Standards in Force
Introduction
SOLAS regulations V/18 and V/19, requires that in order to achieve chart carriage requirements (in terms of SOLAS), the ECDIS equipment must conform to the relevant IMO performance standards. ECDIS units on board are required to comply with one of two performance standards (either IMO resolution A.817(19), as amended; or resolution MSC.232(82)), depending on the date of their installation.
See also Information on IHO Standards related to ENC and ECDIS for additional information on IHO standards that are relevant to ENC provision and ECDIS carriage requirements.
Additional guidance for mariners regarding the accuracy of depth indication in ENCs can be found in IHO Publication S-67 - Mariners’ Guide to Accuracy of Depth Information in Electronic Navigational Charts (ENC). This Publication can be downloaded from the Standards and Specifications page. A guidance document has also been produced, providing Information on ENC Generalization, Over-Scaling and Safety Checking Functions in ECDIS.
Where an ECDIS is being used to meet the chart carriage requirements of SOLAS, it must:
- be type-approved;
- use up to date electronic navigational charts (ENC);
- be maintained so as to be compatible with the latest applicable IHO standards; and
- have adequate, independent back-up arrangements in place.
The following ENC and ECDIS related Standards apply. These Standards can be downloaded from the Standards and Specifications page.
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Latest IHO Standards that Apply to ECDIS Equipment and Data |
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| Edition in Force | Title | |
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S-57 Edition 3.1, November 2000 See Note 1 |
IHO Transfer Standard for Digital Hydrographic Data. | |
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S-52 Edition 6.1.(1), October 2014 (with Clarifications up to June 2015) See Note 2 |
Specifications for Chart Content and Display Aspects of ECDIS | |
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S-52 (Annex A) Edition 4.0.(3), October 2014 (with Clarifications up to December 2020) See Note 2 |
IHO ECDIS Presentation Library | |
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S-64 Edition 3.0.(3), December 2020 See Note 2 |
IHO Test Data Sets for ECDIS | |
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S-61 Edition 1.0, January 1999 See Note 3 |
Product Specification for Raster Navigational Charts (RNC) | |
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S-63 Edition 1.2.(1), March 2020 See Note 2 & 4 |
IHO Data Protection Scheme | |
| Note 1: Edition 3.1 should be used in conjunction with: Supplement 3 (June 2014); and Maintenance Document 8 (Clarifications which are also classified as corrections should not be applied). | ||
| Note 2: - The up-to-datedness of the ECDIS in regard to the installation of the latest Edition of the Standards is represented by the first 2 digits of the Edition number. The 3rd digit of the Edition number (in brackets) indicates a clarification version of the Standard; clarifications have no impact on safety of navigation or ECDIS performance. - These Editions are the normative references for the type approval of ECDIS systems referring to the 4th edition of IEC61174 (2015). Despite the care taken in preparing these New Editions, their effective implementation may reveal imperfections. Please use the change proposal form to report any change that may be required. |
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| Note 3: Only if ECDIS software supports RCDS mode. | ||
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Note 4: The changes to edition 1.1.0 (2008) introduced in the subsequent versions are as follows: |
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| Edition in force | Title |
| S-11 Part A Edition 3.1.0, February 2018 | Guidance for the Preparation and Maintenance of International (INT) Chart and ENC Schemes |
| S-58 Edition 7.0.0, October 2022 | ENC Validation Checks |
| S-62 Current Edition | Data Producer Codes |
| S-65 Edition 2.1.0, May 2017 | ENCs: Production, Maintenance and Distribution Guidance |
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