D6 – Draft amendments to existing VDR standards

Project no.

038374

Project acronym

EMDM

Project title

European Maritime Data Management

Sixth Framework Programme

Thematic Priority 6 : Sustainable Development, Global Change and Ecosystems

Funding Scheme: Specific Targeted Research or Innovation Project

Start date of project: 1 March 2007

Duration: 24 Months

D6 – Draft amendments to existing VDR standards

Due date of deliverable: 1st. June 2008

Actual submission date: 15th. September2008

Organisation name of lead contractor for this deliverable:University of Southampton

Electronic Document Reference / Written By / Checked by (WPL) / Approved by (Project Coordinator))
EMDM D6(Draft amendments to standards for VDR) Draft 14_03_08 / S.Austin / P.A.Wilson
EMDM D6(Draft amendments to standards for VDR) Draft 15_09_08 / S. Austin
Dissemination Level
PU / Public / √
PP / Restricted to other programme participants (including the Commission Services)
RE / Restricted to a group specified by the consortium (including the Commission Services)
CO / Confidential, only for members of the consortium (including the Commission Services)


D6 – Draft amendments to existing VDR standards

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1Introduction

1.1Methodology

1.1.1Phase 1 – Argument and Evidence

1.1.2Phase 2 - Draft Standard

1.2VDR Mission Statement

1.2.1What are pertinent events and conditions?

1.3VDR Benefits

1.3.1To investigations

1.3.2Other

2Why reconsider the requirement?

2.1Limitations to incident investigations using the VDR

2.1.1Defects

2.1.2Omissions from requirements

2.1.3Generic limitation

2.2Changes in technology and standards

2.3Other considerations

2.3.1Merchant Vessels≥100gt

3Improvements to existing records

3.1Interpretation of record issues

3.1.1Proprietary codes from equipment

3.1.2Equipment Manufacturer, Type number & Version

3.1.3Integrity Monitoring

3.2Period of Record

3.2.1Justification for longer record

3.2.2Extended Record

3.3Date & time

3.4Bridge Audio Record

3.4.1Potential limitations of current requirements & practice

3.4.2Speech transmission index (STI) BS60268

3.4.3Use of multiple microphones on a single audio channel

3.4.4Position of Microphones

3.4.5Signal level range

3.4.6Reverberation

3.5Screen images

3.5.1Radar

3.5.2What standard format should be used to store images?

3.6Active steering position

3.7Hull Stress/deformation data

3.7.1Storage requirement

4New equipments

4.1Radar Target tracking

4.1.1Storage requirement

4.2AIS

4.2.1Minimum keyboard and display (MKD)

4.2.2Graphical

4.2.3Storage requirement

4.3ECDIS

4.3.1Types of chart

4.3.2Record size

4.4Integrated Bridge System/Integrated Navigation System

4.5Security Alert Transmission

4.5.1Storage Requirement

4.6Ballast Water

4.6.1Storage Requirement

4.7Additional alarms

4.8Hull motion data

4.8.1Storage requirement

4.9MARPOL

4.9.1Storage requirement

4.10Emissions

4.10.1Storage requirement

4.11Central Alarm Management System

4.12Integration with Electronic logbook

4.13Cargo Record

4.13.1Storage requirement;

4.14Night Vision Camera

4.14.1Storage requirement

4.15MANTIS

4.15.1Storage requirement;

5Record creation and handling

5.1Processing Power

5.1.1Screen Images Processing

5.1.2Audio Processing

5.1.3Total processing load

5.2Overall storage budget

5.2.1Worst case

5.2.2Typical

5.3VDR Record transmission off vessel

5.3.1Can telecommunications eliminate the protective capsule?

5.3.2Can the record be transmitted electronically?

6Costs

6.1Contributions

6.1.1Type approval and development costs

6.1.2Single microphone per audio channel

6.1.3Connection of additional instrumentation (ECDIS, AIS etc)

6.1.4Storage

6.1.5Additional sensors & instrumentation

6.2Summary


D6 – Draft amendments for existing VDR standards

1Introduction

There are currently two variants of the Voyage Data Recorder (VDR) and Simplified Voyage Data Recorder(S-VDR). The S-VDR was developed to allow retro-fit to existing vessels that had limited or incompatible instrumentation and was a method to avoid expensive refits. However, these were always intended to have a limited life and must be fitted before 1st July 2010. The S-VDR is not addressed because it does not sensibly fall within the timescale of this project.

1.1Methodology

The generation of this document is in two phases, building upon work from EMDM Deliverables D1(Report on existing VDR and S-VDR Legislation), D2(Report on VDR Data Technical Access and Handling) and D3(Report on VDR Survey).

Both phases are subject to review by the EMDM Expert Group comprising senior, European, industry representatives from owner/operator, manufacturer, investigation, administration, trade union, legal and insurance.

1.1.1Phase 1 – Argument and Evidence

Based upon;

  • research into the experience of VDR record through published material and interviews,
  • a survey of the technical capability of instrumentation.

For existing record elements;

  • an examination of the effect of the present technical standards,
  • proposed requirement changes and impact.

For new record elements;

  • description of the element,
  • impact.

1.1.2Phase 2 - Draft Standard

Whilst the argument and evidence are absolutely necessary for a clear understanding of the basis for the proposed changes, they are not required for formal submission to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).

A draft standard in suitable form for IMO, derived from the argument and evidence, is provided as a separate EMDM document, Proposed amendments to IMO Resolution A.861 (20)Performance Standards for Ship borneVoyage Data Recorders (VDRs) .

1.2VDR Mission Statement

The original mission statement can be viewed as;

To obtain a reliable, accurate, objective record of the sequence of pertinent events and conditions surrounding an incident to enable the maritime community to understand it,and take steps to avoid similar incidents in the future.

1.2.1What are pertinent events and conditions?

These are the internal status and external conditions of the vessel and the human element, crew actions, in the period immediately surrounding the incident.

For the period of the record, nominally 12hours, the following incident types and their causes taxonomy can be defined.

Type of incident / Cause
Navigational error / External conditions
Internal status
Human Element
Collision regulation contravention / External conditions
Human Element
Internal status
Alarms/failure / Internal status
Crew reaction to alarm / Human Element
Crew radio communication / Human Element
Weather / External conditions
Hull Condition / Internal status
Machinery / Internal status

In its current form, the VDR records;

A.861(20)
REF / DATA ITEM / SOURCE / Resolution[1]
5.4.1 / Date & time / Preferably external to ship (e.g.GNSS) / Resolution not less than 1 sec
5.4.2 / Ship’s position / Electronic Positioning system / 0.0001min of arc(≈0.2m)
5.4.3 / Speed (through water or over ground) / Ship’s SDME / 0.1knots, +STW or SOG
5.4.4 / Heading / Ship’s compass / 0.1°
5.4.5 / Bridge Audio / 1 or more bridge microphones / 150-6000Hz
5.4.6 / Comms. Audio / VHF / 150-3500Hz
5.4.7 / Radar data- post display selection / Master radar display / Accurate, but lossy encoding allowed
5.4.8 / Water depth / Echo Sounder / 0.1m
5.4.9 / Main alarms / All mandatory alarms on bridge / See IEC 61996 Annex B
5.4.10 / Rudder order & response / Steering gear & autopilot / 1°, status and settings of heading or track controller as available.
5.4.11 / Engine order & response / Telegraphs, controls and thrusters / Shaft to 1rpm, Pitch to 0.1°
5.4.12 / Hull openings status / All mandatory status information displayed on bridge / See IEC 61996 Annex B
5.4.13 / Watertight & fire door status / All mandatory status information displayed on bridge / See IEC 61996 Annex B
5.4.14 / Acceleration & hull stresses / Hull stress and response monitoring equipment where fitted
5.4.15 / Wind speed & direction / Anemometer, when fitted / Unspecified

1.3VDR Benefits

1.3.1To investigations

The volume, veracity, accuracy and precise timing of VDR information gives investigators a much clearer picture of the who, what, why of events. In many respects the VDR exceeds the capabilities of any one or group of human witnesses.

The value of instrument readings and control settings is simple to appreciate. Nevertheless, the audio record is valuable because it has the potential to provide a variety of human element information:

  • Speaker location and hence the instrumentation and visibility available
  • Speaker identification
  • Sequence of information exchange, commands and actions taken
  • Clues to crew perception
  • Clues to the extrinsic and intrinsic variables that affect the personnel performance: motivation, workload, tiredness, training, experience, etc.
  • Adherence to good Bridge Resource Management practice and company procedures

1.3.2Other

The cost of ownership of the record data may be offset in a number of ways.

1.3.2.1Legal

The VDR record is a useful discoverable document in legal cases either in the case of regulatory enforcement or pursuit of civil claims as the record is tamperproof and contemporaneous. It reduces the dependence upon witness testimony and saves time and money.If a cargo record is also maintained in a protected manner, this simplifies the process for all parties involved in insurance claims.

1.3.2.2Review of data

Benefits are available if review of the VDR record is made a normal part of operational procedure.

Examination of the record may show means of improving the operational efficiency of the vessel as well as data for condition monitoring.It can be used for briefing and analysis of emergency situations. The ability to replay instrument readout adds to the information available to analyse intermittent faults.

The MAIB has highlighted indirect safety benefits available from this practice:

  • VDR playback to check company instructions followed[2];
  • …to ensure ship’s masters are complying with the requirement to proceed at safe speed by random sampling of ship’s navigational records, including VDR’s[3];
  • Examine safety management systems to ensure procedures are adhered to and the audit processes are sufficiently robust to detect non-conformances[4];
  • …shipboard auditing should provide enough evidence to verify ship’s staff are in compliance with instructions….use VDR playback where available.[5]

2Why reconsider the requirement?

2.1Limitations to incident investigations using the VDR

As the result of experience gained in incident investigation, some limitations in the VDR have been found.

2.1.1Defects

The following defects in the VDR record have been identified by accident investigators and from the survey conducted for this project:

Defect / Cause or contributory factor
Speech inaudible / background noise or noise from faulty equipment masked speech
Instrumentation disconnected / the VDR is not required to give a status indication or alarm under such conditions
Record was not preserved / not saved manually,
incorrectly stored

2.1.2Omissions from requirements

The lack of playback software made records difficult to interpret and caused delaysThis has been recognised by IMO[6] and is dealt with by the latestt issue of the IEC standards for VDR and S-VDR IEC61996-1:2007 and IEC61996-2:2007 respectively. It will not be addressed in this document.

Errors in configuration information have been found. These should relate to initial installation and test, but the VDR is not required to generate alarms on instrumentation failures.

Proprietary instrument messages are generated by many of the more sophisticated instruments to indicate states or events specific to the instrument. The data may be of use to investigators if they indicate problems or settings. However, at present there is no requirement for the instrument manufacturer to supply this information except as part of the manufacturer’s Equipment Manual, and these messages may change with variants of the instrument even from the same manufacturer.

The VDR record contains only radar, AIS was not available when the standard was prepared. Comments in the survey suggest AIS should be preferred over radar, but this refers to the S-VDR. The VDR record should contain radar and AIS.

The present requirement is to record only designated primary instruments. This does not take account of;

  • Radar operating on different bands
  • Back-up equipment

2.1.3Generic limitation

The brief though detailed VDR record may help to show how the vessel was brought to the state immediately before the incident and the communication, actions and results during the incident.

But before the VDR record starts, there may be many other contributing events. For a more complete understanding of the incident, reference is also made to records in the vessel logbook(s) and other information retained ashore.

2.2Changes in technology and standards

The original VDR addressed concerns created by specific incidents [Derbyshire – sudden loss, no survivors, no information, Herald of Free Enterprise[7] - Draught gauges, stability]. It was limited by and was compatible with the contemporary technology.

There have been major technological changes in the last 10 years:

  • Lower cost, higher density data storage capacity
  • Increased processing power leading to increased functionality in a smaller package
  • Change of technology architectures based upon simple, robust and standardised communication networks that distribute data locally and globally

With the result that;

  • Newer vessels may contain an Integrated Bridge System, Integrated Navigation System or more sophisticated instruments
  • Instrumentation and sensors may be connected by a bus system (NMEA2000)
  • Systems and sub-systems may be connected by Ethernet
  • New equipment such as ECDIS and Electronic logbook(ELB)
  • Improved collision avoidance systems such as MANTIS[8]

An IBS is characterised by having one or more operating positions, each with a display and controls, but the display of information is both task and operator dependent, each display may show a variety of instrumentation, charts and settings. Examples from the small boat market of enhanced instruments are the Simrad DX radar that offers both long and short range displays on a single screen and Furuno Navnet that offers radar and chart together on a split screen.

The IMO is pushing towards task based information screens and controls, as shown by the imminent IEC 62288 that offer superior human factor engineering. On the assumption that task-orientated bridge displays and IBS will become the norm, the issues raised will be addressed.

During an incident,an investigator would like to know with what information the crew is working.This is made possible from the location of the crew members on the bridge from audio, and a record of the screens they may be using when these contain navigational information.

When an ELB is used, the data could also be stored to partially eliminate the generic limitation described above.

2.3Other considerations

The choice about the type of data to record should be driven by the likelihood of types of incident. In reports to the MAIB in 2006, in order of frequency;

2.3.1Merchant Vessels≥100gt[9]

Incident type / Most likely cause / Record
Machinery Failure / Maintenance/training / Logbook
Collision / Navigation / Existing VDR
Grounding / Navigation / Existing VDR
Contact / Navigation / Existing VDR
Person Overboard / - / Logbook
Fire/Explosion / - / Existing VDR

However, the statutory requirements to report incidents that result in serious injury, death or the loss of vessel skew the data away from those that do not.

3Improvements to existing records

3.1Interpretation of record issues

3.1.1Proprietary codes from equipment

Many equipments have proprietary codes because they have functions beyond the minimum requirement for type approval. IEC61162[10] states that proprietary codes must be listed in the manufacturers’ equipment manual.This should also include messages where particular values do not have a standard definition. An example is the Alarm Set message(ALA), in the Fire Door Controller system category the values defined in the IEC standard[11] are shown below:

System Indicator / Number of alarm source
ID / System category / No / Fields contents
FD / Fire Door Controller / 001 / System abnormal
002 / Power Fail
900 - 999 / Others(if necessary, it is possible to define by user

Any use of values 900-999 should be defined.

This list shall be contained in the VDR in a standard electronic XML DTD format. The playback software should be designed to use this file to display,at the very least, a time-stamped list of codes received and text descriptions.

3.1.2Equipment Manufacturer, Type number & Version

The VDR relies upon a configuration file that is manually created at installation to correctly store data from instruments.

The configuration file shall contain information on Equipment Manufacturer, Type number and Version. Where instruments are connected via NMEA2000, this information shall be collected automatically from the instruments by interrogation.

Inspection of such data by a port state control relies upon assessment by an accredited authorised person.

3.1.3Integrity Monitoring

A number of instances have been reported where one or more instruments records are missing[12]. This was a common complaint from the project survey. Ideally, the VDR shall raise alarms if equipment defined in the VDR configuration file does not provide information or provides invalid information;

Data type / Potential detection method
Screen Image / No data within a timeout period.
Audio / There is currently an acoustic test of all microphones every 12 hours[13]. The standard does not define the form of this test and therefore the ability to detect to audio quality problems is unclear.
Consideration should be given toclarification of;
  • Analysis of the quality of the audio signal detected.
  • Open circuit test: Volume level below a threshold for a timeout period, where threshold is between open circuit behaviour and minimum operating conditions.
  • A regular manual test facilitated by a loudspeaker that permits monitoring of a selected microphone signal passing via the capsule to check complete circuit operation. Since a microphone is disabled for the duration of the test, the test period is limited, say 30 seconds

Networks / Disconnection timeout and configuration errors
Other equipments, / Message not received within a time out period

For monitoring signals that may be fed into signal concentrators:

Volt-free contacts / Open circuits, caused by broken wires or disconnection, can be detected by adding a small load resistor in parallel across contacts
Analogue inputs / Out of range detection, most useful with 4-20mA circuits, to also detect open circuits

The loss of a signal to the VDR as part of normal operating procedure, as might occur when an equipment is set to standby mode, shall not unduly burden the crew with unwanted alarms. In such cases only a visual status indication should be given on the bridge.

3.2Period of Record

The present VDR requirement calls for;

  • 12 hours data storage, after which data may be overwritten unless protected
  • audio must be recorded for 2 hours after bridge power fails, presumably taking out bridge instrumentation

Respondents to the survey were generally in favour of a longer record, but the reasons for this were not clear.

3.2.1Justification for longer record

3.2.1.1Vessel encounters

If we assume that vessels can detect each other at 10nm with radar and 24nm with AIS then a for a full 12 hour record to have value the closing speed must be very low, less than 1 knot and less than 2knots respectively.
In the analysis of vessel encounter situations where vessels took avoiding action, the mean and range of values was as follows[14];

Lower limit / Mean / Upper limit
Distance at closest point of approach(DCPA) / 0.0nm / 0.92nm / 4.5nm
Time to closest point of approach(TCPA) / 0.0min / 9.7min / 75min
Vr / 0.1kn / 17kn / 40kn

The longest period of interest is the Upper Limit TCPA, 75 mins. Even at double the period, to allow for decision making this is still only a period of 2.5hours. A longer record is unlikely to be of benefit unless a vessel remains for extended periods in a very busy waterway involving multiple encounters.