LEARNING ALARMS FOR NUISANCE AND FALSE ALARM REDUCTION

• US 20150348400A1
• Filed: 05/27/2015
• Published: 12/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Carrier Corporation (Carrier Global Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Carrier Corporation (Carrier Global Corporation)
• Inventors: Zribi, Anis, Burnette, Stan, Chandler, Bill
• Granted Patent: US 9,990,842 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 17/00 Fire alarms; Alarms responsive to explosion
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/14 Toxic gas alarms G08B21/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 29/185 Signal analysis techniques for reducing or preventing false alarms or for enhancing the reliability of the system

Abstract

A learning alarm includes a sensor operatively connected to a processor to detect environmental properties and an alarm operatively connected to the processor to provide an alert if the environmental properties are outside an acceptable range. A user interface is operatively connected to the processor to accept user input indicating an alert corresponds to a nuisance condition. A memory is also operatively connected to the processor for storing detected environmental properties corresponding to the nuisance condition. The processor is configured to suppress alerts from the alarm based on detected environmental properties corresponding to the environmental properties of the nuisance condition stored in the memory.

Claims

1. A learning alarm, comprising:

a sensor operatively connected to a processor to detect environmental parameters;

an alarm operatively connected to the processor to provide an alert if the environmental parameters are outside an acceptable range;

a user interface operatively connected to the processor to accept user input indicating an alert corresponds to a nuisance condition; and

a memory operatively connected to the processor for storing detected environmental properties corresponding to the nuisance condition,

wherein the processor is configured to suppress alerts from the alarm based on detected environmental properties corresponding to the environmental properties of the nuisance condition stored in the memory.

2. The alarm of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to compare the detected environmental properties with environmental properties from a plurality of stored nuisance conditions.

3. The alarm of claim 1, wherein the nuisance condition includes a property selected from the group consisting of gas concentration, gas composition, humidity, and temperature.

4. The alarm of claim 1, wherein the nuisance condition includes smoke concentration and composition.

5. The alarm of claim 1, wherein the processor is operative to override suppression of the alerts in the presence of environmental properties outside of a predetermined range.

6. A learning alarm system, comprising:

a processor operatively connected to at least two alarm units, each alarm unit including a sensor to detect environmental properties;

an alarm operatively connected to the processor to provide an alert if the environmental properties are outside an acceptable range;

a user interface operatively connected to the processor to accept user input indicating an alert corresponds to a nuisance condition; and

a memory operatively connected to the processor for storing detected environmental properties corresponding to the nuisance condition detected from each alarm,

wherein the processor is configured to suppress alerts from the alarm based on detected gas properties corresponding to the gas properties of the nuisance condition stored in the memory.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor is configured to compare the detected environmental properties with environmental properties from a plurality of stored nuisance conditions.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the nuisance condition includes a property selected from the group consisting of gas concentration, gas composition, humidity, and temperature.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the nuisance condition includes smoke concentration and composition.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor is operative to override suppression of the alerts in the presence of environmental properties outside of a predetermined range.

11. A method of suppressing nuisance alarms, comprising:

detecting a condition;

comparing the condition with at least one nuisance condition stored in memory;

providing an alert if the condition is outside an acceptable range and if the condition does not correspond to a nuisance condition; and

suppressing an alert if the condition corresponds to a nuisance condition.

12. The method as recited in claim 11, further comprising:

accepting user input to indicate the condition is a nuisance condition; and

storing the nuisance condition in memory.

13. The method as recited in claim 11, wherein the step of comparing includes comparing a slope of a curve of the detected condition and a slope of a curve of the at least one nuisance condition.

14. The method as recited in claim 11, wherein the step of comparing includes comparing a rate of rise of the detected condition and a rate of rise of the at least one nuisance condition.

15. The method as recited in claim 11, wherein the step of comparing includes comparing a shape of a curve of the detected condition and a shape of a curve of the at least one nuisance condition using curve fitting techniques.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the condition includes a property selected from the group consisting of gas concentration, gas composition, humidity, and temperature.

17. The method as recited in claim 11, wherein the condition includes smoke concentration and composition.

18. The method as recited in claim 11, further comprising:

overriding suppression of the alert when the condition is outside a predetermined range.