The S737 Voyage Data Recorder (VDR) interface circuit board is installed in close proximity to the Syncro AS Marine fire control panel. It is powered from the panel’s Auxiliary 24volt supply output. When any fire, faults, disablement or panel control operations take place, their details are passed to the VDR equipment over a RS485 2 core shielded cable connection.
The VDR interface uses NMEA 0183 standard message format. The messages will include detection device address, zone and event type, up to 82 characters total. The Syncro AS Marine panel does not monitor the link to the VDR, but sends a “heartbeat” message at 30 second intervals. This heartbeat message allows the VDR system to monitor and report any failures in the data connection
