Pre-smoke detector and system for use in early detection of developing fires
First Claim
1. A pre-smoke detector for early detection of a fire or potential fire, comprising:
- a substrate including an array of microcantilevers, at least one microcantilever having a polymeric surface coating that adsorbs one or more of types of vaporized pyrolysis products resulting from thermal decomposition of fibers and/or wiring insulation materials, the vaporized pyrolysis products being of a different chemical composition than that of the pre-decomposed fibers and/or wiring insulation materials;
a cooling device that is configured to actively cool one or more microcantilevers below ambient temperature to promote adsorption of the vaporized pyrolysis products;
an electronic circuit including a controller that cooperates with the microcantilever and is configured to analyze the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products;
an alarm that is configured to activate if the analyzed adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products meet or exceed a pre-determined threshold amount; and
a resistive heater that is configured to heat the microcantilever after analyzing the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products, thereby cleaning the polymeric surface coating of the microcantilever.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A pre-smoke detector and system for use in early detection of developing fires whereby vapors of marker chemicals generated during the melting and/or smoldering of common household materials are detected before detection by conventional smoke detectors. Vapors resulting from heating and resultant vaporization of substances are detected as well as vapors resulting from their breakdown, decomposition, or pyrolysis during the pre-combustion stage. Conventional smoke detectors focus on particle detection and are most effective after a developing fire has produced smoke. To minimize false alarms caused by common household odors, the pre-smoke detectors focus on detecting medium temperature pyrolysis products using sensor coatings that can be consistent with a 10 year operational lifetime and multiple orthogonal detection processes. Since virtually all marker chemicals of interest for pre-smoke detection are heavier than air, a system is described that appropriately integrates with smoke detector alarm systems present in most homes.
19 Citations
31 Claims
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1. A pre-smoke detector for early detection of a fire or potential fire, comprising:
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a substrate including an array of microcantilevers, at least one microcantilever having a polymeric surface coating that adsorbs one or more of types of vaporized pyrolysis products resulting from thermal decomposition of fibers and/or wiring insulation materials, the vaporized pyrolysis products being of a different chemical composition than that of the pre-decomposed fibers and/or wiring insulation materials; a cooling device that is configured to actively cool one or more microcantilevers below ambient temperature to promote adsorption of the vaporized pyrolysis products; an electronic circuit including a controller that cooperates with the microcantilever and is configured to analyze the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products; an alarm that is configured to activate if the analyzed adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products meet or exceed a pre-determined threshold amount; and a resistive heater that is configured to heat the microcantilever after analyzing the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products, thereby cleaning the polymeric surface coating of the microcantilever. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A system for early detection of a fire or potential fire, comprising:
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a pre-smoke detector comprising; a substrate including an array of microcantilevers, at least one microcantilever having a polymeric surface coating that adsorbs one or more of types of vaporized pyrolysis products resulting from thermal decomposition of fibers and/or wiring insulation materials, the vaporized pyrolysis products being of a different chemical composition than that of the pre-decomposed fibers and/or wiring insulation materials; a cooling device that is configured to actively cool one or more microcantilevers below ambient temperature to promote adsorption of the vaporized pyrolysis products; an electronic circuit including a controller that cooperates with the microcantilever and is configured to analyze the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products; an alarm that is configured to activate if the analyzed vaporized pyrolysis products meet or exceed a pre-determined threshold amount, and wherein the pre-smoke detector does not detect smoke particles; and a resistive heater that is configured to heat the microcantilever after analyzing the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products, thereby cleaning the polymeric surface coating of the microcantilever; and a smoke detector that detects smoke particles and includes an alarm that is activated if smoke particles are detected and/or meet or exceed a pre-determined threshold amount, wherein the pre-smoke detector and smoke detector are in communication with one another so that when one alarm is signaled the other is signaled. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A method for early detection of a fire or potential fire, comprising:
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adsorbing one or more of types of vaporized pyrolysis products on a polymeric surface coating of at least one microcantilever of an array of microcantilevers, the vaporized pyrolysis products resulting from thermal decomposition of fibers and/or wiring insulation materials and being of a different chemical composition than that of the pre-decomposed fibers and/or wiring insulation materials; analyzing the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products; activating an alarm if the analyzed vaporized pyrolysis products meet or exceed a pre-determined threshold amount; and cleaning the polymeric surface coating of the microcantilever by heating the microcantilever after analyzing the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products, wherein prior to analyzing the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products, actively cooling, via a cooling device, one or more microcantilevers below ambient temperature to promote adsorption of the vaporized pyrolysis products. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. A method for early detection of a fire or potential fire, comprising:
using a pre-smoke detector to detect one or more types of vaporized pyrolysis products resulting from thermal decomposition of fibers and/or wiring insulation materials, the pre-smoke detector comprising; a substrate including an array of microcantilevers, at least one microcantilever having a polymeric surface coating that adsorbs one or more of types of vaporized pyrolysis products resulting from thermal decomposition of fibers and/or wiring insulation materials, the vaporized pyrolysis products being of a different chemical composition than that of the pre-decomposed fibers and/or wiring insulation materials; a cooling device that is configured to actively cool one or more microcantilevers below ambient temperature to promote adsorption of the vaporized pyrolysis products; an electronic circuit including a controller that cooperates with the microcantilever and is configured to analyze the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products; an alarm that is configured to activate if the analyzed vaporized pyrolysis products meet or exceed a pre-determined threshold amount, and wherein the pre-smoke detector does not detect smoke particles; and a resistive heater that is configured to heat the microcantilever after analyzing the adsorbed vaporized pyrolysis products, thereby cleaning the polymeric surface coating of the microcantilever. - View Dependent Claims (31)
Specification