Fire protection and security monitoring system

• US 6,369,695 B2
• Filed: 04/10/2001
• Issued: 04/09/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Daniel J. Horon
• Original Assignee: Daniel J. Horon
• Inventors: Horon, Daniel J.
• Primary Examiner(s): POPE, DARYL C
• Application Number:
  US09/829,822
• Publication Number:
  US 20010011946A1
• Time in Patent Office: 364 Days
• Field of Search: 340/286.01, 340/506, 340/517, 340/521, 340/524, 340/525, 340/825.06, 340/825.36, 340/825.49, 340/511, 340/531, 340/533
• US Class Current: 340/286.01
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/14 Central alarm receiver or annunciator arrangements

Abstract

A facility monitoring system includes a monitoring station receiving inputs from different control panels, each panel supporting detectors and other devices. Data from the panels are scanned, segmented into categories and presented in a standard format including a category identifying devices by type and state or condition. The monitoring station stores graphic information including site maps and floor plans to provide backgrounds, and device images positionable on the backgrounds to accurately depict device locations in the facility.

Claims

1. For use with the facility monitoring system that includes at least one circuit and a plurality of detectors removably coupled to the circuit, a facility monitoring device including:

a receiving station including;

(i) a memory for storing facility mapping information, detector information, and graphic device information;

(ii) an image generator adapted to generate facility map images based on the mapping information, textual images based on the detector information, and device images based on the graphic device information; and

(iii) an information management component operatively associated with the memory and with the image generator, for causing the image generator to produce selected ones of the images based on selected information in the memory; and

a coupler for linking the receiving station to a circuit including a plurality of detectors removably coupled to the circuit, whereby the detectors when so coupled provide the detector information and respective condition signals to the receiving station via the circuit, wherein the detector information includes a plurality of entries, each entry identifying an associated one of the detectors coupled to the circuit;

wherein the information management component is adapted to cause the image generator to generate a textual image comprising a list of the entries to identify the detectors coupled to the circuit; and

wherein the information management component further is adapted to cause the image generator to generate a particular device image representing a selected one of the detectors for display on one of the map images, in response to a deletion from the list of the associated entry identifying the selected detector.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein:

the image generator further is adapted to allow a system user to selectively position the particular device image on the map image to depict a location of the selected detector within the monitored facility.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein:

image generator further is adapted to display the list of entries in conjunction with said one of the map images, to allow the user to transfer the associated entry from the list to the map image, thereby to delete the associated entry from the list and generate the particular device image.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein:

the condition signal provided by each of the detectors is variable in response to changing conditions proximate its associated detector to alternatively indicate at least two different states; and

the image generator further is adapted to alter an appearance of each of the device images in accordance with the state indicated by the associated condition signal.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein:

the memory includes a sector for storing a master list of all detectors coupled to the receiving station via a plurality of the circuits.

6. The system of claim 5 further including:

a means for selecting, from the master list, only detectors that indicate a state other than a normal or standby state.

7. The device of claim 1 wherein:

the image generator further is adapted to generate the device images in a plurality of shapes corresponding to a plurality of types of detectors, and the information management component further is adapted to match a selected one of the device image shapes to a device name in the entry associated with the device, whereby the associated device image has a selected shape corresponding to the type of its associated device.

8. The device of claim 1 wherein:

the detector information associated with each detector includes text describing the associated detector, the information management component further is adapted for segmenting portions of the text into a plurality of different categories, and the image generator further is adapted to display the text in a format governed by the categories.

9. The device of claim 1 wherein:

the receiving station comprises a central processing unit, and said information management component comprises a computer software program residing in the central processing unit.

10. The device of claim 1 wherein:

said image generator is adapted to produce the map images and generate the device images in a vector based format.

11. A process for monitoring a facility in which a plurality of detectors, forming at least one detector circuit, are distributed throughtout the facility and generate respective condition signals that vary in response to changes in predetermined conditions proximate the detectors;

the process including;

storing facility mapping information, detector information including at least respective individual identifications of a plurality of detectors on a circuit, and graphic device information;

based on the dectector information, generating a list of entries each entry associated with one of the detectors coupled to the circuit;

based on the mapping information, generating a visible background image comprising a map of the facility; and

with respect to each of the entries on the list;

a. deleting the entry;

b. in response to deleting the entry, creating a graphic device representing the detector associated with the deleted entry;

c. displaying the graphic device on the facility map whereby the graphic device is part of the visible image.

12. The process of claim 11 further including:

repeating a-c until all entries are deleted from the list and graphic devices associated with the entries and their corresponding detectors are part of a visible composite image.

13. The process of claim 11 further including, with respect to each of the entries:

d. selectively positioning the device image on the facility map to represent a location of the associated detector within the facility.

14. The process of claim 11 wherein:

the deletion of the entry, generation of the device image and placement of the device image on the map are performed by (i) simultaneously displaying the list and the facility map on a video display device; and

(ii) using a cursor to transfer the selected entry from the list onto the facility map.

15. In a facility monitoring system including a plurality of control panels and at least one detector coupled to each control panel, said detectors being disposed at different sensing locations throughout the monitored facility;

a process for monitoring the facility based on inputs from the control panels, including;

storing descriptive information relating to and identifying types of control panels and types of detectors that can be coupled to the control panels, whereby the information is arranged in a plurality of categories;

reading incoming information from the control panels, and comparing the incoming information with the previously stored categorized information, to identify incoming segement of the panel information and categorized segments of the previously stored information that coincide; and

generating a textual image including all of the matched information segments in a standard format.

16. The process of claim 15 further including:

generating a visible image including a map of the monitored facility, generating a plurality of device images each associated with one of the detectors, and displaying the device images on the map to represent the detectors.

17. The process of claim 16 further including:

selectively positioning the device images on the map to represent respective sensing locations of the associated detectors.

18. The process of claim 17 wherein:

and devices include several different types of devices, one of the segments of the pre-stored data relates to types of detectors, and the device images have a plurality of different shapes, each shape associated with a different one of the types of detectors.

19. A monitoring station for use in a facility monitoring system including at least two different types of control panels and at least one detecting device associated with each of the panels, with said devices being disposed at different sensing locations throughtout the monitored facility and generating a condition signal variable in response to changing conditions proximate the device to alternatively indicate at least two different states;

said monitoring station including;

a memory including a first data storage area for storing system information including at least panel and device identifying information and arranged in a plurality of categories, and a second data storage area for receiving data from a plurality of control panels;

a comparator for comparing data in the first and second data storage areas and generating matched data consisting essentially of segments of the stored data and incoming data that match one another; and

an image generator for producing a visible image of the matched data, arranged in a standard format according to said categories.

20. The monitoring station of claim 19 further including:

a memory for storing graphic information including device images, and a means for associating types of devices with different ones of the device images.

21. The monitoring station of claim 20 wherein:

the image generator further is adapted to display a visible composite facility image including a map of the monitored facility and at least one device image selectively positioned on the map to indicate a sensing location of the associated device.

22. The monitoring station of claim 21 wherein:

the image generator further is adapted to display the composite facility image in a vector based format.

23. The monitoring station of claim 20 wherein:

said memory stores device information from each of the control panels relating to each device coupled to the control panes, and based on the device information, generates a list of devices added to the circuit and not yet represented by an associated device image.

24. The monitoring station of claim 23 wherein:

the image generator further is adapted to display the list of added devices in conjunction with the facility image, to allow use of a cursor to transfer a device listing from the list to the facility image as a device image representing the associated device and positionable to represent a location of the associated device.

25. The monitoring station of claim 24 wherein:

the image generator further is adapted to generate the device images in a plurality of shapes corresponding to a plurality of types of devices, and an associative component is provided for matching a selected one of the device image shapes to a device name on the list, whereby said transfer of the entry to the composite facility image generates a device image of the selected shape corresponding to the device type.

26. The monitoring station of claim 19 wherein:

the memory includes a sector for storing a master list of all devices coupled to the monitoring station.

27. The monitoring station of claim 26 further including:

a means for selecting, from the master list, only devices that indicate a state other than a normal or standby state.

28. The monitoring station of claim 19 further including:

a central processing unit, wherein said comparator comprises a computer software program residing in said central processing unit.