ECDIS –

Safety Settings

SHIPS
ECDIS – Safety Settings
Contents Safety contour
This is the primary safety feature on the ECDIS. It is set
Introduction����������������������������������������������������������������������� 02
by the user and marks the boundary between safe water
Safety contour������������������������������������������������������������������� 02
and shallow water.
Availability of depth contours������������������������������������������ 03
Confidence in the data������������������������������������������������������ 03 How does it do this?
Safety depth���������������������������������������������������������������������� 04 Before departing port, the ECDIS user must set a value
Shallow and deep contours���������������������������������������������� 04 for the safety contour. This should take into account the
Shallow contour���������������������������������������������������������������� 05 vessel’s draught and required under-keel clearance. The
Deep contour��������������������������������������������������������������������� 05 quality of the ENC data available must also be considered.
Route check function�������������������������������������������������������� 06 The safety contour shows on the ENC as an extra wide
Lookahead function���������������������������������������������������������� 06 isoline.
Practical guides on ENC use��������������������������������������������� 06
Users should check their SMS for the procedure on
setting the safety contour. If it is not set, the ECDIS
default value for the safety contour is 30m.
Introduction
In this example we can see that the safety contour is set
Since their implementation, the Electronic Chart
to 10m (note the bold 10m isoline).
Display and Information System (ECDIS) and Electronic
Navigational Charts (ENC) have rapidly become the
primary means of navigation on board many vessels.

There are many benefits to using ECDIS over paper

charts. However, one of the primary benefits is the ability,
when used correctly, to let the user know when the vessel
may be heading into dangerous waters by using safety
settings based on the vessel’s condition. But these safety
settings must be understood and used correctly to ensure
the benefits are realised.

In this briefing we will look at the safety settings available

to the ENC user, what they are and how to use them.

There are a number of user-defined safety settings

available on ECDIS. It is important that the user
understands and sets these correctly. The shipping
company’s policy and the vessel’s safety management
system (SMS) should be referenced to see what is Example of a 10m safety contour.
required for each vessel.

Here we look at each of the safety settings. What happens when you get near a safety contour?
When the ECDIS is in monitoring mode (in use on passage),
if the vessel’s watch / lookahead vector crosses a set
safety contour the user will receive an audible alarm.

The safety contour is the only automatic audible alarm

on ECDIS. If the user wishes to have other features - such
as wrecks or underwater obstructions - raise an audible
alarm, then they must set this themselves when planning
the passage as the normal ECDIS default for such objects
is only to visually highlight these.

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ECDIS – Safety Settings (cont.)
You can see this on the below ECDIS screenshot; buoys Confidence in the data
and other obstructions are merely highlighted in yellow When setting a value for the safety contour, not only
(no audible alarm), but there is a red alarm where the should the user consider draught and the under-keel
safety contour enters the watch vector area. clearance requirements but also the accuracy of the ENC
hydrographic data.

If the ENC in use for a certain leg of the passage shows

a low ‘Category Zones of Confidence’ (CATZOC), then
this should be accounted for when setting the safety
contour. For more information on ENC accuracy see
Loss Prevention - ECDIS ENC Accuracy

Sometimes, due to the limited availability of contours

in ENC data when navigating near the coast, the vessel
will need to navigate inside the safety contour. To
improve situational awareness for the user, the latest
S-52 standards gives the user the flexibility to turn on
Show buoys highlighted in yellow and the safety contour in red (audible alarm)
the isolated danger symbols to display behind the safety
contour in potentially dangerous areas.
Availability of depth contours
As you can see in the below examples one screen shows
The use of the safety contour can only be accurate
the soundings inside the safety contour, the other screen
if the ENC data within the ECDIS contains enough
shows isolated dangers instead.
depth contours.

When ENCs were first introduced, most makers used

their paper chart series as the source for their data.
Unfortunately, this led to some issues, and today many
ENCs only contain the standard series of contour lines
taken from the old paper chart.

As such, when building the chart display and a contour

line is not available, the ECDIS software will draw the
next available deeper depth contour in the ENC with a
thick bold contour line and shade all areas of the chart
between this depth and the zero-metre drying line in a
dark blue shallow water colour.
You can see here the soundings less than the safety contour setting are
In the below example, the safety contour is set at 6m, being highlighted.

but no 6m contour line is available. Therefore, the 10m

contour line is the next available deeper depth.

Here you can see the isolated danger symbols turned on within the safety
contour to improve situational awareness.

You can see an alarm raised on a 10m contour line is the next available
contour after 6m.

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ECDIS – Safety Settings (cont.)
Safety depth • Shallow / unsafe waters - Between 0 metres and the
As described earlier, because of the limited availability of safety contour
contour lines is limited (commonly to 2m, 5m, 10m, 20m • Deep / safer waters - Deeper than the safety contour
30m and 50m) and this limits the effectiveness of the
safety contour, the ECDIS user can set up safety depths
independently of the safety contour.

The ECDIS will then display any sounding with a value
equal to, or less than, the safety depth value in bold to 
make them more prominent.

In the below example you can see that the user here has

set a 10m safety depth, therefore all depths equal to or 
less than that are in bold.

 




Four depth shades

If the two shades option is turned off, the system will
switch to displaying four shades using values that are set
for the shallow and deep contour:

• User defined shallow contour

• User defined deep contour




10m safety depth setting

  
Shallow and deep contours

Before discussing shallow and deep contours, the user

must understand depth shades of an ECDIS.

Depth Shades  
The user has the option of selecting a simple two-colour

shading, or a more in-depth four-colour shading.

To enable the use of the four-colour option, the user can

set what are called ‘shallow’ and ‘deep-water’ contours in
The use of four depth shades reduces the contrast
addition to their set safety contour.
difference between adjacent depth areas. This may
make it more difficult to distinguish between safe
Two depth shades
and unsafe waters under certain lighting conditions,
This is the default setting and will only show two depth
particularly at night where its use is not recommended.
shades in addition to the inter-tidal area which is exposed
at low water:

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ECDIS – Safety Settings (cont.)
Shallow contour Deep contour
The shallow contour value is set by the user and is used to This indicates the limit of the sea area where ‘shallow
determine all areas shallower than this value. water effects’ can affect the vessel.

The below first image shows an ECDIS with the shallow It shows the user what the passage plan thinks is deep
contour switched off, and the second with the shallow water. This could be, for example, twice the deepest
contour on, illustrating the difference in colours: draft, or 100m in open sea passages. You should consult
your SMS for details.

When ‘four shades’ mode is activated, the display will

show shallow and deep contour as two additional blue-
coloured patterns on the chart panel. While activating
the shallow pattern will cross out non-navigable, unsafe
water, this can lead to a cluttered screen.

Look at these two examples, one has the deep contour on

set at 50m, you can see the additional blue shaded areas.
The other has the deep contour switched off.

Shallow contour switched off

Deep contour set to 50m

Shallow contour switched on

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ECDIS – Safety Settings (cont.)

You can see the longer watch vector crossing the 5m safety contour
and alarming.

Deep contour off

Route check function

When the user has completed planning the intended
passage, it is possible to check that the route is safe by
using the ECDIS route check function.
In the same situation but with a shorter more suitable watch vector.
This checks that the planned route is safe, based on the
vessel’s characteristics, and importantly it is free from any
charted dangers based on the entered safety settings. Practical guides on ENC use
Therefore, the user must ensure that the appropriate There are several publications available from national
safety contour and depth settings are entered before hydrographic offices containing information regarding
starting this check. ECDIS use.

With regard to the practical use of safety settings the

Lookahead function following are recommended:
The ‘lookahead’ or ‘watch’ vector is selected by the user
• UKHO NP231 Guide to the Practical Use of ENCs.
and is expressed either as a distance or a time.
• IHO S-57 IHO Transfer Standard for Digital
Remember that if the watch vector crosses the safety Hydrographic Data.
contour it will raise an audible alarm, so it is very important
• IHO S-52 Specifications for Chart and Display Aspects of
that the user has an appropriate watch vector set at
ECDIS Edition 6.1
all times.
• IHO Presentation Library S -52 Annex A Edition 4.
The setting of the watch vector may need to change
throughout the passage. For example, if the vessel is in NorthStandard have produced an onboard ECDIS training
open water, then a longer / larger watch vector may be pack where the ECDIS user is set tasks using the onboard
more appropriate. However, in confined waters this could ECDIS with the aim of improving equipment familiarity.
mean frequent needless alarms, therefore you may wish to
set a shorter / smaller watch vector. ECDIS screenshots not to be used for navigation.
In the below examples we can see a vessel doing the same All ENC images courtesy of the UKHO.
passage, but one has a longer watch vector meaning that
© Crown Copyright and/or database rights. Reproduced
it more frequently crosses the safety contour, causing by permission of The Keeper of Public Records and the
more frequent alarms. The other has shortened the watch UK Hydrographic Office (www.ukho.gov.uk/copyright).
vector to a more suitable length.

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06 Ships / ECDIS – Safety Settings

Disclaimer
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publication does not constitute legal advice and should not be construed as such. Members should contact NorthStandard for specific
advice on particular matters.
Published February 2024.

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