Method and Apparatus for Detecting Smoke in an ION Chamber

An apparatus for detecting smoke, comprising:

• an ionization chamber coupled to a capacitive voltage divider (CVD) circuit for determining a capacitance of the ionization chamber;
• wherein a predetermined change in the capacitance of the ionization chamber indicates the presence of smoke in the ionization chamber.

An apparatus for detecting smoke, comprising:

• a first ionization chamber coupled to a capacitive voltage divider (CVD) circuit for determining a capacitance of the first ionization chamber, wherein the first ionization chamber is open to smoke entrance;
• a second ionization chamber coupled to the CVD circuit for determining a capacitance of the second ionization chamber, wherein the second ionization chamber is closed to smoke entrance;
• wherein a predetermined difference in the capacitances of the first and second ionization chambers indicates the presence of smoke in the first ionization chamber.