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AIS-AIMSG/2-SN No. 11/ AIS-AIMSG/2-SN No. 11
30/11/09
AERONAUTICAL INFORMATION SERVICES TO AERONAUTICAL INFORMATION MANAGEMENT STUDY GROUP (AIS-AIMSG)
SECOND MEETING
Montréal, 10 to 13November 2009
Agenda Item 7:Electronic AIP (eAIP)Guidance Material for the provision of Electronic AIP (eAIP)
(Presented by Paul Bosman)
SUMMARYThis paper has been prepared in replyto AIS-AIM Study Group action 1/18 which calls for the development of guidance material for eAIP.
The ICAO State Letter for the adoption of Amendment 36 to Annex 15 proposed new ICAO Recommended Practices for the provision and the consultation on screen of the AIP (including AMDT and SUP) and AIC.
In order to support the States to comply with this recommendation, it is proposed to develop Guidance Material for eAIP, based on the eAIP Specification developed by EUROCONTROL and which is already implemented bymore than twenty ICAO ContractingStates.
1.From paper to electronic documents
1.1The second phase of the ICAO AIS to AIM Transition Roadmap includes the provision by the State AIS of an Electronic AIP (eAIP). This is included as a Recommended Practice in the proposed ICAO Annex 15, Amendment 36. The text of the ICAO State letter that refers is provided below:
. . .
4.6 Electronic AIP (eAIP)
4.6.1 Recommendation.— The AIP, AIP Amendment, AIP Supplement and AIC should also be published in a format that allows for displaying on a computer screen and printing on paper.
Note 1.— This composite electronic document is named “Electronic AIP” (eAIP) and is based on a format that allows for digital data exchange.
Note 2.— Guidance material for the production and provision of the eAIP is contained in Doc 8126.
4.6.2 When provided, the information content of the eAIP and the structure of chapters, sections and sub-sections shall follow the content and structure of the paper AIP. The eAIP shall include files that allow for printing a paper AIP.
4.6.3 Recommendation.— When provided, the eAIP should be available on a physical distribution media (CD, DVD, etc.) and online on the Internet.
Note.— Guidance material on the use of the Internet is contained in Guidelines on the Use of the Public Internet for Aeronautical Applications (Doc 9855).. . .
2.The eAIP Specification
2.1The Electronic AIP (eAIP) Specification that is proposed to be used as ICAO Guidance Material was developed by EUROCONTROL and first published in 2003. This eAIP Specification has since been implemented by many ICAO Member States (see for the latest list of known implementations).
2.2The eAIP Specification provides a standardised approach for:
a)publishing the content of an AIP (including AIP Amendments (AMDT), AIP Supplements (SUP) and Aeronautical Information Circulars (AIC)) in a structured electronic format (XML and HTML, with PDF for printing); and
b)visualising the content of an eAIP on a computer screen, using Web technology.
2.3The eAIP Specification is fully compliant with the ICAO requirements for AIP content and structure, as laid down in Annex 15.
2.4The eAIP Specification has undergone comprehensive testing and validation. Following a number of initial (“pilot”) implementations in Belgium, Slovenia, The Netherlands, Armenia, Moldova and Germany (military AIP), currently there are more than 20 States (see below) publishing (or soon will publish) an official eAIP using the EUROCONTROLspecification. The contribution of these States to the development and validation of the eAIP Specification is hereby acknowledged.
- Implemented: Slovenia, Belgium and Luxembourg, Armenia, Moldova, The Netherlands, Slovak Republic, Portugal, Latvia, Azerbaijan, Taipei FIR, Hungary, Japan.
- In development: Czech Republic, Sweden, Egypt, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Ghana, Estonia, Vietnam, Turkey, Albania, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina.
- The industry that provides tools for AIS automation has also demonstrated a good adoption of the eAIP Specification. Tools for the production and publication of electronic AIP using the EUROCONTROL specification are available from at least six software providers (see
3.Proposed ICAO eAIP Guidance Material
3.1The proposed Guidance Material for eAIP is included in the Annex to this Study Note.
4.RecommendationS
a)it is proposed to insert a new Chapter 11 in the ICAO DOC 8126 - AIS Manual, providing guidelines for the production and the publication of the eAIP, containing the text from the Annex of this Study Note.
b)it is proposed to complement these guidelines by the addition of a CD-ROM attached to the AIS Manual containg: eAIP Document Type Definition (DTD), the eAIP Sample and the Toolboxes that contain open source software which can support the production of an eAIP. The content of the CD-ROM will be provided by Eurocontrol as soon as the development of version 1.2 of the eAIP Toolbox will be finalised. This is expected to be by July 2010.
c)take note that Eurocontrol will continue to actively maintain the eAIP Toolbox for the benefit of the international community. Further updates will be provided through the Eurocontrol Web site.
d)take note that Eurocontrol will launch a formal consultation process on the eAIP Specification in 2010 in parallel with a eAIP Usability Study. These are likely to result in proposed improvements of the eAIP Specification. These will be provided to ICAO by end 2010, as a proposal for updating the eAIP Guidance Material.
— — — — — — — —
ANNEX
It is proposed that the following guidance material is included in the ICAO AIS Manual in order to support States in developing and providing the eAIP.
1.Introduction
1.1These eAIP production guidelines enable publishing the content of an AIP (including AIP Amendments (AMDT), AIP Supplements (SUP) and Aeronautical Information Circulars (AIC)) in a structured electronic format, which is optimised for visualising on a computer screen, using Web technology.
1.2When compared with the paper AIP, the eAIP introduces new capabilities, such as fast search, hyperlinks, dynamic presentation of the changes in text and graphics, etc. TheeAIP also complies with the constraints of the electronic displays, typically related to the page layout and the encoding format.
1.3The eAIP brings a number of advantages for the users as compared to the paper AIP:
e)ease of browsing, facilitated by the HTML technology (hot links, tool tips, etc.);
f)the ability to visualise changes (both in text and graphics);
g)no maintenance effort (no time spent on page replacement at every amendment);
h)easily accessible - it can be made available to the whole group of users (no need to go to the library);
i)may be easily archived;
j)proven authenticity of the document (if digitally signed by the issuing AIS);
k)no postal delays (if distributed through the Internet).
1.4The eAIP also brings advantages for the AIS:
a)improved AIP product, with increased consistency, integrity and usability, and the possibility of producing derived products, such as Visual Flight Rules (VFR) Manuals, etc;
b)content for screen (HTML) and paper (PDF) produced from the same source;
c)may be easily archived and retrieved for each Aeronautical Information Regulation and Control (AIRAC) cycle, using electronic media;
d)ability to guarantee the integrity and authenticity of the document by digital signatures;
e)the majority of users do not need to subscribe to paper amendments, thus reducing costs;
f)reduced cost for internal copies. In many States, the copies of the AIP distributed internally in the national administration account for almost half of those produced and distributed; and
g)easier to create integrated/regional AIPs.
2.eAIP Production process
2.1An eAIP is produced using aeronautical information stored in a database. The data is extracted and formatted using dedicated eAIP Editing software. Such tools are provided by industry.
2.2A ‘toolbox’ that supports the development of eAIP production software is included on the CD-ROM attached to this Manual. This toolbox has been developed by Eurocontrol and it is available under an open source license.
2.3Figure 1 details the default eAIP production process from production using the Extensible Markup Language (XML) to rendition in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) and/or publication of an AIP in a print-ready format such as Portable Document Format (PDF). Technologies used in this process are shown as well.
Figure 1 – Default eAIP Production Process
2.4The advantage of this process is that the both the browsing format and the printing format are generated from the same XML files, which can be made available to the user.
2.5Alternatively, it is possible that XML files and the files for printing are produced from different sources (See Figure 2).
Figure 2 – Alternative eAIP Production Process
2.6The advantage of such an alternate process is that the generation of the PDF files is more straightforward. On the other hand, the XML export process is usually embedded in the software tool and the AIP editors do not have much control over it. Therefore, the editors must ensure at every issue that there are no discrepancies between the XML/HTML content on one side and the PDF content on the other side. The users do not have access to the original source files which were used to produce the XML and PDF format. Rendition for printing using stylesheets, etc., is outside the scope of this document.
3.eAIP Layout and functionality
3.1This section contains detailed requirements for the presentation of the eAIP content on screen and of the possibilities offered to the user to interact with the electronic document using a Web browser.
3.2The eAIPis fully compliant with the Annex 15 requirements for the content and structure (parts, sections, sub-sections, etc.) of the AIP.
A.1eAIP VISUALISATION REQUIREMENTS
Note: This sections presents the requirements for the visualisation and functionality of the AIP in electronic form (eAIP). The requirements adhere to the ICAO Annex 15 requirements for:
a)The structure and layout of the AIP;
b)The AIRAC cycle requirements;
c)The indication of amendments (alterations, additions and deletions) to the AIP in the last AIRAC cycle.
To help understandingthis specification, a sample Donlon eAIP is provided on the CD-ROM attached to the AIS Manual.
A.1.1General
Figure 3 below reflects the general requirements associated with the display of the eAIP.
Figure 3 - eAIP Window
[eAIP-Gen-010] / Unless otherwise stated for specific elements, all eAIP text, including headings, is displayed in black text on a white background.[eAIP-Gen-020] / Unlinked eAIP text is black.
[eAIP-Gen-030] / A link is displayed with blue text when the cursor is not placed over it and it is not currently selected, and in red text and underlined when the cursor is placed over it.
[eAIP-Gen-040] / Dates are displayed in the format DD MMM YYYY, for example, 12 JUN 2009.
[eAIP-Gen-050] / The eAIP is displayed in a window consisting of two panes.
[eAIP-Gen-060] / The left-hand pane of the eAIP window shall contain the navigation menu for the eAIP.
[eAIP-Gen-070] / The right-hand side of the eAIP window shall contain the cover page for the eAIP when the eAIP is initially opened.
[eAIP-Gen-080] / The right-hand side of the eAIP window shall contain the relevant content of the eAIP when selected by the user in the left-hand pane.
[eAIP-Gen-090] / The user should be able to change the proportion of the eAIP window used by each pane, by moving the scroll bar.
A.1.2Search Facility
[eAIP-Srch-010] / A Search facility should be available from the eAIP menu.[eAIP-Srch-020] / When launched, a Search page should appear in a separate window.
[eAIP-Srch-030] / The search facility should have an edit box in which the user may type the sequence of characters to be found.
[eAIP-Srch-030] / The Search facility should allow whole words only to be searched for by clicking the “Find Whole Words Only” checkbox.
[eAIP-Srch-040] / The Search facility should allow only words in cases that match the entered word to be found by clicking the “Match Case” checkbox.
[eAIP-Srch-050] / The Search facility should allow the user to use wildcards by clicking the “Use Wildcards” checkbox.
[eAIP-Srch-060] / The Search facility should support the use of “?”, “*”, {} and [] as wildcards, where:
“?” matches any single character (e.g. s?t finds "sat" and "set");
“*” matches any string of characters (e.g. s*d finds "sad" and "started");
“[ … ]” matches one of the specified characters (e.g. w[io]n finds "win" and "won");
“{n}” matches exactly n occurrences of the previous character or expression (e.g. fe{2}d finds "feed" but not "fed").
[eAIP-Srch-070] / The Search page should have a Search button.
[eAIP-Srch-080] / The Search page should have a Cancel button.
[eAIP-Srch-090] / When the user clicks the Search button, the search facility should return the results of a search at the bottom of the Search page.
[eAIP-Srch-100] / There should be an entry on the search results part of the page, for each instance found.
[eAIP-Srch-110] / The entry on the search results part of the page should comprise of the instance found and its surrounding text.
[eAIP-Srch-120] / For each entry on the search results part of the page, the instance found should be highlighted in bold text.
[eAIP-Srch-130] / Each entry on the search results part of the page should be a link.
[eAIP-Srch-140] / If the user clicks the entry link on the search results part of the page, that part of the eAIP, with the instance highlighted, should be displayed on the right-hand side of the eAIP window.
[eAIP-Srch-150] / When the user clicks the entry link on the search results part of the page, the eAIP window should become the active window.
[eAIP-Srch-160] / When the user clicks the Cancel button on the Search page, the Search page should close.
[eAIP-Srch-170] / When the user clicks the Cancel button on the Search page, the eAIP window should become the active window.
A.1.3eAIP History Page
A.1.3.1General
Figure 4 below reflects the requirements associated with the display of the eAIP History page.
Figure 4 - eAIP History Page
[eAIP-Hist-010] / The eAIP History page shall have the title ‘Published eAIPs’.[eAIP-Hist-020] / The eAIP History page shall indicate which State has issued the eAIP.
[eAIP-Hist-030] / The eAIP History page may include the logo of the State AIS Office.
[eAIP-Hist-040] / The eAIP History page shall advise the user to consult NOTAM for the latest information.
[eAIP-Hist-050] / The eAIP History page shall provide the name of the organisation responsible for publishing the eAIP.
[eAIP-Hist-060] / The eAIP History page shall include a currently effective eAIP section;
[eAIP-Hist-070] / The eAIP History page shall include a Next Issues section;
[eAIP-Hist-080] / The eAIP History page shall include an Expired Issues (Archives) section.
A.1.3.2Currently Effective Section
Figure 5 below reflects the requirements associated with the display of the Currently Effective section of the eAIP History page.
Figure 5 – Currently Effective eAIP
[eAIP-Hist-090] / On the eAIP History page, the Currently Effective Issue section should contain a table with an Effective Date column.[eAIP-Hist-100] / On the eAIP History page, the Currently Effective Issue section should contain a table with a Publication Date column.
[eAIP-Hist-110] / On the eAIP History page, the Currently Effective Issue section should contain a table with a Short Description column.
[eAIP-Hist-120] / In the Currently Effective Issue section of the eAIP History page, the date in the Effective Date column of the table, is a link.
[eAIP-Hist-130] / In the Currently Effective Issue section of the eAIP History page, the Effective Date link is to the eAIP with the Effective Date in the table.
[eAIP-Hist-140] / In the Currently Effective Issue section of the eAIP History page, when the link is clicked, the eAIP with the relevant Effective Date shall open in the currently open and active window.
[eAIP-Hist-150] / Checks should be performed to determine the current date using the ‘system date’ of the local computer on which the eAIP is visualised.
[eAIP-Hist-160] / When the eAIP from the Currently Effective Issue section of the eAIP History page is selected, the user should be warned if the date check has determined that this eAIP is not yet valid or it may have expired.
[eAIP-Hist-170] / The rules for determining a likely expiry date for each eAIP is in accordance with the update cycle information, as contained in the GEN 3.1.4 of the AIP.
A.1.3.3Next Issues Section
Figure 6 below reflects the requirements associated with the display of the Next Issues section of the eAIP History page.
Figure 6 – eAIP Next Issues
[eAIP-Hist-180] / On the eAIP History page, the Next Issue section should contain a table with an Effective Date column.[eAIP-Hist-190] / On the eAIP History page, the Next Issue section should contain a table with a Publication Date column.
[eAIP-Hist-200] / On the eAIP History page, the Next Issue section should contain a table with a Short Description column.
[eAIP-Hist-210] / In the Next Issue section of the eAIP History page, the date in the Effective Date column of the table, is a link.
[eAIP-Hist-220] / In the Next Issue section of the eAIP History page, the Effective Date link is to the eAIP with the Effective Date in the table.
[eAIP-Hist-230] / In the Next Issue section of the eAIP History page, when the link is clicked, the eAIP with the relevant Effective Date shall open in the currently open and active window.
A.1.3.4Expired Issues (Archives) Section