UKHO adds QR Codes to standard nautical charts
The UK Hydrographic Office has introduced QR (Quick Response) codes to its portfolio of standard nautical charts, allowing users of paper versions to access status information via smart phones or tablets.
By scannning a chart’s QR code, the user will be taken to the relevant page on the UKHO’s searchable Notices to Mariners database, NM Websearch, and chart status information will then be relayed to their smart phone or tablet. The chart management tool will help deliver the latest navigational safety information. It will also help from a compliance perspective by allowing Port State Control inspectors to scan a chart after boarding a vessel in order to see how up to date it is.
A QR code is a two dimensional bar code with a higher storage capacity than former ones. It can be used to store website URLs that can be scanned, read and directly accessed on a smart phone or tablet using widely available code reader applications. The UKHO says it will continue to add QR codes to any remaining standard nautical charts and also plans to introduce similar ones for its Mariners’ Routing Guides.
