Furuno FM-8500 User Manual

4.3 (4)

VHF RADIOTELEPHONE

MODEL FM-8500

9-52 Ashihara-cho,

Nishinomiya, Japan

Telephone : 0798-65-2111

Telefax : 0798-65-4200

All rights reserved.

Printed in Japan

PUB.No. OME-56030

( TATA ) FM-8500

Your Local Agent/Dealer

FIRST EDITION : DEC. 1995

K : MAY. 17,2002

*00080762901*

*00080762901*

* 0 0 0 8 0 7 6 2 9 0 1 *

*OME56030K00*

*OME56030K00*

* O M E 5 6 0 3 0 K 0 0 *

CANCELLING A FALSE DISTRESS ALERT

1.Switch off transmitter immediately.

2.Switch equipment on and set to Channel 16.

3.Make broadcast to "All Stations" giving your vessel's name, callsign and DSC number, and cancel the false distress alert.

Example message:

All Stations, All Stations, All Stations

This is NAME, CALLSIGN,

DSC NUMBER, POSITION.

Cancel my distress alert of

DATE, TIME, UTC.

=Master, NAME, CALLSIGN.

DSC NUMBER, DATE, TIME UTC.

i

Furuno FM-8500 User Manual

ii

WARNING

Do not open the equipment except to replace paper or fuse.

Hazardous voltage which can cause electrical shock, burn or serious injury exists inside the equipment. Only qualified personnel should work inside the equipment.

Do not disassemble or modify the equipment.

Fire, electrical shock or serious injury can result.

Turn off the power immediately if water leaks into the equipment or the equipment is emitting smoke or fire.

Continued use of the equipment can cause fire or electrical shock.

Do not place liquid-filled containers on the top of the equipment.

Fire or electrical shock can result if a liquid spills into the equipment.

Do not operate the equipment with wet hands.

Electrical shock can result.

Keep heater away from equipment.

Heat can alter equipment shape and melt the power cord, which can cause fire or electrical shock.

CAUTION

Use the proper fuse.

Use of a wrong fuse can result in fire or permanent equipment damage.

Do not use the equipment for other than its intended purpose.

Personal injury can result if the equipment is used as a chair or stepping stool, for example.

Do not place objects on the top of the equipment.

The equipment can overheat or personal injury can result if the object falls.

iii

Table of Contents

FOREWORD ......................................................................................

vii

System Configuration .....................................................................

viii

1. VHF Radiotelephone Operational Overview

 

1.1

Controls, Indications ..................................................................................................

1-2

1.2

Telephone Operation .................................................................................................

1-3

2. DSC Terminal Operational Overview

 

2.1

DSC Messages ...........................................................................................................

2-1

2.2

Controls, LEDs ...........................................................................................................

2-3

2.3

Basic Operation ..........................................................................................................

2-5

2.4 Auto Acknowledge .....................................................................................................

2-8

3. DSC Distress Alert

 

3.1

Distress Alert Transmission ........................................................................................

3-1

3.2

Manual Entry of Ship’s Position and Time ................................................................

3-4

3.3

Receiving Distress Alert from Other Ship ..................................................................

3-5

3.4

Distress Relay .............................................................................................................

3-9

4. DSC Communication

 

4.1

Transmitting Individual Calls .....................................................................................

4-1

4.2

Receiving Individual Call (ACK RQ) ........................................................................

4-5

4.3

Transmitting All Ships Calls ......................................................................................

4-9

4.4

Receiving All Ships Calls .........................................................................................

4-12

4.5

Creating and Saving Transmit Messages .................................................................

4-15

4.6

Writing Over Files ....................................................................................................

4-17

4.7

Retrieving, Transmitting Files ..................................................................................

4-18

4.8 Transmit/Receive Message Memory ........................................................................

4-19

5. Other Calling Types and Other Functions

 

5.1

Other Calling Types....................................................................................................

5-1

5.2

Making Telephone Calls .............................................................................................

5-4

5.3

Receiving Telephone Call from Coast Station ...........................................................

5-7

5.4

Other Station IDs and Telephone Nos. .......................................................................

5-8

v

6. Other Settings

6.1 Printer Setup (Auto/Manual) ......................................................................................

6-1

6.2 Turning Keyboard Click ON/OFF..............................................................................

6-4

6.3 Aural Alarm Setup ......................................................................................................

6-5

7. System Confirmation

7.1

Confirming Own Ship’s ID ........................................................................................

7-1

7.2

Confirming ROM Version ..........................................................................................

7-2

7.3

Confirming VHF Section Settings .............................................................................

7-3

7.4

Confirming VHF Channels ........................................................................................

7-4

7.5

Confirming Tx Output Power ....................................................................................

7-5

8. Maintenance & Troubleshooting

8.1

Maintenance ...............................................................................................................

8-1

8.2 Troubleshooting ..........................................................................................................

8-1

8.3

Diagnostic Test ...........................................................................................................

8-2

9.Specifications

10.Menu List

APPENDIX 1 Marine VHF Channel Lists ....................................

AP-1

APPENDIX 2 Memory Channel List ............................................

AP-2

APPENDIX 3 DIGITAL INTERFACE (IEC 61162-1 Edition 2) ......

AP-3

Declaration of conformity to type

vi

FOREWORD

Thank you for purchasing this VHF Radiotelephone FM-8500. We are confident you will discover why FURUNO has become synonymous with quality and reliability.

Dedicated in the design and manufacture of marine electronics equipment for half a century, FURUNO Electric Company has gained an unrivaled reputation as a world leader in the industry. This is the result of our technical excellence as well as our worldwide distribution and service network.

Please carefully read and follow the safety information and operating and maintenance instructions set forth in this manual before attempting to operate the equipment and conduct any maintenance. Your VHF Radiotelephone FM-8500 will perform to the utmost of its ability only if it is operated and maintained in accordance with the correct procedures.

Features

The FM-8500 is a highly advanced, semi-duplex, fully synthesized 25W VHF transceiver with DSC terminal, designed to satisfy the stringent requirements of marine communications. It complies with GMDSS carriage requirements for safety and general communications.

Conforms to the following standards and regulations: IMO A. 694(17)

IMO A. 803(19) IMO A. 524(13)

IMO MSC 68(68), MSC/Circ.862 IEC-61097-3/7/8

IEC-60945 (3rd edition) IEC-61162-1

ETS 300 338, 301 033, 300 162 ITU-R M.493-9, M.541-8, M.689-2

Automatic position and time input and update with connection of EPFS (Electronic Position-Fixing Equipment).

Optional printer can automatically print out received messages and test results.

Log stores 50 each of latest ordinary, distress and transmitted messages, in separate memory blocks.

One-touch testing facility.

Program number

DSC

0550182010 (version 1.12)

RT

0550183006 (version 1.06)

vii

System Configuration

CH70 Antenna VHF Antenna

External

Power Supply

Position-fixing

Speaker

PR-300

Equipment

Handset

DSC Section

 

 

MIC Receptacle

 

Box

FM-8500

 

VHF Section

 

Distress Message Controller

Printer Interface

DMC-5

IF-8500

Printer

Figure 1 FM-8500 system configuration

viii

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1. VHF Radiotelephone

Operational Overview

The FM-8500 system consists of a main transceiver unit and two antennas. The transceiver unit contains a VHF transmitter, receiver, and channel 70 watch receiver module. The performance and operation are controlled on its front panel. The antenna may be of any type available from FURUNO or market and the recommended type is a vertically polarized non-directional type. The first antenna works for transmitting and receiving and the 2nd antenna for watch keeping.

LCD

Keyboard

(for DSC operation)

Controls for VHF operation

VHF RADIOTELEPHONE FM-8500

 

 

 

 

Watch CH 70

 

 

POSITION

AUTO ACK

TEST

 

 

 

1

2

3

CANCEL

auto

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRINT

CONTRAST

VOLUME

 

 

DISTRESS CANCEL

 

4

5

6

 

DISTRESS

ALARM

CALL

FILE

RCVD

XMTD

 

 

STOP

7

8

9

SELECT

 

 

 

 

 

VOLUME

SQUELCH

 

 

 

 

 

CHANNEL

0

ENT

 

OFF/DW/SCAN(PUSH)

LOW

TX

REM

USA

WX

PRIV MODE(PUSH)

 

 

 

 

(PUSH)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HI

CH16

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LOW

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OFF

AUTO

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Volume with

CH16 key

Channel selector

High/Low power

Power ON/OFF

(Press for Mode selection)

 

(Press to turn on/off

Squelch control

Channel No. display

loudspeaker.)

(Press for DW, Scan)

 

Figure 1-1 FM-8500 transceiver unit

1-1

1.1 Controls, Indications

Controls

CHANNEL/

Selects a channel. Pressing the Channel Selector

MODE

(rotary control) changes the mode from INTL,

 

USA, WX, and PRIV in this order. (Appears when

 

USA/WX and PRIV mode are registered.)

SQUELCH/

Mutes the receiver when no signal is present on

DW/SCAN

the channel selected. Auto position automatically

 

reduces white noise.

 

Pressing the control changes the operating modes:

 

Dual watch, Scan and Off.

VOLUME/

Turns the power on or off and adjusts the volume

LOUDSPEAKER

of the built-in loudspeaker.

 

Pressing the control turns the loudspeaker on or

 

off.

HI/LOW key

Alternates high or low output power.

CH16 key

Selects channel 16.

Indications

The display shows the following indications;

Indication

Function

 

 

 

Internal loudspeaker OFF, by pressing the VOLUME

 

control. Internal loudspeaker is automatically turned

 

off whenever the handset is picked up.

 

 

LOW

Lights for low RF power.

 

 

TX

Lights while transmitting.

 

 

REM

Lights when FM-8500 is under control by RB-700

Remote Station.

 

 

 

USA

USA mode. (Some ITU duplex channels are used as

 

simplex channels.)

 

 

WX

Lights when a weather channel is selected. (Available

 

in US version.)

 

 

DW/SCAN

DW for Dual Watch; SCAN for scanning.

 

 

1-2

1.2 Telephone Operation

Turning the power on and off

To turn the power on, turn the VOLUME control clockwise until you hear a click. To turn the power off, turn the control fully counterclockwise until you hear the click.

Selecting channel modes

While pressing the channel selector, press the CH16 key to select the channel mode, International, USA (in the case of USA version), private (if authorized), or weather mode (USA version). The International version of FM-8500 has no such selection.

On the weather channel mode, a beep is emitted when the weather alert tone is received.

NOTE: Private channels are available only where permitted by the authorities.

Selecting channels

Rotate the CHANNEL selector clockwise (counterclockwise) until a desired channel is reached.

Adjusting volume

The VOLUME control adjusts the volume of the loudspeaker.

Adjusting squelch

The SQUELCH control adjusts the squelch threshold level. Adjust it so that white noise heard in the loudspeaker just fades out. Perform this operation when no traffic is being received. AUTO squelch automatically reduces white noise. Usually select "AUTO" position. Avoid turning the squelch too far clockwise: you may miss a long distance communication.

Note: To obtain correct scan watch/dual watch response, adjust the SQUELCH control precisely.

Every press of the SQUELCH control changes the function as follows:

OFF

DW

SCAN

1-3

Transmitting

Press the PTT (Press-to-talk) switch on the handset or microphone to talk, and release it to listen for the response.

Output power

BEFORE transmitting, think about the subjects which have to be communicated and, if necessary, prepare written notes to avoid unecessary interruptions and ensure that no valuable time is wasted on a busy channel.

Listen before commencing to transmit to make certain that the channel is not already in use.

Each press of the [HI/LOW] key selects HI or LOW output power. The transmitter power is automatically set for low on the following channels.

International:

CH15, CH17

USA:

CH13, CH15, CH17, CH67; to operate USA chan-

 

nel 13 or 67 in high power, keep [HI/LOW]

 

pressed while talking into the handset.

Turning the loudspeaker on/off

To turn the loudspeaker on/off, press the VOLUME control. The loudspeaker off mark appears when the speaker is off. The loudspeaker is automatically turned off when the telephone handset is used on semi-duplex channels.

Channel 16

Press the [CH16] key to select channel CH16, International Calling and Safety Channel.

This is an international calling and safety channel. The use is limited for distress, safety and calling. The transmission on CH16 (156.800 MHz) should be limited to within 1 minute except for distress calling.

Avoid calling on Channel 16 for purposes other than distress, urgency and very brief safety communications when another calling channel is available.

1-4

Dual watch

The dual watch allows you to keep watch on channel 16 and another channel. CH16 and another channel are watched at intervals of 0.15 seconds and one second, respectively.

To start DW, press the SQUELCH control once. When the receiver finds a signal on channel 16, it locks on CH16 and restarts dual watching after the signal on CH16 has gone. If another channel has traffic, it still continues dual watch. The speech is heard intermittently. If you are annoyed with the intermittence, turn off DW by pressing the PTT switch on the handset or pressing the SQUELCH control.

Scanning

The receiver scans all channels in the selected channel mode in ascending channel order, watching CH16 between channels as below:

To start scanning, press the SQUELCH control and SCAN is started. When the receiver finds a signal, scanning is stopped on that channel and starts dual watch on it and channel 16.

1 16 2 16 3 16 4…

16 88 16 87 16 86 16…

Time-out-timer (U.S.A. type only)

The FM-8500 is equipped with an automatic timing device that deactivates the transmitter and reverts the transceiver to the receive mode after an uninterrupted transmission period of 5 minutes.

Remarks on voice communications

Automatic acknowledge is automatically changed to manual acknowledge when voice communications begin. (The "auto" indication, however, remains on the screen.) This is done to prevent break in communications. Automatic acknowledge is automatically restored once voice communications are terminated.

Priority

The priority of the equipments is as follows.

DSC section of FM-8500 > Wing handset > Handset of FM-8500 > Remote Station RB-700

1-5

This page is intentionally left blank.

2. DSC Terminal

Operational Overview

2.1 DSC Messages

The contents of a DSC message change with format specifier (calling category).

1. Format: Calling type

IND:

Individual Call

TEL:

Telephone Call

ALL:

All Ships Call

R/A:

Relay All Ships Call

R/S:

Relay Specific Ships Call

GRP:

Group Call

POS:

Position Request Call

2. Address: Station’s 9-digit ID number

IDs starting with “00” are coast stations, those starting with “0” are group IDs or another IDs are ship’s IDs.

3. Category: Communication priority

There are four communication priorities as below:

DIS: A vessel is in grave and imminent danger and requests immediate assistance.

URG: Announce important safety information or request medical assistance.

SAF: Transmitting a message containing an important navigational or an important meteorological warning.

ROU: For routine (individual) calling.

4. DSC: DSC channel

A DSC channel is different from the usual communication channel because it is not used for voice communication but rather DSC and acknowledging receipt of message.

5. Telecom1: Telecommand

The communication mode; simplex or semi-duplex.

2-1

6. Channel: Voice communication channel

To communicate with a coast station, a station sends its position data to the coast station and the coast station determines the channel to use. A station may only use CH16 (distress channel) in the event of distress.

7. Pos: Ship’s position

Position input by radionavigational equipment.

8. UTC: Universal Time Coordination

The equipment contains a clock. External time input from radionavigational equipment cannot be used.

9. ACK RQ (BQ):

Acknowledge request (RQ) or acknowledge reply (BQ).

2-2

2.2 Controls, LEDs

Controls

LCD

DSC controls

VHF RADIOTELEPHONE FM-8500

 

Watch VHF ch70

 

POSITION

AUTO ACK

TEST

 

 

 

1

2

3

CANCEL

 

auto

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRINT

CONTRAST

VOLUME

 

 

 

 

DISTRESS CANCEL

 

4

5

6

 

 

DISTRESS

 

ALARM

CALL

FILE

RCVD

XMTD

 

 

 

 

STOP

7

8

9

SELECT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

VOLUME

SQUELCH

 

 

CHANNEL

 

0

 

ENT

(PUSH) OFF/DW/SCAN(PUSH) LOW

TX

REM USA WX PRIV

 

 

MODE(PUSH)

 

 

 

 

 

HI

CH16

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LOW

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OFF

AUTO

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LEDs

DISTRESS

ALARM

STOP

Transmits messages other than distress.

Silences the receive alarm.

Stops repetitive alerts.

Transmits the distress alert. Open cover on [DISTRESS] key and press the key 4 seconds continuously.

Figure 2-1 FM-8500 transceiver unit

The four LEDs surrounding the [DISTRESS] key light when the key is pressed, 4 seconds continuously.

The upper two of the four LEDs surrounding the [ALARM STOP] key blink (and alarm sounds) when distress or urgent message is received. LEDs can be extinguished and alarm silenced by pressing the [ALARM STOP] key.

The lower two LEDs (Green) blink (and alarm sounds) when message other than distress/urgent are received. Alarm is automatically silenced five seconds after message is received.

2-3

POSITION

AUTO ACK

TEST

 

1

2

3

CANCEL

PRINT

CONTRAST

VOLUME

 

4

5

6

 

FILE

RCVD

XMTD

 

7

8

9

SELECT

 

0

 

ENT

Figure 2-2 Keyboard

Key

Function/Purpose

0 9 Enter numeric data.

CANCEL

Cancels wrong data and restores previous menu.

 

 

 

Adjusts illumination of LED and keys in four levels.

 

 

 

SELECT

1.

Display “Set up menu” (Main menu).

 

2.

Changes settings of items appearing with blinking question mark.

 

 

ENT

Registers key input. (Blinking item is registered when key is pressed.)

 

 

 

 

1.

Shifts the cursor leftward.

 

2.

Restores previous display when pressed at displays with a blinking

 

 

question mark.

 

 

 

Shifts the cursor rightward.

 

 

 

POSITION

Ship’s position and time are shown while pressed and held down.

1

 

 

 

 

AUTO ACK

Turns automatic transmission of acknowledge call (AUTO ACK) on/off. (Refer

2to page 2-8.) Note that distress alert cannot be automatically acknowledged by “auto acknowledge”.

TEST

3

Conducts self-tests.

 

PRINT

4

Printing. (This is also available for automatic setting of the printer.)

 

 

 

CONTRAST

Adjusts contrast of LCD in eight levels.

5

 

 

 

FILE

Retrieves files.

7

 

 

 

RCVD

Displays contents of received messages (Storage capacity: 100 files, 50 each

 

8

of distress and other). (Refer to page 4-21.)

 

 

XMTD

Displays contents of transmitted messages (Storage capacity: 50 files).

9

(Refer to page 4-19.)

VOLUME

Not used.

6

 

2-4

2.3 Basic Operation

Normal display

When the FM-8500 is turned on, the following display appears.

This display is known as the “normal display.”

Watch VHF CH70

Normal display

auto

screen

 

[2] key pressed to get “auto” screen.

Should you get lost in operation you can return to the normal display by pressing the [CANCEL] key several times.

Selecting and registering items

The arrow keys ( [t] and [s] ) function to select items on the LCD.

After selecting item, press the [ENT] key to register it.

 

 

 

 

Item selected by cursor

 

 

 

 

appears here.

Blinking

 

 

Call type <ALL ships>

Call type

cusor

 

 

 

IND TEL

 

R/A ---

selection screen

ALL

encloses

(In this example

 

 

 

current

 

 

 

it is “Call type”.)

selection.

(Shifts

 

(Shifts

 

 

 

cursor

 

cursor

 

 

leftward.)

 

rightward.)

 

Press the [ENT] key.

When blinking question mark appears

Press the [ENT] or [SELECT] key depending on your desire.

* VHF call message *

Format INDIVIDUAL

Blinking question mark

Format selection screen (In this example it is format for “VHF call message”.)

If change is necessary, press the [SELECT] key.

If no change is necessary, press the [ENT] key.

2-5

Preparing and Transmitting Messages

There are two methods by which you can prepare and transmit messages, and they are shown below.

Preparing message for immediate transmission

Prepare message and then transmit it.

Normal display

Press the [ENT] key.

* VHF call message *

Format INDIVIDUAL

For how to prepare a message, refer to page 4-1.

After preparation, press the [CALL] key to transmit the message.

Preparing and storing message for later transmission

Prepare messages excluding distress message and save them to the memory. (Maximum 99 files) You may retrieve and transmit a memory-stored message as follows.

Normal display

Press the [SELECT] key.

Set up menu <

 

 

>

 

1

2

3

4

6

7

9

ALM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Press the [7] key.

For how to prepare and store a message, refer to “4.5 Preparing and Saving Transmit Messages”.

After the normal display appears, press keys in the order shown below to transmit a message.

Press the [7] key. / (Enter file number.) / Press the [CALL] key.

2-6

Status of FM-8500 during DSC Call

When the distress alert is transmitted (by pressing the [DISTRESS] key), the output power of the FM-8500 is automatically set to maximum (25 W).

Key entry of VHF

The FM-8500’s keyboard accepts no key input while DSC message is transmitted. (Distress call: inoperative about 3 seconds, other calls: inoperative about 0.5 seconds.)

To unlock it manually, if necessary, press the [CANCEL] key.

The VHF section keyboard accepts no key input when the PTT switch is operated.

2-7

2.4 Auto Acknowledge

Auto acknowledge functions to automatically acknowledge individual calls. Press the [2] (AUTO ACK) key to automatically transmit the acknowledge back (ACK BQ) to the sending station when an individual call is received.

An individual message cannot be automatically acknowledged when it is received while the handset is off hook.

When auto acknowledge is disabled

Automatic acknowledge is disabled when an Error Checking Code (ECC) appears at the end of a receive message.

A distress alert is received.(A distress alert cannot be acknowledged automatically.)

Turning & AUTO ACK on/off

Each press of the[2] key enables/disables auto acknowledge function..

“auto” function

Provides automatic acknowledge of individual calls. Automatic acknowledge, however, is disabled when conducting voice communications.

“manual” function

Manual acknowledge of all calls. However, an all ship’s call is automatically acknowledged when no voice communications are taking place when the call is received. See page 4-12 for details.

2-8

Transmitting the distress call

If no numeric key is pressed, distress alert is automatically transmitted.

Watch VHF CH70

auto

1 Open cover on [DISTRESS] key.

2 Press [DISTRESS] key 4 seconds continuously.

DISTRESS CALL CH70

34° 40N 135° 20E at 15:20

Nature of Distress

[1]: Fire, explosion [2]: Flooding

[3]: Collision [4]: Grounding

[5]: Listing, capsizing [6]: Sinking

[7]: Disabled & adrift [8]: Abandoning

[0]: Undesignated []: Piracy/armed robbery attack [ ]: Man overboard

Position/Time

To announce nature of distress, press appropriate key for nature of distress within 3 sec. after pressing the [DISTRESS] key. Continue pressing [DISTRESS] key 4 sec.

DISTRESS CALL Nature?

Nature of Distress

UNDESIGNATED

If wrong nature of distress is input, enter correct nature within 3 seconds.

* Call in progress *

 

DISTRESS CALL CH70

(Transmitting)

 

Transmission time is about three seconds.

A coast station will transmit a DIST ACK signal to you to confirm the distress alert. Once you have received the DIST ACK signal, CH16 (Distress, Safety and Calling frequency) is automatically selected so that you may commence voice communications with the coast station. After the [DISTRESS] key has been pressed, no further operation of the radiotelephone is required until you have received the DIST ACK signal.

* Wait for dist ack *

 

 

 

 

(Waiting for distress

Next CH70

3.7

min

acknowldege)

 

 

 

Counts down. If distress call is not acknowledged it is automatically retransmitted until acknowledged.

(Do nothing until own ship receives DIST ACK.)

(continued on next page)

3-2

Distress call

Distress communications

(from previous page)

* Received * DISTRESS ACK

ID : 001234567

ID of station (usually coast station) which transmitted DIST ACK.

Commence voice communications with coast station on CH16.

1.Provide the following information to the coast station:

(1)Speak slowly and distinctly, “MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY”, pronounced as the French expression “m’aider”.

(2)This is;

(3)The name of your vessel and call sign three times.

Then, begin the distress communications, which consists of:

(1)Position in latitude and longitude;

(2)The name of the distress;

(3)The kind of assistance desired;

(4)Any other information which might facilitate rescue, for example, length, color, and type of vessel, number of persons on board.

2.Indicate the end of message by saying “Over”.

Some countries do not have sea area A. In this case "ACK" from the coast station does not arrive over DSC. A ship nearby will contact the vessel in distress over CH16. After transmitting the distress alert conduct voice distress communications as shown above.

3-3

3.2 Manual Entry of Ship’s Position and Time

Entering data manually

If automatic position input is lost for one minute the message "EPFS error" appears. In this case, enter position manually as below.

(Normal display)

* VHF call message *

Watch VHF CH70

Format: DISTRESS

To enter data manually from the Distress Alert message, press [ENT]

and select call type

Distress. Press the [SELECT] key followed by the [1] key.

Press [ENT], [ENT] [SELECT] in this order.

Position <

>

 

 

 

 

NORTH= ˚

S E=

˚

W

UTC=

:

Enter

 

Enter

 

 

Enter time

latitude.

 

longitude.

 

 

(UTC).

To move blinking cursor from NORTH

Press the [ENT] key.

(Returns to normal

position to SOUTH, press the [s] key.

display.)

 

Note: If the manually entered position is not updated within four hours the buzzer sounds and the message "Warning: Update position!" appears on the screen. And if not updated within 23.5 hours the position entered is erased. Once automatic input of position is restored, cancel manually entered position as below.

Confirming Ship's Position and Time

Press and hold down the [1] (POSITION) key, ship's position and time are shown while the key is pressed.

Canceling manually entered data

To cancel the manually entered data, enter 9999 for the time and press the [ENT] key.

Note: Above procedure may also be used when you do not know your ship's position. This data is input as NO INFORMATION in POS&TIME in the DISTRESS ALERT MESSAGE.

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3.3 Receiving Distress Alert from Other Ship

In no case is a ship permitted to transmit a DSC distress relay call on receipt of a DSC distress alert on VHF channel 70.

Conditions necessary for relaying distress alert:

1When the station in distress is not itself in a position to transmit the distress message, or

2 When the master or person responsible for the vessel not in distress, or the person responsible for the coast station, considers that further help is necessary.

Procedure when in area A1

1.When the FM-8500 receives a distress alert from another vessel the upper two LEDs (Red) near the [ALARM STOP] key blink and the FM-8500 sounds the distress alarm.

2.Silence the alarm by pressing the [ALARM STOP] key.

3.Wait up to three minutes until the DIST ACK signal from a coast station is received. Be prepared to follow the instructions of the coast station.

4.If you do not receive the DIST ACK signal, follow the flow chart shown on the next page.

If further DSC alerts are received from the same source and the ship in distress is beyond doubt in the vicinity, a DSC acknowledgement may, after consulation with an RCC or Coast Station, be sent to terminate the call.

Note 1: An asterisk (*) in a received distress alert message indicates error or unknown at the location marked with the asterisk.

Note 2: Do not send DISK ACK in response to receipt of distress alert having a nature of distress of EPIRB emission.

Your Ship

About 20 to 30 miles (Sea area A1)

Coast station

Distress Alert

Transmission

Vessel in Distress

3-5

Flow chart - Action by ships upon reception of VHF DSC distress alert

DSC Distress alert received.

Press [ALARM STOP] key to silence alarm.

Listen on CH16 for 5 minutes.

Did you receive

No

 

Is distress traffic

acknowledge from

 

CS and/or RCC?

 

 

 

in progress?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes

 

 

 

Is own

 

 

 

 

vessel able

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

to assist?

CS = Coast Station

 

 

 

 

No

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RCC = Rescue Co-ordination Center

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enter details in log.

 

No

Is distress call

 

No

 

 

 

 

continuing?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes

Acknowledge the alert by

 

 

 

 

 

radiotelphony to the ship

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

in distress on VHF CH16.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Say "MAYDAY" ONCE.

 

 

 

 

 

2.

Say ID number of vessel

 

 

 

 

 

 

in distress THREE TIMES.

 

 

 

 

 

3.

Say "This is" ONCE.

 

 

 

 

 

4.

Say ID number of your vessel

 

 

 

 

 

 

THREE TIMES.

 

 

 

 

 

5.

Say "Received MAYDAY"

 

 

 

 

 

 

ONCE.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Inform CS and/or RCC.

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