GB2591995A

GB2591995A - Fire Alarm system

Info

Publication number: GB2591995A
Application number: GB2001395.9A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Holness Matthew
Original assignee: Lyfe Systems Ltd
Current assignee: Lyfe Systems Ltd
Priority date: 2020-01-31
Filing date: 2020-01-31
Publication date: 2021-08-18
Also published as: GB202001395D0

Abstract

A fire alarm system includes fire alarm control panel 24, a plurality of individually addressable devices, and communication loop 10 to which the fire alarm control panel and the plurality of individually addressable devices are connected to facilitate communication between them. The plurality of individually addressable devices includes a plurality of alarm initiation devices such as manually actuated devices 16 and heat or smoke detectors 14, a plurality of notification devices such as strobes 18 and audible notification devices 20, and at least one smoke vent interface 26. The smoke vent interface controls power to at least one smoke vent 28 in order to open and/or close the smoke vent and the fire alarm control panel is programmed to send a command signal to the smoke vent interface in response to a predetermined alarm condition to cause the interface to open or close the associated smoke vent or vents. An addressable fire alarm system installed in a residential building wherein at least one alarm initiation device is installed in each discrete apartment and shared space.

Description

FIRE ALARM SYSTEM

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to fire alarm systems and their operation, especially (but not necessarily exclusively) to such systems for use in high-rise buildings such as office buildings and residential tower blocks. Embodiments of the invention are particularly suited to implementation in addressable fire alarm systems.

ID BACKGROUND

Fire alarm systems are used to alert occupants of a building to the existence or likely existence of a fire in the building. Such systems generally include a fire alarm control panel that is in communication with a plurality of alarm initiating devices, such as heat or smoke detectors, and a plurality of notification devices, such as audible alarms and visual alarms (e.g. flashing lights). When one of the detectors is activated (by detecting smoke or heat above a threshold level), of if a manual alarm initiating device is manually activated, an alarm signal is sent from the activated device to the fire alarm control panel. The control panel is programmed to act on the received alarm signal by activating one or more of the notification devices.

Some known fire alarm systems also incorporate interfaces for fire suppression systems, including for example sprinkler systems, the fire control panel being programmed to initiate operation of these systems on detection of a fire. It is also known to use the fire control panel to control interfaces to release door retainers (to allow fire doors to automatically close when an alarm is activated) and to interface with lift controllers, for example to return all lifts to the ground floor when an alarm is activated. The fire alarm panel also typically monitors the operational integrity of the system and its components, in order to alert a user if there is a fault.

The alarm initiating devices, notification devices and other interfaces can each be connected to the fire alarm control panel by their own wire or in a number of distinct circuits, each circuit representing a 'zone' within the building. Especially in larger and newer installations, however, it is more common to employ an addressable fire alarm system in which each device has its own unique address and multiple devices are connected to a single -1 -communication loop via which they communicate with the fire alarm control panel. This approach has the benefit that the fire alarm control panel knows the state of each individual device connected to it and can easily control the devices individually, enabling more sophisticated monitoring and control of the devices_ for example to facilitate staged evacuation from a building.

Fig. 1 is a simplified schematic illustration of an addressable fire alarm system. A communication loop 10 is used to carry signals between a fire alarm control panel 12 and a plurality of individually addressable devices. The addressable devices include alarm initiating devices, such as heat and/or smoke detectors 14 and manually operable alarm initiating devices 16, and notification devices, including visible notification devices (e.g. strobe lights) 18 and audible notification devices 20. In this simplified example, the alarm initiation devices mid notification devices are illustrated as being on only two floors of a building, floor A and floor B. although systems such as this can be used in buildings with many more floors.

SUMMARY

In general, embodiments of the present invention are concerned with providing improved fire alarm systems, especially improved addressable fire alarm systems.

In a first aspect, the invention provides a fire alarm system comprising: a fire alarm control panel; a plurality of individually addressable devices; and a communication loop to which the fire alarm control panel and the plurality of individually addressable devices are connected to facilitate communication between the fire alarm control panel and each of the individually addressable devices; wherein the plurality of individually addressable devices includes: a plurality of alarm initiation devices; a plurality of notification devices; and at least one smoke vent interface, the smoke vent interface being configured to control power to at least one smoke vent in order to open and/or close the smoke vent; the fire alarm control panel being programmed to send a command signal to the smoke -2 -vent interface in response to a predetermined alarm condition to cause the interface to open or close the at least one smoke vent.

Whilst smoke vent control systems are known, the approach taken here, which integrates the smoke vent control into the fire alarm control panel, provides significant advantages in terms of the control, monitoring, ease of use, adaptability and speed of operation of the system.

In some embodiments, the fire alarm system comprises a plurality smoke vent interfaces, each smoke vent interface being configured to control power to at least one smoke vent in order to open and/or close the smoke vent, and the fire alarm control panel being configured to control each smoke vent interface independently of the other smoke vent interfaces.

In the case, for example, where the system is installed in a multi-floor building, each smoke vent interface may control a smoke vent or vents on a respective floor of the building.

In some embodiments, the fire alarm control panel comprises manual overrides for the smoke vent interfaces that enable a user to manually control opening and closing of the smoke vents from the fire alarm control panel. Some embodiments of the system may also include separate override controls for the smoke vents, including for example manually operated controls that can be located adjacent the smoke vents (e.g. key switchcs). Advantageously, these separate manual override controls can also be connected to the communication loop.

In some embodiments, the fire alarm control panel is configured to monitor the integrity of wiring between each smoke vent interface and the respective smoke vent or vents that they control. For example, this may be achieved by measuring a resistance at the smoke vent interface of a circuit that connects the smoke vent interface to the smoke vent when a current (e.g. a small test current) is applied to the circuit. In this way, a user can be alerted, via the fire alarm control panel (or a monitoring system connected to it) of faults in the smoke vent control wiring along with other faults in the overall fire alarm system.

In some embodiments, the fire alarm control panel is configured to monitor an opening state of each smoke vent, the opening state indicating whether the smoke vent is closed or open. For example, the opening state can indicate that the smoke vent is fully open, fully closed or at an intermediate position. The opening state for an intermediate position in some eases will provide an indication of the actual degree of opening of the smoke vent, which can be useful if using the smoke vents for environmental cooling as discussed further below. -3 -

In some embodiments, the fire alarm system may further comprising one or more building fan interfaces for controlling one or more building fan units that are operable to draw air and smoke through the smoke vents when open, the one or more building fan interfaces being in communication with the fire alarm control panel and wherein the fire alarm control panel is programmed to control the one or more fan units.

The fire alarm control panel may, for example, be programmed to control the one or more fan units in response to predetermined conditions detected by the alarm initiation devices. Generally, this will be in response to the detected conditions indicating that there is smoke or a fire in the building and that one or more of the smoke vents has been opened. However. the smoke vents and fans may also be used for environmental cooling Thus, in some embodiments, the fire alarm control panel is programmed to open smoke vents and operate the fan units is response to detection by one or more of the alarm initiation devices of a temperature above a predetermined threshold but below temperatures associated with a fire in order to provide environmental cooling.

Especially for such environmental cooling modes, it may be desirable to control the speed of the fan. Thus, in some embodiments, the one or more building fan interfaces are adapted to control the speed of the fan and the fire alarm control panel controls the speed of the fan dependent on the detected temperature.

The smoke vents used in this environmental cooling mode may be the same vents that are used to extract smoke from a fire. Alternatively, specific environmental vents can be used for this purpose (and the term "smoke vents" should be taken to include such environmental events where the context allows).

In some embodiments, the fire alarm system further comprises at least one noxious gas sensor in communication with the fire alarm control panel. The fire alarm control panel can be programmed to control the smoke vents and fan units in response to predetermined conditions detected by the at least one noxious gas sensor, for example to open the vents and turn on the fans when a noxious gas is detected in order to extract the noxious gas from the building. The noxious gas detector may be for detecting vehicle engine fumes (e.g. in a parking facility) or for detecting carbon monoxide, for example, as well as other noxious gases. -4 -

In a second aspect, the invention provides a fire alarm system comprising: a fire alarm control panel; a plurality of individually addressable devices; and a communication loop to which the fire alarm control panel and the plurality of individually addressable devices are connected to facilitate communication between the fire alarm control panel and each of the individually addressable devices; wherein the plurality of individually addressable devices includes: a plurality of alarm initiation devices; and a plurality of notification devices; the fire alarm system being installed in a residential building comprising a plurality of discrete apartments and one or more shared spaces from which multiple apartments can be accessed, wherein at least one of said plurality of alarm initiation devices is installed in each discrete apartment and at least one of said plurality of alarm initiation devices is installed in each shared space.

In some embodiments, the at least one fire alarm initiation device installed in each discrete apartment is an automatic alarm initiation device.

In some embodiments, at least one of said plurality of notification devices is installed in each discrete apartment and the fire alarm control panel is programmed, in response to a predetermined alarm condition triggered by an alarm initiation device in one of the apartments, to send command signals to the notification devices in the apartment from which the alarm condition was triggered and in apartments that have a shared space in common with the apartment from which the alarm condition was triggered.

The fire alarm system of the second aspect may comprise smoke vent interfaces as in the first aspect above.

In some embodiments of either aspect of the invention, the fire alarm control panel comprises manual overrides for the notification devices that enable a user to manually initiate operation of the notification devices individually or in one or more groups from the fire alarm control panel.

In some embodiments of either aspect of the invention, the fire alarin control panel is programmed to activate the notification devices or groups of notification devices sequentially, -5 -temporally spaced from one another. The groups of notification devices are typically grouped based on their spatial proximity, for example by floor or other 'zoning' in a building.

The sequential activation may, for example, be initiated automatically based on inputs from the alarm initiation devices or be initiated by a manual user input at the fire alarm control panel.

The sequence and timing of the activation of the notification devices (or groups of devices) may be pre-programmed. Alternatively, the fire alarm control panel may be programmed to control the sequence and/or temporal spacing of the activation of the notification devices or groups of notification devices, following initiation of the sequence, in real time based on inputs from the alarm initiation devices.

In some embodiments of either aspect of the invention, the fire alarm control panel comprises a display and is programmed to display to a user information about the current state of the system. Alternatively, or additionally, the fire alarm control panel may be programmed to display to a user one or more recommended actions based on the current state of the system. in this way, the system can act to assist the decision making of users based on the current state of the systcm (and the information it provides about the conditions in the building).

In a third aspect, the invention provides a smoke vent interface for use in the fire alarm system of the first aspect above.

In a fourth aspect, the invention provides a fire alarm control panel programmed to operate as the fire alarm control panel of the fire alarm system of the first and/or second.

The skilled person will appreciate that the features described and defined in connection with the aspects of the invention and the embodiments thereof described above can be combined in any combination, regardless of whether the specific combination is expressly mentioned herein. Thus, all such combinations are considered to be made available to the skilled person. -6 -

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figure I schematically illustrates a simplified example of a known fire alarm system; Figure 2 schematically illustrates a simplified example of a fire alarm system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and Figure 3 schematically illustrates a simplified example of a fire alarm system in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, installed in a residential building with multiple apartments on each floor.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments are described below by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In general terms, embodiments of the invention provide an improved fire alarm system that has integrated smoke vent control.

Fig. 2 illustrates the principles of a fire alarm system in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The system of this example includes a fire alarm control panel 24 that communicates with a plurality of individually addressable devices. The system includes a communication loop 10 that is used to carry signals between the fire alarm control panel 12 and the addressable devices. The communication loop and the protocols for communication between the panel and the devices may be of known types used in existing systems. The fire alarm control panel includes one or more processors and memory for storing code for controlling the operation of the panel and the devices it controls. The panel is programmable to enable changes in the operation of the panel. Known, programmable fire alarm control panels used for addressable fire alarm systems can be employed in embodiments of the present invention with bespoke programming to provide all of the functionality discussed below (and above).

The addressable devices include alarm initiating devices, such as heat and/or smoke detectors 14 and manually operable alarm initiating devices 16. They also include notification devices, including visible notification devices (e.g. strobe lights) 18 and audible notification devices 20. The system may also include other devices known from existing systems, including -7 -for example interfaces for fire suppression systems, interfaces to release door retainers, interface for lift controllers, etc. As with known systems, the fire alarm control panel of this example also monitors the operational integrity of the system and its components, in order to alert a user if there is a fault.

in fig. 2, the alarm initiation devices and notification devices are illustrated as being on only two floors of a building, floor A and floor B, although systems in accordance with the invention can (and usually will) be used in buildings with many more floors, for example 10 or more floors. For illustrative purposes, in this example on each floor there are two detectors 14, one manually operable alarm initiating device 16 (e.g. conventional manual fire alarm call point), one visible notification device 18 and one audible notification device 20, all of which can be of known types used in existing addressable fire alarm systems. As is known, the detectors and notification devices may be combined in a single physical unit, e.g. mounted on a ceiling.

in accordance with the first aspect of the invention, the fire alarm system also includes smoke vent interfaces 26, in this example one interface 26 for each floor of the building. These interfaces are connected to the same communication loop 10 as the conventional fire alarm devices and communicate with the fire alarm control panel 24 via this loop 10.

Each smoke vent interface controls the opening and closing of a respective smoke vent 28 based on commands from the fire alarm control panel. In this example, one smoke vent 28 per floor is shown but in other examples there may be multiple vents per floor. The smoke vents 20 themselves may be of known types.

The fire alarm control panel 24 also communicates with a fan unit interface 30 that controls operation of one or more fan units in the building based on commands from the control panel 24. The fan units are connected to ducts that connect with the smoke vents 28, so that when the smoke vents 28 are open that fans can operate to draw air and smoke through the vents 28 into the ducts from where the smoke can be exhausted to the outside of the building, typically from the roof of the building.

In use, when one of the detectors 14 is activated (by detecting smoke or heat above a threshold level), of if a manual alarm initiating device 16 is manually activated, an alarm signal is sent from the activated device to the fire alarm control panel 24. The control panel 24 is programmed to act on the received alarm signal by activating one or more of the notification -8 -devices 18, 20. The control panel 24 can also be programmed to operate one or more of the smoke vent interfaces 26 in response to the alarm signal.

The control panel 24 can be programmed to activate all the notification devices in a building on detection of a fire or, alternatively, the activation of the notification devices can be phased or manually controlled. Generally, at least the notification devices in the vicinity of the The control panel 24 also enables manual override of the notification devices 18, 20 (to turn them on or o as well as manual override of the smoke vent interfaces 26 (to open or close smoke vents 28).

The control panel 24 may include a display to provide information to a user about the state of the system (e.g. which alarm initiating device or devices have caused an alert) to enable the user to make informed decisions about how to proceed. In some cases, the control panel 24 may assist the decision making by proposing actions or even automatically take actions, for example based on the output from machine learning algorithms.

As noted above, fig. 2 is a simplified representation of the system. in an actual installation there are likely to be many more of each type of device, which can all be on the same communication loop 10 or, alternatively, especially in very large installations, multiple communication loops may be used, either all connected to the same fire alarm control panel 24 or to separate, linked control panels.

Fig. 3 shows another example of a fire alarm system in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The system of this example includes all of the feature of the system of fig. 1, which will not be described again here (the same reference numerals are used for like components). Only a single floor section of the system is shown in the figure.

As seen in the figure, the system in this example is installed in a residential building (e.g. a tower block) in which there are multiple apartments, i.e. discrete residential units, on each floor of the building. For illustrative purposes, in this example we show only two apartments B1 and B2 but this aspect of the invention can be applied to residential buildings with many more than two apartments per floor.

In addition to the alarm initiation devices 14, 16 and notification devices 18, 20, which in this example are installed in spaces shared by both apartments B1 and B2, e.g a shared hallway 30 or corridor onto which both apartments open, a combined smoke/heat detector and -9 -audible/visible notification device 32 is installed in each apartment. These devices 32 are individually addressable, connected to the communication loop ID and are monitored by the fire alarm control panel 24, along with the other alarm initiation devices 14, 16.

This configuration of system means that the control panel 24 will be aware of a potential fire in an individual apartment, e.g. B I and can take appropriate action, for example by activating the notification device 32 in the adjacent apartment B2 to alert the resident of that apartment, in addition to activating the notification device 32 in apartment B I itself This also means that the control panel 24 can provide a user with much more granular information about the location and spread of a fire over time, enabling better and quicker decisions to be taken about how to proceed, for example whether or not to evacuate a floor of a building, multiple floors, the whole building, etc. The skilled person will understand that various modifications and additions can be made to the examples described above without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

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Claims

CLAIMS: A fire alarm system comprising: a fire alarm control panel a plurality of individually addressable devices; and a communication loop to which the fire alarm control panel and the plurality of individually addressable devices are connected to facilitate communication between the fire alarm control panel and each of the individually addressable devices; wherein the plurality of individually addressable devices includes: a plurality of alarm initiation devices; a plurality of notification devices; and at least one smoke vent interface, the smoke vent interface being configured to control power to at least one smoke vent in order to open and/or close the smoke vent; the fire alarm control panel being programmed to send a command signal to the smoke vent interface in response to a predetermined alarm condition to cause the interface to open or close the at least one smoke vent.A fire alarm system comprising: a fire alarm control panel a plurality of individually addressable devices; and a communication loop to which the fire alarm control panel and the plurality of individually addressable devices are connected to facilitate communication between the fire alarm control panel and each of the individually addressable devices; wherein the plurality of individually addressable devices includes: a plurality of alarm initiation devices; and a plurality of notification devices; the fire alarm system being installed in a residential building comprising a plurality of discrete apartments and one or more shared spaces from which multiple apartments can be accessed, wherein at least one of said plurality of alarm initiation -11 -5.devices is installed in each discrete apartment and at least one of said plurality of alann initiation devices is installed in each shared space.
The fire alarm system of claim 2, wherein the at least one fire alarm initiation device installed in each discrete apartment is an automatic alarm initiation device.
The fire alarm system of claim 2 or claim 3, wherein at least one of said plurality of notification devices is installed in each discrete apartment and wherein the fire alarm control panel is programmed, in response to a predetermined alarm condition triggered by an alarm initiation device in one of the apartments, to send command signals to the notification devices in the apartment from which the alarm condition was triggered and in apartments that have a shared space in common with the apartment from which the alarm condition was triggered.
The fire alarm system of any one of claims 2 to 4, further comprising at least one smoke vent interface, the smoke vent interface being configured to control power to at least one smoke vent in order to open and/or close the smoke vent; wherein the fire alarm control panel is programmed to send a command signal to the smoke vent interface in response to a predetermined alarm condition to cause the interface to open or close the at least one smoke vent.
The fire alarm system of claim 1 or claim 5, comprising a plurality smoke vent interfaces, each smoke vent interface being configured to control power to at least one smoke vent in order to open and/or close the smoke vent, and the fire alarm control panel being configured to control each smoke vent interface independently of the other smoke vent interfaces.
The fire alarm system of claim 6, wherein the system is installed in a multi-floor building and each smoke vent interface controls a smoke vent or vents on a respective floor of the building.
-12 -10. 11. 12. 13. 14.
The fire alarm system of claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the fire alarm control panel comprises manual overrides for the smoke vent interfaces that enable a user to manually control opening and closing of thc smoke vents from the fire alarm control panel.
The fire alarm system of any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the fire alarm control panel is configured to monitor the integrity of wiring between each smoke vent interface and the respective smoke vent or vents that they control.
The fire alarm system of claim 9, wherein the integrity of the wiring is monitored by measuring a resistance at the smoke vent interface of a circuit that connects the smoke vent interface to the smoke vent.
The fire alarm system of any one of claims 6 to 10, wherein the fire alarm control panel is configured to monitor an opening state of each smoke vent, the opening state indicating whether the smoke vent is closed or open.
The fire alarm system of any one of claims 6 to II, further comprising one or more building fan interfaces for controlling one or more building fan units that are operable to draw air and smoke through the smoke vents when open, the one or more building fan interfaces being in communication with the fire alarm control panel and wherein the fire alarm control panel is programmed to control the one or more fan units.
The fire alarm system of claim 12, wherein the fire alarm control panel is programmed to control the one or more fan units in response to predetermined conditions detected by the alarm initiation devices.
The fire alarm system of claim 12 or claim 13, wherein the fire alarm control panel is programmed to open smoke vents and operate the fan units is response to detection by one or more of the alarm initiation devices of a temperature above a predetermined threshold but below temperatures associated with a fire in order to provide environmental cooling.
-13 - 15. The fire alarm system of claim 14, wherein the one or more building fan interfaces are adapted to control the speed of the fan, the fire alarm control panel controlling the speed of the fan dependent on the detected temperature.
16. The fire alarm system of any one of claims 12 to 15, further comprising at least one noxious gas sensor in communication with the fire alarm control panel, the fire alarm control panel controlling the smoke vents and fan units in response to predetermined conditions detected by the at least one noxious gas sensor.
17. The fire alarm system of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the fire alarm control panel comprises manual overrides for the notification devices that enable a user to manually initiate operation of the notification devices individually or in one or more groups from the fire alarm control panel.
18. The fire alarm system of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the fire alarm control panel is programmed to activate the notification devices or groups of notification devices sequentially, temporally spaced from one another.
19. The fire alarm systcm of claim 18, wherein the sequential activation of the notification devices is initiated by a manual user input at the fire alarm control panel.
20. The fire alarm system of claim 18 or claim 19, wherein the fire alarm control panel is programmed to control the temporal spacing of the activation of the notification devices or groups of notification devices in real time based on inputs from the alarm initiation devices.
21. The fire alarm system of any one of claims 17 to 20, wherein the fire alarm control panel comprises a display and is programmed to display to a user information about the current state of the system.
-14 - 22. The fire alarm system of any one of claims 17 to 21, wherein the fire alarm control panel comprises a display and is programmed to display to a user one or more recommended actions based on the current state of the systcm.
23. The fire alarm system of any one of claims 17 to 22, wherein the groups of notification devices are grouped based on their spatial proximity.
24. A smoke vent interface configured to operate as the smoke vent interface of any one of claims 1 and claims 5 to 16.
25. A fire alarm control panel programmed to operate as the fire alarm control panel of any one of the preceding claims.-15 -