Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore have jointly drawn up electronic sea charts of the Malacca Strait and Singapore Strait, the Japan Coast Guard said.
Japan took part in the project to help prevent accidents and piracy as most tankers carrying oil to Japan pass through either of the straits, which serve as key international maritime traffic routes in Southeast Asia.
The charts can be displayed in scales up to 1:50,000. It is the first time detailed electronic sea charts of international straits have been formulated, the coast guard said.
Electronic sea chart systems similar to car navigation systems can access the charts with the location of the vessel itself displayed.
The charts incorporate the digitized data of ordinary sea charts, setting off an alarm when the ship approaches shallows or other dangerous areas.
They can also display information from radar or automatic identification systems.
Japan put electronic sea chart systems into practical use around the mid-1990s. The systems are currently used by ships from 42 countries, but the number of vessels carrying the systems is believed to number only about several thousand overall.
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