ISO/FDIS 22578

Graphical symbols -- Safety colours and safety signs -- Natural disaster safety way guidance system

Symboles graphiques -- Couleurs de sécurité et signaux de sécurité -- Système de guidage pour mise en sécurité en cas de catastrophe naturelle

General Information

• Status: Published
• ICS: 01.080.10 - Public information symbols. Signs. Plates. Labels
• Technical Committee: ISO/TC 145/SC 2 - Safety identification, signs, shapes, symbols and colours
• Drafting Committee: ISO/TC 145/SC 2/wg 7 - Natural disaster safety way guidance system
• Current Stage: 5060 - Close of voting Proof returned by Secretariat
• Completion Date: 03-Jan-2022

Standards Content (sample)

FINAL
INTERNATIONAL ISO/FDIS
DRAFT
STANDARD 22578
ISO/TC 145/SC 2
Graphical symbols — Safety colours
Secretariat: DIN
and safety signs — Natural disaster
Voting begins on:
2021-11-08 safety way guidance system
Voting terminates on:
2022-01-03
RECIPIENTS OF THIS DRAFT ARE INVITED TO
SUBMIT, WITH THEIR COMMENTS, NOTIFICATION
OF ANY RELEVANT PATENT RIGHTS OF WHICH
THEY ARE AWARE AND TO PROVIDE SUPPOR TING
DOCUMENTATION.
IN ADDITION TO THEIR EVALUATION AS
Reference number
BEING ACCEPTABLE FOR INDUSTRIAL, TECHNO-
ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
LOGICAL, COMMERCIAL AND USER PURPOSES,
DRAFT INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS MAY ON
OCCASION HAVE TO BE CONSIDERED IN THE
LIGHT OF THEIR POTENTIAL TO BECOME STAN-
DARDS TO WHICH REFERENCE MAY BE MADE IN
NATIONAL REGULATIONS. © ISO 2021
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO 2021

All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may

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© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
Contents Page

Foreword ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................iv

Introduction .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................v

1 Scope ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 1

2 Normative references ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 1

3 Terms and definitions .................................................................................................................................................................................... 1

4 Purpose and deployment ............................................................................................................................................................................ 3

5 P lanning natural disaster safety way guidance systems ......................................................................................... 3

6 Signs used in natural disaster safety way guidance systems .............................................................................. 3

6.1 Signs ................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 3

6.2 Supplementary direction arrow signs ............................................................................................................................... 5

6.3 Supplementary symbols and suitability marking ................................................................................................... 6

7 Structure of a natural disaster safety way guidance system ............................................................................... 7

7.1 Overview of structure ........................................................................................................................................... ........................... 7

7.2 Warning signs ...................................................................... .................................................................................................................... 8

7.3 Evacuation plan signs ....................................................................................................................................................................... 9

7.4 Evacuation route signs ................................................................................................................................................................. 10

7.5 Place of refuge signs .......................................................................................................................................................................13

8 Bilingual signs .....................................................................................................................................................................................................14

9 Identifiability and legibility of signs under daylight and night-time conditions .........................15

10 Installation of natural disaster safety way guidance systems ........................................................................16

10.1 General ........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 16

10.2 Sign positioning .................................................................................................................................................................................. 17

10.3 Durability ................................................................................................................................................................................................. 17

11 Repair, maintenance and inspection ...........................................................................................................................................18

Annex A (informative) Examples of installations of natural disaster safety way guidance

systems ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................19

Annex B (informative) Distance factors and sizing visual elements ..............................................................................27

Annex C (informative) Daylight and night-time illumination conditions .................................................................31

Bibliography .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................32

iii
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
Foreword

ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards

bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out

through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical

committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International

organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.

ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of

electrotechnical standardization.

The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are

described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the

different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the

editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).

Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of

patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of

any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or

on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).

Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not

constitute an endorsement.

For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and

expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to

the World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see

www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.

This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 145, Graphical symbols, Subcommittee

SC 2, Safety identification, signs, shapes, symbols and colours.

Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A

complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
Introduction

There is a need to standardize a system for giving safety information related to evacuation to safety

evacuation areas in the event of natural disasters that relies as little as possible on the use of words to

achieve understanding.

It is extremely important for people who do not understand the local language to figure out the

evacuation route instantly when they encounter a natural disaster in a foreign country.

This document reflects best practice; the illustrations show installation practice designed to provide

the optimum amount of information to clearly identify the hazards of different types of natural disaster

in order to direct evacuation by the appropriate location of evacuation route signs and evacuation plan

signs, and the selection of places of refuge.

International travel increases the need for standardized methods of safety communication. A

standardized method of signing with the use of appropriate supplementary signs and text throughout

the public environment assists the process of education and instruction on the meaning of the

evacuation route signs and place of refuge signs, and the appropriate actions to take.

The illustrations within this document are based on the assumption that people might be unfamiliar

with the features of the natural disaster or the location of places of refuge.

It is important that the application of safety way guidance systems is standardized to aid

comprehension. While education in the comprehension of the signs and evacuation plan signs is

essential, incomprehension caused by lack of standardization can lead to confusion and possibly hinder

effective evacuation.

This document does not purport to include all the necessary aspects or requirements of the design of a

natural disaster safety way guidance system. Users are responsible for its correct application.

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FINAL DRAFT INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
Graphical symbols — Safety colours and safety signs —
Natural disaster safety way guidance system

IMPORTANT — The colours represented in the electronic file of this document can be neither

viewed on screen nor printed as true representations. For the purposes of colour matching

see ISO 3864-4, which provides colorimetric and photometric properties together with, as a

guideline, references from colour order systems.
1 Scope

This document specifies the principles governing the design and application of signs and plans used to

create a natural disaster safety way guidance system to help people evacuate to safe areas or places of

refuge in case of natural disasters (e.g. tsunamis, floods, debris flows, steep slope failures, landslides,

tornados, large-scale fires, active volcanoes).

This document provides guidance on the selection and use of safety signs conforming to ISO 7010,

public information symbols conforming to ISO 7001, and text on evacuation route signs, places of refuge

signs and evacuation plan signs for information related to one or more particular natural disasters.

Guidance on the design, location, mounting positions and maintenance of the sign components of a

natural disaster safety way guidance system is also provided.

This document does not apply to the determination of the need for natural disaster safety way

guidance. This document assumes that the risk assessment or requirements of an enforcing authority

have established the need for such natural disaster safety way guidance systems.

This document is not applicable to the particular hazards of high winds, snow avalanches, earthquakes

or hurricanes, which cause the natural disasters covered in this document.

This document is applicable to safety way guidance from natural disasters from the outside of buildings

to safe areas. ISO 16069 is applicable to safety way guidance within a building to the emergency exit(s).

2 Normative references

The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content

constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For

undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.

ISO 7010, Graphical symbols — Safety colours and safety signs — Registered safety signs

ISO 3864-1, Graphical symbols — Safety colours and safety signs — Part 1: Design principles for safety

signs and safety markings

ISO 3864-3, Graphical symbols — Safety colours and safety signs — Part 3: Design principles for graphical

symbols for use in safety signs

ISO 3864-4:2011, Graphical symbols — Safety colours and safety signs — Part 4: Colorimetric and

photometric properties of safety sign materials
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.

ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:

— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1
evacuation plan

map or diagram displayed in public areas to assist users to understand the environment, locate facilities

and determine evacuation routes to reach a safe area
3.2
evacuation route

direction from a person's location to the nearest safe area when a disaster occurs

3.3
natural disaster safety way guidance system

system that includes evacuation plan signs and evacuation route signs, and provides information to

guide people from a location to a place of refuge when a natural disaster occurs
3.4
natural disaster supplementary sign
sign indicating the type of possible disaster

Note 1 to entry: Appropriate evacuation area and other related information are also displayed.

3.5
ordinary material

material which is not retroreflecting, fluorescent or phosphorescent, and neither involves powered

light emission nor is activated by a radioactive source
[SOURCE: ISO 3864-4:2011, 3.11, modified]
3.6
phosphorescent material

material incorporating phosphors that, if excited by UV or visible radiation, store energy, which is

emitted as light over a period of time

Note 1 to entry: A phosphorescent sign is the same as “photoluminescent”, commonly used in the literature of the

photoluminescent safety sign industry.
[SOURCE: ISO 16069:2017, 3.15]
3.7
place of refuge

outdoor area or indoor space to which people can quickly evacuate in order to remain safe when a

disaster occurs or is likely to occur

Note 1 to entry: Places of refuge include protection shelters, outdoor refuge areas, tsunami evacuation areas and

tsunami evacuation buildings.
3.8
protection shelter
facility that provides protection from a disaster
3.9
sign height

diameter of a circular geometric shape or height of a rectangular or triangular geometric shape of the

type of safety sign

Note 1 to entry: Registered safety sign originals in ISO 7010 are in a uniform 70 mm size with corner marks to

enable accurate enlargement and reduction scaling. A border is not shown.
[SOURCE: ISO 20712-3:2020, 3.8, modified — Note 1 to entry revised.]
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
4 Purpose and deployment

The natural disaster safety way guidance system is necessary to warn people in areas likely to be

affected by a disaster when it occurs and help them take suitable action quickly according to the type

of disaster.

The objective of the natural disaster safety way guidance system is to display information about the

hazards of possible natural disasters in vulnerable regions so both visitors and people living in the

region can evacuate quickly.
5 Plannin g natural disaster safety way guidance systems

Where risk mitigation plans related to natural disasters have been prepared and are available to civil

protection agencies or relevant authorities, a natural disaster safety way guidance system can be

designed to communicate important safety and evacuation information to populations in zones that

can be affected by one or more types of natural disaster.

The designer of the system should identify the following, based on the mitigation plans:

a) locations of hazard zones;
b) locations of places of refuge and their names;
c) suitability of places of refuge for certain disasters;
d) locations of evacuation routes to places of refuge;

e) locations of accessible routes in the event of floods from inland waters and fire disasters;

f) locations of rescue facilities (e.g. medical, firefighting);

g) locations of facilities for enabling emergency evacuation (e.g. helicopters, lifeboats);

h) locations of emergency communication equipment;
i) locations of available emergency services, such as water and energy supply;

j) appropriate supplementary text on evacuation route signs, such as information on recorded heights

of water at locations within flood zones;
k) use of local language(s) and other languages;

l) other sources of warning information, such as national and local media, and sound alarms.

6 Signs used in natural disaster safety way guidance systems
6.1 Signs

The safety sign components of natural disaster safety way guidance signs shall be registered safety

signs from ISO 7010. Supplementary signs and combination signs shall meet the design requirements of

ISO 3864-1. Signs used in natural disaster safety way guidance systems are shown in Table 1.

Safety signs shall be based on ordinary material or phosphorescent material. Safety signs shall meet

the colorimetric and photometric specifications of ISO 3864-4 under the test conditions relating to

safety signs being externally illuminated.

NOTE ISO 3864-4 defines colour under certain test conditions and not all conditions of observation of safety

signs. Phosphorescent safety signs during luminance decay mode lack colour recognition of the green; however,

they are designed such that the luminance contrast enables the graphical symbols to be or remain identifiable.

Ordinary signs lack colour discrimination in night-time illumination.
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)

Classification of emission colour of phosphorescent material is given in ISO 3864-4:2011, Annex B.

Table 1 — Signs used in natural disaster safety way guidance systems
Safety signs
Supplementary
Type of disaster
signs
Warning signs Safe condition signs
Tsunami
ISO 7010-E062 ISO 7010-E021
Tsunami evacuation Protection shelter
area
ISO 7010-W056
Warning; Tsunami
Tsunami
hazard zone
Storm surge
ISO 7010-E063
Tsunami evacuation
building
Flood (including
flood from inland
waters)
ISO 7010-W077
ISO 7010-EXXX ISO 7010-E021
Warning; Flood zone
Flood
Proposed new sign; Protection shelter
Outdoor refuge area
Debris flow
ISO 7010-W076
ISO 7010-EXXX ISO 7010-E021
Warning; Debris
Debris flow
Proposed new sign; Protection shelter
flow zone
Outdoor refuge area
Steep slope failure
ISO 7010-W078
ISO 7010-EXXX ISO 7010-E021
Warning; Landslide
Landslide Landslide
Proposed new sign; Protection shelter
zone
Outdoor refuge area

This safety sign is subject to registration/co-ordination through ISO/TC 145 and is thus likely to be modified for

publication.
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
Table 1 (continued)
Safety signs
Supplementary
Type of disaster
signs
Warning signs Safe condition signs
Large-scale fire
ISO 7010-W073
ISO 7010-EXXX ISO 7010-E021
Warning; Large scale
Large scale fire
Proposed new sign; Protection shelter
fire zone
Outdoor refuge area
Tornado
ISO 7010-W074
ISO 7010-E021
Warning; Tornado
Tornado
Protection shelter
zone
Volcano
ISO 7010-W075
ISO 7010-E021
Warning; Active
Volcano
Protection shelter
volcano zone

This safety sign is subject to registration/co-ordination through ISO/TC 145 and is thus likely to be modified for

publication.
6.2 Supplementary direction arrow signs

Arrows in direction signs shall be used in conjunction with safety signs to indicate the direction of

movement a person should take to reach the indicated destination. The format of the direction arrow

shall be arrow type D from ISO 3864-3. The meanings of different arrow orientations are shown in

Table 2.
Table 2 — Use of supplementary direction arrow signs
Arrow Meaning
Proceed to the right from here
Proceed to the left from here
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
Table 2 (continued)
Arrow Meaning
a) Proceed forward from here
b) Proceed forward and through from here
c) Proceed forward and up from here
a) Proceed up to the right from here
b) Proceed forward and across to the right from here
Proceed down to the right from here
a) Proceed up to the left from here
b) Proceed forward and across to the left from here
Proceed down to the left from here
Proceed down from here
6.3 Supplementary symbols and suitability marking

Because the construction and location of a place of refuge might only be appropriate for particular

natural disasters, it is necessary to indicate the type of disasters for which places of refuge are

appropriate. Place of refuge signs help people who are unfamiliar with the area to properly identify a

specific building’s or area’s suitability or unsuitability as a place of refuge.

In areas where different types of natural disaster can occur, the civil protection agency or authority

shall decide on the suitability of the places of refuge for a certain disaster.

In place of refuge signs and evacuation route signs, the appropriate supplementary symbols given in

Table 1 should be used to indicate whether a place of refuge is suitable or unsuitable for protection

from hazards associated with one or more types of natural disaster.

Where it is necessary to warn people that the place of refuge is not suitable for particular types of

natural disaster, an “x” or diagonal bar should be displayed.

A green tick may be used to indicate suitability. The green tick may be replaced by another element

appropriate to the cultural requirements of the target audience.
Examples of suitability and unsuitability markings are presented in Figure 1.
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)

Figure 1 — Examples of markings displaying suitability for floods but unsuitability for debris

flow, landslides or large-scale fires
For examples of signs, see Figures 6 a) and 6 b).
7 Structure of a natural disaster safety way guidance system
7.1 Overview of structure

In order to effectively and efficiently guide people to specific places of refuge when natural disasters

occur, it is important for the system’s signs to provide evacuees with clear, seamless directional

information so they do not lose their way. The structure and content of the guidance system should

be consistent with the information requirements defined in the planning stage (see Clause 5). The

structure of seamlessly designed natural disaster safety way guidance systems is shown in Figure 2.

Natural disaster safety way guidance systems shall provide warning signs, evacuation plan signs,

evacuation route signs and place of refuge signs continuously along the evacuation route in accordance

with the risk mitigation plan.
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)

Figure 2 — Structure of seamlessly designed natural disaster safety way guidance system

7.2 Warning signs

Warning signs shall be installed in locations or areas deemed appropriate, identified as being at risk of

hazard from a particular natural disaster.

Warning signs shall conform to the appropriate ISO 7010 sign. When using supplementary texts, they

may include “Warning” and text giving the meaning of the sign. Additional supplementary text may be

provided giving additional safety information.

Examples of the application of warning signs for natural disasters are shown in Figure 3 and Clause A.1.

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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
Figure 3 — Examples of layouts and contents in a warning sign
7.3 Evacuation plan signs

Evacuation plan signs show the physical relationship between the evacuee and the places of refuge

using the area map as appropriate. They shall provide information identifying the area(s) of risk of the

natural hazard, the locations of places of refuge and the location of evacuees with the symbol “You are

here”. Legend symbols should be from ISO 7001 and ISO 7010.
The following information shall be shown on evacuation plan signs:
a) location of places of refuge;
b) location of current place (“You are here”).
The following information can be shown on the evacuation plan sign:
— location of emergency services, such as drinking water and first aid;
— location of evacuation routes;
— location of landmarks;
— hazard zones (see Figures A.2, A.3 and A.4);
— legend;
— marking of the hazardous zone by warning signs and colouring;
— different sources of warning information.

Examples of the application of evacuation plan signs for other natural disasters are presented in

Figure 4 and A.2.
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
a) Area map of safety way guidance
b) Projected flood water depth
Figure 4 — Examples of evacuation plan signs
7.4 Evacuation route signs

The direction and the distance to the place of refuge shall be shown on the evacuation route signs.

Evacuation route signs shall be installed with a directional arrow showing the direction of evacuation,

distance to the place of refuge and the safe condition sign with a suitable natural disaster supplementary

sign. Evacuation route signs shall use the appropriate safety sign from Table 1 and direction arrow

from Table 2.
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)

The direction given by the arrow is used to indicate the direction of movement of evacuation. Evacuation

route signs (such as those given in Figure 6) shall be used exclusively to indicate the direction to be

followed by occupants. Graphical symbols with a person running (outdoor refuge area, tsunami

evacuation area and tsunami evacuation building) shall always be used with a supplementary arrow

and shall be consistently displayed at all installed positions on the evacuation route. Examples of a safe

condition sign with a supplementary direction arrow sign are presented in Figure 5.

Figure 5 — Examples of a safe condition sign with a supplementary direction arrow sign

The evacuation route sign shall show the following information in the event of natural disasters, as a

consequence of the mitigation plans:
a) distance to the place of refuge;
b) sign and description or identifier showing the place of refuge;
c) supplementary sign showing the suitable type of natural disaster.

The graphical symbols used on evacuation route signs can be arranged in several ways depending on

the space available for the display. Examples of evacuation route sign layouts are presented in Figure 6

and A.3.
a) Layout example of a vertical sign
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
b) Layout example of a vertical sign with not suitable marking
c) Layout example of a horizontal sign
d) Layout example of a square sign
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ISO/FDIS 22578:2021(E)
e) Layout example of a horizontal sign for one disaster
Figure 6 — Examples of evacuation route sign layouts
7.5 Place of refuge signs

Place of refuge signs show the place is safe for refuge from certain types of natural disasters.

The appropriate safe condition sign from ISO 7010 (see Table 1) shall be used for place of refuge signs,

such as tsunami evacuation area, outdoor refuge area, tsunami evacuation building and protection

shelter.

Signs shall be installed in (a) prominent place(s) at the designated location(s) and include suitability

mark
...