Technical standard for safety symbols
ISO 7010 is an International Organization for Standardization technical standard for graphical hazard symbols on hazard and safety signs, including those indicating emergency exits. It uses colours and principles set out in ISO 3864 for these symbols, and is intended to provide "safety information that relies as little as possible on the use of words to achieve understanding."[1]
The standard was published in October 2003, splitting off from ISO 3864:1984, which set out design standards and colors of safety signage and merging ISO 6309:1987, Fire protection - Safety signs to create a unique and distinct standard for safety symbols.[2][3]
As of September 2022[update], the latest version is ISO 7010:2019, with 6 published amendments.[4] This revision canceled and replaced ISO 20712-1:2008, incorporating the water safety signs and beach safety flags specified in it.[5]
Shape and colour
ISO 7010 specifies five combinations of shape and colour to distinguish between the type of information presented.[6]
Shape and colour of sign types
| Sign type[1] |
Meaning |
Colour (per ISO 7010)[7] |
Shape[7] |
Example
|
| Prohibition sign |
Must not do |
Red |
Circle with diagonal line |
No open flame
|
| Mandatory sign |
Must do |
Blue |
Circle |
Use hearing protection
|
| Warning sign |
Warn of hazard |
Yellow |
Equilateral triangle with rounded corners |
Explosive materials
|
| Safe Condition sign |
Identifying of safety equipment & exits |
Green |
Square or rectangular |
Emergency Assembly Point
|
| Fire Safety sign |
Identifying of firefighting equipment |
Red |
Square |
Fire Extinguisher
|
List
ISO registers and lists recommended pictograms, which it calls "safety signs", on its website, ISO.org. The ISO standard provides a registered number for pictograms that have officially been made part of the ISO 7010 standard. Corresponding with the categories above, in ISO parlance, "E" numbers refer to Emergency (signs showing a safe condition), "F" numbers refer to Fire protection, "P" numbers refer to Prohibited actions, "M" numbers refer to Mandatory actions, and "W" numbers refer to Warnings of hazards.[8]
According to the related ISO 3864-1 standard, if a symbol does not exist for a situation, the recommended solution is to use the relevant 'general' symbol (M001, P001, W001), along with a supplemental text message.[9]
Safe condition
E001 – Emergency exit (left hand)
E002 – Emergency exit (right hand)
E004 – Emergency telephone
E007 – Evacuation assembly point
E008 – Break to obtain access
E010 – Automated external heart defibrillator
E014 – Child seat presence and orientation detection system (CPOD)
E016 – Emergency window with escape ladder
E018 – Turn anticlockwise (counterclockwise) to open
E019 – Turn clockwise to open
E020 – Emergency stop button
E021 – Protection shelter
E022 – Door opens by pushing on the left-hand side
E023 – Door opens by pushing on the right-hand side
E024 – Evacuation temporary refuge
E026 – Emergency exit for people unable to walk or with walking impairment (left)
E028 – Oxygen resuscitator
E029 – Emergency escape breathing device
E030 – Emergency exit for people unable to walk or with walking impairment (right)
E031 – Shipboard general alarm
E032 – Shipboard assembly station
E033 – Door slides right to open
E034 – Door slides left to open
E039 – Davit-launched liferaft
E041 – Lifebuoy with line
E042 – Lifebuoy with light
E043 – Lifebuoy with line and light
E045 – Child's lifejacket
E046 – Infant's lifejacket
E047 – Search and rescue transponder
E048 – Survival craft distress signals
E049 – Rocket parachute flare
E050 – Line-throwing appliance
E051 – Two-way VHF radiotelephone apparatus
E052 – Emergency position indicating radio beacon
E053 – Embarkation ladder
E054 – Marine evacuation slide
E055 – Marine evacuation chute
E057 – Door opens by pulling on the left-hand side
E058 – Door opens by pulling on the right-hand side
E061 – Water life-saving equipment
E062 – Tsunami evacuation area
E063 – Tsunami evacuation building
E064 – First aid responder
E065 – Natural disaster outdoor refuge area
E067 – Evacuation mattress
E068 – Lifebuoy with light and smoke
E069 – Person overboard call point
E070 – Evacuation lift for people unable to use stairs
Crescent variant
ISO 7010 states on all symbols with a first aid cross, that it "may be replaced with another element appropriate to cultural requirements". In countries with a Muslim-majority population, an appropriate symbol is the crescent.
Fire protection
F004 – Collection of firefighting equipment
F005 – Fire alarm call point
F006 – Fire emergency telephone
F007 – Fire protection door
F008 – Fixed fire extinguishing battery
F009 – Wheeled fire extinguisher
F010 – Portable foam applicator unit
F011 – Water fog applicator
F012 – Fixed fire extinguishing installation
F013 – Fixed fire extinguishing bottle
F014 – Remote release station
F017 – Firefighters' lift
F018 – Fire alarm flashing light
F019 – Unconnected fire hose
Mandatory
M001 – General mandatory action sign
M002 – Refer to instruction manual/booklet
M003 – Wear ear protection
M004 – Wear eye protection
M005 – Connect an earth terminal to the ground
M006 – Disconnect mains plug from electrical outlet
M007 – Opaque eye protection must be worn
M008 – Wear foot protection
M009 – Wear protective gloves
M010 – Wear protective clothing
M013 – Wear a face shield
M014 – Wear head protection
M015 – Wear high visibility clothing
M017 – Wear respiratory protection
M018 – Wear a safety harness
M019 – Wear a welding mask
M021 – Disconnect before carrying out maintenance or repair
M025 – Protect infants' eyes with opaque eye protection
M026 – Use protective apron
M027 — install or check guard
M028 — install locks and keep locked
M030 — place trash in the bin
M031 — use guard to protect from injury from the table saw
M032 — use footwear with anti-static or anti-spark features
M033 — lower safety restraining bar on ski chairlift
M034 — raise safety restraining bar on ski chairlift
M035 — exit towpath after falling
M037 — close and secure the hatch (lifeboat launch sequence)
M038 — start the motor (lifeboat launch sequence)
M039 — lower the lifeboat to the water (lifeboat launch sequence)
M040 — lower the lifeboat to the water (lifeboat launch sequence)
M041 — lower the rescue boat to the water (lifeboat launch sequence)
M042 — release the hooks holding the lifeboat (lifeboat launch sequence)
M043 — start the water spray for the lifeboat (lifeboat launch sequence)
M044 — start the air supply for the lifeboat (lifeboat launch sequence)
M045 — release the ropes (gripes) (lifeboat launch sequence)
M046 — secure gas cylinders
M047 — use breathing equipment (SCBA)
M049 — use personal protective equipment for sport
M050 — exit sled-toboggan to the left
M051 — exit sled-toboggan to the right
M052 — keep a safe distance between sleds (toboggans)
M053 — wear personal floatation device (PFD) (lifejacket)
M054 — supervise children during aquatic activities
M055 – Keep out of the reach of children
[10][11]
M056 – Ventilate before and during entering
M057 – Ensure continuous ventilation
M058 – Entry only with supervisor outside
M059 – Wear laboratory coat
M060 – Hold the trolley handle
Prohibition
P001 – General prohibition sign
P005 – Not drinking water
P006 – No access for forklift trucks and industrial vehicles
P007 – No access for people with active implanted cardiac devices
P008 – No metallic articles or watches
P011 – Do not extinguish with water
P013 – No activated mobile phone
P014 – No access for people with metallic implants
P016 – Do not spray with water
P019 – No stepping on surface
P020 – Do not use lift in the event of fire
P022 – No eating or drinking
P024 – Do not walk or stand here
P025 – Do not use this incomplete scaffold
P026 – Do not use this device in a bathtub, shower or water-filled reservoir
P027 – Do not use this lift for people
P028 – Do not wear gloves
P030 – Do not tie knots in rope
P031 – Do not alter the state of the switch
P032 – Do not use for face grinding
P033 – Do not use for wet grinding
P034 – Do not use with hand-held grinder
P035 – Do not wear metal-studded footwear
P036 – No children allowed
P037 – Do not leave the tow-track
P038 – Do not swing the chair
P039 – Hot works prohibited
P040 – Do not set off fireworks
P041 – No leaning against
P042 – Not for pregnant women
P043 – Not for people in the state of intoxication
P044 – Use of smart glasses prohibited
P046 – Do not stretch out of toboggan
P047 – Do not ram into toboggans
P051 – No sub-aqua diving
P055 – No manually powered craft
P056 – No mechanically powered craft
P057 – No personal water craft
P058 – No towed water activity
P060 – No outdoor footwear
P061 – No jumping into water
P062 – No pushing into water
P064 – No surfing between the red-and-yellow flags
P068 – Do not expose to direct sunlight or hot surface
P069 – Not to be serviced by users
P070 – Do not put finger into the nozzle of a hydromassage
P071 – Do not cross barrier
P073 – Do not shut lid when burners are operating
P074 – Child seat installation prohibited
Warning
W001 – General warning sign
W002 – Explosive materials
W003 – Radioactive material or ionizing radiation
W005 – Non-ionizing radiation
W007 – Floor-level obstacle
W008 – Drop or fall hazard
W010 – Low temperature hazard
W012 – Electricity hazard
W014 – Forklift truck and other industrial vehicles
W015 – Overhead or suspended load
W018 – Automatic start-up
W019 – Crushing by moving parts
W021 – Flammable material
W023 – Corrosive substance
W025 – Counter-rotating rollers
W028 – Oxidizing substance
W029 – Pressurized cylinder
W030 – Hand Injury in Press
W031 – Hand injury from rapid movement of workpiece in press brake machine
W032 — rapid movement of workpiece in press brake machine
W037 — injury from automated or remote-controlled vehicles
W038 — sudden loud noises
W039 – Falling Ice Spikes
W045 — water skiing or towed water activity area
W050 — sudden drop in swimming pool
W051 — no guard rail and unprotected edges
W052 — unstable cliff edge
W055 — sewage effluent outfall
W056 — tsunami hazard zone
W059 — wheeled beach vehicles; land surfing; sand yachting; wind carts
W061 — quicksand, mud, deep mud, or silt
W065 — high surf or large breaking waves
W066 — Sudden drop to deep water
W067 — alligators, caymans and crocodiles
W068 – Falling into water when stepping on or off a floating surface
W071 – Substance or mixture presenting a health hazard
W072 – Substance or mixture that can cause an environmental hazard
W073 – Large-scale fire zone
W075 – Active volcano zone
Withdrawn symbols
The following symbols were previously part of ISO 7010, but have since been withdrawn from the standard.
E005 – Direction arrow (90° angle)
E006 – Direction arrow (45° angle)
![M055 – Keep out of the reach of children[10][11]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/92/ISO_7010_M055.svg/240px-ISO_7010_M055.svg.png)
