Component interfacing in hazard safety systems
First Claim
1. A dongle for interfacing a control panel system with a hazard detection device, the control panel system comprising a control panel and at least one wired detection string, wherein the control panel monitors a current level provided to each wired detection string to determine whether an alarm condition exists on the at least one wired detection string, and wherein the hazard detection device would cause a false alarm condition to exist for the wired detection string if it were directly electrically coupled to that wired detection string, the dongle comprising:
- a first connector configured to be electrically coupled to a wired detection string of the control panel system;
a second connector configured to be electrically coupled to the hazard detection device; and
a first module configured to;
receive a control signal from the hazard detection device via the second connector;
pull a first amount of current from the control panel system via the first connector when the received control signal is a first value, the first amount of current having a current level that does not indicate an alarm condition exists on the wired detection string; and
pull a second amount of current from the control panel system via the first connector when the received control signal is a second value, the second amount of current having a current level that does indicate an alarm condition exists on the wired detection string.
3 Assignments
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Accused Products
Abstract
Systems and methods for interfacing a hazard detection device with a control panel system via a dongle are provided. The dongle may be configured to alternate between drawing first and second amounts of power from the control panel system in response to the hazard detection device alternating between operating in a normal mode when no hazard is detected and an alarm mode when a hazard is detected. The hazard detection device may operate independently of any characteristics of the control panel system. For example, the hazard detection device may operate without drawing any power from the control panel system. Therefore, the dongle may allow for various types of hazard detection devices to interface with a common two-line power control system.
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Citations
43 Claims
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1. A dongle for interfacing a control panel system with a hazard detection device, the control panel system comprising a control panel and at least one wired detection string, wherein the control panel monitors a current level provided to each wired detection string to determine whether an alarm condition exists on the at least one wired detection string, and wherein the hazard detection device would cause a false alarm condition to exist for the wired detection string if it were directly electrically coupled to that wired detection string, the dongle comprising:
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a first connector configured to be electrically coupled to a wired detection string of the control panel system; a second connector configured to be electrically coupled to the hazard detection device; and a first module configured to; receive a control signal from the hazard detection device via the second connector; pull a first amount of current from the control panel system via the first connector when the received control signal is a first value, the first amount of current having a current level that does not indicate an alarm condition exists on the wired detection string; and pull a second amount of current from the control panel system via the first connector when the received control signal is a second value, the second amount of current having a current level that does indicate an alarm condition exists on the wired detection string. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A hazard detection device for interfacing with a dongle, the hazard detection device comprising:
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a sensor configured to detect a characteristic of an environment; a processor configured to process the detected characteristic; a power supply configured to power at least one of the sensor and the processor; and a device connector configured to be electrically coupled to a dongle connector of the dongle, wherein; the device connector comprises a first device pin configured to be electrically coupled to a first dongle pin of the dongle connector; the processor is further configured to transmit a first control signal to the first device pin when the processor determines that the detected characteristic satisfies a first requirement; and the processor is further configured to transmit a second control signal to the first device pin when the processor determines that the detected characteristic does not satisfy the first requirement. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A hazard safety system comprising:
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a control panel system comprising; a control panel; and a plurality of wires electrically coupled to the control panel; a first hazard detection device, wherein the first hazard detection device is not powered by the control panel system; and a dongle comprising; a first dongle connector electrically coupled to at least a first wire of the plurality of wires; a second dongle connector electrically coupled to at least a first pin of the first hazard detection device; and a dongle module configured to; receive a control signal from the first hazard detection device via the second dongle connector; and based on a value of the received control signal, vary an amount of power that the dongle module pulls from the first wire via the first dongle connector. - View Dependent Claims (19)
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20. A method for operating a dongle that comprises a first connector and a second connector, the method comprising:
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receiving a control signal from a hazard detection device at the second connector of the dongle; based on the value of the received control signal, controlling a module of the dongle to vary an amount of power that the module pulls from a control panel system via the first connector of the dongle; and varying the value of the control signal based on a characteristic of an environment detected by the hazard detection device. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. A method for operating a hazard detection device, the method comprising:
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detecting a characteristic of an environment with the hazard detection device; when the detected characteristic satisfies a first requirement, transmitting a first control signal from the hazard detection device to a module of a dongle; and when the detected characteristic does not satisfy the first requirement, transmitting a second control signal from the hazard detection device to the module of the dongle, wherein; the first control signal is configured to enable the module of the dongle to draw a first amount of power that is below a first threshold from a control panel system; and the second control signal is configured to enable the module of the dongle to draw a second amount of power that is above a second threshold from the control panel system. - View Dependent Claims (31)
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32. A method for operating a dongle that comprises a first connector and a second connector, the method comprising:
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receiving a control signal from a hazard detection device at the second connector of the dongle; based on the value of the received control signal, controlling a module of the dongle to vary an amount of power that the module pulls from a control panel system via the first connector of the dongle; and powering the hazard detection device without any power from the control panel system. - View Dependent Claims (33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
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38. A method for operating a dongle that comprises a first connector and a second connector, the method comprising:
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receiving a control signal from a hazard detection device at the second connector of the dongle; and based on the value of the received control signal, controlling a module of the dongle to vary an amount of power that the module pulls from a control panel system via the first connector of the dongle, wherein; when the value of the received control signal is a first value, the controlling the module comprises controlling the module to pull a first amount of power that is below a first threshold; and when the value of the received control signal is a second value, the controlling the module comprises controlling the module to pull a second amount of power that is above a second threshold. - View Dependent Claims (39, 40, 41, 42, 43)
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Specification