Full text of DOI:10.1017/S0373463300008870

Safer Positioning of Electronic
Fishing Aids
Stella Mills
(Cheltenham & Gloucester College of Higher Education)
Bridge design has undergone changes in the last few decades resulting in increased awareness
of the need for safety while maintaining the minimum of personnel. The concept of the one-
person bridge has been studied fairly extensively with respect to military and large merchant
vessels, but much of this work has been ignored by those designing for smaller ships,
particularly fishing vessels. This paper derives principles for positioning the electronic fishing
aids of ‘single ticket’ fishing vessels while applying, where applicable practically, the
ergonomic principles developed from the wider community. The paper then applies the
principles to the wheelhouses of two fishing vessels and suggests modifications for greater
compliance. A conceptual wheelhouse design is given that satisfies all the principles while
including the usual suite of electronic aids typically carried by such fishing vessels.
KEY WORDS
1. Bridge Design.
2. Fishing Vessels.
3. Ergonomics.
1. INTRODUCTION. Fishing is the most dangerous occupation in the world
(EEC, 1993) despite the fact that wheelhouses of fishing vessels carry sophisticated
equipment for finding fish and navigating a safe passage. The variety of equipment
required can lead to problems of positioning the Visual Display Units (VDUs) so that
visibility, for example, is not compromised. Design principles can be derived from
both the legislative and academic literature so that the positioning of the VDUs is
ergonomically satisfactory. In the UK, the legislative literature is essentially issued as
Acts of Parliament, Merchant Shipping Notices (M Notices) and EC Regulations,
and the principles derived from such literature will be designated by the prefix ‘L’.
Likewise, principles derived from the ergonomic literature that are not legally binding
in the UK will be prefixed by ‘E’. Only fishing vessels of between 16n5 metres and 24
metres registered length (commonly known as ‘single ticket’) will be considered in this
paper, but most of the principles derived are applicable to all wheelhouses fitted with
electronic aids. First, it is necessary to consider the different types of electronic aids
carried.
2. ELECTRONIC AIDS CARRIED. In addition to electronic navigation
and communication aids carried by most commercial vessels, fishing vessels may
carry one or two radars, echosounders, and sonars each being of a different frequency
to allow for maximum data feedback and also emergency back-up. Demersal (seabed)
trawlers may not carry a netsonde (for indicating the position, attitude and state of
the net), and older vessels frequently do not carry a horizontal sonar. Pelagic
(midwater) trawlers usually do use both a horizontal sonar and netsonde to facilitate
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positioning the net for optimum catch. Thus it can be seen that the main electronic
fishing aids are the echosounder, sonar and netsonde with the plotter being used to
track the vessel’s, and it is assumed, the net’s course. Standards of manufacture exist
for the compass, radar, echosounder, log, direction finder, homing device, rate of turn
indicator (i.e. rudder indicator) and the Automatic Radar Plotting Aid (ARPA)
(M.1513, 1993), but these are not applicable to fishing vessels. Although not directly
relevant here, since radio equipment is not used directly for fishing, there are UK
standards for radio communications equipment carried on fishing vessels (M.1573,
1994). More sophisticated systems, known as integrated trawl systems, are available
that allow the skipper to know the exact position and status of the net, but these are
very expensive (Mills, 1995). The autopilot or, more rarely, the wheel is used to assert
the vessel’s course.
3. DERIVATION OF LEGAL AND ERGONOMIC PRINCIPLES.
Some of the tasks the fishing skipper is required to complete by law impinge directly
on the positioning of the equipment in the wheelhouse. For example, the legally
required task that ‘A proper lookout is kept all round the horizon at all times
including while at anchor’ (TM\INF\023, 1993) requires 360 degrees visibility from
the wheelhouse. Thus we have:
Principle L1: There must be all round (360 degrees) visibility from the wheelhouse at
all times.
Visibility can also be reduced by the positioning of ‘electronic equipment…fitted
for navigation and fish detection’ (M.1111, 1984). Consequently, ‘care should be
taken in planning the layout of the wheelhouse to ensure that any additional
installation does not reduce visibility through the wheelhouse windows’ (M.1111,
1984). Thus we have:
Principle L2: The positioning of the electronic fishing and navigational aids must not
reduce the visibility from the wheelhouse.
Concerning the equipment in the wheelhouse, the legal requirement that ‘A
listening watch is kept on MF 2128KHz and VHF Channel 16’ (TM\INF\023, 1993)
implies that the officer on watch must be able to hear the radio at all times. Thus:
Principle L3: The radio equipment must be positioned so that the skipper can hear
Channel 16 and the frequency 2128 KHz at all times.
It should be noted that, while Channel 16 is to be continued for the time being, this
rule will soon be replaced by the need to respond to alerts sent via Digital Selective
Calling (legal in Area A1 of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System).
The obvious and legally required intention that ‘An adequate freeboard is always
maintained’ (TM\INF\023, 1993) requires that the depth indicator of the
echosounder be visible to the skipper at all times so that the depth of water under the
vessel is always known. Consequently we have:
Principle L4: The depth indicator of the echosounder must be visible to the skipper at
all times.
The legal requirement that ‘The vessel is not within the safety zones of offshore and
subsea installations and that the location of suspended wellheads and submarine

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cables is known to the skipper’ (TM\INF\023, 1993) means that the chart should be
visible to the skipper while fishing since this information should be displayed on the
chart in use. Thus:
Principle L5: The chart in use must be displayed to the skipper at all times throughout
any fishing operation.
From Principles L4 and L5 an ergonomic principle can be derived:
Principle E1: The output from the echosounder, the compass and the chart must be
visible from the wheel.
For some time, it has been recognised that tiredness can diminish capable
watchkeeping (MGN 84(F), 1998). Indeed, even if the watch-keeper is certified, ‘there
will be occasions when he will be unable to cope successfully with steering, navigation
and keeping a proper lookout’ (M.1190, 1986). This is an example of cognitive
overload and considering that the skipper often acts as the watch-keeper while doing
other tasks, such as supervising shooting the net, it is essential that computer-related
tasks reduce cognitive load wherever possible. Indeed, recent legislation (MGN 84
(F), 1998) stipulates that ‘no other duties should be undertaken which could interfere
with that task (watch-keeping)’. Thus we have:
Principle E2: Computer related tasks should reduce cognitive overload.
Direct vision is in constant use by the skipper as he monitors ‘instruments (speed,
rudder angle, course to steer), chart reading, communications (VHF etc.) and radar
observation…’ (Lazet and Schuffel, 1977). Clearly, with too much visual information,
critical information may be missed because of inattention, or because he is just not
looking in the right direction. When decision-making is necessary from interpretation
of the meaning of displayed information ‘the presentation…is…of great importance’
(Lazet and Schuffel, 1977). This implies that the presentation of the data from the
display screens should facilitate decision-making and hence reduce cognitive load:
Principle E3: All information from display screens should facilitate the associated
task by reducing cognitive load.
Turning now to more general ergonomic principles of positioning fishing aids,
Witty (Witty, 1984) suggested that the ‘sophisticated array of fish-detection and
navigational instruments’ that many fishing vessels carry, should be ‘grouped
together in functional areas’. Immediately, we have:
Principle E4: The equipment in the wheelhouse should be positioned in task-related
groups.
Witty (Witty, 1984) (correctly) classes the (colour) echosounder as a navigational
aid although the reason given is that this helps the fishing skipper avoid wrecks and
an uneven seabed as well as discriminating between hard and soft ground as against
the truly navigational use of depth of freeboard. Witty points out that echoes may be
recorded on tape for playback in the light of catches obtained. Thus the sounder must
‘often fulfil three functions – to determine the depth of water below the ship (and, in
mid-water trawling, below the net), to detect and discriminate fish both in mid-water
and close to the seabed, and thirdly to determine the nature of the seabed’. These
three functions require switching through multi-frequencies and often vessels are

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fitted with two or more sounders to avoid this (MacLennan and Simmonds, 1992). In
order to monitor the fish entering the net, particularly in a mid-water trawl, headline
transducers are provided that
…enable the skipper to position accurately his net a certain distance below the
water surface and clear of bottom obstructions. The datum level of net sounder
displays is the headline of the net, so that as the net changes height in response to
the towing pull, a distorted view of the seabed (or sea surface) is obtained (Witty,
1984).
Headliners are usually connected by a cable to the VDU in the wheelhouse, and this
link generally monitors temperature as well. In the last few years, a cableless
transducer has been available for single-ticket fishing vessels, but unless the vessel is
engaged in total pelagic trawling, the cost outweighs the advantage of not having the
cable snag in the trawl warps.
Witty (Witty, 1984) mentions that a number of hybrid navigation systems are
available such as Loran-C, Decca and Omega. Although these are now being replaced
with (Differential) Global Positioning Systems (DGPS), when combined with ARPA,
the point that ‘the advent of more diverse, accurate and compact navigational aids,
at a price that the fisherman can afford, have [sic] led to an upsurge in his training
requirements’ is still valid. Navigational training using both radar and electronic aids
is available in many nationally recognised training establishments in the UK since the
Electronic Navigation Systems (Fishing) Certificate is a requirement for all three
classes of Fishing Vessel Certificate (Olsen, 1999).
Turning to other general ergonomic matters, Stoop (Stoop, 1990a) suggested that
in order to improve safety in fishing vessels there is a need to redesign the bridge and
as a start in that direction advocated that instrumentation should be automated and
linked so that data could be easily transferred from one component to another. In
addition, he was concerned that there were too many displays in the wheelhouse and
that information should be integrated on one display if possible. This is discussed
more fully at the end of this section when the principle of centralisation is considered.
From these design requirements of Stoop the following ergonomic principles can
be formulated:
Principle E5: Automatic transfer of information between displays should be optimised
to facilitate task completion.
Principle E6: Information should be integrated whenever possible.
In a later publication (Stoop, 1990b), Stoop reiterated the points above, but added
examples for clarity; thus radar and autopilot can be combined ‘to detect and correct
bias errors’ and a guard zone could be made on the radar ‘to warn against
approaching ships during fishing gear operation’. Interestingly, Stoop advocated the
introduction of an Automatic Radar Plotting Aid (ARPA) but concedes that ‘at
present this equipment is far too expensive’; this is indeed so, although ARPA is
becoming more common in wheelhouses with one UK company advocating mini-
ARPA sets for the leisure market.
In order to arrive at the best ergonomic solution for positioning and use of VDUs,
it is worthwhile considering the literature for non-fishing vessels such as that relating
to military and merchant ships’ bridge design. This literature is large compared with
that for fishing, but much of it is irrelevant to the small wheelhouses found on fishing

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vessels. However, there are some general design principles that carry over, and these
will now be discussed.
In general, the fishing skipper needs to divide his attention between a number of
displays, and Wilkinson (Wilkinson, 1974) pointed out that ‘inconsistencies in the
manner of presentation can confuse or slow his perception’. For example, those
VDUs showing similar but different information, such as one might obtain from two
radars of differing frequencies, should be placed apart as errors could arise from
confused readings. Thus we have:
Principle E7: Displays with similar interfaces, but giving different information, should
be placed apart.
Froese (Froese, 1981) and Harre (Harre, 1987) both suggested a policy of
integrating the information from different VDUs in order to reduce the number that
the skipper must monitor. However, while the integration of systems is beyond the
scope of this paper, it is worth noting that in order to integrate systems, the
positioning of the VDUs should be as consistent as possible (Mills, 1999). Thus we
can add:
Principle E8: The wheelhouse layout should be as consistent as possible.
This work of Harre is supplemented by the Health and Safety Guidelines [Health &
Safety, 1992] which, although not a legal obligation for fishing vessels since ‘modes
of transport’ are exempt, are pertinent for good practice. Thus we can add [Health
& Safety, 1992]:
Principle E9: VDUs should be positioned so as to avoid glare and distracting
reflections on the screen.
Principle E10: Screens should swivel and tilt easily and freely to suit the needs of the
skipper.
It is assumed that all display screen equipment satisfies those requirements of the
Health and Safety Guidelines [Health & Safety, 1992] concerning brightness and
contrast controls since these are fitted as standard to displays. Such controls, which
may be manually or automatically adjusted, are needed to accommodate the wide
range of ambient lighting, from exterior (and sometimes interior) darkness to direct
sunlight, that can be found at sea.
Most of the design principles derived so far have been specific, but Abramowski
(Abramowski, 1976) took an approach to bridge design based on total systems
requirements analysis. While emphasising the need for ergonomic design and
deploring those based on ‘a double row of straight consoles…’, he advocated using
the three generic principles of utilisation, functionality and centralisation.
Utilisation requires that ‘each instrument should be fully utilised, that is to say
used in all necessary phases of information presentation and command function’
(Abramowski, 1976). This means that information required in various stages of a task
should not be duplicated for each of those stages but remain on one VDU throughout
the task. This principle is important for integration of information but is generally
adhered to in fishing wheelhouses since skippers usually switch on the VDUs at the
beginning of a fishing trip and leave them on until back in port. However, for
completeness we can add:

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Principle E11: Information should only be duplicated when necessary.
Examples of necessary duplication could be the need for repeaters on a large bridge
or one that is divided and the carrying and using of two or three Global Positioning
Systems in order to obtain consolidated data and for use as back-ups.
Functionality means that ‘the information supplied should be easy to receive and
absorb and clear in all respects, to the point, and in a condensed but completely
descriptive form’ (Abramowski, 1976). The information should be instantaneously
understood and equipment should not require further adjustment after being set in
operational mode. In other words, the information on the VDUs should be as easy
to understand as possible, thus reiterating Principle E4 that cognitive load should be
reduced wherever possible. We should note that this concept of functionality is
different from that of Witty and functional grouping (Principle E4).
Abramowski (Abramowski, 1976) insisted that any wheelhouse design should
‘incorporate the idea of possible total centralisation of the presented information’
since the ‘main factor in instantaneous decision making is the immediate receipt of
all the information needed, and in such a way that it is possible for the operator to
register it continuously’. Thus centralisation complements functionality in that the
information is readily to hand, while the latter is concerned with its comprehension.
In terms of integrating information, Abramowski foresaw the use of a video plotter
overlaid with information necessary for fishing and navigation as can be seen in many
fishing wheelhouses today. Thus centralisation is already being observed, in spite of
the legal misgivings of such principles. For example, ‘assessments or assumptions
made on video plotters alone are dangerous and unreliable’ (MGN 84 (F), 1998) and
the same paragraph of the same document refers to the use of paper charts for safe
passage. Even so, centralisation is an important principle in that it removes the need
for a large number of VDUs which, in turn, removes duplicated information and
reduces cognitive load. In all cases, the reliability of the information is assumed to be
total. Given the sensitivity of centralisation, a formal principle beyond Principle E4
will not be stated, but a general observation will be made when applying the principles
to the designs of the wheelhouses discussed below. Even so, utilisation, functionality
and centralisation remain sound criteria on which to base design principles.
Having formulated principles for design and evaluation, these will now be used as
a checklist to discover the compliance or otherwise of two wheelhouses of fishing
vessels. These have been chosen so that an ageing vessel and a modern one are
represented.
4. TWO PRACTICAL EXAMPLES.
4.1. Vessel 1. Vessel 1 was fabricated in wood and registered in 1957. Her
overall length is 18n19 metres. She is used as a stern trawler with the catch being
landed on deck over the side, generally the starboard side, but the vessel may be used
for both demersal and pelagic trawling. The ceiling height of the wheelhouse is 1n98
metres, with the compass at ceiling height over the wheel. The current wheelhouse
layout of Vessel 1 is shown at Plan 1. Table 1 summarises the compliance of the
current layout in Plan 1 with the design principles discussed earlier.
This vessel carries a sonar and uses a netsonde with a paper output when pelagic
trawling and, consequently, it is an excellent example in that the outputs from the
sonar, echosounder and netsonde are all capable of being viewed simultaneously in

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Key:
Mk 21 – Decca Navigator Mk 21
Echo – Colour Echosounder
EG – Monochrome paper-plot of netszonde
Eng. Inf – Engine Information (dials etc.)
Auto – Autopilot
Nav – Navigator
RD – Rudder control
Comms – Radio Communications
T – Engine Throttle
VHF – SSB Transmitter
Table 1. Compliance of Vessel 1 with the design principles.
Principle
Compliance
Remarks
Legal
L1
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Scuttle surrounds are wide
L2
L3
L4
L5
Ergonomic
E1
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Some head movement needed
Chart and echosounder apart
E2
E3
E4
E5
Yes
Yes
No
E6
E7
Sonar and echosounder together
E8
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
E9
Tilting could decrease reflection further
E10
E11

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Key:
VHF – SSB Transmitter
Mk 21 – Decca Navigator Mk 21
Echo – Colour Echosounder
EG – Monochrome paper-plot of netszonde
Eng. Inf – Engine Information (dials etc.)
Auto – Autopilot
Nav – Navigator
RD – Rudder control
Comms – Radio Communications
T – Engine Throttle
order to position the net for maximum effect when pelagic trawling (satisfying
Principle E4). Thus the close positioning of the output from these fishing aids is good
but needs some re-arranging in order not to contravene Principle E7. The trackplotter,
which here is used as a chart, should be nearby for navigational purposes. Certainly,
the trackplotter should be nearer to the autopilot, to which it is linked, also for
navigational purposes. One solution to this would be to place the trackplotter where
the sonar is presently positioned and to place the sonar where the echogram of the
netsonde is positioned and to remove the radar to the present position of the sonar.
The radar could be placed behind the trackplotter with the echogram being placed
where the radar is at present. Thus Principle E7 would be satisfied. In addition, this
would reduce the necessary amount of movement by the skipper and operation of
these aids could be carried out from the chair. Plan 2 shows the modified layout of
the wheelhouse equipment.
Abramowski’s Principle of Centralisation is difficult to use in this design as it
requires a VDU to act as the centre of integration and here the chart is paper-based.
However, the radar is a possibility with the sonar and echosounder outputs being
displayed as small windows.

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In general Vessel 1, in spite of its age, has ergonomically well-positioned fishing
aids and the wheelhouse is well designed ergonomically.
4.2. Vessel 2. Vessel 2 built in 1991, is a beam trawler fabricated in steel of
registered length 20n45 metres. The ceiling height of the wheelhouse is generally 1n73
metres but is raised to 1n83 metres over the fully adjustable seat. Plan 3 shows the
position of the VDUs and other equipment. Table 2 summarises the compliance of
the design in Plan 3 with the principles discussed earlier.
In spite of its relative modernity, the wheelhouse will need some structural
alteration in order to satisfy Principle L1 since the stern view is blocked by the engine
stack, and it is possible to view the stern only when positioned away from the forward
Key:
Auto – Autopilot
GPS – Global Positioning System
Comms – Radio Communications
Eng. Inf – Engine Information (dials etc.)
VHF – SSB Transmitter
•
•
Displays at coping level

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Table 2. Compliance of Vessel 2 with the design principles.
Principle
Compliance
Remarks
Legal
L1
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Some lack of view to stern
L2
L3
L4
L5
Ergonomic
E1
No
Yes
Yes
No
Lateral head movement needed to view any two together
Head movement needed
E2
E3
Head movement needed
E4
Radars and echosounders not visible from charts for navigation
E5
Yes
Yes
No
E6
E7
Radars placed side by side
E8
No
Echosounders placed apart; radars not so
No positioning adjustment possible
Displays fixed in wooden surrounds
E9
Yes
No
E10
E11
Yes
part of the wheelhouse. Thus, all round visibility is not ensured. Concerning the
equipment in the wheelhouse itself, the radar, which is indispensible in inclement
weather, is used in conjunction with the video plotter and, in their present positions,
require a movement of 180 degrees to view each sequentially contravening Principles
E1 and E4. Better positioning of the clusters in terms of the content of each group
would facilitate information assimilation (Principles E2 and E3) and could be
achieved by placing the autopilot alongside the compass, moving the video plotter to
alongside the lower placed echosounder and placing the forward radar where the
video plotter is in Plan 3. The echosounder, at present placed at coping height, could
be then placed above the video plotter as in Plan 4. As a consequence of this
alteration, Principles E4, E7 and E8 would be satisfied. In addition, it is possible to
have the VDUs fixed at the base but also to tilt and swivel (Principle E10). This would
allow for avoidance of any glare, both direct and reflected (Principle E9), but would
take up a little more space and probably would not be so aesthetically pleasing. Thus
some modification is needed to make this wheelhouse ergonomically acceptable. Plan
4 gives such a design.
Clearly, applying Abramowski’s Principle of Centralisation would allow a reduction
in the number of VDUs since the information from the radar, chart and echosounder
could easily be integrated. This would also ease cognitive load. However, the
problems, already noted, which are associated with integration may pertain.
5. A CONCEPTUAL DESIGN. Having formulated the principles on which
to evaluate a design, we now turn to creating an ergonomic generic design for the
wheelhouse of a single-ticket fishing vessel. First, for convenience, the list of
equipment needed in the wheelhouse will be re-iterated with the modification that
certain equipment will be replaced by its current (2000) equivalent development. For

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Key:
Auto – Autopilot
GPS – Global Positioning System
Comms – Radio Communications
Eng. Inf – Engine Information (dials etc.)
VHF – SSB Transmitter
•
•
Displays at coping level
example, the netsonde is replaced by an integrated trawl system (which has object-
coded data output in place of colour-coded output), and the personal computer
supports a Global Maritime Distress and Safety System.
5.1. Equipment used in the Wheelhouse of a Single-ticket Fishing Vessel. (Legal
Requirements are shown in bold type)
5.1.1. Fishing Aids (may also aid navigation):
Echosounder(s),
Sonar(s) (horizontal or omni-directional),
Integrated Trawl System (usually only carried by pelagic trawlers),
Paper plots (printouts) from echosounder and\or sonar.

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5.1.2. Navigational Aids (also used for fishing):
Echosounder
Radar(s),
Video Plotter (electronic chart),
Paper Plotter (paper chart),
Autopilot (alarmed),
Differential Global Positioning System,
Rudder Angle Indicator,
Compass.
5.1.3. Other Equipment:
Video Navtex (fascimile for weather).
VHF Communications including transreceivers and full (internal) intercoms,
Engine Information (dials etc.),
Personal Computer with information system including catch records,
Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (INMARSAT-C),
Keyboard for data entry to personal computer.
5.1.4. Other Controls:
Wheel,
Winch Controls,
Engine Throttle.
In single-ticket fishing vessels, the combination of fishing aids varies from vessel to
vessel and consequently the design given in Plan 5 will allow for all the equipment
listed above. The design is easily modified for variations of the equipment.
5.2. Discussion. The VDUs are to be mounted on bases that allow for rotation
and vertical tilt as shown in Figure 1 (Principle E10). Sufficient space has been
Figure 1. Vertical Profile of VDU.
allowed for movement of the VDU in the positioning, which is essential to avoid glare
(Principle E9) and problems of parallax from a distance.
By incorporating a stepped effect, the VDUs are easily accessible and can be
cleaned or fitted with anti-glare screens or a daylight hood, in the case of the radar,
if necessary. A holder is provided on the side of the video plotter for its light-pen
(input device) when not in use. The shelving in Figure 2 is freestanding but fixed
to the floor, allowing space behind for standing, exercise or better visibility
(Principle L1).
This design has removed the frequently used wooden surrounds of the VDUs which
are aesthetically pleasing, but which have the serious drawback of not allowing
movement of the VDUs for better viewing and the avoidance of glare.

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Figure 2. Vertical Profile of Port Side Equipment.
Considering now the starboard side of the wheelhouse, a similar stepped design to
that on the port side, and shown in Figure 2, has been used, but beneath the Personal
Computer (PC) there is an additional shelf on a lever arm that can be extended to the
skipper’s seat and raised or lowered to a convenient height for data input. The shelf
is sufficiently large for a wrist-rest to be used if required. The keyboard is fixed to the
shelf but has threaded feet, which allows the keyboard to be raised on the shelf to any
anglebetween 10 and 20degrees. Thekeyboardmay bea conventionalkeypress type, or
the skipper may prefer a touch-pad type that has a smooth surface for easier cleaning
and can be supplied with a waterproof surface. However, with the latter type some
tactile identification is lost that may be a hindrance to data input under difficult con-
ditions. If the PC’s system supports a graphical user interface, then the mouse should
be incorporated into the keyboard, either as a trackball or as an isometric joystick
of the type operated by the fingertip. This will prevent the pointing\selection device
(conventionally a mouse) from unwanted movement while the vessel is under way.
Turning to the other equipment in the wheelhouse as shown in Plan 5, the seat is
fully adjustible both in height and tilt as the back of the seat also tilts, thus satisfying
the Health & Safety Guidelines (Health & Safety Executive, 1992). The chair is stable
by being firmly secured to a small runner on the floor that allows adjustment in
position along the bow\stern axis. Standing space has been provided in front of the
seat and around the sides of the seat and also behind the units housing the electronic
aids where there is sufficient room for two personnel to walk and look out of the
windows (Principles L1 and L2). There is also sufficient space to allow access to the
winches, which can be electrically operated to avoid manual fatigue if the skipper
prefers. The compass is placed over the winches at coping height and is on an
adjustable arm, which allows tilt for easier viewing (Principle E10).
From Plan 5, it can be seen that the design can be accommodated in wheelhouses
as small as 3 metres by 2n5 metres, if the chart table and paper printouts of the fishing
aids are not considered essential. However, by increasing the size of the wheelhouse
by about two metres in each direction, the plotters and chart table can be easily
accommodated. Practising skippers will note that the design does not include a
television as vigilance must be reduced with such a VDU, since the cognitive load
requires two-task processing if the skipper is watching the television and also keeping
watch (contravening Principle E2).

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Key:
Echo 1 p/o – Echo-sounder 1 Printer
Sonar 1 p/o – Sonar 1 Printer
Sonar 2 p/o – Sonar 2 Printer
Echo 2 p/o – Echo-sounder 2 Printer
Trawl – Integrated Trawl System
DGPS – Differential Global Positioning System
Nav – Navigator and Ship’s Log
Auto – Autopilot
RC – Rudder Control
Compass o/h – Compass positioned overhead (in Bulwark)
Engine Inf – Engine Information
PC – Personal Computer
Kb – Personal Computer Keyboard
Comms – Communications Systems
PC p/o – Personal Computer Printer
Navtex p/o – Navtex Printer
Hatching indicates equipment placed under the upper equipment as in Diagram 2.

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The displays have been grouped functionally (Principle E4) with the fishing
displays to port (left) and the navigational equipment adjacent to the fishing displays
but forward for easier use when steaming to and from the fishing grounds. Secondary
equipment, primarily for backup, is placed apart (Principle E7). The winch controls
are beneath an opening scuttle with good forward visibility for safer use (Principle
L1). Communications and ancillary equipment is positioned to starboard (right) with
the plotters to the rear of the wheelhouse since their output is usually used away from
the plotters themselves.
In order to show that the design in Plan 5 is legally and ergonomically acceptable,
it must satisfy the design principles formulated earlier. Table 3 summarises the
Table 3. Compliance of conceptual design with principles.
Principle
Compliance
Remarks
Legal
L1
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
L2
All aids below window level
L3
L4
L5
Ergonomic
E1
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
E2
E3
E4
E5
E6
Backups still necessary
E7
Backups placed well away
E8
E9
E10
E11
Backups as needed
compliance of the design in Plan 5 with these principles. As can be seen from Table
3, the design satisfies all the principles, whether or not a shelterdeck is fitted. The
design is capable of easy modification should the vessel not carry all the equipment
shown. Thus, for conventional fishing aids, the design is ergonomically acceptable.
6. CONCLUSION. This paper has presented some legal and ergonomic
principles that can be used in the design and evaluation of fishing aids in the
wheelhouses of fishing vessels in the UK. The evaluation, in turn, has highlighted
some of the problems associated with the placing of electronic fishing aids and has
shown that the age of a vessel is not necessarily a contributing factor to good
equipment positioning in wheelhouse design. Further development of principles for
other classification of fishing vessels as well as best practice from other countries’
legal requirements could be used to focus further on principles relevant to the
positioning of the fishing aids. In addition, the resulting designs should be tested in
the real environment to ascertain whether the skippers think there is an improvement
in safety through finding the fishing aids easier to use.

STELLA MILLS
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