User manual SCUBAPRO-UWATEC ALADIN PRO

DECOMPRESSION COMPUTER OPERATING MANUAL depth dive time NO STOP max. depth deco info ® American ® SWISS MADE BY UWATEC AG Safety considerations You must carefully read this entire manual before using your Aladin® Pro. Diving has many inherent risks. Decompression sickness is among the most serious of those risks. Even if you follow the instructions of this manual in a careful fashion, it is still possible that you may be seriously injured or die from decompression sickness or some other inherent risk of scuba diving. Unless you are fully aware of these risks and are willing to personally accept and assume responsibility for those risks, do not use the Aladin® Pro! WARNING The Aladin® Pro is a sophisticated decompression tool to assist a trained and certified diver in making decisions concerning dive planning and execution. As with any tool, the Aladin® Pro may be misused if the following safety and operational precautions are not strictly followed. If they are followed, careful use of the Aladin® Pro can increase your diving enjoyment and reduce your risk of decompression sickness. If they are not, you will be placing yourself at serious risk for decompression sickness. While the Aladin® Pro is a technically advanced tool based on a biophysical model of decompression sickness, neither it nor any other diving computer (or table) can actually monitor the physiological changes that occur in your body as you dive. In addition, each diver will vary in his or her susceptibility to decompression sickness. Not only that, but each individual diver`s own susceptibility may vary from day to day. Combined with the fact that decompression modelling is an inexact science, and of necessity must be based at least partly on certain unproven assumptions, it is incumbent upon you, the individual diver, to dive responsibly and to carefully follow all standard safe diving practices as well as the admonitions contained in this manual. Operating Manual Aladin® Pro B Aladin® Pro­The Diving System · Interface and logbook-software DataTrak/DataTalk (Option) B · Logbook (Option) dep th div DIV E e ti me ma x. dep th dec o in fo ® · ESE (Option) ­ C + E · Dive Computer Aladin® Pro Operating Manual Aladin® Pro Important remarks concerning signal words and symbols This operating manual makes use of the following icons to indicate especially important comments: Remarks: 1 Informations and tips which are important for optimal use of the functions of your Aladin® Pro. WARNING Indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, could result in death or serious injury. The following symbols are used in the operating manual: flashing display acoustic alarm signal B ­+E Operating instruction for manual input (Example: bridging contacts B and E) December 1995, Copyright by Uwatec Switzerland Operating Manual Aladin® Pro D Safety considerations Guidelines for the use of Aladin® Pro: The following guidelines for using Aladin® Pro are derived from the latest medical research and the recommendations of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences for diving with diving computers. Following these guidelines will greatly increase your safety while diving, but cannot guarantee that decompression sickness will not occur. ­ In accordance with the recommended maximum diving limit of all instructional agencies, do not dive deeper than 130 feet. ­ Do not use the Aladin® Pro for planned decompression diving. The decompression algorithm contained in the Aladin® Pro should be used only for emergency or unintended decompression. ­ On all dives with the Aladin® Pro, make a safety stop for three to five minutes within the ten to thirty feet zone. ­ Never use the Aladin® Pro for repetitive, "square" dives deeper than 60 feet. A square dive is a dive that is performed for its duration at a uniform depth. ­ Always make the deepest dive of the day first when repetitive dives are planned, and for each successive dive make sure that the deepest portion of that dive is done at the beginning of the dive. ­ The Aladin® Pro is designed for dives made with compressed air only. Do not use the Aladin® Pro for dives made with nitrox or other mixed gases. ­ All divers using dive computers to plan dives and indicate or determine decompression status must use their own computer. E Operating Manual Aladin® Pro Safety considerations 3 ­ If the Aladin® Pro fails at any time during the dive, the dive must be terminated, and appropriate surfacing procedures (including a slow ascent and a 3 to 5 minute safety stop) should be initiated immediately. ­ On any given dive, all divers in a buddy group must follow the most conservative dive computer for that particular dive. ­ You should not dive for a period of twenty-four hours before activating the Aladin® Pro to use it to plan or control your diving. ­ You MUST follow the ascent rates as indicated by the Aladin® Pro, and should the computer fail for any reason, you must ascend at a rate of no greater than 60 feet per minute. ­ You MUST be familiar with all signs and symptoms of decompression sickness before using the Aladin® Pro! Seek IMMEDIATE treatment for decompression sickness should any of these signs or symptoms occur after a dive! There is a direct correlation between the efficacy of treatment and the delay between the onset of symptoms and the treatment for decompression sickness. ­ Always observe the optical and acoustic alarm signals of the Aladin® Pro. Avoid situations of increased risk for decompression sickness which are marked with a warning sign in this operating manual. ­ Never dive the Aladin® Pro to the limit. Neither the Aladin® Pro, nor any other diving computer or decompression table should be pushed to its limit. Give yourself a margin of safety by always leaving at least a few minutes in the "no-stop" box before making your ascent. ­ Avoid repeated ascents and descents (yo-yo diving) while using the Aladin® Pro. Operating Manual Aladin® Pro F LIST OF CHAPTERS I II III IV V VI VII INTRODUCTION ALADIN® PRO ­ SURVEY DIVING WITH ALADIN® PRO DIVING AT REDUCED RISK WITH ALADIN® PRO LOGBOOK DIVE PLANNER INTERFACE 1I 9 II 23 III 45 IV 55 V 61 VI 69 VII 73 VIII VIII TROUBLE SHOOTING IX APPENDIX, Maintenance, Technical Information, Warranty 77 IX I INTRODUCTION 1. Aladin® Pro - With More Safety 2. Aladin® Pro ­ Your Personal Companion 3. The Calculation Model ZH-L8 ADT ______________________________________ 2 ______________________________________ 3 3.1 Description _________________________ 5 3.2 Advantages ________________________ 7 ______________________________________ 8 I 4. Safety in Diving I Introduction 1 1. Aladin® Pro - With More Safety The impressing operational features and its aspects of safety and quality make Aladin® Pro an outstanding diving computer. Building on the proven technique and finish the Aladin® Pro has now been made safer and more comfortable by incorporating a new, revolutionary calculation model. Aladin® Pro desplays all information necessary for safe diving in such a manner that it is easy to survey and to be understood at once. The convincingly simple handling and the high comfort of carrying speak for themselves from the first dive. The Aladin® Pro of the new generation brings you in possession of a device that guarantees more safety, quality and comfort in diving. Read this operating manual carefully and to the last page. 2 I Introduction 2. Aladin® Pro - Your Personal Companion I Aladin® Pro considers your individual reactions during the dive, the cooling of your skin and includes your workload by a constant value in the calculations. The latest results of medical and technical research were taken into consideration. As a special feature the calculation model also considers the formation of micro-bubbles in the venous circulation depending on workload and skin temperature. This has led to the development of a unique, adaptive calculation model. Aladin® Pro was exclusively designed for diving with compressed air and distinguishes itself from previous models and other commercial diving computers in a number of significant ways. · The ZH-L8 ADT decompression calculation model considers eight body tissues as well as the diver`s conduct and the ambient conditions. This allows for an even more precise calculation of a modeled risk for decompression sickness which can lead to greater diving safety. · Compared to all previous models the Aladin® Pro I Introduction is much more of a personal instrument, which considers the individual conduct of the diver. Different conducts of diving buddies can lead to distinctive differences in the display of the decompression information, since risk situations (violations of the diving rules) may have a strong influence by the anticipation of physiological processes. On the other hand, Aladin ® Pro "rewards" a diving conduct following the rules with highest diving comfort. · The diver`s workload is incorporated in the decompression calculations as a constant value. The new calculation model considers for the calculation of the surface intervals and the decompression information for repetitive dives that the physical performance at the surface is less than during the dive. · The Aladin® Pro uses both optical and acoustic alarms. The acoustic alarm uses varied sound signals to assist in establishing the reason for the alarm. 3 2. Aladin® Pro - Your Personal Companion WARNING You must strictly observe all optical and acoustic alarms and take appropriate action based upon those alarms to avoid serious injury or death from decompression sickness! WARNING Although the Aladin® Pro can be used to plan decompression dives, such dives are beyond the realm of recreational or sport diving and must not be attempted by recreational or sport scuba divers. · By using the Aladin® Pro`s logbook, a diver may directly call up information from the last 19 dives. When interfaced with a personal computer, 37 dives and 200 minutes of dive profile in intervals of 20 seconds can be read out. · The dive planner allows the advance planning of no stop dives with readily determinable surface intervals. · Aladin® Pro is designed to be mounted on the diver`s wrist or built in consoles. Ease handling, easy to watch and unambiguous arrangement of the data in the display, increase of diving safety without the loss of diving comfort and the possibility of transferring data to a personal computer are the main features of the Aladin® Pro comfort. 4 I Introduction 3. The Calculation Model ZH-L8 ADT I 3.1 Description The Aladin® Pro uses a new decompression calculation model known as the ZH-L8 ADT. This model uses eight compartments or "tissue" groups with nominal half time periods from 5 to 640 minutes. This model differs considerably from other models by its consideration of the following additional physiological processes: 1. Blood perfusion to the body`s organs is not constant. Skin and muscle tissues are especially subject to changes in blood perfusion, depending on temperature and workload. Changes in blood perfusion to these organs change their nitrogen saturation tolerance. The model used by the Aladin® Pro takes these effects into account and thus the "skin" and "muscle" compartments in the Aladin® Pro show variable half-time periods and saturation tolerances. Decompression information is calculated according to the workload and decrease in skin temperature. I Introduction The decrease in skin temperature is based upon the water temperature and the dive time. By considering these changes in saturation, the time that must be spent at the surface prior to flying can be considerably lengthened, depending upon the depth, time, and temperature of a dive, as well as the diver`s workload during that dive. 5 3. The Calculation Model ZH-L8 ADT 2. The decompression model used by the Aladin® Pro considers nitrogen in both its dissolved as well as its gaseous phase (microbubbles). Formation of microbubbles is considered to be a strong indicator of a high risk of decompression sickness. The Aladin ® Pro model calculates the formation of microbubbels depending on various assumed influences in arterial and venous blood. In normal, slow ascents, microbubbles form mainly in venous blood. During fast ascents, microbubbles may also form in arterial blood and in the body`s tissues as well. If a particular dive profile may result in the creation of microbubbles according to the Aladin® Pro`s model, decreased bottom time and/or increased decompression times as well as increased "no fly" time will be indicated. · Microbubbles can form if the diver makes too fast an ascent, ignores required decompression stops, or makes repeated ascents during a dive (yo-yo diving). These microbubbles can form in arterial blood as well as in the body`s tissues. If these microbubbles partially impair circulation, the rate of gas diffusion and saturation tolerance for those tissues immediately surrounding this area of impaired circulation are changed. If required, both decompression time and -depth will be adjusted in such a way that already existing microbubbles will stop growing. Increased decompression time will also assist those local areas of impaired circulation to desaturate with less risk of decompression sickness. · The calculation of microbubbles results in altered ascent instructions. If microbubbles are assumed to be present based on the data used by the Aladin® Pro, the ascent rate to the surface is reduced to 23 feet/minute. This will help prevent the formation of microbubbles in the arterial circulation and minimizes formation of microbubbles in the venous circulation after the dive. 6 I Introduction 3. The Calculation Model ZH-L8 ADT I 3.2 Advantages On the first dives following responsible diving procedures, a diver using the Aladin® Pro should never be required to decompress, although a three to five minute safety stop between ten and thirty feet is recommended for every dive. If, however, unplanned circumstances arise during the dive which increase the risk of decompression, the Aladin® Pro can, if closely followed, reduce the risk of decompression sickness by reducing remaining bottom time and/or increasing decompression time. Some of the more common risk situations are as follows: · Repetitive dives, especially those deeper than 60 feet and those with short surface intervals. · Repetitive dives using square dive profiles. · Repetitive diving over the course of several successive days. · Diving in cold water. · Yo-yo diving (repeated descents and ascents to the surface during a given dive). · Flying within 24 hours after diving. I Introduction If a diver experiences any of these risk factors while diving, the Aladin® Pro will decrease remaining bottom time without requiring decompression, or will add required decom-pression time in order to help minimize the risk of decompression sickness. WARNING Do not use the Aladin® Pro for planned decompression dives! If signs or symptoms of decompression sickness occur after diving with Aladin ® Pro, seek IMMEDIATE treatment at the nearest recompression facility. 7 4. Safety in Diving With its new decompression model the Aladin® Pro is an extremely versatile tool which can increase your diving comfort and safety. As with any diving tool, however, ultimate responsibility for diving safety remains with the individual diver. The same responsible diving practices taught by all diving certification agencies are still absolutely necessary in order to safely dive with the Aladin® Pro. Certain mistakes which may be made by a diver, such as ascending at an excessive rate, going too deep, or staying too long at depth, may be overcome if the diver carefully follows the Aladin® Pro`s corrected ascent instructions. Of course, the Aladin® Pro can do nothing to prevent the occurrence of lung overexpansion injuries or nitrogen narcosis, whose avoidance lies solely with the individual diver. The Aladin® Pro is a highly sophisticated technical instrument which, if used and maintained properly, will have high reliability. Despite that, no dive should be made with an Aladin® Pro without a thorough understanding of decompression theory and dive table use, and every diver must have a set of decompression tables with him on every dive. WARNING Do not use the Aladin® Pro without a set of accepted diving tables with you as a back up decompression tool on every dive. Should decompression sickness occur, whether the Aladin® Pro was used correctly or not, a detailed history of the previous dives may be used to allow a better diagnosis and the most effective treatment for the diver. 8 I Introduction II ALADIN® PRO ­ SURVEY 1. The Aladin System 2. Operation _____________________________________ 10 _____________________________________ 12 2.1 Operating scheme for surface functions ____ 13 2.2 Operating modes _______________________ 18 II II Aladin® Pro - Survey 9 1. The Aladin System The dive computer as the central unit of the Aladin® system becomes a valuable aid by a number of additional features: depth dive time 1. During the dive the Aladin® Pro dive computer supplies all important dive- and decompression information and warnings if necessary. It has a logbook with the last 19 dives and a dive planner. NO STOP max. depth deco info ® 1 depth dive time NO STOP max. depth deco info 10 II Aladin® Pro - Survey 1. The Aladin System 2. The configuration software DataTalk (supplied together with DataTrak) allows the alteration of a number of preset parameters of Aladin® Pro. II 2 dept h dive DIV E tim e max . de pth deco info ® 4 3 3. The external memory extension (ESE) makes it possible to read data from the logbook memory of Aladin® Pro without a personal computer. This is especially valuable on diving holidays. The logbook software DataTrak enables you to print out logbook pages. You can get a special logbook with insert folders from your retailer. 4. II Aladin® Pro - Survey 11 2. Operation Switching on display: ­ automatically, on submerging in water or when adaptation to atmospheric pressure is necessary. ­ manually by manipulating contacts on housing. Switching off display: ­ automatically, after three minutes without operation. Aladin® Pro has 4 operating contacts B, E, +, ­ on the outside of the housing. For manual operation, touch base contact B and any one of the other three contacts below the display with moistened fingers. B dep th div e ti me Contact B: Contact E: ma x. d epth dec o in fo ® ­+ E + / ­ contacts: Base contact, which has to be touched for all operations. Enter contact. It serves the switching on of the computer, the activation of logbook and dive-planmode, and the switching between no-stop and decompression planning. It is also used to confirm inputs and is therefore comparable to the ENTER- or RETURN-key of a computer. They serve the selection of logbook and dive-plan as well as the setting of values (time, depth, dive-number etc.). II Aladin® Pro - Survey 12 2. Operation 3.2 Operating scheme for surface functions dep th dive tim e 1 max . dep th dec o info Sleep Surface Sleep 2 II B and E 5 4 input stage DIVEPLAN dep th dive tim e (or 3 min) Ready od. Surface 3 input stage (or 3 min) (or 3 LOGBOOK max . dep th dec o info 3s (or automatically 3m in) min ) 5sec B and + DIVEPLAN Battery capacity LOGBOOK dep th dive tim e max . dep th dec o info depth dive time NO STOP max. depth deco info B and ­ II Aladin® Pro - Survey 13