AIS : Course and Heading

[Gilletarom]

Hello,

There are three items that provided information in degree.

Course,
Heading,
Bearing.

For bearing is the angle from which we see the target light of our boat.

But I do not understand the difference between "Course" and "Heading".

Who can explain it to me ... ?

Thank you in advance.

Best regards

Gilletarom

[nigel1]

Bearing, as you say, is the bearing of the target from you, and should also show the distance.
Course: This will be the targets Course over Ground (CoG)
Heading: This is the targets actual heading, information from the target vessels gyro compass is inputted into the targets AIS transmiiter, and this information is then transmitted.
Depepending on equipment used, should also be able to see if a target is turning to port or stbd

[donradcliffe]

The difference between a ship's reported course and heading can be due to leeway, current and/or errors in the ship's gyro compass. I have seen both, but usually the compasses are pretty accurate and you can get an idea of the strength and direction of the current that the ship is experiencing.

[Gilletarom]

Originally Posted by nigel1

Bearing, ....
Depepending on equipment used, should also be able to see if a target is turning to port or stbd

Thank you.


So I'll be able to improve the translation in French

Best regards

Gilletarom.

[Hydra]

Gilletarom,
I hope this may help you:
English <-> Français
Course <-> Route
Course over ground (COG) <-> Route-fond
Speed over ground (SOG) <-> Vitesse-fond
Speed through water (STW) <-> Vitesse-surface
Heading <-> Cap
Bearing <-> Relèvement, azimut
Relative bearing <-> Gisement

Be careful: in some documents, "course" has the same meaning as "heading".

Alain

[P_Dub]

Course is generally related to Course over the Ground (Route Fond); Heading is always in relation of the direction in which the vessel is aiming (Cap au Compas ou Gyro); The bearing can be relative or true:- relative to your heading (Cap au compas ou gyro) ou true, that is the direction in relation to the north (it could be magnetic compas or gyro compas) and related from yourself. As far as rate of turn, it is ( la vitesse de gyration ) to port or starboard (babord ou tribord). Not all vessel are provided with that type of equipment, they should be but not nesesssarily. It is quite useful on the larger vessel.
Regards
P_Dub

[NAV]

An overview I once made.