Sentrol, Inc.

Slc Technologies

General Electric Company

General Electric Corporation Gmbh

Ade Optical Systems Corporation

Kirk Rodney Johnson

Robert Gerard Fischette

Douglas Henry Marman

Brian Andrew Bernal

Maki Myoga

Noel S Poduje

Michael E Fossey

Mark A Peltier

Daniel P Croft

A self-contained smoke detector system has internal self-diagnostic capabilities and accepts a replacement smoke intake canopy ( ) without a need for recalibration. The system includes a microprocessor-based self-diagnostic circuit ( ) that periodically checks sensitivity of the optical sensor electronics ( ) to smoke obscuration level. By setting tolerance limits on the amount of change in voltage measured in clean air, the system can provide an indication of when it has become either under-sensitive or over-sensitive to the ambient smoke obscuration level. An algorithm implemented in software stored in system memory ( ) determines whether and provides an indication that for a time (such as 27 hours) the clean air voltage has strayed outside established sensitivity tolerance limits. The replaceable canopy is specially designed with multiple pegs ( ) having multi-faceted surfaces ( ). The pegs are angularly spaced about the periphery in the interior of the canopy to function as an optical block for external light infiltrating through the porous side surface ( ) of the canopy and to minimize spurious light reflections from the interior of the smoke detector system housing ( ) toward a light sensor photodiode ( ). The pegs are positioned and designed also to form a labyrinth of passageways ( ) that permit smoke to flow freely through the interior of the housing.

Self-diagnostic smoke detector

Automatic verification of smoke detector operation within calibration limits

In one aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for transferring wafers to or from a wafer cassette having a plurality of wafer-receiving slots, wherein the apparatus comprises a wafer paddle which is adapted to be inserted into a wafer cassette alongside a wafer. Edge grippers carried by the wafer paddle releasible grip the wafer by its edges. A first capacitive sensor carried by the wafer paddle is oriented in a first direction for sensing information about a wafer in a wafer receiving slot of the wafer cassette. A second capacitive sensor carried by the wafer paddle is oriented in a direction perpendicular to the first direction for sensing additional proximity information about a wafer in a wafer receiving slot of the cassette. A transport mechanism produces movement of the wafer paddle along at least three axes of movement to permit transferring wafers to or from respective wafer receiving slots of the wafer cassette. In a more specific aspect, the transport mechanism produces movement along five axes: relative translational movement along orthogonal x, y and z axes, rotational movement about a rotational axis, and tilting movement of the wafer paddle about a paddle tilt axis.

Wafer transfer robot

A self-contained smoke detector system has internal self-diagnostic capabilities and accepts a replacement smoke intake canopy (14) without a need for recalibration. The system includes a microprocessor-based self-diagnostic circuit (200) that periodically checks sensitivity of the optical sensor electronics (24, 28) to smoke obscuration level. By setting tolerance limits on the amount of change in voltage measured in clean air, the system can provide an indication of when it has become either under-sensitive or over-sensitive to the ambient smoke obscuration level. An algorithm implemented in software stored in system memory (204) determines whether and provides an indication that for a time (such as 27 hours) the clean air voltage has strayed outside established sensitivity tolerance limits. The replaceable canopy is specially designed with multiple pegs (80) having multi-faceted surfaces (110, 112, 114). The pegs are angularly spaced about the periphery in the interior of the canopy to function as an optical block for external light infiltrating through the porous side surface (64) of the canopy and to minimize spurious light reflections from the interior of the smoke detector system housing (10) toward a light sensor photodiode (28). The pegs are positioned and designed also to form a labyrinth of passageways (116) that permit smoke to flow freely through the interior of the housing.

Method of automatic verification of smoke detector operation within

Self-diagnosing smoke detector assembly

A smoke detector (10) has internal self-adjustment and self-diagnostic capabilities. It includes a microprocessor-based alarm control circuit (24) that periodically checks the sensitivity of a smoke sensing element (20) to a smoke level in a spatial region (12). The alarm control circuit and the smoke sensor are mounted in a discrete housing (25) that operatively couples the smoke sensor to the region. The microprocessor (30) implements a routine (50) stored in memory (32) by periodically determining a floating adjustment (FLT.sub.-- ADJ) that is used to adjust the output (RAW.sub.-- DATA) of the smoke sensing element and of any sensor electronics (40) to produce an adjusted output (ADJ.sub.-- DATA) for comparison with an alarm threshold. The floating adjustment is not greater than a maximum value (ADJISENS) or less than a minimum value (ADJSENS). Except at power-up or reset, each floating adjustment is within a predetermined slew limit of the immediately preceding floating adjustment. The floating adjustment is updated with the use of averages (NEW.sub.-- AVG) of selected signal samples taken during data gathering time intervals having a data gathering duration that is long in comparison to the smoldering time of a slow fire. The adjusted output is also used for self-diagnosis.

Self-adjusting smoke detector with self-diagnostic capabilities

Smoke detector system with self-diagnostic capabilities and replaceable

A heat detector uses a single comparator operating in conjunction with a dynamically changing thermal reference that ensures quick response to rapid rates of thermal change and a fixed threshold that indicates an ambient temperature exceeds a threshold temperature. The inputs of the comparator receive different ones of the output signals of two thermal sensors. One thermal sensor responds nearly instantaneously to changes in ambient thermal conditions. The other thermal sensor is mounted on a printed circuit board operating as a heat sink and responds more slowly to changes in ambient thermal conditions. The difference between the thermal sensor output signals is zero at a lower ambient temperature when the rate of thermal change exceeds a preset amount and at a higher ambient temperature when the rate of thermal change is relatively slow. Thus, the comparator output indicates an alarm condition upon detection of a rapid change in ambient thermal condition or a thermal condition exceeding a threshold, irrespective of the rate of change.

Fixed threshold and rate of rise heat detector with dynamic thermal

Smoke detector housing

Smoke detector cover

Growing community of inventors

Vancouver, WA, United States of America

Kirk Rodney Johnson