Fire Alarm System

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Fire Alarm System is an active fire protection system with a number of devices working together to detect and warn people through visual and audio appliances when smoke, fire, carbon monoxide or other emergencies are present. These alarms may be activated automatically from smoke detectors, heat detectors, multi-criteria detectors or may also be activated via manual fire alarm activation devices such as manual call points or pull stations. Alarms can be either motorized bells or wall mountable sounders or horns. They can also be speaker strobes which sound an alarm, followed by a voice evacuation message which warns people inside the building to evacuate or not to use elevators, etc.

Conventional Fire Alarm System:

Traditional fire alarm system with conventional zone panels
In a zoned system, fire alarm devices in a common area or floor of a facility are connected to the same alarm initiating circuit.
Each zone requires its own circuit conductor. This arrangement allows alarm annunciation to be reported by areas of the building to identify which device is in alarm.
Conventional panels are often used in small facilities where a few zones can provide sufficient alarm annunciation.

Addressable Fire Alarm System:

Addressable fire alarm systems have single or multiple loop based control panels which use digital encoding and multiplex technology to more accurately identify alarm locations and device conditions.
Each fire alarm device in a system is programmed with a unique address.
The fire alarm control panel is capable of communicating with a single address or a group of addresses depending on the functions required.
The communication channel allows two-way communication, thus enabling the fire alarm control panel to control as well as monitor fire alarm devices.
A significant component of addressable fire alarm system is the software programming necessary to make the system function correctly. The programming allows for flexible applications where you want to have specific control over the inputs and outputs.
The communication technologies employed in addressable systems allow for advanced features to accommodate sensitivity changes due to age and accumulation of dust prior to maintenance. These features are not available with the standard conventional system.
Addressable fire alarm control panels and devices have become more common than conventional systems for medium and large-sized facilities. They have become more cost effective in some small applications as well.