NMEA2000 vs. NMEA0183
NMEA2000 and NMEA0183 are two widely used communication protocols in the marine electronics industry. Both standards were developed by the National Marine Electronics Association (NMEA) to facilitate the exchange of data between marine devices, but they differ significantly in design, capabilities, and usage.
NMEA0183 is the older of the two standards, introduced in the 1980s. It uses a simple serial communication protocol, typically RS-232 or RS-422, to transmit data in ASCII text sentences. Each sentence contains specific information such as GPS position, depth, wind speed, or heading. It uses 'Point-to-Point' (one transmitting, many receiving) data transmission with slow data rates, usually around 4800 bits per second. Many older pieces of marine equipment still use the 0183 standard. The devices us two wires for data transfer, which is simple, but makes it difficult to expand.
NMEA2000 was developed to address the limitations of NMEA0183 and was introduced in the early 2000s. It is based on the Controller Area Network (CAN bus) protocol, allowing multiple devices to communicate over a single network. It uses true networking data transmission allowing multiple devices transmitting and multiple devices receiving, usually around 250000 bits per second. Newer equipment mainly uses the 2000 standard and allows for easy expansion using drop cables that plug into the network. With the 2000 standard power can be supplied to devices over the network reducing the need for separate power wiring.