What is a VDR System?

VDR (Voyage Data Recorder) is the maritime version of the black box airlines employ. The system is usually two-parts comprising a data collection unit and a deck-mounted safety pod designed to withstand shock or fire, deep-sea pressurized, and penetration. It is used primarily for recording navigation incidents, but can also provide useful data for heavy weather damage analysis and monitoring of performance as well as training for crew members.

Up-grading

Many ships equipped with VDR/SVDR equipment meet the minimum requirements of regulatory compliance, but Members are encouraged to think about using the equipment to investigate incidents or preventive maintenance as well as bridge team training, as in addition to recording near misses. There are also programs that can extend the duration during which VDR data will be accessible beyond the current minimum of 12 hours. It is important to make a decision taken as to whether or not to upgrade the equipment.

The system is built on an industrial grade computer that performs several functions, including processing and encoding data received from sensors. The capsule is designed to withstand any kind of accident and to store the data. The key components of the VDR system comprise a data collection unit that is located on the bridge, a dedicated power source, an interface unit what is the purpose of a data audit and batteries for backup. The unit gathers all data from the integrated sources, including microphones for recording bridge audio and transmits it to a Concentrator, where a sequence of NMEA 0183 sentence is processed and encoded before being sent to the final recording media.