Patent Application
20190180579
Not applicable.
This patent specification relates to devices and apparatuses for hazard detection and remediation. More particularly, this specification relates to a hazard detection and alarm enclosure with communication capability.
Conventional hazard detection and remediation devices such as fire extinguisher enclosures include an enclosure having a front glass plate that makes visible a fire extinguisher stored inside the enclosure. Hazard detectors such as smoke detectors use sensors to detect substances in the air that may indicate a hazardous condition, such as fire, and typically have an alarm to alert a user in it's proximity. In the case of fire, the visibility of the user is typically reduced by the smoke in the environment making finding the fire extinguisher enclosure difficult.
With reference to various embodiments, enclosures are described that facilitate the location of the enclosure by a user in hazardous conditions. In one embodiment, the enclosure has a hazard detector and an LED array disposed in the enclosure. The LED array may be activated when the hazard detector detects a hazardous condition to thereby illuminate the enclosure.
In another embodiment, the enclosure has a controller with communication capabilities to provide information such as the condition of the enclosure and the ambient environment to a local control server, a remote Web application server, or a wireless electronic device such as a smartphone, smart watch, tablet or personal computer.
A hazard detection and alarm enclosure may function to provide illumination based upon certain conditions being present in the ambient environment. For instance, when a hazardous condition is detected in the ambient environment by a hazard detector disposed in the enclosure, a light source may illuminate the interior and exterior portions of enclosure making it easier for the occupant to find the enclosure. Under such conditions, an audible alarm may also be activated to further alert the occupant of the hazardous condition.
The body 101 may have a generally rectangular cross-section and the panels 102, 103, 104, 106, 108 and 110 may be formed of any of a number of materials including non-light-transmissive materials such as sheet metal, and light-transmissive materials such as translucent and transparent materials. The material may comprise a fire-proof material. The panels 102, 103, 104, 106, 108 and 110 may be formed by a process including injection molding, reaction injection molding, casting, vacuum forming, thermal forming, extrusion, CNC machining and manual machining.
A graphical representation 118 disposed on the side panel 102 may include a representation of a fire extinguisher. The graphical representation 118 may be formed as by etching or molding the representation on a light transmissive material forming the side panel 102. Such a graphical representation 118 may transmit light differentially to accentuate the graphical representation 118 when illuminated by a light source. The graphical representation 118 may include a sticker or label affixed to the side panel 102 and a graphical representation printed on the side panel 102. Additional graphical representations such as “FIRE EXTINGUISHER” and “BREAK GLASS” may be disposed on the side panel 102 as well as on the side panel 103 (not shown) and the top panel 106.
With reference to
With reference to
The control system 200 may have a controller 204 coupled to hazard detector 205 such as a smoke detector, heat detector and carbon monoxide detector, and to a light source 206 as illustrated in
An embodiment of the controller 204 is illustrated in
The audio device 212 may be operable to provide an audible signal indicating a hazard condition in the ambient environment.
The wireless transceiver 214 can be a WiFi transceiver, an infrared transceiver, a Bluetooth transceiver, a WiMax transceiver, a wireless cellular telephony transceiver, or other radio frequency transceivers. The controller 204 may be operable to send information including the existence of a hazard in the ambient environment, a realtime audio-video stream of the ambient environment, and the condition of the fire extinguisher to a remote receiver (not shown) by means of the wireless transceiver 214. The remote receiver may include a local control server, a remote Web application server, or a wireless electronic device such as a smartphone, smart watch, tablet or personal computer.
It should be noted that the methods, systems, and devices discussed above are intended merely to be examples. It must be stressed that various embodiments may omit, substitute, or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For instance, features described with respect to certain embodiments may be combined in various other embodiments. Different aspects and elements of the embodiments may be combined in a similar manner. Also, it should be emphasized that technology evolves and, thus, many of the elements are examples and should not be interpreted to limit the scope of the invention.
Specific details are given in the description to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. For example, well-known, processes, structures, and techniques have been shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoid obscuring the embodiments. This description provides example embodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the invention. Rather, the preceding description of the embodiments will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing embodiments of the invention. Various changes may be made in the shape, contour, positioning and arrangement of elements such as the panels and light source without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Further the light source can be disposed on the body of the enclosure by conventional means such as by the use of double stick tape, hardware screws, heat stake-ing and hook and loop features.
Having described several embodiments, it will be recognized by those of skill in the art that various modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, the light source may include an array having a different configuration and may be disposed in the body in an alternate manner. Accordingly, the above description should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention.
