GB2570001A

GB2570001A - A fire extinguisher

Info

Publication number: GB2570001A
Application number: GB1800336.8A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Owen Alan; Davies Paul
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: PAUL DAVIES
Priority date: 2018-01-09
Filing date: 2018-01-09
Publication date: 2019-07-10
Anticipated expiration: 2038-01-09
Also published as: GB2570001B; WO2019137935A1; GB201800336D0

Abstract

A fire extinguisher 100 comprises a housing 101 for containing a fire extinguishing substance (110, figure 2a). The housing comprises an opening 102 which is closed by a lid 103 to prevent the substance exiting the housing. The lid is configured to release from the housing to allow the substance to exit through the opening to extinguish a fire when heat is applied to the fire extinguisher. The fire extinguisher further comprises at least one arm 105, 106 which is located at least partly in a cavity of the housing which is for containing the fire extinguishing substance, and the at least one arm is configured to actuate to expel the fire extinguishing substance from the housing when the lid is released. A heat-sensitive wax seal 107 may be provided between the lid and the housing and may be configured to release the lid from the housing when heat is applied. In a preferred embodiment, the fire extinguisher may be installed inside of a household electrical appliance such a washing machine or tumble dryer.

Description

A FIRE EXTINGUISHER

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a fire extinguisher.

Background

Many instances of fires, for example household fires, occur where it would be advantageous for the fire to be extinguished automatically, i.e. without direct human intervention. For example, household fires are often caused by electrical appliances such as washing machines, tumble dryers and televisions, or by other household devices which may be left unattended when in operation.

Fire extinguishing devices for releasing a fire extinguishing substance upon the application of heat to the device are known. However, such devices can be unreliable in the volume of fire extinguishing substance that they release and the rapidity with which this substance is released, such that their effectiveness in extinguishing fires is limited. Existing devices may also not be suitable for installation in a location suitable for tackling an outbreak of fire from such a household device such as an electrical appliance.

Furthermore, existing devices may not address the problem that a device which continues to operate may continue to be a hazard after an initial fire has been extinguished.

Summary

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a fire extinguisher comprising a housing for containing a fire extinguishing substance; wherein the housing comprises an opening which is closed by a lid to prevent the substance exiting the housing; and the lid is configured to release from the housing to allow the substance to exit through the opening to extinguish a fire when heat is applied to the fire extinguisher; and wherein the fire extinguisher further comprises at least one arm which is located at least partly in a cavity of the housing which is for containing the fire extinguishing substance, and the at least one arm is configured to actuate to expel the fire extinguishing substance from the housing when the lid is released.

The fire extinguisher may comprise a heat-sensitive seal between the lid and the housing which is configured to release the lid from the housing when heat is applied to the seal. The heat-sensitive seal may comprise wax.

The fire extinguisher may comprise two arms which are in contact with the substance when the lid is closed and which are configured to actuate to expel the fire extinguishing substance when the lid is released. The arm/s may be configured to provide a force to the lid such that the lid is forced away from the housing when the lid is released. The lid may be connected to the housing by a hinge.

The fire extinguisher may further comprise at least one removeable side panel which allows the fire extinguisher to be filled with fire extinguishing substance when the lid is fitted to the housing.

The fire extinguisher may comprise an interface for connecting to a device wherein the interface is configured to deactivate the device when the fire extinguisher is actuated. The interface may be configured to be electrically connected to a device and to electrically deactivate the device when the fire extinguisher is actuated. The interface may be configured to cut off a supply of gas or water to the device when the fire extinguisher is actuated.

The fire extinguisher may be for installing in an electrical appliance. The electrical appliance may be a washing machine or a tumble dryer.

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a combination of a fire extinguisher according to the first aspect and a household device. The household device may be an electrical appliance. The electrical appliance may be a washing machine or tumble dryer. The fire extinguisher may be installed inside the device.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of configuring for use a fire extinguisher according to the first aspect, wherein the fire extinguisher comprises at least one side panel and the method comprises: setting the arm/s to be biased against an inner side of the lid; sealing the lid to the housing to close the opening; removing the at least one side panel; filling the housing with fire extinguishing substance; and replacing the at least one side panel to contain the fire extinguishing substance in the housing.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a fire extinguisher according to the invention.

Figure 2a shows a schematic cross-sectional side view of a fire extinguisher according to the invention which is attached to a surface.

Figure 2b shows the fire extinguisher of Figure 2b after the fire extinguishing substance has been released to extinguish the fire.

Figure 3 shows an electrical appliance having a fire extinguisher according to the invention installed therein.

Detailed Description

With reference to Figure 1, Figure 2a and Figure 2b, an example fire extinguisher 100 is shown. The fire extinguisher 100 is for releasing a fire extinguishing substance when it is heated by a fire. In broad outline, the fire extinguisher 100 is for containing a fire extinguishing substance 110 (not shown in Figure 1), for example a fire extinguishing powder, which is configured to be released to extinguish a fire when heat from the fire is applied to the fire extinguisher 100. The fire extinguisher 100 comprises at least one arm, which is configured to expel the fire extinguishing substance 110 to extinguish a fire 50. In preferred examples, the fire extinguisher 100 comprises a first arm 105 and a second arm 106, as will be discussed in more detail below.

The fire extinguisher 100 comprises a housing 101 defining a cavity for containing the fire extinguishing substance 110. The housing 101 comprises an opening 102 through which the fire extinguishing substance 110 can exit the housing 101 and a lid 103 for closing the opening 102 and preventing the substance 110 leaving the housing 101 through the opening 102 when the lid 103 is in place.

The lid 103 is configured to be released from the housing 101 when heat is applied to the fire extinguisher 100. As such, the fire extinguisher 100 is configured so that when a fire 50 is in the vicinity of the fire extinguisher 100, the heat from the fire 50 causes the lid 103 to be released from the opening 102 to allow the fire extinguishing substance 110 to exit the housing 101 and extinguish the fire 50. The housing 101 and/or the lid 103 may be formed of a heat-conductive material, for example a metal such as steel.

The lid 103 may be attached to the housing 101 by a hinge (not shown) or may be completely detachable from the housing 101 when released due to the application of heat. As shown in Figure 2a and Figure 2b, in some examples the fire extinguisher 100 may be placed with the opening 102 facing downwards such that when the lid 103 is released by the application of heat, the lid falls away from the housing 101. In other examples, the fire extinguisher 100 may be placed in a different orientation and the at least one arm may be configured to force the lid 103 away from the opening when the lid 103 is released, as will be discussed in more detail below.

The fire extinguisher 100 may comprise any suitable means for releasing the lid 103 from the housing 101 upon the application of heat. For example, a heat-sensitive seal or a connection which is frangible above a threshold temperature.

In the example of Figure 1, the lid 103 comprises a heat-sensitive seal 107 which seals the lid 103 to the housing 101. The seal 107 is configured to break when heat is applied to the fire extinguisher 100. The seal 107 may comprise a heat-sensitive adhesive substance. In preferred examples the seal 107 comprises wax. In the examples shown in the figures, the seal 107 is located around a perimeter portion of an inner face 103a of the lid 103. The seal 107 may additionally or alternatively be located on a portion of the housing 101 which makes contact with the lid 103 when the lid closes the opening 102. The seal 107 may form a substantially air-tight seal of the lid 103 to the housing 101; this may aid in the expulsion of the substance 101 from the housing 101 due to a build-up of pressure when heat is applied and the seal 107 is broken.

The fire extinguishing substance 110 may be loaded in the device before or after the lid 103 is sealed to the housing 101. In preferred examples, the fire extinguisher 100 comprises removable side panels 108a, 108b at least one of which may be removed for filling the cavity in the housing 101 with fire extinguishing substance 110. For example, one of the side panels 108a, 108b may be removed to fill the housing with fire extinguishing substance 110 once the lid 103 has been sealed to close the opening 102 and the arms 105, 106 have been set in place. An example method of configuring the fire extinguisher 100 for use comprises: setting the at least one arm 105, 106 to be biased against the inner side 103a of the lid 103; sealing the lid 103 to the housing 101 to close the opening 102; removing at least one of the side panels 108a, 108b; filling the housing 101 with fire extinguishing substance 110; and replacing the at least one of the side panels 108a, 108b to contain the fire extinguishing substance 110 in the housing 101.

As mentioned above, the fire extinguisher 100 comprises at least one arm for expelling the substance 110 from the housing 101 through the opening 102 when the lid 103 is released by the application of heat. The at least one arm is located in the cavity of the housing 101 which is for containing the substance 110, such that the at least one arm is in contact with the substance 110. In preferred examples, such as shown in the figures, the fire extinguisher 100 comprises two arms, a first arm 105, and a second arm 106, and the features of the at least one arm will now be described with reference to this preferred example of having two arms. However, it is to be noted that any feature described herein could be applied where a different number of arms than two is employed. For example, the fire extinguisher may comprise only one arm.

The arms 105, 106 are configured to expel the fire extinguishing substance 110 from the housing 101 when the lid 103 is released. In preferred examples, at least a portion of each of the arms 105, 106 is biased to rotate to expel the substance 110 when the lid 103 is released from the housing 101. Each arm is biased away from a position where an upper portion 105a, 106a of the arm is substantially parallel with a base 109 of the housing 101. In that way, when the lid is released the upper portion 105a of the first arm 105 rotates under the biasing force in an anti-clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 1 and the upper portion 106a of the second arm 106 rotates in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 1. The dotted arrows in Figure 1 and Figure 2b indicate the direction in which the arms 105, 106 rotate under the biasing force when the lid 103 is released. The upper portions 105a, 106a of each of arms 105, 106 rotate towards, and may rotate further than, a position substantially perpendicular to the base 109 of the housing, and in so doing expel the substance 110.

In preferred examples shown in the figures, the arms 105, 106 also provide an opening force to the lid 103 and are biased against the inner side 103a of the lid when the lid is closed, as shown in Figure 2a. When the lid 103 is released due to the application of heat, the arms 105, 106 force the lid open in addition to expelling the substance 110.

The expelling force given to the fire extinguishing substance 110 by the arms 105, 106 ensures that the substance effectively exits the housing 101 when the lid 103 is released. The fire extinguisher 100 thus ensures that a large proportion of the fire extinguishing substance 110 is rapidly expelled. This results in greater coverage by the fire extinguishing substance 110, which results in a fire being more effectively extinguished. Furthermore, the arms 105, 106 ensure that the fire extinguisher 100 will effectively expel a fire even in the event that the fire extinguishing substance 110 has low fluidity within the housing 101. For example, where the fire extinguishing substance 110 is a powder, the powder may harden over extended periods of time; the force given to the fire extinguishing substance 110 by the arms 105, 106 ensures that the substance is effectively expelled to extinguish a fire even where the substance has lost its fluidity.

Furthermore, although in some preferred examples the fire extinguisher 100 is situated with the opening 102 facing downwards (and so some of the substance may exit the housing under the influence of gravity) the arms 105, 106 allow for the fire extinguishing substance 110 to be expelled effectively from the housing 101 when the fire extinguisher 100 is in any orientation. The force exerted on the substance 110 by the arms 105, 106 may also allow the fire extinguishing substance 110 to be spread over a larger area, again contributing to effectiveness in extinguishing the fire 50.

Each of the first arm 105 and the second arm 106 may comprise a flexible tubular member. In the example of Figure 1, each arm comprises a lower portion 105b, 106b in addition to the upper portion 105a, 106b. Each arm is fixed to the base 109 via respective fixing means 105c, 106c, which may for example be a bolt or screw. In this example, the arms 105, 106 are biased towards a configuration where the longitudinal axes of the lower portion 105b, 106b, and the upper portion 105a, 106a of each arm are aligned, i.e. the biasing force derives from the flexible tubular members 105, 106 being folded.

In other examples, the at least one arm may not be flexible and may be biased to rotate to provide an expelling force by any suitable biasing means. For example, each arm may or may not be flexible and may be biased to rotate as described above by a torsional spring. In such examples, the lower portion 105b, 106b of each arm 105, 106 may not be present.

An example of the use of the fire extinguisher 100 will now be described with reference to Figure 2a and Figure 2b. In this example, the fire extinguisher 100 is shown attached to a surface 40 with the opening 102 facing downwards. The surface 40 may, for example, be a surface inside or above an electrical appliance, or may be a surface above a cooking apparatus. The fire extinguisher 100 may be attached to said surface 40 by any suitable fixing means, such as one or more screws or an adhesive substance.

In Figure 2a a fire 50 is shown below the fire extinguisher 100 which is in a not-yet-actuated configuration. Heat from the fire 50 heats the fire extinguisher 100. The heat from fire 50 melts the wax of seal 107 and actuates the fire extinguisher 100 by releasing the lid 103 from the housing 101. The arms 105, 106 are biased against the lid 103 and when the seal 107 is broken the arms force the lid 103 open. Figure 2b shows the fire extinguisher after the lid 103 has been forced open and the substance expelled from the housing 101. The lid 103 in this example is hinged to the housing 101 and remains attached to the housing 101 while allowing the substance 110 to exit through the opening 102. In Figure 2b the fire extinguishing substance 110 can be seen to have been expelled from the housing to extinguish the fire 50.

The fire extinguisher 100 in some examples may be situated with the opening 102 facing downwards, as shown in Figure 2a and Figure 2b. In this arrangement, when the lid 103 is released from the housing 101, the lid 103 falls away from the housing 101 to allow the substance 110 to exit through the opening.

In some examples, the fire extinguisher 100 may be configured to be associated with a device, for example an electrical appliance, for example a washing machine, a tumble dryer, or a television or a cooking apparatus, such as a stove. In such examples, the fire extinguisher 100 may be configured to be fitted above, fitted behind, or fitted to the device with which it is associated. In some advantageous examples the fire extinguisher 100 is configured to be fitted inside of a device, for example configured to be fitted inside of an electrical appliance.

The fire extinguisher 100 may comprise means for deactivating a device in the event of a fire. In this way, in the event of the outbreak of fire due to a device, the fire extinguisher 100 is actuated to extinguish the fire and additionally to deactivate the device to prevent any further fire or other damage caused by the device. In some examples, the fire extinguisher 100 may comprise an interface (190, Figure 3) for connecting to a device and the interface may be configured to deactivate a device to which it is connected when the fire extinguisher 100 is actuated. For example, the interface 190 may comprise an electrical connector for connecting to a device which is configured to deactivate a connected device when the lid 103 is released from the housing 101.

In the example of the device being a washing machine, the fire extinguisher 100 the interface 190 may be configured to deactivate the washing machine both by electrically switching of the washing machine and cutting the supply of water to the machine. In the example of a cooking apparatus, the interface could be configured to cut off a supply of electricity and/or gas to the cooking apparatus.

In other examples, the means for deactivating a device may comprise separate heat sensing means (not shown) which is electrically connected to a device. For example, the fire extinguisher 100 could comprise a heat-activated switch which is configured to be electrically connected to a device for deactivating the device in the event of a fire.

Figure 3 shows an example of a washing machine 200 having a fire extinguisher 100 according to the present invention fitted in a cavity in the machine 200. In this example, the fire extinguisher 100 is electrically connected via interface 190 to a control module 210 of the washing machine 200 and is configured to deactivate the washing machine when the fire extinguisher is actuated. In this example, an electrical connection between the fire extinguisher 100 and the control module 210 is broken in the event of actuation of the fire extinguisher 100 such that when the lid 103 is released from the housing 101 the washing machine is deactivated. That is, if a fire breaks out in the washing machine, the lid 103 of fire extinguisher 100 is released, the fire extinguishing substance 110 is expelled (as described above with reference to previous figures) and the electrical connection via interface 190 is broken such that the washing machine is deactivated. The fire extinguisher 100 may be arranged to have a width greater than the diameter of the drum of the washing machine, so that the fire extinguishing substance is expelled to the areas to the sides of the drum, as well as on to the drum itself. The arrangement may further be configured, for example via control module 210, to cut off the supply of water to the machine when the electrical connection is broken to prevent flooding after the fire has been extinguished. The risk of further fire or other damage resulting from continuing operation of the washing machine 200 is thereby prevented.

The above embodiments are to be understood as illustrative examples of the invention. Other embodiments are envisaged. It is to be understood that any feature described in relation to any one embodiment may be used alone, or in combination with other features described, and may also be used in combination with one or more features of any other of the embodiments, or any combination of any other of the embodiments. Furthermore, equivalents and modifications not described above may also be employed without departing from the scope of the invention, which is defined in the accompanying claims.

Claims

1. A fire extinguisher comprising a housing for containing a fire extinguishing substance; wherein the housing comprises an opening which is closed by a lid to prevent the substance exiting the housing; and the lid is configured to release from the housing to allow the substance to exit through the opening to extinguish a fire when heat is applied to the fire extinguisher; and wherein the fire extinguisher further comprises at least one arm which is located at least partly in a cavity of the housing which is for containing the fire extinguishing substance, and the at least one arm is configured to actuate to expel the fire extinguishing substance from the housing when the lid is released.

2. A fire extinguisher according to claim 1, comprising a heat-sensitive seal between the lid and the housing which is configured to release the lid from the housing when heat is applied to the seal.

3. A fire extinguisher according to claim 2, wherein the heat-sensitive seal comprises wax.

4. A fire extinguisher according to any of claims 1 to 3 comprising two arms which are in contact with the substance when the lid is closed and are configured to actuate to expel the fire extinguishing substance when the lid is released.

5. A fire extinguisher according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the arm/s is/are configured to provide a force to the lid such that the lid is forced away from the housing when the lid is released.

6. A fire extinguisher according to any of claims 1 to 5 wherein the lid is connected to the housing by a hinge.

7. A fire extinguisher according to any of claims 1 to 6 further comprising at least one removeable side panel which allows the fire extinguisher to be filled with fire extinguishing substance when the lid is fitted to the housing.

8. A fire extinguisher according to any preceding claim which comprises an interface for connecting to a device wherein the interface is configured to deactivate the device when the fire extinguisher is actuated.

9. A fire extinguisher according to claim 8 wherein the interface is configured to be electrically connected to a device and to electrically deactivate the device when the fire extinguisher is actuated.

10. A fire extinguisher according to claim 8 or claim 9 wherein the interface is configured to cut off a supply of gas or water to the device when the fire extinguisher is actuated.

11. A fire extinguisher according to any preceding claim which is for installing in an electrical appliance.

12. A fire extinguisher according to claim 11 wherein the electrical appliance is a washing machine or a tumble dryer.

13. A combination of a fire extinguisher according to any of claims 1 to 12 and a household device.

14. A combination of a fire extinguisher and an electrical appliance according to claim 13 wherein the household device is an electrical appliance.

15. A combination of a fire extinguisher and an electrical appliance according to claim 14 wherein the electrical appliance is a washing machine or tumble dryer.

16. A combination of a fire extinguisher and an electrical appliance according to any of claims 13 to 15 wherein the fire extinguisher is installed inside the device.

17. A method of configuring for use a fire extinguisher according to any preceding claim, wherein the fire extinguisher comprises at least one side panel and the method comprises: setting the arm/s to be biased against an inner side of the lid; sealing the lid to the housing to close the opening; removing the at least one side panel; filling the housing with fire extinguishing substance; and replacing the at least one side panel to contain the fire extinguishing substance in the housing.