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Subsea Logger / User Manual

User Manual

Version 1.0 ยท For app version 0.1

1. About Subsea Logger

Subsea Logger replaces the paper logbooks carried by ROV pilots, submersible pilots, chamber operators, commercial divers and seafarers. It keeps your personal details, logbooks and certificates together, warns you before documents and certificates expire, and creates PDF summaries you can send to an employer or client.

Your information stays on your device. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere unless you choose to send it, for example by saving or sending a PDF. There is no account to create and no online sign-in.

2. Getting started

Installing the app

Install Subsea Logger from the Google Play Store on Android, or the App Store on iPhone and iPad. During testing you may instead receive a download link or a TestFlight invitation from the developer.

Agreeing to the Privacy Policy

The first time you open the app it shows the Privacy Policy and asks you to agree before you can continue.

  1. Tap Read the Privacy Policy to read it in full.
  2. When asked Do you agree to the Privacy Policy?, tap Yes, I agree.
  3. A second box asks you to confirm. Tap Confirm to open the app.

If you tap No, the app stays closed to you until you agree. You can read the policy again at any time from Privacy Policy in the menu.

Finding your way around

The menu on the left lists everything in the app, in these groups:

  • Main information: your personal details, documents and summary tiles.
  • Logbooks: the logbooks you have chosen to keep, in alphabetical order.
  • Certificates: Medical, Safety and Training certificates.
  • Sharing: Share summaries (see section 8).
  • Settings: Security and Privacy Policy.

Tap the round arrow button to hide or show the menu and give more room to the page. A number beside a certificate group shows how many certificates are expiring or expired.

Recommended first steps

  1. Set an app password in Security (section 9).
  2. Fill in Main information (section 3).
  3. Add the logbooks you keep with the + button (section 4).
  4. Enter your paper logbook totals as brought forward hours (section 3).
  5. Add your certificates (section 6).

3. Main information

Main information holds the personal details that appear at the top of every PDF summary. To change anything, tap the round pencil button at the top right of the details card, make your changes, and tap Save. Tap Cancel to leave without saving.

Photograph and availability

Add a photograph in the edit form. The Availability box beside your photo shows the date you are available from, your current location and your current position, so it is clear at a glance on any summary.

Personal and contact details

  • Nationality and passports: there are fields for a second nationality and second passport for dual nationals.
  • Email address: tap Send Email beside it to open your email app.
  • WhatsApp number: enter it with the country code, for example +44 7700 900123. Tap Send Message to open a WhatsApp chat. The button is greyed out until a number with a country code is entered.
  • Next of kin: name and contact number. These are never included in summaries shared with other users.

Address and Past Addresses

When you change your address and save, the old address is moved to Past Addresses automatically with the date it changed. Tap Past Addresses beside your address to view the list, add older addresses with their dates, or delete one. A full address history is often needed for flag state approval of a Discharge Book.

Documents and expiry warnings

In the edit form you can record passport, driving licence and Discharge Book numbers and expiry dates, and upload a photo or PDF of:

  • the passport front page (and a second passport, if you have one)
  • your driving licence
  • the official front page of your Seaman's Discharge Book

Tap the View button beside a document to see the copy. These copies are only shown on your device.

Any passport, driving licence or visa that expires within 6 months is shown in red, and a warning banner appears each time you open the app until the date is updated.

Visas

In the edit form, tap Add Visa for each visa you hold and enter the country, expiry date, visa type and number. Tap Remove to delete one. Main information shows the country and expiry date of each visa.

Brought forward from paper logbooks

At the bottom of the edit form, enter the totals from your existing paper logbooks: ROV pilot time, submersible pilot time, chamber time, sea service days, number of dives and bottom time. These are added to the totals the app works out from your new entries, so your cumulative time is always complete.

Summary tiles

Below your details, a tile for each logbook shows your running total, for example cumulative ROV pilot time or days of sea service. Tap a tile to open that logbook.

4. Adding and managing logbooks

Tap + beside Logbooks in the menu. Tick the logbooks you keep, or tap Select all, then tap Save. They appear in the menu in alphabetical order:

  • Chamber Operator
  • Commercial Diving
  • Manned Submersible
  • ROV
  • Seaman's Discharge Book

Archiving and deleting a logbook

To archive a logbook, open + and untick it, then tap Save. Its entries are kept but hidden. Tick it again at any time to bring it back.

To delete an archived logbook permanently, open +, tap Delete beside it, and confirm when asked "Are you sure you want to permanently delete this logbook?". This removes every entry, signature and attached file in that logbook and cannot be undone.

5. Making logbook entries

Open a logbook and tap the add button at the top right (for example Add tour / dive). Fill in the form, add any signatures and attachments, and tap Save. Entries are listed newest first; tap an entry to open it, then tap Edit or Delete. Delete asks you to tap Confirm delete before anything is removed.

The figures at the top of each logbook show the number of entries and your running totals, including any brought forward time.

ROV and Manned Submersible

One entry per tour of duty, or per dive where a separate dive record is needed. Record dates, contractor, client, dive numbers, location, vessel or installation, your position, the vehicle, hours and minutes, the type of operation, and sensors or manipulators used.

  • Manufacturer and model: choose the manufacturer first. The Model list then shows only that manufacturer's models, past and present. If yours is not listed, choose Custom and type it in.
  • Verification: supervisor in charge, verifier and project manager, with dates and on-screen signatures.
  • Competence assessments (ROV): below the ROV entries, tap Add assessment to record a competency, comments, the assessor and the assessor's signature.

Chamber Operator

Record each hyperbaric chamber dive as operator or attendant: facility, type of dive, table used, dive profile times, maximum depth (metres), people locked in, lock operations, task and any emergencies. Leave Total time blank and the app works it out from the left surface and arrived surface times. The logbook keeps a running total of chamber minutes.

Commercial Diving

Follows the content of the IMCA diver's logbook. Record the contractor, vessel, location, type of dive, maximum depth (metres), surface or bell bounce times, saturation storage and excursion depths, bell lock-off and lock-on, breathing apparatus and mixture, decompression schedule, tools, work done, any decompression illness or injury, and the diving supervisor's signature.

Seaman's Discharge Book

Record each period of sea service: ship, port of registry, official number, tonnage, capacity, joining and leaving dates and places, and the voyage. The app adds up your days of sea service. The master or an authorised person can sign on screen.

Signatures

Where an entry needs a signature, the signer draws it in the box with a finger, stylus or mouse. Tap Clear signature to start again. The date and time of signing are recorded with it.

Attachments

Each entry can hold photos or PDFs, such as a signed paper page or company stamp. Photos are reduced in size automatically; each file can be up to 8 MB.

6. Certificates

Medical, Safety and Training certificates each have their own page. Tap the add button, enter the certificate details and expiry date, attach a PDF or photo of the certificate, and tap Save.

  • Medical certificates also record the examination date, result (FIT or UNFIT), any restrictions and the designated medical practitioner's details.
  • Certificates are listed with the soonest expiry first.
  • A certificate is marked in amber from 30 days before expiry and in red once it has expired. A banner appears when you open the app, and the menu shows how many need attention.

7. Flag state approval of your Discharge Book

The A badge beside your Discharge Book number shows its approval status. Tap it for details:

  • Black A: "This discharge book has not yet been approved by the Registry Office".
  • Green A: "This discharge book and the information it contains has been approved by the Registry Office", with the name, position and email of the person who approved it.

To request verification, enter your Discharge Book number and upload the official front page in Main information. When you save, the app asks whether you would like to verify the book with its Registry Office. Enter the Registry Office email address and tap Submit. The app prepares the email: tap Open email draft, attach the photo of the front page, and send it from your email app.

8. PDF summaries and sharing

Downloading a PDF summary

Open a logbook or certificate page and tap Download PDF. The app creates a landscape A4 summary with your personal details at the top, a table of entries (including signatures), totals and, for ROV, your competence assessments. Your device's share menu then opens so you can save the file or send it by email, WhatsApp or another app.

Sharing with other users

Sharing summaries directly with other Subsea Logger users needs an online service that is not part of this version. Until it is added, use Download PDF and send the file yourself.

9. Security

App password

Open Security and enter a password of at least 4 characters twice, then tap Set password. The app asks for it every time it opens and after it has been in the background for five minutes. Tap Lock now to lock it straight away. You can change or remove the password from the same page by entering the current one.

The password cannot be recovered. If you forget it, the only way back into the app is to uninstall it, which deletes all your information. Keep the password somewhere safe.

Face ID or fingerprint

Once a password is set, tap Turn on under Face ID or fingerprint and confirm with your face or finger. The app then unlocks with your face or fingerprint, with the password as a fallback. A fingerprint or face must already be set up in your device settings.

10. Your information and your devices

  • Each device keeps its own logbook. Information is not copied between your devices in this version.
  • Uninstalling the app deletes everything it holds on that device. Download PDF summaries of anything you want to keep first.
  • Your device's own backup (iCloud Backup or Google device backup) may include the app's data, depending on your device settings.
  • Encrypted backup, restore and sync between your devices are planned for a future version.

11. Troubleshooting

  • Send Message is greyed out: add your WhatsApp number with the country code, for example +44.
  • The model I need is not in the list: choose Custom and type it in.
  • A file will not attach: use a PDF, JPEG, PNG or WebP file of 8 MB or less.
  • Face ID or fingerprint is not offered: set one up in your device settings, make sure an app password is set, then reopen the app.
  • I forgot my app password: it cannot be recovered. See section 9.

12. Help and contact

For help, feedback or to report a problem, email support@subserv.org. Please do not include personal information or copies of documents in your email.