US3675342A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Fire fighting trainer
Assignee: United States Department of the Navy
•
Filing: 1971-03-09
•
Granted: 1972-07-11
•
Expires: 1991-03-09
Abstract
Abstract A fire fighting trainer comprising a matrix of adjacent fire simulation units of gas jets or lamps, each unit under the control of a processor circuit and sensor controls through which each of said units may be energized or de-energized to respective ''''on'''' and ''''off'''' conditions from a switch means through an activating circuit, to simulate an actual fire and through switch activating sensor means responsive to water spray or, in the alternative, to light rays to deactivate said actuating circuit and thereby said units. The processor also including a holding circuit and time delay means to permit automatic re-energizing of said activating circuit, indicating flashback, if the sensors are not activated for a selected time duration and otherwise to hold said activating circuit in de-energized condition. The processor circuit also including energy dissipation means for modifying the time period of said time delay means in accordance with the time interval between repeated sensor actuations prior to the establishment of a holding coil action and additional time delay means for simulating flashback from the effect of adjacent unextinguished units where all units are not extinguished in a given time period. A further aspect of the invention residing in the provision of multiple sensor means of selectively different sensitivity for each fire simulation unit to simulate progressive extinguishment of each simulation unit.
Inventors
- 👤 Hanns H Wolff
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-01 12:22
CPC Classifications
A; A62; A62C; A62C99/00; A62C99/0081; G; G09; G09B; G09B19/00; G09B9/00
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 10
Claim 1
Independent Claim
139 words
A fire simulator for training in fire fighting and control comprising: a. a plurality of fire simulation modules arranged in a matrix to define a fire simulation area, each module including b. a fire simulation unit conditionable to ''''on'''' and ''''off'''' conditions, c. a processor circuit for controlling the ''''on'''' and ''''off'''' conditions of said unit, d. deactivating sensor means for activation by an applied stimulus representative of operation of fire extinguishing apparatus and connected to said processor circuit to condition said circuit to ''''off'''' condition of said unit, e. said processor circuit including a holding circuit with time delay means for holding said unit in ''''off'''' condition when said sensors have been actuated for a selected time period and otherwise to allow reflash of said unit if said sensor stimulus is removed prior to the selected time period.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
139 words
A fire simulator for training in fire fighting and control comprising: a. a plurality of fire simulation modules arranged in a matrix to define a fire simulation area, each module including b. a fire simulation unit conditionable to ''''on'''' and ''''off'''' conditions, c. a processor circuit for controlling the ''''on'''' and ''''off'''' conditions of said unit, d. deactivating sensor means for activation by an applied stimulus representative of operation of fire extinguishing apparatus and connected to said processor circuit to condition said circuit to ''''off'''' condition of said unit, e. said processor circuit including a holding circuit with time delay means for holding said unit in ''''off'''' condition when said sensors have been actuated for a selected time period and otherwise to allow reflash of said unit if said sensor stimulus is removed prior to the selected time period.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
55 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 a. said fire simulation unit including a plurality of discrete fire simulatiOn elements, b. said deactivating sensor means including a plurality of sensor means of selectively different sensitivity, one for each simulation element, to simulate the progressive extinguishment of a fire responsive to the degree of applied fire extinguishing stimulus.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
58 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 a. said fire simulation unit comprising at least one gas burner nozzle having a normally closed solenoid operated gas valve connected for operation by said processor circuit to ''''on'''' condition when said processor circuit is energized, and to ''''off'''' condition when said processor circuit is deactivated by operation of said deactivating sensor means.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
48 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 a. said fire simulation unit comprising at least one electric lamp connected to said processor circuit for normally ''''on'''' condition when said processor circuit is energized and to ''''off'''' condition when said processor circuit is deactivated by operation of said deactivating sensor means.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
44 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 a. said deactivating sensor means comprising at least one mechanically operated vane type sensor connected to said processor circuit to condition the latter to ''''off'''' condition of said unit responsive to a spray of water on said sensor means.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
33 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 a. said deactivating sensor means comprising at least one light sensor responsive to a ray of light to deactivate said processor circuit to extinguish said fire simulation unit.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
100 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 a. said processor circuit time delay means including a first time delay means connected to actuate said holding coil and additional time delay means responsive to the actuation of said holding circuit to de-energize said holding coil means and permit reflash of said fire simulation unit after said additional time delay, b. said additional time delay means being selected in time period to provide sufficient time to permit all fire simulation units to be extinguished in an orderly progressive fashion, and if not extinguished in that time then to permit flashback of previously extinguished units.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
100 words
Apparatus according to claim 2 a. said processor circuit time delay means including a first time delay means connected to actuate said holding coil and additional time delay means responsive to the actuation of said holding circuit to de-energize said holding coil means and permit reflash of said fire simulation unit after said additional time delay, b. said additional time delay means being selected in time period to provide sufficient time to permit all fire simulation units to be extinguished in an orderly progressive fashion, and if not extinguished in that time then to permit flashback of previously extinguished units.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
86 words
Apparatus according to claim 7 a. said first time delay means including a charging resistor, capacitor and Zener diode for actuating said holding coil and bleed resistor means across said capacitor for coordinating the total time delay period required for actuation of said holding coil to the time period delays, if any, in actuating and reactuating said sensors, b. said additional time delay means including a charging resistor, capacitor and Zener diode connected to back bias and release said holding coil after a selected time period.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1975-07-11 | 1976-01-10 | 1976-07-11 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1979-07-11 | 1980-01-10 | 1980-07-11 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1983-07-11 | 1984-01-10 | 1984-07-11 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |