Patent Application
20240123268
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The disclosure relates to fire protection systems and more particularly pertains to a new fire protection system for retarding the spread of wildfire toward a structure.
The prior art relates to fire protection systems, some of which utilize fire sensors placed at or away from a structure to automatically pump water or another fire retardant fluid through a plurality of sprinklers to slow the spread of a wildfire toward and across the structure. However, none of the prior art positions each of a plurality of heat sensors proximate each of a plurality of sprinklers which triggers the pumping of a fire retardant fluid through all of the sprinklers such that the sprinklers dispense the fire retardant fluid onto one of a portion of ground surrounding the structure and a top side of the structure.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a structure positioned on a ground surface. A tank contains a fire retardant fluid. Each of a plurality of sprinklers has a base coupled to the ground surface with a line extending outwardly away from ground surface. Each sprinkler has a nozzle coupled to a distal end of the line relative to the ground surface. The line of each sprinkler is fluidically coupled to the nozzle and the base. Each of a plurality of heat sensors is positioned proximate a respective sprinkler of the plurality of sprinklers. When one of the plurality of heat sensors detects a predetermined rate of heat, a CPU activates a pump to pump the fire retardant fluid from the tank to the base of each sprinkler. The fire retardant fluid is dispensed onto one of the structure and a portion of the ground surface surrounding the structure.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
A primary pump 42 is fluidically coupled to the primary tank 16 and the plurality of primary sprinklers 38. The primary pump 42 selectively pumps the first fire retardant fluid to the base 26 of each primary sprinkler 38 and through each primary sprinkler 38 such that the first fire retardant fluid is dispensed onto an outer portion of the ground surface surrounding the structure 14. A secondary pump 44 is fluidically coupled to the secondary tank 20 and the plurality of secondary sprinklers 40. The secondary pump 44 selectively pumps the second fire retardant fluid 22 to the base 26 of each secondary sprinkler 40 and through each secondary sprinkler 40 such that the second fire retardant fluid 22 is dispensed onto an inner portion of the ground surface surrounding the structure 14 and onto a top side 46 of the structure 14.
A central processing unit (CPU) 48 is operationally coupled to the primary pump 42 and the secondary pump 44, wherein the CPU 48 is operationally coupled to the plurality of sprinklers 24 and selectively moves the line 28 of each sprinkler 24 between the retracted position and the extended position 32. Each of a plurality of primary heat sensors 50 is positioned proximate a respective primary sprinkler 38 of the plurality of primary sprinklers 38. Each primary heat sensor 50 is operationally and signally coupled to the CPU 48 and is configured for generating a primary actuation signal if detecting a first predetermined rate of heat. When one of the primary heat sensors 50 generates the primary actuation signal, the CPU 48 is operable to move the line 28 of each primary sprinkler 38 to the extended position 32 and actuate the primary pump 42. Each of a plurality of secondary heat sensors 52 is positioned proximate a respective secondary sprinkler 40 of the plurality of secondary sprinklers 40. Each secondary heat sensor 52 is operationally and signally coupled to the CPU 48 and is configured for generating a secondary actuation signal if detecting a second predetermined rate of heat. When one of the secondary heat sensors 52 generates the secondary actuation signal, the CPU 48 is operable to move the line 28 of each secondary sprinkler 40 to the extended position 32 and actuate the secondary pump 44.
In use, a wildfire that reaches the primary boundary will cause at least one primary heat sensor 50 to detect the first predetermined rate of heat. In response, the CPU 48 will move the line 28 of each primary sprinkler 38 into the extended position 32 and activate the primary pump 42 to pump the first fire retardant fluid through the plurality of primary sprinklers 38. If the wildfire reaches beyond the primary boundary to the secondary boundary, it will cause at least one secondary heat sensor 52 to detect the second predetermined rate of heat. Consequently, the CPU 48 will move the line 28 of each secondary sprinkler 40 into the extended position 32 and activate the secondary pump 44 to pump the second fire retardant fluid 22 through the plurality of secondary sprinklers 40.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
