Patent · US Expired

Ionization-type fire sensing system

US4109240A · kind A · utility

4Cited by
6References
20Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateNov 15, 1976
Grant dateAug 22, 1978
Priority date
Expiry dateNov 15, 1996

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG08B17/11
  • WIPO fieldControl
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

An ionization chamber is exposed to the atmosphere to be supervised, the ionization chamber being so constructed that the electrical resistance thereof changes in the presence of fire particles or aerosols upon occurrence of a fire; to improve reliability of detection, the ionization chamber is connected as a resistance element in a free-running multivibrator oscillator circuit, which includes a pair of cross-coupled field effect transistors (FET's) so that, upon change of the atmosphere to which the ionization chamber is exposed, the pulse frequency of the oscillator changes, which change is detected by a pulse rate detector. If the detector has upper and lower threshold levels, deviation of pulse rate in one direction may be used to sense presence of a fire, and in the other direction may be used to sense incipient trouble in the circuit itself.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.