Recording Data On The Open Seas

The International Maritime Organisation has the requirement for a vessels at see for a Voyage Data Recorder (VDR).  This device is considered to be far superior to a black box of an aeroplane as it stores a variety of data and that too for not less than a period of 12 hours. The data records covering the last 12 hours are continuously overwritten by the latest data.

It contains a voice recording system for a period of at least last 12 hours (for VDRs installed post-July 2014, the period of the integrated details recorded is 48 hours as per the MSC Resolution 333.90). This recording is recovered and made use of for investigation in events of accidents in a compressed and digitised format.

The VDR at least must record the following:

The SVDR is a simplified VDR, that records information that is only absolutely necessary and does not record information as extensive as the VDR. It is more cost effective and used more often than not on merchant boats.

A Voyage Data Recorder (VDR) is a data recording system used on vessels which are required to comply with the International Maritime Organization’s SOLAS Requirements.

As explained above, the system is designed to collect data from various sources aboard the vessel and then create digital files which are stored in an externally mounted capsule on the deck of the ship, much like the black box flight recorders found on aircraft. If the worst should happen, the last 24 hours of data can be recovered from the capsule to give an insight of what may have happened to incident investigators. The solution needs to offer the highest level of protection against extreme shock, impact, pressure and heat.

Our client’s brief was to supply a super reliable industrial grade computer solution which offers high reliability, long product life and continuity of supply. The certification and approval process is long and arduous, meaning now approved we can supply a carefully controlled bill-of-materials which are built to exacting standards in our workshop using documentation created by our engineering team. Our solution includes innovative solid state storage plugged straight on to the SATA headers, custom BIOS, custom Windows Embedded operating system alongside the customer’s software image pre-installed.  The system uses a long-life, strictly revision controlled embedded computer available for 7 years, helping the client amortise costly development and certification and return maximum ROI.

About Assured Systems

Our sales team has over 15 years experience in the industrial and embedded marketplace. We thoroughly understand our products, our customers, their markets, and the applications in which our systems are being deployed. You can rely on our expertise to ensure you receive the right guidance resulting in a precise fit for your requirements every time, saving you time and effort, and ultimately money. If you have an application you would like to discuss, please call +44 1785 87 90 50 (EMEA) or +1 864 421 6991 (USA) or use the contact form to send us your requirements.