System and method for monitoring and classifying smoking events in monitored spaces

A method of detecting smoking events, comprising:

• sampling air using one or more sensors;
• determining presence of a trigger event and a termination event from the sampled air;
• determining smoking events from the sampled air by comparing a time window between the trigger and termination events to time windows of modelled smoking events;
• comparing representations of the sampled air with signature models for the determined smoking events;
• classifying the smoking events based on the comparing;
• generating a time stamp for each of the smoking events;
• providing the multiple smoke classifications for comparison, using at least the time stamps associated therewith, to evaluate whether at least one of the multiple smoke classifications should merit a response, wherein the response includes an action;
• generating commands for the action;
• and
• transmitting the commands to at least one abatement device for the action.

An analysis/response engine, comprising:

• a communications interface couplable to a network and configured to receive therefrom at least one smoke classification from an air analyzer, a time stamp associated with said at least one smoke classification, and an identifying number corresponding to said air analyzer;
• a processor associated with a host database and configured to evaluate said at least one smoke classification using data from said host database to determine if said at least one smoke classification should merit a response, and employ said time stamp and said identifying number for determining if a response should be issued and what type of response to issue when a response is merited;
• and
• a transmitter, associated with said processor and configured to issue the response, wherein the response includes an action and the processor is further configured to generate commands for the action and determine at least one abatement device for the action, and the transmitter is configured to transmit the commands to the at least one abatement device.