Traffic director

Abstract

The traffic director of this invention is an improved fire detector and exit indicator that provides both audio and visual exit cues to the occupants of a burning or power-failed building or other occupied structure. A series of traffic director units are placed at various predetermined intervals along an appropriate escape route, and are mounted into the walls of the building at crawling height (approximately three feet above floor level). The independent units are either battery powered or are tied into the building's emergency backup power system. When a fire is detected by a given unit's smoke or heat sensors, or a power failure is detected by the unit's light sensor, that unit's front panel displays a lighted, moving arrow pointing towards the nearest building exit, and the unit's synthesized-voice audio system gives verbal directions to that exit. Each independent unit is programmable through a series of DIP switches that allow each unit to be modified to give the appropriate audio instructions regardless of where that unit is installed in the building. Being independent, each unit will reset and turn off after the sensed emergency situation has ended.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.