ABSTRACT
In the 1980s the International Standards Organization (ISO) tested symbols for signage with a multilingual audience. ISO developed the symbol of a running man and a door, indicating both the
direction of egress and the way in which the door opened at the point of exit. This safety symbol, the first to be based on comprehensive communications research, was in 1987 incorporated in ISO 6309. Three years later BS 5499: Part 1 dealt with safety signs, means of escape and fire-fighting equipment identification. By drawing on the ISO standard, this British Standard helped to establish an international standard of recognition.
