JP7773958B2 - fire detector - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to fire detectors, and in particular to fire detectors that are configured to forcibly output a fire signal to indicate that a fire has been detected.

Fire alarm systems use various types of fire detectors to detect fires. Specific types include differential spot detectors, constant temperature spot detectors, and photoelectric spot detectors.

Fire detectors monitor changes in their condition caused by an increase in ambient temperature or the generation of smoke, and output a fire signal when they detect a fire. When testing the operation of such fire detectors, it is common to simulate an environment in which temperatures rise or smoke is generated.

In contrast, there is prior art technology that allows for easy remote operation testing of heat detectors, which close switch contacts and output a fire detection signal when a reversing bimetal element reverses upon reaching a fire temperature (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which a test electromagnet is provided, and during inspection, electricity is applied to the excitation coil of the test electromagnet from the outside, causing the switch contacts to close due to the magnetic field generated by the test electromagnet. By employing such a configuration, Patent Document 1 makes it possible to forcibly close the switch contacts and conduct an operation test.

Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open Publication No. 7-3088

However, the conventional techniques have the following problems.
Patent Document 1 is specialized in testing the operation of a heat detector in which, when a predetermined fire temperature is reached, the reversing action of a reversing bimetal pushes a spring member to close a switch contact, and when this switch contact is closed, a fire signal is output to the outside.

Furthermore, in order to conduct an operation test, Patent Document 1 requires that a test electromagnet be installed in advance and that the excitation coil of the test electromagnet be energized from an external source. Therefore, Patent Document 1 limits the devices that can be used for operation tests to heat detectors that use bimetals, and the circuit configuration that is pre-installed for operation tests is complex, requiring the energization process to be performed when conducting an operation test, which poses issues of time and effort.

This disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a fire detector that can be applied to the operation testing of various types of fire detectors and that can be operated with simple operation using a simple configuration.

The fire detector of the present disclosure is a fire detector that is installed in a fire monitoring area and has a signal output unit that outputs a fire signal when it detects the occurrence of a fire in fire monitoring mode, and the signal output unit has a forced output configuration that, in a forced output mode in which magnetic force is applied from the outside, forcibly outputs a fire signal by reacting to the magnetic force, and in the fire monitoring mode, the signal output unit outputs a fire signal by turning on the contacts due to the expansion of the diaphragm when the rate of rise of the ambient temperature exceeds a certain rate, and in the forced output mode, the magnet attached to the diaphragm reacts to the magnetic force and turns on the contacts, thereby forcibly outputting the fire signal .
The fire detector according to the present disclosure is a fire detector that is installed in a fire monitoring area and includes a signal output unit that outputs a fire signal when it detects a fire in fire monitoring mode, and the signal output unit has a forced output configuration that, in a forced output mode in which magnetic force is applied from the outside, forcibly outputs a fire signal by reacting to the magnetic force, and the signal output unit outputs a fire signal in the fire monitoring mode by turning on the contacts due to distortion of the bimetal when the ambient temperature reaches a certain temperature or higher, and in the forced output mode, by turning on the contacts due to a magnet attached to the bimetal reacting to the magnetic force, forcibly outputs the fire signal.
It is something.
In addition, the fire detector according to the present disclosure is a fire detector that is installed in a fire monitoring area and has a signal output unit that outputs a fire signal when it detects the occurrence of a fire in fire monitoring mode, and the signal output unit has a forced output configuration that, in a forced output mode in which magnetic force is applied from the outside, forcibly outputs a fire signal by reacting to magnetic force, and in the fire monitoring mode, the signal output unit outputs a fire signal when the amount of light received by the light receiving unit when light irradiated from the light emitting unit is received as scattered light by smoke exceeds a threshold, and in the forced output mode, a reflector that moves in response to magnetic force reflects the light irradiated from the light emitting unit toward the light receiving unit, causing the amount of light received to exceed a threshold, thereby forcibly outputting a fire signal.

This disclosure makes it possible to obtain a fire detector that can be applied to the operation testing of various types of fire detectors and that can be operated with simple operation using a simple configuration.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of a fire alarm system including a fire detector according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram relating to an operation test of a fire detector having a forced output configuration in the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram relating to a forced output configuration of a differential spot-type sensor according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a forced output configuration of a constant temperature spot-type sensor according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a forced output configuration of a photoelectric spot-type sensor according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the fire detector of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.
Compared to conventional technology, the fire detector disclosed herein has the technical feature of being applicable to the operation testing of various types of fire detectors and having a forced output configuration that allows the operation testing to be performed by a simple operation of applying magnetic force from the outside.

Embodiment 1.
First, we will explain the overall picture of a fire alarm system including fire detectors.
Fig. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a fire alarm system including fire detectors according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, the fire alarm system shown in Fig. 1 includes, as main components, a fire receiver 10 and a plurality of fire detectors.

The fire receiver 10 is connected to the addressable transmitter 20, fire detectors 31 and 32, detector repeater 40, and smoke control repeater 50 via signal line SG.

Multiple fire detectors are connected to the detector repeater 40. Figure 1 shows four fire detectors 41-44. Furthermore, a fire door 51, a smoke exhaust fan 52, a shutter 53, and a siding wall 54 are connected to the smoke prevention and exhaust control repeater 50.

Here, fire detectors 31, 32, and fire detectors 41-44 correspond to multiple fire detectors that detect the occurrence of a fire in each of the pre-set fire monitoring areas. A detector group is made up of multiple fire detectors.

Furthermore, the fire door 51, smoke exhaust fan 52, shutter 53, and drop wall 54 correspond to multiple terminal equipment that operate in conjunction with the detection results of multiple fire detectors and function to prevent the spread of fire, smoke, etc. The multiple terminal equipment constitute a terminal equipment group.

Each of the multiple fire detectors is assigned address information in advance to identify the individual fire detector. Each of the multiple fire detectors can then transmit fire-related information to the fire receiver 10, including the address information assigned to that detector. Meanwhile, the fire receiver 10 can transmit the necessary information to the desired fire detector by adding address information when transmitting the information.

In addition, each of the multiple terminal devices is assigned address information in advance to identify it. Therefore, the fire alarm control device 10 can send commands to operate the desired terminal device by adding address information and transmitting the information.

With this configuration, the fire receiver 10 collects fire-related information from multiple fire detectors and addressable transmitters 20 installed in various predetermined fire monitoring areas. Based on the collected fire-related information, the fire receiver 10 can then issue a fire alarm and activate a group of terminal equipment.

It is predefined that each piece of terminal equipment included in the group of terminal equipment should operate in conjunction with the detection results of a fire detector. For example, by pre-setting the correspondence between the interlocking operations of multiple fire detectors and multiple terminal equipment as an interlocking table, the fire receiver 10 can identify the appropriate terminal equipment from the interlocking table based on the detection results of each of the multiple fire detectors and perform interlocking operations.

In addition, although not shown in the figure, the fire receiver 10 can output an alarm signal based on the collected fire-related information, activate fire extinguishing equipment to begin fire-fighting operations, issue a fire alarm or provide evacuation guidance via an emergency broadcast device, and transmit fire-related information to a higher-level device via a network.

Note that the above explanation illustrates a case in which address information for identifying each individual fire detector is assigned in advance to each of multiple fire detectors, and information is transmitted between the fire receiver 10 and each fire detector via a communication function. However, the fire detectors disclosed herein are not limited to this type. Fire detectors disclosed herein also include types that do not have a communication function that enables them to receive information from the fire receiver 10, but are configured to output a contact signal when a fire is detected.

All types of fire detectors undergo an operation test to determine the fire signal that is output when a fire is detected. The fire detector disclosed herein has a technical feature in that it is equipped with a forced output configuration that allows an operation test to be performed by the simple operation of applying magnetic force from outside. Therefore, below, we will cite differential spot detectors, constant temperature spot detectors, and photoelectric spot detectors as specific examples of fire detectors, and explain their technical features in detail.

First, using Figure 2, we will explain the concept of the signal output unit 200, which uses a simple configuration and allows for easy operation to conduct an operation test, using the fire detector 100, which is a general term for differential spot detectors, constant temperature spot detectors, and photoelectric spot detectors.

Figure 2 is an explanatory diagram regarding an operation test of a fire detector with a forced output configuration according to embodiment 1 of the present disclosure. The fire detector 100 shown in Figure 2 includes a signal output unit 200 with a forced output configuration 201.

The forced output configuration 201 is a configuration that forcibly outputs a fire signal by reacting to an externally applied magnetic force. A tester conducting an operation test can forcibly apply a magnetic force from outside the fire detector 100, for example, by bringing a permanent magnet attached to the tip of a working rod close to the fire detector 100.

In other words, the fire detector 100 normally functions in fire monitoring mode, monitoring the occurrence of fires in the fire monitoring area, and outputs a fire signal when a fire is detected. However, when subjected to external magnetic force, it can function in forced output mode and forcibly output a fire signal.

Next, the forced output configuration 201 in this disclosure will be described in detail using specific examples in which a differential spot-type detector 110, a constant temperature spot-type detector 120, and a photoelectric spot-type detector 130 are used as the fire detector 100.

<1> When the differential spot type sensor 110 is used as the fire sensor 100 Fig. 3 is an explanatory diagram relating to the forced output configuration of the differential spot type sensor 110 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The differential spot type sensor 110 emits a fire signal when the rate of increase in the temperature around the sensing unit exceeds a certain rate, and is activated by a local thermal effect.

Figure 3 (A) shows the normal state in fire monitoring mode when no fire is detected. Figure 3 (B) shows the state in fire monitoring mode when a fire is detected and a fire signal is output. Figure 3 (C) shows the forced output state in forced output mode when a fire signal is forcibly output.

The differential spot-type detector 110 has a structure in which a diaphragm 111 located within the detector is pushed up by the expansion of air, mechanically closing contacts 112 and transmitting a fire signal. Furthermore, the differential spot-type detector 110 is equipped with a magnet 113 to achieve a forced output configuration.

Here, the diaphragm 111 equipped with the magnet 113 and the contact 112 shown in Figure 3 (C) can forcibly output a fire signal using external magnetic force, which corresponds to a forced output configuration.

In Figure 3(A), the rate of temperature rise around the sensing unit has not reached a certain rate, the amount of lift of diaphragm 111 is small, and contact 112 is in the OFF state. In Figure 3(B), the rate of temperature rise around the sensing unit has exceeded a certain rate, pushing up diaphragm 111 and turning contact 112 into the ON state, resulting in the output of a fire signal.

In Figure 3 (C), when an external magnetic force is applied to a differential spot-type detector 110 equipped with a forced output configuration, the diaphragm 111 equipped with a magnet 113 is forcibly pushed up, turning on the contact 112, and as a result, a fire signal is forcibly output. Therefore, an operation test can be performed using a simple configuration and simple operation.

<2> When the constant temperature spot type sensor 120 is used as the fire sensor 100 Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram relating to the forced output configuration of the constant temperature spot type sensor 120 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The constant temperature spot type sensor 120 emits a fire signal when the temperature around the sensing unit reaches or exceeds a certain temperature, and is activated by a local thermal effect.

Figure 4 (A) shows the normal state in fire monitoring mode when no fire is detected. Figure 4 (B) shows the state in fire monitoring mode when a fire is detected and a fire signal is output. Figure 4 (C) shows the forced output state in forced output mode when a fire signal is forcibly output.

The constant temperature spot detector 120 has a structure in which the bimetal 121 used in the detector distorts or flips, mechanically closing the contacts 122 and transmitting a fire signal. Furthermore, the constant temperature spot detector 120 is equipped with a magnet 123 to achieve a forced output configuration.

Here, the bimetal 121 equipped with the magnet 123 and the contact 122 shown in Figure 4 (C) can forcibly output a fire signal using external magnetic force, and corresponds to a forced output configuration.

In Figure 4(A), the temperature around the sensing unit has not reached a certain temperature, so the bimetal 121 is only slightly deformed and contact 122 is in the OFF state. In Figure 4(B), the temperature around the sensing unit has risen above a certain temperature, causing the bimetal 121 to deform and contact 122 to turn ON, resulting in the output of a fire signal.

In Figure 4 (C), when an external magnetic force is applied to a constant-temperature spot-type detector 120 equipped with a forced output configuration, the bimetal 121 equipped with a magnet 123 is forcibly pushed up, turning on the contact 122, and as a result, a fire signal is forcibly output. Therefore, an operation test can be performed using a simple configuration and simple operation.

<3> When the photoelectric spot type sensor 130 is used as the fire sensor 100 Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram relating to the forced output configuration of the photoelectric spot type sensor 130 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The photoelectric spot type sensor 130 has a light-emitting unit 131 and a light-receiving unit 132 provided in a dark box shaped to allow smoke from a fire to easily enter, and emits a fire signal when the amount of light received by the light-receiving unit as scattered light by the smoke exceeds a threshold, and is activated by smoke.

The photoelectric spot-type detector 130 is equipped with a light shielding plate 133 to prevent light from the light-emitting unit 131 from being directly received by the light-receiving unit 132. Furthermore, although not shown, measures have been taken to prevent false fire alarms caused by natural light, external light from lighting fixtures, insects, etc.

Figure 5 (A) shows the normal state in fire monitoring mode when no fire is detected. Figure 5 (B) shows the state in fire monitoring mode when a fire is detected and a fire signal is output. Figure 5 (C) shows the forced output state in forced output mode when a fire signal is forcibly output.

The photoelectric spot-type detector 130 is configured to determine that an increase in scattered light due to the generation of smoke has occurred when the amount of light received by the light-receiving unit 132 exceeds a threshold value, and then emits a fire signal. Furthermore, the photoelectric spot-type detector 130 is equipped with a reflector 134 to achieve a forced output configuration.

Here, the reflector 134, light-emitting unit 131, and light-receiving unit 132 shown in Figure 5(C) can forcibly output a fire signal using external magnetic force, which corresponds to a forced output configuration.

In Figure 5(A), no scattered light caused by smoke is generated, and the amount of received light is below the threshold, so no fire signal is output. In Figure 5(B), scattered light caused by smoke is generated, and the amount of received light exceeds the threshold, resulting in the output of a fire signal.

In Figure 5 (C), an external magnetic force is applied to a photoelectric spot-type detector 130 equipped with a forced output configuration, causing the reflector 134 to move to an appropriate position. As a result, light emitted from the light-emitting unit 131 is reflected by the reflector 134 toward the light-receiving unit 132, causing the amount of light received by the light-receiving unit 132 to exceed the threshold, forcing the output of a fire signal. Therefore, an operation test can be performed using a simple configuration and simple operation.

As described above, according to embodiment 1, it is possible to realize a fire detector equipped with a forced output configuration that can forcibly output a fire signal with the simple operation of applying magnetic force from outside. Furthermore, by adopting an appropriate forced output configuration depending on the type of fire detector, it is possible to apply the same technical concept to the operation testing of various types of fire detectors.

In addition, there is no need to use smoke-producing gases or benzene, allowing for operation tests to be conducted in an environmentally friendly manner. Furthermore, there is no need to conduct operation tests by simulating conditions such as elevated temperatures or smoke-filled areas; simply by applying magnetic force from the outside, a fire signal can be forcibly generated in a short period of time.

In addition, a small, lightweight configuration with a permanent magnet attached to the tip of a work rod can be used as an operation test jig for applying magnetic force from outside. As a result, workability can be improved when conducting operation tests on fire detectors installed at high altitudes.

10 Fire receiver, 31, 41, 100 Fire detector, 110 Differential spot detector, 111 Diaphragm, 112 Contact, 113 Magnet, 120 Constant temperature spot detector, 121 Bimetal, 122 Contact, 123 Magnet, 130 Photoelectric spot detector, 131 Light emitting unit, 132 Light receiving unit, 133 Light shielding plate, 134 Reflector, 200 Signal output unit, 201 Forced output configuration.

Claims (4)

A fire detector provided in a fire monitoring area and having a signal output unit that outputs a fire signal when detecting a fire in a fire monitoring mode,
The signal output unit has a forced output configuration that, in a forced output mode in which a magnetic force is applied from the outside, forcibly outputs the fire signal by reacting to the magnetic force,
The signal output unit
In the fire monitoring mode, when the rate of rise of the ambient temperature exceeds a certain rate, the diaphragm expands, turning on the contacts and outputting the fire signal.
In the forced output mode, the magnet attached to the diaphragm reacts to the magnetic force, causing the contact to turn on, thereby forcibly outputting the fire signal.
fire detector. A fire detector provided in a fire monitoring area and having a signal output unit that outputs a fire signal when detecting a fire in a fire monitoring mode,
The signal output unit has a forced output configuration that, in a forced output mode in which a magnetic force is applied from the outside, forcibly outputs the fire signal by reacting to the magnetic force,
The signal output unit
In the fire monitoring mode, when the ambient temperature exceeds a certain temperature, the bimetal is distorted, causing the contact to turn on, thereby outputting the fire signal.
In the forced output mode, the magnet attached to the bimetal reacts to the magnetic force, causing the contact to turn on, thereby forcibly outputting the fire signal.
fire detector. A fire detector provided in a fire monitoring area and having a signal output unit that outputs a fire signal when detecting a fire in a fire monitoring mode,
The signal output unit has a forced output configuration that, in a forced output mode in which a magnetic force is applied from the outside, forcibly outputs the fire signal by reacting to the magnetic force,
The signal output unit
In the fire monitoring mode, the fire signal is output when the amount of light received by the light receiving unit as scattered light due to smoke exceeds a threshold value.
In the forced output mode, the light emitted from the light emitting unit is reflected toward the light receiving unit by a reflector that moves in response to the magnetic force, and the amount of received light is made equal to or greater than the threshold, thereby forcibly outputting the fire signal.
fire detector. The signal output unit receives the magnetic force from the outside by a permanent magnet attached to a work rod, which is a jig for an operation test.
A fire detector according to any one of claims 1 to 3.