NMEA-Web

Lightweight, Fast, and Zero-Dependency NMEA 0183 Parser for the Web

Overview

NMEA-Web is a compact and minimalistic TypeScript library designed to parse NMEA 0183 sentences directly in your web applications. With a focus on speed, simplicity, and zero dependencies, this library provides developers with the essential tools to extract navigational data from NMEA sentences.

In addition to parsing, NMEA-Web now includes a NMEA Encoder module for generating valid NMEA 0183 sentences ($GPRMC and $GPGGA) from position data.

Whether you're building GPS-powered dashboards, marine navigation tools, or IoT applications, NMEA-Web delivers high-performance parsing with a clean and intuitive API.

Features

🚀 Lightweight and Fast

• Designed for modern web applications, this library is optimized for performance and low overhead.
• Zero dependencies—just plug and play!

🌐 Built for the Web

• Perfect for browser-based environments. No extra setup or bulky libraries required.

📡 Supported NMEA Sentences

• GGA: Global Positioning System Fix Data
  Extract vital GPS data such as:

  • Time (UTC)
  • Latitude and Longitude
  • Fix Type (No Fix, GPS Fix, DGPS Fix)
  • Satellites in View
  • Altitude (meters)
  • Geoidal Separation
  • Differential GPS Data (optional)

• RMC: Recommended Minimum Specific GPS/Transit Data
  Parse essential navigation details:

  • Date and Time (UTC)
  • Latitude and Longitude
  • Speed (knots)
  • Track True (heading in degrees)
  • Magnetic Variation
  • FAA Mode Indicator

🔧 Intuitive API

• Simple function calls to parse NMEA sentences into structured objects.
• Handles optional fields gracefully, ensuring robust performance even with incomplete data.
• Optional checksum validation: Validate the checksum of NMEA sentences, or disable it for faster parsing when working with trusted data sources.

📖 Compact and Minimalistic

• No unnecessary features or bloated functionality—focus on what matters most.
• Lightweight footprint for seamless integration into your web browser projects.

Quick Start

Install

Simply copy the code into your project or use npm

npm install nmea-web

Usage

Decoding:

import { parseNmeaSentence, NmeaPacket, GGAPacket, RMCPacket } from "nmea-web";

// Example NMEA sentence
const sentence = "$GPGGA,123519,4807.038,N,01131.000,E,1,08,0.9,545.4,M,46.9,M,,*47";

// Parse the NMEA sentence
const packet = parseNmeaSentence(sentence) as NmeaPacket;

// Detect the packet type and handle accordingly
if (packet.type === "GGA") {
  const ggaPacket = packet as GGAPacket; // Typecast to GGAPacket
  console.log("This is a GGA Packet:");
  console.log(`Latitude: ${ggaPacket.latitude}, Longitude: ${ggaPacket.longitude}`);
  console.log(`Altitude: ${ggaPacket.altitude} meters`);
} else if (packet.type === "RMC") {
  const rmcPacket = packet as RMCPacket; // Typecast to RMCPacket
  console.log("This is an RMC Packet:");
  console.log(`Speed: ${rmcPacket.speed} knots, Heading: ${rmcPacket.trackTrue} degrees`);
  console.log(`Date: ${rmcPacket.date}, Time: ${rmcPacket.time}`);
} else {
  console.log("Unknown packet type:", packet.type);
}

Encoding:

// Encoding example
const pos: TrackPosition = {
  latitude: 48.1173,
  longitude: 11.5167,
  altitude: 545.4,
  speed: 12.0,    // meters per second
  heading: 84.4   // degrees
};

const gprmcSentence = generateGPRMC(pos);
const gpggaSentence = generateGPGGA(pos);

console.log(gprmcSentence);
console.log(gpggaSentence);

Why Choose NMEA-Web?

• Zero Dependencies: No need to install bulky libraries—just lightweight TypeScript code.
• Optimized for the Web: Perfect for browser-based applications and modern web projects.
• Essential Functionality: Focuses on parsing the most commonly used NMEA sentences (GGA and RMC) to deliver the data you need.
• Easy Integration: Drop it into your project and start parsing NMEA sentences instantly.

What’s Included

• GGA: Global Positioning System Fix Data
• RMC: Recommended Minimum Specific GPS/Transit Data
• Advanced checksum validation (optional configurable)

What’s Not Included

While NMEA-Web focuses on the most critical and widely used sentences, it currently does not support:

• Other NMEA sentence types (e.g., VTG, GSA, GSV, etc.)
• Proprietary sentences or custom extensions

License

This library is open source and available under the MIT License. Contributions and feedback are welcome!

NMEA-Web: GPS, Navigational data, simplified.