Shiptrail

Ships near a place

get_ships_near

Read-only

The ships on the live map within a radius of a port (UN/LOCODE) or a point (lat and lon), nearest first: who each is, where, how fast and which way, and how far off. Positions are from the map's ship list, a few minutes old at most. Read any of them with get_ship.

Tool call template

This tool declares no required parameters. Add optional parameters from the input schema as needed.

{
  "id": 1,
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "arguments": {},
    "name": "get_ships_near"
  }
}

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description
`lat`	No	Latitude of the point, with lon.
`lon`	No	Longitude of the point, with lat.
`limit`	No	At most this many ships, the nearest.
`locode`	No	A port's UN/LOCODE, five letters; or give lat and lon instead.
`radiusKm`	No	How far out to look, in kilometres.

Output Schema

Name	Required	Description
`ships`	Yes
`total`	Yes	Every ship within the radius; ships lists the nearest of them.
`center`	Yes
`radiusKm`	Yes
`truncated`	No	True when more ships were within the radius than the limit.

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

AddedNov 9, 2026

TDQS

A4.3/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Annotations already declare readOnlyHint and openWorldHint, so the safety profile is covered. The description adds genuinely new behavioral context: the data source (the map's ship list) and its freshness (a few minutes old at most), plus the nearest-first ordering. It does not discuss truncation when limit caps results, but otherwise adds real value beyond the annotations.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness5/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Two sentences plus a short pointer, front-loaded with what the tool returns and how the search origin is chosen. No redundant or filler phrasing; every clause carries information.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness5/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

With five optional parameters, full schema coverage, and a declared output schema, the description only needs to establish scope, ordering and data freshness, which it does. An agent has everything required to call this correctly without further inference.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 100%, so the schema already documents lat, lon, locode, radiusKm and limit with ranges and defaults. The description reinforces the either/or relationship between locode and lat/lon, but adds no syntax or format detail beyond what the schema states, so the baseline of 3 applies.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

States a specific verb and resource (return ships on the live map within a radius) plus scope (of a port via UN/LOCODE or a point via lat/lon), ordering (nearest first), and the fields returned (identity, position, speed, course, distance off). It also distinguishes itself from the nearest sibling by pointing to get_ship for per-vessel detail.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines4/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Gives clear operational context, including the two alternative ways to specify the search origin and an explicit hand-off ("Read any of them with get_ship") for details. It stops short of explicit when-not conditions or comparisons to search_ships, which is the only remaining gap.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

All Shiptrail tools Inspect

Try in Browser

One endpoint for every MCP toolRayrun runs every MCP server behind one URL and holds the credentials. Each call is decided per client, tool, and argument, then recorded.ray.runAd

Glama MCP Gateway

Add one secure layer between your agents and this server.

Resources

Need Help?