Intelligent directional fire alarm system

• US 20070152808A1
• Filed: 08/11/2006
• Published: 07/05/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Steve Lacasse
• Original Assignee: Steve Lacasse
• Inventors: LaCasse, Steve
• Granted Patent: US 7,626,507 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/524
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 17/00 Fire alarms; Alarms responsive to explosion
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 29/188 Data fusion; cooperative systems, e.g. voting among different detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 7/062 indicating emergency exits
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 7/064 indicating houses needing emergency help, e.g. with a flashing light or sound
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 7/066 guiding along a path, e.g. evacuation path lighting strip

Abstract

An intelligent directional fire alarm system is disclosed. The intelligent directional fire alarm system identifies a threat such as a fire, and the location within a building relative to the known exits for building occupants, and indicates the closest exits in each area of a building relative to the location of an identified threat, and the path towards the exit for evacuees throughout a given building, relative to the detected fire location(s)

Claims

1. An intelligent directional emergency alarm system comprising:

(a) at least one threat sensing node for generating a warning signal representing a threat;

(b) at least one directional lighting module having at least three light sources in a linear arrangement having a first end and a second end;

(c) at least one indicator unit for activating at least one of said directional lighting modules based on reception of said warning signal so as to indicate a specific direction away from the threat, through the sequential illumination of said at least three light sources in order from a first end of the linear arrangement to a second end of the linear arrangement;

(d) at least one control box for receiving said warning signal and for generating a report signal.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the light sources are high intensity LED lamps shaped as arrows and capable of pointing from said first end of the linear arrangement to said second end of the linear arrangement, and vice-versa.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the control box for receiving said warning signal and for generating a report signal is a centralized control box that, upon receiving at least one said warning signal, can process said at least one warning signal so as to activate a plurality of additional said directional modules located throughout a building in order to direct an evacuee of said building toward a proximate exit away from an identified said threat.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the control box for receiving said warning signal and for generating a report signal is a centralized control box that upon receiving at least one said warning signal, can process said at least one warning signal so as to generate at least one report having a visual representation so as assist responders to said threat

5. The system of claim 1 further including a backup and report module for actuating the lighting module in response to a system interconnectivity failure.

6. The system of claim 1 further including a backup and report module for generating a report in response to a system interconnectivity failure.

7. The system of claim 2 wherein the high intensity LED lamps associated with each indicator unit are positioned near each other and constitute an assembly in which the direction of their sequential pattern is readily observable.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the indicator unit includes a sequencer, a high frequency inverter, a battery and a battery charger for illuminating the high intensity LED lamps with an independent power supply.

9. The system of claim 7 wherein the assembly described is positioned on a wall within decorative molding

10. The system of claim 9 wherein the group described is positioned within decorative molding situated at the corner of a floor of an area and the contiguous wall of the area in a substantially linear fashion so as to be readily visible to evacuees crawling to an escape in smoke filled conditions.

11. The system of claim 6 wherein the backup and report module for generating a report in response to a system interconnectivity failure includes a wireless transmission means for communicating said report.

12. The system of claim 6 wherein the at least one threat sensing node is chosen from the group comprising fire, radiological, biological, or chemical sensors.