Life safety system with energy saving visual alarm appliance and method
AssigneeGeneral Signal Corporation
InventorsROBERT RIGHT, HILARIO S. COSTA, DENNIS T. ROCK
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Abstract
A life safety system with a micro-controller that is programmed to operate both a visual signal and an audible signal. One feature of the system is that a user is permitted to enter a temporal signaling mode for not only the audible signal, but also the visual signal. The program includes an energy saving routine that operates the visual signal in the temporal mode with an energy consumption that is substantially smaller than required for operation in a continuous mode. The temporal pattern has four cycles with one flash pulse per cycle for the first three cycles and no flash pulse for the fourth cycle.
Claims9
A method of operating a visual signal with a micro-controller in a life safety system to provide a visual alarm signal when an emergency event occurs, said method comprising:
- (a) determining if a temporal mode is set in said micro-controller;
- (b) developing a flash pulse stream that has a repetitive pattern of four cycles with one flash pulse per cycle for the first three cycles of said pattern and no flash pulse for the fourth cycle of said pattern if said step (b) determines that said temporal mode is set;
- and
- (c) applying said flash pulse stream to said visual signal, whereby said visual signal flashes in a repetitive pattern that includes four consecutive cycles with a flash occurring in each of the first three cycles of said pattern and no flash occurring in the fourth cycle of said pattern, thereby eliminating a need for said visual signal to consume energy during said fourth cycle.
A life safety system comprising:
- a visual signal;
- a micro-controller operable in response to the occurrence of an emergency event to apply a flash pulse stream to said visual signal to flash said visual signal, said micro-controller including a microprocessor;
- and
- an energy saver program running on said microprocessor for causing said micro-controller to produce said flash pulse stream in a repetitive pattern of four cycles with one flash pulse per cycle for the first three cycles of said pattern and no flash pulse for the fourth cycle of said pattern, thereby eliminating the need for said visual signal to consume energy during said fourth cycle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.