# US 10,765,899 B2 · Alarm valve station of a fire extinguishing system, in particular a sprinkler or spray water extinguishing system, and fire extinguishing system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,765,899 B2 - Document ID: US10765899B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/537,314 - Filed: 2015-12-18 - Published: 2017-12-07 - Granted: 2020-09-08 - Earliest claimed: 2014-12-19 - Assignees: Minimax GmbH & Co. KG - Applicants: Minimax GmbH & Co. KG - Inventors: Matthias Pohl; Frank Stachowitz; Peter Kempf; Georg Kunert - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10765899B2 ## CPC - A62C 37/50: Testing or indicating devices for determining the state of readiness of the equipment - A62C 35/60: wet, i.e. containing extinguishing material even when not in use - A62C 35/605: {operating and sounding alarm automatically} - A62C 35/68: Details, e.g. of pipes or valve systems (valves in general F16K) - A62C 37/44: only the sensor being in the danger zone - F16K 1/20: with axis of rotation arranged externally of valve member - F16K 27/0227: {with the valve members swinging around an axis located at the edge of or outside the valve member} - F16K 27/12: Covers for housings - F16K 37/0041: {for measuring valve parameters (F16K37/0033 takes precedence)} - F16K 37/005: {for measuring fluid parameters (F16K37/0033 takes precedence)} - Y10T 137/8326: Fluid pressure responsive indicator, recorder or alarm - A62C: FIRE-FIGHTING (fire-extinguishing compositions, use of chemical substances in extinguishing fires A62D1/00; spraying, applying liquids or other fluent materials to surfaces in general B05; alarm arrangements G08B, e.g. fire alarms actuated by smoke or gases G08B17/10) - F16K: VALVES; TAPS; COCKS; ACTUATING-FLOATS; DEVICES FOR VENTING OR AERATING {(devices for emptying and evacuating the excess liquid in valves or conduits F16L55/07)} - Y10T: TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION ## Abstract An alarm valve station includes a fire extinguishing system valve (1) having a housing (2, 3) which has a fluid inlet chamber (8), a fluid outlet chamber (9) and a closing body (4a) reciprocable between a blocking state and a release state, wherein the fluid inlet chamber (8) and the fluid outlet chamber (9) are separated from each other in the blocking state and communicate with each other in fluid-conducting relationship in the release state, one or more sensors, and an electronic evaluation unit (50) which is integrated in the housing (2, 3), arranged externally on the housing or arranged in the proximity of the fire extinguishing system valve (1), wherein the evaluation unit (50) is connected in signal-conducting relationship to the sensor or sensors for receiving data, is adapted for data processing into: state information and/or operating instructions and is adapted to transmit the state information and/or operating instructions to a display unit (40). ## Claims ### Claim 1 An alarm valve station (80) of a fire extinguishing system (100), comprising: a fire extinguishing system valve (1) comprising a housing (2, 3) which has a fluid inlet chamber (8), a fluid outlet chamber (9) and a closing body (4a) reciprocable between a blocking state and a release state, wherein the fluid inlet chamber (8) and the fluid outlet chamber (9) are separated from each other in the blocking state and communicate with each other in fluid-conducting relationship in the release state, and a housing cover removably secured to the housing between the fluid outlet chamber and an exterior of the fire extinguishing system valve; wherein the housing cover isolates the fluid outlet chamber from the exterior of the fire extinguishing system valve; an alarm passage (5) in fluid communication with at least one of the fluid inlet chamber (8) and the fluid outlet chamber (9), one or more sensors, and an electronic evaluation unit (50) which is integrated in the housing (2, 3), arranged externally on the housing or arranged in the proximity of the fire extinguishing system valve (1), wherein the evaluation unit (50) is connected in signal-conducting relationship to the sensor or sensors for receiving data, and is configured for data processing into each of: state information, and operating instructions that cause functions to be triggered by an observer, and is adapted to transmit the state information and/or operating instructions to a display unit (40) which is adapted to receive the state information and/or operating instructions from the evaluation unit and to reproduce numerical values and/or text characters, and wherein the state information and/or operating instructions is ascertained in dependence on sensor data detected by the one or more sensors from a fluid within the alarm passage (5) and related to opening of the housing cover secured to the housing. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station according to claim 1, wherein the display unit is integrated in the housing (2, 3). ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station according to claim 1, wherein the display unit is arranged externally on the housing or in the proximity of the alarm valve station. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 3, wherein the input device has pressure-sensitive input elements. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 1, wherein the display unit (40) includes one of an LCD or LED display (41). ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 1, wherein the display unit (40) is in the form of a portable communication device. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 1, wherein the evaluation unit (50) and/or display unit (40) includes an input device (43) for the input of control commands. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 1, wherein arranged on the housing (2, 3) of the fire extinguishing system valve (1) is a fixing device (45) for reversibly releasably fixing the display unit (40). ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 1, wherein the evaluation unit has a data interface (10). ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) An alarm valve station according to claim 9, wherein the data interface (10) is adapted for one of unidirectional or bidirectional wireless data exchange with a remotely spaced data processing unit. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) An alarm valve station according to claim 9, wherein the display unit and the evaluation unit are connected in signal-conducting relationship by means of the data interface (10). ### Claim 12 (depends on 9) An alarm valve station according to claim 9, wherein the display unit and the evaluation unit are connected in signal-conducting relationship by means of a second dedicated data interface which is in the form of: USB interface, PCI interface, PCI express interface, Thunderbolt interface, WPAN interface, VFIR-IrDA, IFIR-IrDA, Bluetooth or NFC. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) An alarm valve station according to claim 12, wherein the display unit and the evaluation unit are adapted to mutually identify each other by means of the dedicated interface and to automatically form the signal-conducting connection. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors include one or more pressure sensors (6) integrated in the housing (2, 3). ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors include one or more temperature sensors (70) adapted to detect the fluid temperature within the fire extinguishing system valve and/or the temperature in one or more further components of the alarm valve station and/or the ambient temperature of the alarm valve station. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors include one or more measuring devices (21) for detecting the water hardness and/or for detecting a flow speed. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 1, wherein the evaluation unit is connected in signal-conducting relationship to one or more actuators and is adapted to control the actuator or actuators in dependence on the sensor data present thereat. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) An alarm valve station according to claim 17, wherein the evaluation unit has a data interface (10) and is adapted to receive control commands by means of the data interface and is adapted to control the actuator or actuators by means of the control commands which are received and subjected to further processing. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 18, wherein the closing body (4a) has an actuator as a control drive and the electronic evaluation unit (50) is adapted to move the closing body (4a) selectively into the release or into the blocking position by means of the control drive. ### Claim 20 (depends on 18) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 18, wherein the closing body (4a) has an actuator in the form of a pilot control drive and the electronic evaluation unit (50) is adapted to either lock or unlock the closing body (4a) by means of the pilot control drive. ### Claim 21 (depends on 18) An alarm valve station (80) according to claim 18, wherein the alarm valve station (80) has a testing valve (17) for flooding the alarm passage (5), wherein the testing valve has an actuator as a control drive and the electronic evaluation unit (50) is adapted to move the testing valve (17) selectively into the release or into the blocking position by means of the control drive. ### Claim 22 (depends on 1) A fire extinguishing system (100), comprising at least one fluid line (11), and an alarm valve station to which the at least one fluid line is connected, wherein the alarm valve station is designed according to claim 1. ### Claim 23 An alarm valve station (80) of a fire extinguishing system (100), comprising: a fire extinguishing system valve (1) comprising a housing which has a fluid inlet chamber (8), a fluid outlet chamber (9), a closing body (4a) reciprocable between a blocking state and a release state, an alarm passage (5) integrated in the housing in fluid communication with at least one of the fluid inlet and the fluid outlet, wherein the fluid inlet chamber (8) and the fluid outlet chamber (9) are separated from each other in the blocking state and communicate with each other in fluid-conducting relationship in the release state, and a housing cover removably secured to the housing between the fluid outlet chamber and an exterior of the fire extinguishing system valve, wherein the housing cover isolates the fluid outlet chamber from the exterior of the fire extinguishing system valve, one or more sensors disposed within the housing and/or the housing cover, and an electronic evaluation unit (50) which is integrated in the housing and/or the housing cover (2, 3), arranged externally on the housing and/or the housing cover or arranged in the proximity of the fire extinguishing system valve (1), wherein the evaluation unit (50) is connected in signal-conducting relationship to the one or more sensors for receiving data, and is configured for data processing into: state information, and operating instructions that cause functions to be triggered by an observer, and is adapted to transmit the state information and/or operating instructions to a display unit (40) which is integrated in the housing (2, 3), and wherein the state information and/or operating instructions is ascertained in dependence on pressure data in the alarm passage (5) and related to an opening of the housing cover detected by the one or more sensors.