Tachograph Symbols: Searchable Lookup
Type what is on your tachograph screen and this lookup names the symbol, from the four activity icons through the exclamation-mark event warnings to the printout pictograms, using the official set in the retained EU tachograph regulation, checked July 2026 on legislation.gov.uk.
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How to use: type what you can see, "bed", "hammers", "exclamation mark", "OUT", "ship", and the lookup filters every official tachograph symbol to match. The pictograms come from Appendix 3 of the retained EU tachograph regulation (Commission Implementing Regulation 2016/799, made under Regulation 165/2014), which still governs UK tachographs, checked July 2026 on legislation.gov.uk. Exact rendering varies a little between VDO, Stoneridge and other units, but the symbol set is the same.
Search the tachograph symbols
The four driver activity symbols
Driving
The steering wheel. Time at the wheel, recorded automatically the moment the vehicle moves. On the display it fronts your continuous driving time since your last qualifying break.
Rest or break
The bed. Breaks and rest periods, when you are free to dispose of your time. Select it at the end of the shift; most units default to it when the card is withdrawn.
Other work
The crossed hammers. All working time that is not driving: loading, strapping, checks, paperwork, yard shunting. Counts towards working time limits, not driving time.
Available (POA)
The square with a diagonal. Period of availability: waiting time whose length you know about in advance, such as sitting out a delay at an RDC or accompanying a ferry leg you can rest on.
Unknown activity
The question mark. Time the unit cannot account for, usually between card withdrawal and the next insertion. The unit asks you to cover it with manual entries when you insert the card.
On a manual switch the activity applies from the moment you turn the selector, so change it as the job changes, not at the end of the day. Driving always records itself.
Cards, slots and people
Slot 1: driver
The left card slot, for whoever is driving. Symbols shown next to a 1 refer to the driver's card or activity.
Slot 2: co-driver
The right card slot, for the second crew member. On a double-manned run the co-driver's time records against slot 2.
Card
A tachograph card. Combined with a person symbol it names the card type; on its own it usually flags a card action, insertion, reading or ejection.
Driver
The person symbol. With a card it means driver card; on printouts it heads the driver identification block.
Company
The company symbol. With a card it means company card, used to lock in, download and protect the operator's data on the vehicle unit.
Controller
The enforcement symbol. With a card it means control card, what a DVSA examiner or police officer inserts at the roadside to read the unit.
Workshop
The spanner. With a card it means workshop card, held by approved tachograph centres for calibration and repair. Also fronts calibration mode.
Crew
Two driver marks together mean crew (multi-manning) operation, two drivers sharing the vehicle with cards in both slots.
Manufacturer
The manufacturer symbol, seen on technical printouts identifying who built the unit, and in non-activated mode before a workshop activates a new tachograph.
Status, conditions and equipment
OUT: out of scope
The drive is outside the EU/AETR drivers' hours rules, for example exempt work or off-road movements. Set it before you move and end it as soon as in-scope driving resumes; the unit still records the journey.
Ferry or train crossing
The ship. Flags a rest period taken on a ferry or train, which may be interrupted for boarding and disembarking within the limits the drivers' hours rules allow.
Time
The clock. Tachographs record in UTC, so printouts run one hour behind UK time in summer. A local-time display is a convenience; the legal record stays UTC.
Start or end of daily work period
The flag. Marks where a daily work period begins or ends on printouts and in the manual entry flow, paired with a location entry.
Location or position
A recorded place: the country (and position, on smart tachographs) at the start and end of the daily work period, plus an automatic position every three hours of accumulated driving.
Speed
The gauge. Fronts speed data and, with a warning mark, overspeeding events, which record when the vehicle exceeds its set limit for a minute or more.
Security
The padlock. Security elements of the recording. With a warning mark it means an attempted security breach, such as sensor interference, which enforcement takes very seriously.
Printer / printout
The printer. Fronts the print menu and printout-type codes, and with a cross it reports a printer fault (usually paper out).
Display
The screen symbol. Used in menus for display settings and in fault codes for a display failure.
Downloading / external storage
The download symbol. Data transfer to external storage, what the operator does at least every 90 days for vehicle data and 28 days for card data under DVSA guidance.
Motion sensor
The sensor on the gearbox feeding speed and distance to the unit. Appears in motion data error and sensor fault warnings.
Vehicle / vehicle unit
The vehicle symbol. The tachograph head unit itself in fault codes, and vehicle data on printouts.
GNSS
The satellite. Smart tachographs position the vehicle by satellite; this symbol appears in GNSS fault and missing-position warnings.
Remote communication
The antenna. The short-range link that lets enforcement pre-screen a passing smart tachograph without stopping the vehicle.
Power supply
The power symbol. In an event it records a power interruption, which can indicate a battery change or, if it repeats, tampering.
Manual entry
The pen. Fronts the manual entry flow where you account for activities while your card was out of the unit.
Total / summary
The sigma. Totals lines on printouts: summed driving, work, availability and rest for the day or period.
Daily (24h)
The daily qualifier. 24h with a card or vehicle symbol is the daily activity printout, the one enforcement asks for at the roadside.
Warning symbols: events and faults
| Symbols | Event | What it means in the cab |
|---|---|---|
| ! | Event (general) | The exclamation mark fronts every event. The symbol next to it tells you which one. Acknowledge the warning, then deal with the cause. |
| ! | Insertion of a non-valid card | The card is expired, faulty or not accepted. Driving on an invalid card counts as driving without a card. |
| ! | Card conflict | Two conflicting cards are inserted, for example two driver cards where a driver and co-driver were expected. Sort the slots out before moving. |
| ! | Time overlap / time conflict | The card's last withdrawal time is later than this unit's clock, usually after driving a vehicle with a wrong clock. Gets flagged for analysis; note it and report it. |
| ! | Driving without an appropriate card | The vehicle moved with no valid driver card in slot 1. One of the most serious flags an operator can find in a download; it needs an explanation every time. |
| ! | Card insertion while driving | A card went into the slot while the vehicle was moving. Insert your card before you set off, not at the first red light. |
| ! c | Last card session not correctly closed | The card was not properly ejected last time, often a power cut or pulling the card during a print. The unit asks about the gap on next insertion. |
| ! | Over speeding | Vehicle speed exceeded the set limit for a minute or more and the unit has recorded it. Expect questions when the data is analysed. |
| ! | Power supply interruption | Power to the tachograph was cut. Legitimate during battery work; a pattern of them looks like tampering. |
| ! | Motion data error | The unit lost or mistrusted the motion sensor signal. Book it into a workshop; motion errors invalidate the record. |
| ! | Vehicle motion conflict | Smart tachograph cross-check: the sensor says stationary while the satellite position says moving, or vice versa. A classic sign of sensor interference. |
| ! | Security breach attempt | The unit detected interference with its security: broken seals, sensor pairing failures, magnet tricks. Treat as urgent; this is the flag enforcement cares about most. |
| ! | No position from GNSS receiver | The unit has had no satellite fix for too long. Tunnels and depots cause short gaps; a permanent one needs a workshop visit. |
| ! | Communication error, remote facility | The roadside pre-screening link is not responding. No action for the driver beyond reporting it. |
Events record circumstances; faults record broken kit. Both stay in the unit's memory and appear on the events and faults printout.
| Symbols | Fault | What it means in the cab |
|---|---|---|
| × | Fault (general) | The cross fronts every fault code; the symbol next to it names the failed component. |
| × 1 | Card fault (slot 1 or 2) | The unit cannot read the card in the numbered slot. Try cleaning the card; if it repeats, order a replacement before the card dies mid-week. |
| × | Display fault | Screen failure. The unit may still record; get it checked rather than driving blind on your hours. |
| × | Downloading fault | A data download failed part-way. Repeat the download; do not assume the data was captured. |
| × | Printer fault | Usually paper. Carry spare rolls: you must be able to print at the roadside, and no paper is an offence in itself. |
| × | Sensor fault | Motion sensor failure. Workshop job; note when it started and keep manual records if the unit stops recording properly. |
| × | VU internal fault | The head unit itself has failed. The vehicle can finish its journey with manual records, but repair cannot wait: UK rules expect a broken tachograph fixed as soon as circumstances permit, on route if the vehicle cannot return within a week. |
| × | GNSS fault | The satellite receiver has failed, internal or external. Workshop visit required. |
| × | Remote detection fault | The enforcement pre-screening module has failed. Not a driver problem, but it needs booking in. |
Printout codes and manual entry prompts
| Symbols | Printout or prompt | When you use it |
|---|---|---|
| 24h | Daily activities from the card | The standard roadside printout: everything on the driver card for a chosen day. Know how to produce it; examiners ask. |
| 24h | Daily activities from the vehicle unit | The same day as the unit saw it, including periods with no card inserted. Used to explain gaps and check the vehicle's own record. |
| !× | Events and faults from the card | Every event and fault stored on the card. Worth printing when a warning will not clear. |
| !× | Events and faults from the vehicle unit | The unit's own event and fault log. What the workshop and the transport office read first. |
| T | Technical data | Calibration dates, workshop details, tyre size, speed setting. Checked at calibration (every two years) and inspections. |
| >> | Over speeding | All recorded overspeeding events with dates, duration and peak speed. |
| ? | "Still same daily work period?" | Manual entry prompt on card insertion: is this a continuation of the shift you started before the card came out? Answer honestly; it anchors the whole entry. |
| ? | Enter start or end location | The unit asks for the country (and place, on smart units) where the work period began or ended. |
Symbol drawings on this page are simplified for the screen; each unit renders the official pictogram set in its own pixel style. Set from Appendix 3, Annex IC of retained Regulation (EU) 2016/799, checked July 2026.
Where the symbols come from
Tachograph symbols are not a manufacturer's invention. Every pictogram, from the bed to the crossed hammers, is set out in law: Appendix 3 of Annex IC to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/799, made under Regulation (EU) 165/2014 and retained in UK law after Brexit, checked July 2026 on legislation.gov.uk. That is why a driver can step from a VDO unit into a Stoneridge and still read the display: the fonts differ, the symbols do not.
The set splits into single pictograms (people, activities, equipment, conditions) and combinations, where two or three symbols together carry a precise meaning. An exclamation mark fronts an event, a cross fronts a fault, and the neighbouring symbol names the subject: card, clock, sensor, satellite. Once you know that grammar you can decode a warning you have never seen before.
The four activities decide your day
Almost everything that matters at a roadside check flows from how the four activity symbols were used. Driving records itself. The other three are the driver's honesty: crossed hammers for real work, the square for genuine periods of availability, the bed only when you are actually free of the vehicle and the job. Recording other work as rest is one of the commonest infringements found in drivers' hours analysis, and it is entirely avoidable with the selector switch. Plan the day around the limits with our drivers' hours calculator before the shift, and the symbols simply confirm what you planned.
Warnings: read the grammar, not the panic
A flashing exclamation mark is an event, a record of a circumstance, not automatically an accusation. Cards inserted while rolling, time overlaps after a vehicle swap and short power cuts happen in real operations. What matters is the pattern and the response: acknowledge the warning, print the events and faults list if it will not clear, note the circumstances on the printout, and tell the transport office the same day. The event the office can least afford to ignore is the padlock, a security breach attempt, because analysts and DVSA treat sensor interference as deliberate until shown otherwise. Faults, the cross symbols, are simpler: something is broken, and UK rules expect it repaired as soon as circumstances permit, with manual records bridging the gap.
Symbols an operator's download must explain
- Driving without an appropriate card: every occurrence needs a name and a reason attached. Repeated unexplained entries are how operators end up at a public inquiry.
- OUT of scope used liberally: legitimate for exempt work, and a favourite way to hide in-scope driving. Analysis compares it against job records.
- Question-mark time: unaccounted periods a driver skipped in manual entries. Small gaps are life; whole missing shifts are not.
- Overspeeding events in clusters: one is a lapse, a pattern is a driver conversation, and the record already exists whether or not anyone looks.
The download rhythm that keeps this manageable in Great Britain: vehicle unit data at least every 90 days, driver cards at least every 28 days, per DVSA guidance on tachograph downloading, checked July 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What does the bed symbol mean on a tachograph?
Rest or break: time you can freely dispose of. Select it for breaks and at the end of the shift. It is the symbol that should never appear while you are loading, fuelling or doing paperwork, that is crossed-hammers time.
What do the crossed hammers mean?
Other work: all duty time that is not driving, such as loading, securing, walkaround checks and paperwork. It counts towards working time and daily duty, but not driving time.
What is the square with a diagonal line?
Availability (POA): waiting time whose expected length you know in advance, when you are not required to stay at the workstation. Typical examples are waiting out a booked delay at an RDC or accompanying a vehicle on a ferry when you have access to a bunk.
What does OUT mean on a tachograph?
Out of scope: the current driving is outside the EU/AETR drivers' hours rules, for instance certain exempt vehicles or off-road work. The unit keeps recording the movement; the flag changes how analysis treats it. Switch it off as soon as in-scope driving resumes.
What does the exclamation mark mean?
An event: the unit has recorded a circumstance worth flagging, such as driving without a card, a time overlap or a power interruption. The symbol next to the exclamation mark names the event. Acknowledge it, and if it will not clear, print the events and faults list and report it.
Why does my tachograph show a question mark?
Unknown activity: a period the unit cannot account for, almost always time between card withdrawal and the next insertion. The manual entry flow on insertion exists to cover exactly this: fill in rest, other work or availability so the gap does not read as missing time.
Are tachograph symbols the same on every unit?
The symbol set is fixed by the retained EU regulation, so meanings are identical across VDO, Stoneridge and other makes. Menu layouts, extra status icons and the pixel style of the drawings differ by manufacturer, which is why the same bed looks slightly different from cab to cab.
Compliance sorted. Work flowing?
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