Fire Systems Design:
Engineering Design
Devices
Fire alarm systems have devices connected to them to detect the fire/smoke or to alert the occupants of an emergency. Below is a list of common devices found on a fire alarm.
Manual pull station/manual call points – Devices to allow people to manually activate the fire alarm. Usually located near exits. Also called “manual pull boxes”. Other countries have different devices as standard, for example the Uk uses ‘break – glasses’, when people break a small pane of glass to activate the alarm
Appliances
Notification Appliances – fire alarm system component used to notify people of the need of action in connection with the activation of a fire alarm device.
- Notification appliances may employ audible, visible, tactile, textual or even factory stimuli to alert the occupants of a fire or other emergency.
- Audible or visible signals are the most common and may utilize speakers to deliver live or pre-recorded instructions to the occupants.
- In the united States fire alarms evacuation signals are required to use a standardized interrupted four count temporal pattern to avoid confusion with other signals using similar sounding appliances.
Magnetic door holders – wall of floor mounted electromagnets controlled by a fire alarm system or directly connected smoke detectors that hold open spring- loaded self-closing smoke tight doors by magnetic attraction to a door mounted iron armature.