when command is correct, ERROR when command is wrong. Return CONNECT OK when connect succeeds, CONNECT FAIL when connect fails. For example: Connection with SERVER AT + CIPSTART = "61.135.48.9", "2020" Return: OK Connect successfully return: CONNECT OK. b) AT + CIPSEND, data sending command: Format: AT + CIPSEND > XXXXXXXXX <ctrl + z> Return: OK For example: send data "Hello every one!" to SERVER (IP = 61.135.48.9, PORT = 2020) AT + CIPSEND > Hello every one! <ctrl + z> Return: OK. c) AT + CIPCLOSE, close SERVER commands: Return OK when command is correct, ERROR when Command is wrong. Return CLOSE OK when close successfully, CLOSE FAIL when close fails. 3) GPS module GPS receiver module receives civilian band positioning signals from GPS satellite system, solves location information. GPS modules are supported by many manufacturers, E531 from Shanghai E-compass science & technology co. ltd. is used for Ship-borne terminal, which is a 12-channel receiver, single-frequency, built-in Kalman filter GPS receiver, with low power consumption (rest 0.3mA, tracking 45mA), high positioning speed (quick start about 8 seconds), high precision (CEP3 m), wide temperature range (-40 ~ +85) and other characteristics, which meet the requirements of ship positioning. 4) Memory modules a) Read only memory (ROM) Flash SST39VF160 from SST company is used for read only memory belonging to improved EEPROM product. The advantage of Non-volatile programmable Flash ROM is: do not need to replace the chip when updating embedded device with software. SST39VF160 has a capacity of 1M x 16Bit, has 16 data lines and 20 address lines, connects to systems through simple control lines. SST30VF160 and S3C44B0 interface circuit as shown in Figure 2. b) Random access memory (RAM) S3C44B0 has 8K internal cache which is not enough using embedded operating system and programs run much slower in ROM than RAM, normal practice is to load some of the programs to RAM to run when starting system. Therefore, ship-borne terminals must have a large capacity of RAM.

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OM0 OM1

S3C44B0 A20~1 D15~0 nGCS0 nOE nWE

SST39VF A19~0 DQ15~0 nCE nOE nWE

display, so biasing voltage circuit is required between the LCD and controller. Biasing circuit is shown in Figure 4. . SOFTWARE DESIGN OF SHIP-BORNE TERMINAL This article only focused on GPS data acquisition and GPRS communication software due to space restriction. A. GPS Data Acquisition 1) GPS module initialization Currently, there are many GPS communication protocols, and the one widely used and followed by most manufacturers is the United States National Marine Electronics Association's Code NMEA0183ASCII interface protocol. Initialization of the GPS module is completed by sending NMEA command to serial port 0 to configure parameters. NMEA0183 has a total of seven input statements, including read current parameters, output settings, time zone settings, start and work mode settings, coordinate system selection, quick start and stop setting commands, lock location. All statements are started with $ PUNV ended with <CR> <LF>, and followed by validation code * cc at the end, cc represents bitwise XOR value of all the characters between "$" and *. For example: initialization procedure is as follows: $ PUNV, CONFIG, 00, 00, 0, 1000, 115200, 7 F * cc $ PUNV, CONFIG, 0 * cc $ PUNV, CONFIG, 03, -8, 0 * cc $ PUNV, CONFIG, 16, 1, 0 * cc 2) Read GPS positioning information Getting positioning information from the GPS module is a NMEA0183 output statement, the format and specific meaning as shown in TABLE1.
TABLE1 Output statement of positioning information $GPRMC,<1>,<2>,<3>,<4>,<5>,<6>,<7>,<8>,<9>,<10>,<11>, <12>*hh<CR><LF> <1> UTC time,hhmmss.ddd (hour minute second) format Positioning Status, A=Valid Positioning, V=Invalid <2> Positioning Dimension ddmm.mmmm (degrees minutes) format <3> (lead 0 will be transmitted) Dimension hemisphere N(North hemisphere),S(South <4> hemisphere) Longitude ddmm.mmmm (degrees minutes) format <5> (lead 0 will be transmitted) Dimension hemisphere E(East hemisphere),W(West <6> hemisphere) <7> Ground Speed Ground Course(000.0~259.9 degree, true north as a <8> reference base) <9> UTC calendar, ddmmyy (Day, Month, Year) format <10> Magnetic declination(000.0~180.0) <11> Magnetic declination direction, E(east), W(West) <12> Mode Indication, A=self-positioning, N=Invalid Data

Figure 2. Interface circuit between SST39VF160 and S3C44B0

HY57V641620 is with a capacity of 4Bank 1M 16Bit, LVTTL level compatible SDRAM. The extension of HY57V641620Z is similar to ROM, address/data lines connect to the lower numbers of MCU address/data lines in accordance with the size of memory capacity. The use of Write Enable (WE) is as same as the use of ROM. CS connects to the nSCSO (nGCS6) of S3C44B0X, the base address is 0x0c000000. Segment select pins BA0 and BA1 are controlled by ADDR21 and ADDR22 of S3C44B0X. Row/Column address of RAS/CAS of HY57V64162 is provided by nRAS/nCAS of S3C44BOX. HY57V641620 and S3C44B0 interface circuit as shown in Figure 3.
S3C44B0 ADDR12~1 BA DATA15~0 SCLK nRAS0/nSCS0 nCAS3/nSRAS nCAS3/nSCAS nWE nWBE1~0/DQM1~0 ADDR12~1 DATA15~0 HY57V641620 A11~0 BA DQ15~0 CLK nCS nSRAS nSCAS nWE LDQM/UDQM

DQM1~0

Figure 3. Interface circuit between HY57V641620 and S3C44B0

5 LCD display module Image dot-matrix LCD module LM057QC1TO1 from Sharp company is used for Ship-borne terminal display, with a resolution of 320 240, 256-color STN color LCD module, simple interface, stable, easy to operate and other features.

Figure 4. LCD Biasing Circuit

S3C44B0X and LM057QCIT01 liquid crystal display modules are versatile, and easy to connect. LCD module needs biasing voltage which is necessary for liquid crystal

For example: $GPGGA, 042540.001, 3110.6654, N, 12124, 3820, E, 1, 07, 1.2, 43.96, M,,, *0A.

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As long as the GPS receiver is in work, it will receive, compute, send navigation and positioning information to central microprocessor endlessly. Central microprocessor will check whether the first record is "$ GPGGA" after received GPS information, if it is, store positioning data, or else abort the received information. B. Communication Software 1) Creation of PPP link a) Create a PPP link LCP is responsible for creating a link. Terminals at both ends send configuration message to each other through the LCP and choose basic means of communication. When the configuration information packets send and receive successfully LCP enters open status. b) User Authentication In order to avoid a third party stealing data or pretending remote customers to connect to the server, clients need to send their identity to access server for secure authentication. At this stage, only the packets from NCP, authentication, quality surveillance protocol are permitted. c) Call the network layer protocol To implement a variety of network control protocols when creating a link. 2) About TCP and DUP Application protocol layer is divided into IP layer, DUP layer and advanced applications from bottom to up, GPRS uses the IP protocol. IP protocol transmits data between source address and destination address, only uses the header check code, does not provide reliable transmission, confirmation, error correction, re-issued, traffic control. In this system, each ship is assigned an ID number (CarID). A temporary IP is assigned after the GPRS module dials-up, use this IP to establish and monitor connection to the center server. DUP is a simple transport protocol oriented to datagram; for each output operation produces only 1 DUP datagram, it sends 1 IP datagram. As the simplicity of DUP, its unsuitable for the application of certain occasions, but without flow control, response, reset in the data exchange, its suitable for information sent in emergency. TCP and DUP are different Transfer Protocols, and are designed to apply to different occasions; the common is they both use IP in the network layer protocol. The main difference between TCP and DUP is the reliability, TCP is highly reliable, while the DUP is simple and efficient. Therefore, DUP suits a separate message send, TCP suits occasions that divide the data into multiple messages and data streams need to be adjusted. Considering data transmission of this system is not large each time, in order to reduce expenditure, UDP protocol is chosen for this system. . SYSTEM DEBUGGING Debugging by following these steps: firstly, add electric hardware system test to confirm the design of hardware and connectivity is accurate; secondly, debugging GPS

module, implementing the function of receiving uninterrupted, computing, navigation and positioning information; thirdly, debugging GPRS module, creating links, implementing a two-way communication with monitoring center; fourthly, ship-borne terminals united debugging, implementing real-time monitoring of the river status and location of the operating ship. Debugging results show that the design of ship-borne terminals is rational, each functional and technical index meets the design requirements. . CONCLUSION

To improve the efficiency and safety of inland river transport, this paper presents the scheme of constructing modern shipping monitoring and control system. Its innovation points: combining the GPS navigation positioning system and GPRS wireless transmission systems, using 32-bit ARM microprocessor as control core, successful realization of the real-time monitoring of the ship's running status and location. The system is a flexible network with the bidirectional transmission of data, which played a positive role in improving the management of inland river transport in China.
REFERENCES
[1] Xiaohui Tian, Mingyuan Li. Design and Implementation of Wireless Remote Terminals System Based on GPRS. Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Press. Vol.15, No.5, pp.20 -23, 2005. [2] Tian Ze. Embedded Systems Development and Application. Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Press. pp.374-536, 2004. [3] ITM 100 user manual VD2.00. Simcom Communicatio Information Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., 2003. [4] E531 user manual VD1.00. Shanghai E-compass science & technology co. ltd, 2006. [5] Kai Ma. TCP network architecture. China Electric Power Press, pp. 254-310, 2003.

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