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US 6,229,439 B1Granted
System and method of filtering
AssigneePittway Corporation
InventorLee D. Tice
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An ambient condition detector includes at least a sensor for a first ambient condition and a second, sensor which is responsive to a second ambient condition not necessarily correlated to the first condition. Control circuitry, coupled to both sensors, processes an output from the first sensor to reduce transients and/or noise therein which are not correlated to the first ambient condition. Processing characteristics are altered in response to an output from the second sensor. The processing can take place at the detector or, in part, at the detector and, in part, at a displaced, common control element. The output from the first sensor can also be used to modify the processing of the output of the second sensor.
Claims46
An apparatus comprising:
- a first sensor which produces a first output in response to a first ambient condition;
- at least a second sensor which produces a second output in response to a second ambient condition;
- processing circuitry, coupled to at least the first and second sensors, responsive to the first output to form a processed output, representative of at least the value of the first output, wherein the second output varies the way in which the processed output is formed from the first output;
- and
- wherein the processing circuitry includes smoothing circuitry having an input port for the first output, a variable smoothing input port coupled to the second output and a processed signal output port whereby the processed signal corresponds to a smoothed representation of the first output.
2 more elements
An apparatus comprising:
- a first sensor which produces a first output in response to a first ambient condition;
- at least a second sensor which produces a second output in response to a second ambient condition;
- smoothing circuitry, coupled to at least the first and second sensors, responsive to the first output to form a smoothed output, representative of at least a value of the first output, wherein the second output varies the way in which the smoothed output is formed from the first output;
- and
- wherein processing circuitry includes rate altering circuitry, responsive to the second output, for altering a response rate of the smoothed output relative to the first output.
2 more elements
An apparatus comprising:
- a first sensor which produces a first output in response to a first ambient condition;
- at least a second sensor which produces a second output in response to a second ambient condition;
- processing circuitry, coupled to at least the first and second sensors, responsive to the first output to form a processed output, representative of at least the value of the first output, wherein the second output varies the way in which the processed output is formed from the first output;
- and
- wherein the processing circuitry forms an average of a representation of the first output as the processed output and wherein the second output varies the way in which the average is formed.
2 more elements
An apparatus comprising:
- a first sensor which produces a first output in response to a first ambient condition;
- at least a second sensor which produces a second output in response to a second ambient condition;
- processing circuitry, coupled to at least the first and second sensors, responsive to the first output to form a processed output, representative of at least the value of the first output, wherein the second output varies the way in which the processed output is formed from the first output;
- and
- which includes a third sensor which produces a third output, wherein the processing circuitry is coupled to the third sensor and wherein the second and third outputs vary the way in which the processed output is formed from the first output.
2 more elements
Am ambient condition system comprising:
- a plurality of signal generating ambient condition sensors;
- processing circuitry coupled to the sensors wherein the circuitry smoothes at least some of the signals, thereby producing smoothed output signals wherein a respective degree of smoothing of at least one signal is altered by at least one other signal from a different sensor.
An apparatus comprising:
- a first sensor of a first ambient condition wherein the sensor generates a first output indicative of the first condition;
- a second sensor of a second ambient condition wherein the sensor generates a second output indicative of the second condition;
- and
- a control element which receives signals indicative of the outputs of both sensors wherein the control element includes circuitry for smoothing the first output thereby producing a smoothed first output signal, in response to the second output;
- and
- wherein the control element includes a programmed computer and a set of instructions which, when executed by the programmed computer produce the processed first output signal.
3 more elements
An apparatus comprising:
- a first sensor of a first ambient condition wherein the sensor generates a first output indicative of the first condition;
- a second sensor of a second ambient condition wherein the sensor generates a second output indicative of the second condition;
- and
- at least a third sensor of at least a third ambient condition wherein the third sensor generates a third output indicative of the third condition;
- and
- a control element which receives signals indicative of the outputs of the sensors wherein the control element includes circuitry for at least adjusting a filtering process associated with the first sensor thereby producing a processed first output, in response to the other sensor outputs.
3 more elements
A fire detection apparatus comprising:
- a smoke sensor wherein the sensor generates a first output signal indicative of sensed smoke;
- a gas sensor wherein the sensor generates a second output signal indicative of sensed gas;
- a control element which receives signals indicative of the outputs of both sensors wherein the control element includes circuitry for processing the first output signal thereby producing a processed first output signal, in response to the second output signal;
- and
- circuitry, responsive to the processed first output signal, for determining if a fire has been detected.
2 more elements
A method of processing in a fire detection apparatus comprising:
- detecting a first output signal from a fire sensor;
- detecting a second output signal from a gas sensor;
- variably smoothing the first output signal, wherein the second output signal alters a degree of smoothing thereof, thereby forming the processed first output signal;
- and
- determining if a fire profile has been detected.
2 more elements
A method of processing in a fire detection apparatus:
- detecting a first output signal from a smoke sensor;
- detecting a second output signal from a gas sensor;
- detecting a third output signal from a third sensor;
- variably smoothing the first output signal, wherein the second and third output signals alter a degree of smoothing thereof, thereby forming the processed first output signal.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.