Suunto Companion Instruction Manual
Contents
1. NO DIVE COMPUTER WILL PREVENT THE POSSIBILI TY OF DECOMPRESSION SICKNESS DCS All divers must understand and accept that there is no pro cedure or dive computer that will totally prevent the pos sibility of a decompression accident For example the indi vidual physiological make up can vary within an indivi dual from day to day The dive computer cannot account for these variations As an added measure of safety you should consult a physician regarding your fitness to dive with the COMPANION computer A WARNING ONLY DIVERS TRAINED IN THE PROPER USE OF SCUBA EQUIPMENT SHOULD USE THE COMPANION No dive computer can replace the need for proper dive train ing A WARNING NOT FOR PROFESSIONAL USE SUUNTO dive computers are intended for recreational use only The demands of commercial or professional diving often expose the diver to depths and prolonged exposures including multiday exposures that tend to increase the risk of decompression sickness Therefore Suunto specifically recommends that the COMPANION be not used for com mercial or other severe diving activity A WARNING PERFORM PRECHECKS Always check the COMPANION before diving in order to ensure that all LCD segments are completely displayed that the COMPANION has not run out of battery power and that the altitude personal adjustment mode is correct TABLE OF CONTENTS POR YOUR SARE PY eria ccnbaaasiies Someal ak icietians ahaa tlempies 4 IN2. DO NOT USE THIS INSTRUMENT TO CONDUCT DECOMPRESSION DIVES The COMPANION is not intended for decompression diving EMERGENCY ASCENTS In the unlikely event that the COMPANION malfunctions during a dive follow the emergency procedures provided by your certified di ve training or alternatively immediately ascend at a rate slower than 10 m min 33 ft min to a depth between 3 and 6 meters 10 to 20 ft and stay there as long as your air supply will safely allow HIGHER RISK DIVE PROFILES The user must understand that all decompression devices decom pression tables and or dive computers are based on mathematical models and that many experts are currently concerned that these mo dels may not under certain conditions adequately describe the phy siological phenomena These conditions are presently identified as dives which incorporate the following REVERSE PROFILES where the diver spends the majori ty of the dive at shallow depths and then descends to the maximum depth shortly before surfacing time depth Reverse Profile SAWTOOTH PROFILES where the diver alternates between greater and shallower depths re peatedly throughout the dive CONSECUTIVE DIVES where the diver performs repetitive Sawtooth Profile dives to approximately the same Consecutive Deep Dives maximum depth with only short time surface intervals between dives The risk of DCS increases when depth and the number of repetitive dives incr
3. Figure 23 DECOMPRESSION DIVE Decompression stop at 6 m Note the downward pointing arrow You shoud descend imme diately to or below the ceiling Figure 24 DECOMPRESSION DIVE Decompression stop at 9m Note the two arrows pointing to each other hour glass Figure 25 DECOMPRESSION DIVE Decompression stop at 3m Note the two arrows pointing to each other hour glass 24 If your dive time exceeds the NO DEC TIME indicated on the DIVING display the dislay itself will change NO DEC TIME will be replaced with DEC bar and the digital display in the center will now indicate the ceiling depth The ceiling in the shallowest depth to which you can safely ascend UP WARD POINTING ARROW INDICATES THAT YOU SHOULD IMMEDIATELY START YOUR ASCENT fig 22 The ceiling is also shown on the DE Compression depth scale below the DEC symbol One two or three segments corres pond respectively to 3 m 10 ft 6 m 20 ft or 9 m 30 ft ceiling depths figures 22 24 The COMPANION does not display any de compression or ascent time The depth of the ceiling will depend upon your dive profile The ceiling will be at 3 m 10 ft when it first appears but if you remain at depth the ceiling will move down ward and time needed for ascent to the sur face not shown by the COMPANION will increase Both of these factors will increase the amount of air and time required for de compression or total ascent time Therefore you
4. OWNER S INSTRUCTION MANUAL FIGURE 1 STARTUP MAXimum depth present depth fast ascent warning SLOW pre dive PLANning LOGbook MEMory mode description Altitude mode contact arrows must descend ascent recommended decompression stop at ceiling dept NO DECompression TIME SURFace interval TIME ceiling depth high altitude personal adjustment mode common contact MEM ON activation l pre dive PLANning flying not mode contact recommended DECompression mode ceiling depth low BATtery warning temperature DIVE TIME DIVE counter COMPANION is equipped with three contacts common contact MEM ON activation contact ON memory mode contact MEM ACTIVATION touch ON amp common MEM ON contacts PLANNING MODE touch ON amp common MEM ON contacts once activated LOGBOOK MEMORY MODE touch MEM amp common MEM ON contacts ALTITUDE MODE keep MEM amp common MEM ON contacts touched for about 5 seconds RETURN FROM LOGBOOK AND ALTITUDE MODES touch MEM amp ON amp common MEM ON contacts all at the same time RETURN FROM PLANNING MODE wait until planning cycle is completed approximately 60 seconds A WARNING READ THIS MANUAL Carefully read this instruction manual in its entirety includ ing Section For Your Safety Make sure that you fully un derstand the use displays and limitations of the COMPA NION A WARNING
5. matically deactivate itself This may take up to 36 hours after extensive diving Re search suggests that you should not fly for at least 12 hours after no decompression dives see also warning on page 4 In the SURFACE dislay figure 21 you will find your surface interval in hours minutes with the notation SURF TIME The COMPANION does not display not igure 21 SURFACE TIME display Pre Safe to fly time sent depth is 0 0 m Surface inter Until SURFACE TIME reaches 10 minu val time shown is Th28min tes 0 10 the COMPANION does not know if you are going to make a repetitive dive or continue the first dive If you descend below 1 8 m 6 ft before 10 minutes have passed the DIVING display will return DIVE number will remain unchaged and DIVE TIME will begin where it left off After SURFACE TIME reaches 10 minutes subsequent dives are by definition repetitive and the DIVE counter will progress to the next higher number if you make another dive DECOMPRESSION DIVES CAUTION Suunto does not recommend decom pression diving for sport divers The COMPANION is not intended for decompression diving iS Jom However if through carelessness or emer Figure 22 DECOMPRESSION gency you are forced to exceed the no de Bre ee Seca compression limits for any dive the COM at 3 m Note the upward pointing ANION does have a provision for indicating arrow some limited decompression information 23
6. table 2 Surface Intervals The COMPANION requires a minimum surface interval of 10 minutes between dives If a surface interval is shorter than 10 minu tes the COMPANION s dive counter and dive timer treat the next dive as a continuation of the previous dive It adds dive times and calculates no decompression limits or decompression stops based on excess nitrogen absorbed on both dives In this regard it is similar to the U S Navy tables 14 Depth Limits CAUTION SUUNTO STRONGLY RECOMMENDS THAT SPORT DIVERS SET THEIR MAXIMUM DEPTH TO 40 m 130 ft However the COMPANION will calculate below that depth to pro vide a wide margin of flexibility if through carelessness or emer gency you are forced to exceed this recommended depth limit for a dive In several important aspects the COMPANION is more conser vative than the U S Navy tables For example 1 The COMPANION uses an ascent rate of 10 m 33 ft per minu te It is intended to allow the gradual release of nitrogen during as cent and reduce the chance of bubbles forming in the diver If you exceed 10 m 33 ft per minute the COMPANION asks you to slow down 2 The COMPANION does not calculate bottom time it calculates dive time Dive time includes all the time spent below a depth of 1 8 m 6 ft including ascent time The U S Navy tables compute bottom time from the moment that you leave the surface until you begin your ascent and do not include asc
7. often invisible to the naked eye will cover the unit Much like the build up on the glass of an aquarium this film is a result of organic conta minates found in both salt and fresh water Sun tan oil silicon spray or grease will speed up this process As a result of this build up mois ture will be trapped next to the contacts and will not allow your COMPANION to operate properly The COMPANION should be SOAKED then thoroughly rinsed with fresh water after each dive This is particularly important after use in salt water If the unit is in a console boot the entire console should be soaked in fresh water much in the same manner as u w photo gear and then rinsed Make sure that all salt crystals and sand particles have been flushed out of the console At the end of a dive trip the COMPANION should be rinsed thoroughly and then dried with a soft towel If your unit is in a console it will need to be periodically removed and cleaned before storage However this will not be required after every dive trip You will only need to remove the unit to clean in ex treme cases of film build up The contacts can be cleaned e g with soft pencil eraser Do not use compressed air to blow water off the unit Do not use solvents or other cleaning fluids that might cause damage Do not test or use the COMPANION in pressurized air Service and Battery Replacement The COMPANION must be returned to an authorized Suunto dea ler for service or b
8. precaution Suunto recommends that divers using the COMPANION should maintain no less than 5 to 10 minutes no decompression time remaining at all times during the dive This is especially important for divers in poor physical condition in cold water or other arduous conditions Historically divers have been advised to always include a margin of safety in their diving activities Suunto supports these practises and strongly recommends that the diver make the deepest portion of the dive near the beginning of the dive and gradually progress into shal lower depth allowing time for a 3 to 5 minutes safety stop at a depth range of 3 to 6 meters 10 to 20 ft This is believed to be effec tive in further reducing the risk of decompression sickness Furthermore the reader diver is advised that any dive carries some risk of decompression sickness and neither the authors nor SUUNTO OY will assume any responsibility or liability for accidents or injuries which might occur for any reason A WARNING DO NOT USE THE COMPANION WITH NITROX MIX The mathematical tissue calculation model of the COMP A NION has been designed for use with standard breathing air only approximately 21 oxygen and 79 nitrogen by volume Therefore the COMPANION must not be used for diving with Nitrox or other mixed gases INTRODUCTION COMPANION AT A GLANCE From figure 9 you can see the profile of the dive presented in figures os i PRE DIVE PLANNIN
9. that the low battery warning is not on SUUNTO Figure 11 STARTUP All After activation all segments of the LCD segments on display are visible for a few seconds figu re 11 SURFACE interval TIME figure 12 re and READY display figure 13 which are aE shown next confirm that the activation has sie i been completed ri At the surface SURFACE interval TIME gt display figure 12 alternates with READY display figure 13 rit LIL f Figure 12 SURFACE TIME dis A WARNING play after activation before first dive If the COMPANION is not When diving at higher altitudes taken on a dive it will automati above 700 m 2300 ft it is essential c lly turn off in ten minutes that the entered altitude mode i e maximum altitude limit of the COMPANION exceeds or is equal to the altitude of the dive site The altitude mode indicator must show either A1 or A2 depending on the altitude More information about this is given in Section High Alti tude Dives and Personal Adjust ment Figure 13 READY display befo re the first dive of a series Alti tude mode A 1 maximum allowed altitude 1500 m 5000 ft above sea level Low battery warning BAT indicates that the battery is too low to operate and the COMPANION shouid not be used 19 If BAT is displayed the COMPANION should not be used BAT indicates that the battery is too low to ensure reliable operation of the COMPANION If
10. then shown in the display The data of the preceding dive is recalled by touching again MEM and MEM ON contacts Once review of all 5 dives is complete Dive 1 would be recalled again after Dive 5 and so on Logbook memory mode is deactivated byt RETURN signal connecting all contacts at the same time The dives have been stored in the memory using the so called 10 minute rule when the surface interval time is less than 10 minutes the dive times are counted together and the dives are combined Dives shorter than 2 minutes are not registered in the memory The memory follows the ring memory principle the oldest data is de leted when new data is stored When the COMPANION is used in a console with the compass lo cated on the reverse side slight deviation of the compass may occur due to magnetic interference from the COMPANION s battery The COMPANION is equipped with a highly accurate and sen sitive depth sensor It is IMPERATIVE that you never pressure test this instrument in an air environment If placing the COMPANION inside a pressure test chamber BE SURE THAT THE UNIT IS COM PLETELY UNDERWATER WHILE BEING TESTED Failure to fol low this procedure may damage the depth sensor resulting in erro neous depth and or dive time remaining readings while diving plus voiding the warranty 30 The temperature reading of COMPANION reacts slowly to tem perature changes When moving from warm air into cold water or vice versa the c
11. transferable from the original owner ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE LIMITED FROM DATE OF PURCHASE AND IN SCOPE TO THE WARRANTIES EX PRESSED HEREIN SUUNTO in USA SEAQUEST INC SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR LOSS OF USE OF THE PRODUCT OR OTHER INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL COSTS EXPENSES OR DA MAGE INCURRED BY THE PURCHASE ALL WARRANTIES NOT STATED HEREIN ARE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMED Some states do not allow the exclusion of limitation of implied war ranties of consequential damages so the above exclusions or limita tions may not apply to you This warranty gives you specific legal rights and you may also have other rights that vary from state to state This warranty does not cover any representation or warranty made by dealers or representatives beyond the provisions of this warran ty No dealer or representation is authorized to make any modi fications to this warranty or to make any additional warranty For your records please fill out the dealer information section on the next page TO VALIDATE YOUR WARRANTY PLEASE RETURN THE AT TACHED CARD WITHIN 15 DAYS This warranty and owner s manual should be kept with your COM PANION at all times 35
12. G SEQUENCE a ann projected depth panning mode se cr Sad be available no decampression dive time altitude mode AQ maximum allowed altitude rt ri DVE 700 m 2300 ft h level Lao a most recent dive time dive first dive of a series first dive of a series Figure 3 A in Fig 9 NO DECOMPRESSION DIVE slow da a T depth ascendin the warni ng al isappears maximum ee E 296 b FU 4 St Bud EE 23 Tii NO DEC TIME DIVE g DIVE ILa TME j E a ONE evga present o dec ec omipression dive time elapsed dive time 1 0 water temperature AQ Figure 4 B in Fig 9 Figure 5 C in Fig 9 SURFACE AFTER DIVE maximum depth attained during first dive present depth on the surface re TT f total dive time in surface interval time ar temperature minutes In hours minutes Figure 6 D in Fig 9 Figure 7 E in Fig 9 LOGBOOK MEMORY maximum depth logbook mode surtace interval time firs dive of a senes f total dive time the most recent dive Figure 8 F in Fig 9 I VM GD Wi23456789 TIME Figure 9 11 OPERATING PRINCIPLES The Suunto COMPANION is a multi functional sport diving instru ment which provides information on depths times and decompres sion requirements Its micro processor mathematically models the ab sorption and release of nitrogen during all
13. LY IN ORDER FOR IT TO PROVIDE ACCURATE IN FORMATION USING THE COMPANION This section contains instructions for operating the COMPANION and for interpreting its displays Each display has been carefully designed to provide all the information you need for various diving situations STARTUP READY DIVE PLANNING DIVING and SURFACE In additon to these the COMPANION has a logbook memory Each of these displays shows only the data needed during that diving situation For example while you are on a dive surface 16 interval data is irrelevant and therefore not shown While you are on the surface after a dive remaining no decompression dive time for that dive is irrelevant and therefore replaced with information about the times available on your next dive You ll find that the COM PANION is easy to use USING THE WATER CONTACTS The COMPANION is equipped with three contacts Figure 1 1 Common contact MEM ON 2 Activation contact ON 3 Memory mode contact MEM Available control signals are see Figure 10 NOTE IN ALL CONTACT SEQUENCES YOU WILL USE THE COMMON MEM ON CONTACT ACTIVATION touch ON and MEM ON contacts PLANNING MODE touch ON and MEM ON contacts The COMPANI ON must be activated first LOGBOOK MEMORY MODE touch MEM and MEM ON contacts ALTITUDE MODE SELECTION keep MEM and MEM ON contacts connect ed for about 5 seconds see chapter High Altitude Dives and P
14. TRODUCTION COMPANION AT A GLANCE seese 10 OPERATING PRIN CIPI ES urana A 12 USING THE COMPA NION secssisieis dcssisscracsinnattins S 16 Using the Water Contac tsceicosiisaisa osean ES 17 ACUIVATIORN noa a E eN S S 18 Dive PIAN NE meani a E tr temic tee eet 20 No Decompression Dives cisctcisctvsennienteatahmencmasarnaerentante 21 Surface Intervals Flying after DivesS s ssesssnesoreseresrererrsererenesen 22 Decompression DIV eS ccs tecsicsioni attain e E S 29 High Altitude Dives and Personal Adjustment eee 26 Logbook MEMORY wedissicasdntensm menaarecetuaeincnsiiuined EOS 29 Warning Sarin E 31 MAINTENANCE SERVICE AND BATTERY REPLACEMENT seseessserrseeren 32 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS ornina i ii 33 WARRANTY enen a E EE S 34 A WARNING You are advised to avoid flying anytime the computer dis plays the do not fly warning indicated by an airplane Furt her the Divers Alert Network DAN advises as follows A minimum surface interval of 12 hours would be requi red in order to be reasonably assured a diver will remain sympton free upon ascent to altitude in a commercial jet liner altitude up to 2400 m 8000 ft Divers who plan to make daily multiple dives for several days or make dives that require decompression stops should take special precautions and wait for an extended interval beyond 12 hours before flight Suunto recommends that flying be avoided until both the DAN guidelines and the COMPANION wait
15. attery replacement Do not attempt to disassemble the COMPANION Special tools and training are required for service 32 The COMPANION uses one long life 3 0 V Lithium battery Battery replacement is necessary sometime after the BAT warning is displayed on the LCD An average diver should expect a number of years approximately 5 years if he dives e g less than 50 dives a year before battery replacement becomes necessary TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Measures Diameter 61 5 mm 2 42 in Height 29 0 mm 1 14 in Depth gauge Temperature compensated pressure sensor Depth display range 0to9m 0 to 295 ft Resolution 0 1 m 1 ft Salt water calibrated in fresh water the readings are about 3 smaller Temperature display Resolution eC E Accuracy t2 3 6 F Note Due to gel encapsulated design the temperature sensor reacts slowly to sudden temperature changes and hence it takes time to get accurate readings especially when the temperature change has been big Display range LO nn VIC 19 F 9990F 0 is displayed at 100 F 1 is displayed at 101 F and so on 33 Other displays Dive time 0 to 99 min Displayed values start from 0 after 99 min This doesn t affect the cal culations Dive counter 0 to 15 No decompression time 0 to 199 min Ceiling depths 3 6and 9m 10 20 and 30 ft Operating Conditions 0 to 2400 m 8000 ft above sea level Operating tempera
16. d upon six compartments for single dives and one compartment for surface intervals and repetitive dives If you are familiar with table theory you may know that they are characterized by half times i e time re 12 NO DECOMPRESSION TIME LIMITS FOR VARIOUS DEPTHS High altitude modes AO Al A2 sea level 1500 m 5000 ft 2400 m 8000 ftl 13 quired for 50 equilibration to a pressure change ranging from 5 minutes to 120 minutes The COMPANION includes the same six compartments plus two additional compartments for an increased range of the mathematical model Calculations are based upon all eight compartments for all phases of diving including surface inter vals and repetitive dives The COMPANION half times range from 2 5 to 322 minutes High Altitude Dives The atmospheric pressure is lower at high altitudes than at sea level After travelling to high altitude the diver has additional nitrogen in his body compared to the equilibrium situation at that altitude This additional nitrogen is released gradually in time and equi librium is reached within a couple of days Prior to making a high altitude dive the COMPANION must be set to high altitude diving mode to take this into account The maxi mum partial pressures of nitrogen allowed by the mathematical model of the COMPANION are reduced according to the lower am bient pressure As a result the allowed no decompression limits are considerably reduced
17. e of the computer may give misleading information and must be avoided HIGH ALTITUDE PERSONAL ADJUSTMENT More information about this is given in Section High Altitude Dives and Personal Adjustment p 26 A WARNING SET THE CORRECT ALTITUDE PERSONAL ADJUSTMENT MODE When diving at altitudes greater than 700 m 2300 ft the altitude personal adjustment feature must be correctly selected in order for the computer to calculate no decom pression status The diver should also use this option to make the calculations more conservative whenever it is believed that factors which tend to increase the possibility of DCS exist see Section High Altitude Dives and Perso nal Adjustment Failure to properly select the altitude per sonal adjustment mode correctly will result in erroneous data and can greatly increase the risk of DCS A WARNING The COMPANION is not intended for use at altitudes grea ter than 2400 m 8000 ft Diving at altitudes above this limit may significantly increase the risk of DCS When diving at higher altitudes above 700 m 2300 ft it is essential that the entered altitude mode i e maximum alti tude limit of the COMPANION exceeds or is equal to the altitude of the dive site The altitude mode indicator must show either A1 or A2 depending on the altitude More in formation about this is given in Section High Altitude Di ves and Personal Adjustment DECOMPRESSION DIVES A WARNING
18. eases and when the surface in tervals are decreased MULTIDAY DIVES repetitive dives performed for se Repetitive Decompression veral consecutive days Dive DECOMPRESSION DIVES any dive during which the no decompression limit has been ex ceeded or the diver is advised by the computer that he may not return directly to the surface depth depth time depth Recommended Profile A WARNING Dive practices which include the above described Higher Risk Dive Profiles are considered potentially dangerous and should be avoided even if they conform to the mathe matical model DIVE COMPUTER LIMITATIONS While the COMPANION is based on current decompression re search and technology the user diver must realize that the compu ter cannot monitor the actual physiological functions of an individual diver All decompression schedules currently known to the authors including the U S Navy Tables are based on a theoretical mathe matical model which is intended to serve as a guide to reduce the pro bability of decompression sickness The mathematical model utilizes an ascent rate of 10 m min 33 ft min Therefore it is critical that a proper ascent rate is used at all times The reader diver is forewarned that individual physiological dif ferences severe environmental conditions and predive activities es pecially those which tend to increase dehydration may increase the risk of decompression sickness As a safety
19. ent times 3 The COMPANION continues to track residual nitrogen in com partments on the surface until they not longer affect no decom pression limits on subsequent dives This may take up to 36 hours if you have been diving heavily The U S Navy tables by compari son assume that you are completely free of residual nitrogen 12 hours after your last dive 4 The COMPANION s low bubble no decompression limits are designed to allow less excess nitrogen to build up in compart ments than the U S Navy tables permit based on square profiles For example on a first dive descending directly to 18 m 60 ft the 15 U S Navy no decompression limit is 60 minutes The COMPANI ON s no decompression limit for the same dive is 52 minutes 51 mi nutes for 60 ft CAUTION The user should be aware that any dive even ones within the low bubble or U S Navy limits does carry some risk of de compression sickness As a safety precaution Suunto recom mends that divers using the COMPANION should have at least 5 minutes of no decompression time remaining at all time during the dive This is especially important for divers in poor physical shape or divers in cold water under arduous condi tions Suunto also recommends that divers take a safety stop of at least 3 minutes at a depth between 3 m 10 ft and 6 m 20 ft at the end of every dive if it is at all possible THE COMPANION MUST BE ACTIVATED AND OPERATED CORRECT
20. ersonal Adjust ment Figure 10 b 17 RETURN FROM LOGBOOK MEMORY AND ALTITUDE MODE SELECTION connect first together with your fingers MEM and ON and then MEM ON contacts To make good contact it may be neces sary to moisten your fingertips Figure 10c As long as MEM and MEM ON are connected the COMPANION alternates between LOG and Alt displays The desired function is selected by breaking contact when the symbol of the desired function appears on the display LOG for log book memory and Alt for Altitude mode entry Make sure that the contacts and the instrument itself are dry and clean before trying to use the water contacts Logbook and Altitude mode can be deactivated by RETURN sig nal connecting all contacts at the same time or by immersing the COMPANION in water LOGBOOK AND ALTITUDE MODE CAN BE ACTIVA TED ONLY WHEN 10 MINUTES HAVE ELAPSED AFTER THE DIVE THE DIVE PLAN MODE CAN NOT BE DEACTIVATED YOU MUST WAIT UNTIL THE CYCLE IS COMPLETED ap proximately 60 seconds ACTIVATION The COMPANION is always ready for use and will activate if sub merged It is recommended to activate the COMPANION before 18 diving by touching ON and MEM ON contacts using moistened fingertips The depth display of the COMPANION is zeroed by measuring the ambient atmo spheric pressure prior to diving During startup you can check that all display seg ments are on and
21. he decompression is required However if the 9 m 30 ft ceiling is reached through carelessness or emergency the diver must ascend to just over 9 m 30 ft until the ceiling eventually recedes into the 6 m 20 ft ceiling depth 25 HIGH ALTITUDE DIVES AND PERSONAL ADJUSTMENT The COMPANION can be adjusted for diving at altitude or for in creasing the mathematical model When programming the COM PANION for the correct altitude the diver needs to select the correct altitude mode according to Table 3 As a result the COMPANION ad justs its mathematical model according to the entered altitude giving shorter no decompression times at higher altitudes Table on page 13 The entered altitude personal adjustment mode is indicated by a AO Al or A2 Modes A1 and A2 are shown together with a diver symbol TABLE 3 ALTITUDE RANGES Altitude mode Altitude range AQ 0 700 m 0 2300 ft Al 700 1500 m 2300 5000 ft A2 1500 2400 m 5000 8000 ft A WARNING SET THE CORRECT ALTITUDE PERSONAL ADJUSTMENT MODE When diving at altitudes greater than 700 m 2300 ft the al titude personal adjustment feature must be correctly select ed in order for the computer to calculate no decompression status The diver should also use this option to make the cal culations more conservative whenever it is believed that fac tors which tend to increase the possibility of DCS exist see Section High Altitude Dives and Personal Adjustment Fai lure to
22. he same time First connect MEM and ON contacts together e g with your right hand thumb while keep ing MEM and ON contacts connected com plete the return signal by connecting the MEM ON contact The COMPANION now returns back to normal surface mode and the selected mode is stored into memory If something goes wrong during the proce dure go to step 5 and start again from the beginning step 1 All contacts must be made exactly as described This is to ensure high degree of protection against accidental change of alti tude mode LOGBOOK MEMORY Logbook memory contains information about 5 most recent dives Maximum depth dive time and surface interval time are shown for each dive The data of the most recent dive is shown first with notation DIVE 1 fig 27 Figure 28 Contents of log book memory preceding dive DIVE 2 Note Hours and minutes of the SURFACE inter val TIME alternate in the center display four hours and 28 minutes 4 28 29 The dive numbering sequence for dives in memory does not rela te to the dives displayed in the Dive Planning mode The data of the preceding dive is shown next DIVE 2 fig 28 and so On Oldest dive in the memory is shown with notation DIVE 5 The COMPANION MUST BE ACTIVATED before the logbook me mory can be recalled Logbook memory recall is activated by touching MEM and MEM ON contacts until notation LOG is shown The data of the most recent dive is
23. orrect temperature will be shown only after 5 10 minutes THEREFORE THE TEMPERATURE READING MUST NOT BE USED TO ASSESS THE RISK OF FREEZING OF THE REGULATOR OR OTHER EQUIPMENT WARNINGS COMPANION VISUAL WARNINGS The COMPANION gives a warning in the following situations Not safe to fly flashing airplane No decompression limit has been exceeded DEC notation with up ward pointing arrow You ascend shallower than the ceiling downward pointing arrow Omitted decompression stop or you have ascended at least 0 6 m 2 ft above the ceiling blinking DEC notation at surface and during following dives Low battery warning BAT symbol is displayed High altitude mode has been entered image of diver is shown Maximum ascent rate 10 m 33 ft per minute is exceeded blink ing SLOW in the depth display If SLOW is still on by the time you reach 3 m 10 ft you must stop there until it goes off You should not surface with SLOW on If you do surface with the SLOW warning still flashing it will continue to flash until you begin the next dive or until the unit deactivates itself in the normal manner A WARNING IF YOU HAVE ASCENDED TOO FAST THE VALUES CALCULATED AND DISPLAYED BY THE COMPANION MAY NOT LONGER BE VALID FOR THE NEXT DIVE 31 MAINTENANCE SERVICE AND BATTERY REPLACEMENT The Suunto COMPANION dive computer is a precision instrument If left uncared for over an extended period of time a thin film
24. phases of diving including ascents surface intervals and repetitive dives The information it provides is displayed in a logical simple fas hion so that only essential data is shown at the appropriate time The no decompression limits displayed by the COMPANION upon activation are slightly more conservative than those permitted by the U S Navy tables for most dives to a single depth These low bubble no decompression limits have been derived from recent re search and are believed to greatly reduce the chances of decom pression sickness Unlike the U S Navy tables the COMPANION does interpolate between depths giving a diver credit for time spent in shallower water rather than calculating no decompression limits based on ma ximum depth of a dive Asa result no decompression dive times per mitted byt the COMPANION are often much longer than those that would be allowed by the U S Navy tables In order to perform these calculations the COMPANION conti nously models the absorption and release of excess nitrogen from theoretical compartments Each of the compartments absorbs and releases nitrogen at a different rate Compartments that absorb and release nitrogen rapidly are believed to have a high tolerance for ex cess nitrogen whereas compartments that absorb and release nitro gen more slowly are believed to be more sensitive Compartments and Half Times The no decompression limits in the U S Navy tables are base
25. properly select the altitude personal adjustment mo de correctly will result in erroneous data and can greatly in crease the risk of DCS 26 A WARNING The COMPANION is not intended for use at altitudes great er than 2400 m 8000 ft Diving at altitudes above this limit may significantly increase the risk of DCS Traveling to a higher elevation can temporarily cause a change in the equilibrium of dissolved nitrogen in the body with the surroundings It is recommended that the diver allow the body conditions to stabi lize over a period of at least three hours before beginning to dive at altitude Personal Adjustability The factors which tend to increase the possibility of DCS include but are not limited to cold exposure water temperature less than 20 C 68 F the diver is below average physical fitness level multiday or repetitive dive exposure diver fatigue dehydrated conditions previous history of DCS The feature should be used to adjust the computer to intentionally introduce a factor to make it more conservative according to perso nal preference by entering higher altitude mode than required in table 3 i e diving at sea level with the altitude personal adjustment set at A1 or A2 The no decompression limits are then shortened accor dingly 2 SUUNTO Figure 26 3 SUUNTO Figure 26 4 28 Entering Altitude Personal Adjustmen
26. should ascend and begin decompression promptly when the COM PANION shows you that decompression is required Note the upward pointing arrow When you reach the ceiling the display will show you two arrows pointing to each other hour glass If you ascend above the ceiling a downward pointing arrow will appear warning you to descend immediately to or below the ceiling The tolerance of the ceiling depth is 0 6 m 2 ft 1 8 m 6 ft If you ascend 0 6 m 2 ft or more above ceiling even momentarily the DEC segment starts to blink after reaching the surface and after the decompression time has counted down and remains blinking during the following dives This warning disappears only when the unit has deactivated itself Suunto recommends staying about 0 5 m 2 ft below the ceiling to prevent the warning arrow and permanent DEC warning from ap pearing Surfacing is allowed when the DEC indicator and ceiling depth display have disappeared and have been replaced by NO DECom pression display Under some conditions e g if the sea surface is rough it may be more convenient to decompress below the ceiling than exactly at the ceiling Remember it will take more time and more air to decompress below the ceiling than at the ceiling A WARNING THE COMPANION DOES NOT DISPLAY THE CEILING DEPTHS DEEPER THAN 9 M 30 FT You should ascend and begin the decompression immedia tely when the Companion shows you that t
27. shown nu merically in the Digital Depth Indicator The maximum depth reached is also shown in the same display with notation MAX once in every 6 seconds for 1 second figure 19 NOTE When too fast ascent warning is on the MAXimum depth is not shown but the present depth display alternates with SLOW warning Present water temperature is shown at the left lower corner of the dis play SURFACE INTERVALS FLYING AFTER DIVING An ascent to any depth shallower than 1 8 m 6 ft will cause the DIVING display to be replaces with the SURFACE display READY display figure 20 is alternating with SURFACE interval TIME dis Ia aa NO DEC TIME AQ 25 JG Figure 20 SURFACE READY display The maximum depth of the most recent dive was 30 2 m and total dive time was 35 min You are not allowed to fly blink ing image of an airplane Air tem perature is 26 C 22 play figure 21 In READY display the maximum depth of the previous dive elapsed dive time and temperature are shown The no flying cau tion i e the blinking image of an airplane is shown at center section of the display The blinking image of an airplane is a re minder that you should not fly or travel to altitudes above sea level The no flying time is equivalent to the so called DESATURATION TIME After this time the residual nitrogen is no longer af fecting subsequent dives When this time reaches zero the COMPANION will auto
28. surface but when diving PLANNING deeper than 1 8 m 6 ft it is automatically 20 Juu changed into the dive mode After com pleting one cycle the COMPANION will automatically return to the ready display The DIVE PLANNING display cycles through depths in 3 m 10 ft increments 9 m 30 ft 12 m 40 ft 15 m 50 ft 45 m 150 ft See fig 15 The no decompression limits for different altitude personal adjustment mode selec tions are shown on table 2 see also fig 16 After diving the no decompression times displayed in the DIVE PLANNING mode are naturally shortened to take residual nit rogen into account but will increase as sur face interval lengthens fig 17 NO DEC TIME AD Figure 15 DIVE PLANNING NO DECOMPRESSION DIVES Figure 16 Any time you leave the surface and drop be Dive planning information low 1 8 m 6 ft you will see only the DIVING after activation in A1 mode display figures 18 and 19 The DIVING display will remain visible until you return to depths shallower that 1 8 m 6 ft Available no decompression time will be shown in minutes in the center win dow with the notation NO DEC TIME Elapsed time in minutes will also be indica ted by the DIVE TIME indicator Figure 17 Dive planning after first dive of a series 21 Figure 18 DIVING no decompression dive m DIVE Je Figure 19 DIVING no decompression dive Your present depth will be
29. t Mode First activate the computer normally by con necting MEM ON and ON contacts if not activated New value is entered in the fol lowing way fig 26 1 Connect MEM ON and MEM contacts continuously menu selection First the COMPANION proceeds to LOG mode fig 26 1 and then into Alt mode fig 26 2 Re lease your fingers immediately at this point Within a couple of seconds the altitude limit chosen with the image of diver becomes vi sible fig 26 3 2 Connect MEM ON and ON contacts un til all three altitude modes appear The mo de chosen earlier is now blinking fig 26 4 Wait at least two seconds before next step but not more than four seconds 3 Connect again continuously MEM ON and ON contacts until blinking altitude mo de scroll A0 A1 A2 A0 A1 etc and desired mode starts to blink fig 26 5 then release your fingers Wait until the other mode in dicators disappear before next step fig 26 6 SUUNTO SUUNTO Figure 26 5 Figure 26 6 SUUNTO ALE Juce SURF TIME Figure 27 Contents of log book memory the most recent stored dive DIVE 1 CAUTION Remember always to check that the indicated mode is the one you want ed to enter 4 Connect MEM ON and MEM contacts to choose this new value fig 26 7 The blinking will then stop 5 The process is ended by RETURN signal by connecting all contacts at t
30. the COMPANION is stored at temperature below freezing point the low battery warning may be displayed although the battery has enough capacity Make sure that the low battery warning disappears before diving NOTE The COMPANION may activate itself without follow ing the above instructions Simply holding it in your hand may make an electrical connection across the two contacts This will have the same effect as immersing the COMPANION in water and then lifting it out In either case if the COMPANION is not taken on a dive after activation it will automatically turn off in 10 minutes to conserve the batteries If the COMPANION is stored wet or in a wet environment it may NOT deactivate until it is dry This will shorten the battery life The COMPANION does not need to be reactivated for repetitive dives It will remain active until it has calculated that all residual nit rogen has off gassed This may take up to 36 hours DIVE PLANNING Dive planning mode is activated by touching ON and MEM ON contacts figure 14 The DIVE PLANNING display will cyc le through the no decompression limits for various depths Depths will appear in the Depth Indicator and times will be shown in the center window with the notation NO DEC TIME It takes about 60 seconds to run through the cycle The cycle cannot be inter Figure 14 DIVE PLANNING touch ON and MEM ON con ae tacts to activate the PREDIVE rupted at the
31. to fly condi tions are satisfied FOR YOUR SAFETY Always remember that THE DIVER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR HIS OR HER OWN SAFETY When used properly the COMPANION is an outstanding tool for assisting properly trained certified divers in planning and executing standard and multi level sport dives within the described no decompression limits It is NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR CERTIFIED SCUBA INSTRUCTION including training in the principles of de compression DO NOT attempt to use the Suunto COMPANION without reading this entire Instruction manual lf you have any questions about the manual or the COMPANION contact your Suunto dealer before diving with the COMPANION BACK UP INSTRUMENTS A WARNING USE BACK UP INSTRUMENTS Make certain that you use back up instrumentation includ ing a depth gauge submersible pressure gauge timer or watch and have access to decompression tables whenever diving with the COMPANION SHARING THE COMPANION A WARNING THE COMPANION SHOULD NEVER BE TRADED OR SHARED BETWEEN USERS WHILE IT IS IN OPERATION Its information will not apply to someone who has not been wearing it throughout a dive or sequence of repetitive dives Its dive profiles must match that of the user If it is left on the surface during any dive it will give inaccurate informa tion for subsequent dives No dive computer can take into account dives made without the computer Thus any diving activity 48 hours prior to ini tial us
32. ture 0 to 40 C 32 F to 104 F Storage temperature 20 C to 50 C 4 F to 122 F Suunto recommends the unit be stored in a dry place at room temperature Battery life typically about 5000 operational hours at 20 C 68 F WARRANTY Important Service and repair warranty registration and validation information The Suunto COMPANION is warranted against defects in work manship and materials for a period of two years after purchase to the original owner subject to and in accordance with the terms and con ditions set forth below This warranty does not cover damage to the product resulting from improper usage improper maintenace neglect of care altera tion or unauthorized repair This warranty will automatically become void if proper preventive maintenance procedures have not been fol lowed as outlined in the use and care instructions for this product If a claim under this or any other warranty appears to be neces sary return the product freight prepaid to your Suunto Dealer or qualified repair facility Include your name and address proof of pur 34 chase and service registration card The claim will be honored and the product repaired or replaced at no charge and returned in what your Suunto Dealer determines a reasonable amount of time pro vided all necessary parts are in stock All repairs made not covered under the terms of this warranty will be made at the owner s ex pense This warranty is non
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