WO1998017351A1 - Escape route signalling system - Google Patents

Abstract

An escape route signalling system for installations is disclosed, in particular for buildings, constructions, skyscrapers, large meeting halls, underground stations, shopping centres, tunnels, industrial complexes, museums, department stores, airports, hotels or ships, by means of escape route signalling. The escape route signalling is a luminous strip (10).

Description

 description

Escape route signaling system

Technical field

The invention relates to an escape route signaling system for objects, in particular for buildings, structures, high-rise buildings, large assembly rooms or locations, underground train stations, shopping centers, tunnel structures, industrial complexes, museums, department stores, airports, hotels or ships, with an escape route Signage.

Escape route signs are necessary wherever direct access to the outside is not possible, be it for structural reasons or because of the internal layout of the rooms. For objects or buildings with large crowds of people, in these situations it is necessary to guide the people in the rooms, especially if the buildings are larger. Examples of such objects or buildings are hospitals, hotels, railway or road tunnels, museums, train stations, airports, sports facilities, department stores, government buildings, high-rise buildings or ships.

State of the art

The signposting of escape routes to guide people in the event of danger is prescribed and known in accordance with DIN. Such escape route lighting of the previous signage prescribed by DIN has the following major disadvantages and shortcomings. The previous escape route signage according to DIN does not have sufficient brightness in most cases. Even with slight smoke in the room, these signs are no longer recognizable. By illuminating the signs with normal light bulbs, there is a high probability of failure due to the limited life of the illuminant, which must be seen as a danger point and also causes high maintenance costs.

In the event of danger or fire, the illuminated signs are covered by the mounting location under the ceiling within a very short time due to the smoke layers forming on the ceiling. The sign is completely destroyed even at medium flue gas temperatures of over 150 degrees Celsius. Although a layer of smoke with only a small thickness has formed, it is no longer possible to evacuate people who have fled - even after they have been smoke-free.

The conventional escape route signs only offer the refugees a specific indication of the direction of escape, e.g. on stairwells and exit doors. A continuous, intuitive direction, which would be necessary especially in dangerous situations, is due to the i.a. small number of signs not possible. This applies particularly to buildings in which there is no clear direction of escape due to the nested interior division of the rooms, e.g. in museums, department stores, airports, hotels or ships. If only one sign fails, the chain of signs is broken. Orientation can easily be lost in windowless building areas, making safe evacuation difficult.

The escape route signage with pictograms standardized according to DIN does not allow any possibility of influencing solution of the direction of escape. Such a change of direction may, for example, be necessary if the signposted escape route would run in the direction of a fire source. Due to the static lighting and the arrangement outside the normal field of vision, only a low level of attention can be achieved in dangerous situations.

Presentation of the invention, task, solution, advantages

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an escape route signaling system of the type mentioned above which controls and eliminates the risks and scenarios described above with a high degree of safety and reliability, and permits a more flexible and safer control of flows of people in dangerous situations.

This task is performed by an escape route signaling system from the above. Kind with the features characterized in claim 1 solved.

For this purpose, it is provided according to the invention that the rescue route signage is a light strip. This has the advantage that the escape route signaling is clearly visible and easily recognizable as such.

Due to the fact that the illuminated strip shows changeable pictograms in the activated state or dark or light segments moving in the direction of escape, the escape route signaling can be adapted to different dangerous situations depending on the situation and is therefore even more reliable.

A particularly good visibility of the escape route signaling is achieved by the light strip alternatingly illuminating surfaces when activated switched on and off, at least 80% of the illuminated area being switched on at the same time. It is particularly advantageous if the light strip represents a virtual movement in the activated state.

A particularly inexpensive and reliable construction is obtained in that the escape route signaling system comprises lighting elements which are composed of elements to be connected in a modular system.

This system can be adapted to a wide variety of requirements in that the elements are metal profiles with a rectangular or triangular cross section.

The reliability and functionality is improved in that the elements have a tread and / or scratch-resistant, transparent cover on at least one side. The elements can in particular be connected to one another in a watertight manner and are equipped with internally pluggable screw terminals for electrical wiring. In this case, separate segments are advantageously provided which can be controlled or switched separately and which generate a virtual movement by targeted control.

A system that can be easily and inexpensively retrofitted into existing rescue control systems is obtained by providing DIP switches or one-time programming in each element, which predetermines the signal output of each element.

For variable, optimal escape route guidance in a wide variety of hazardous situations, each element has an integrated microcontroller for individual control, for example the direction of movement, the light intensity and / or the light color. In a particularly advantageous manner, a central control computer and a bus system are provided, the central control computer being connected to each element via the bus system. This enables central control of the signaling elements.

An additional improvement in security is achieved in that each element has a microcontroller which is connected to the central control computer via the bus system. Such "intelligent" elements also increase the flexibility of the system considerably in relation to unexpected dangerous situations and constellations.

A matrix-shaped arrangement of light-emitting diodes (LED) or other light sources is advantageously provided as the light source of the system. Light-emitting diodes combine high operational reliability with great luminosity and low costs, especially when it comes to maintenance.

Further developments of the invention are listed in the subclaims.

Brief description of the drawings

The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. These show in:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a first preferred

Embodiment of a lighting element of an escape route signaling system according to the invention,

2 is a sectional view of a second preferred embodiment of a lighting element nes escape route signaling system according to the invention, and

3 shows a top view of a lighting element of an escape route signaling system according to the invention according to FIG. 1.

Best way to carry out the invention

FIG. 1 shows a sectional view of a first embodiment of a lighting element 12 of an escape route signaling system according to the invention. Light-emitting diodes 22 are arranged in a metal profile frame 14. These are connected via a circuit board 24 to a microcontroller 20 and connecting terminals 18 for external signal lines and power supplies. A tread and scratch-resistant, transparent cover 16 provides appropriate protection for the light-emitting diodes 22, while at the same time the visibility is not impaired. Advantageously, batteries, not shown, are provided for operation independent of the mains.

Figure 2 shows a second embodiment of the lighting element. Here, the cross section is not, as in the embodiment of Figure 1, rectangular, but triangular. While the version of FIG. 1 is used for floor mounting, the version of FIG. 2 is preferably suitable for floor corner mounting.

FIG. 3 shows the arrangement of the light-emitting diodes 22 in a plan view of an element 12 according to FIG. 1. The matrix-like arrangement 10 enables the representation of a wide variety of moving or static patterns, pictograms or virtual movements. If necessary, with a suitable density of the light emitting diodes 22, short ones can also be used Texts with helpful information can be displayed statically or as scrolling text.

The lighting system according to the invention is preferably installed in the floor along the escape route, which shows the refugees the way to the safe exits or stairwells. The peculiarity of this type of signposting is that a light strip 10 on the ground enables dark directions moving in the given direction of escape to provide an intuitive direction to a safe exit. In contrast to conventional running lights, 80% of the illuminated area is always switched on, which means that it can be easily identified even when it is heavily used. A virtual movement is created, which can be controlled both in speed and in its direction. The refugees do not have to look for signs mounted below the ceiling in the smoke, but can also follow the light strip with their heads bowed in the smoke-free floor zone and reach the saving exits quickly and safely. Children and the elderly, for whom the meaning of the escape route signage according to DIN is unclear or even unknown, are unmistakably shown the direction to the nearest safe exit. Due to the virtual movement of the light and the high luminance, a particularly high level of attention of this type of escape route signaling is achieved. A short and memorable loudspeaker announcement can be used to indicate the direction through the light strips, without having to provide detailed information on the direction of escape.

The arrangement of the lighting system on the floor eliminates the main disadvantage of conventional escape route signs: Even if a thick layer of smoke is formed under the ceiling, which the conventional tionally arranged signs with comparatively low luminance would be completely covered within a few seconds, the light strips installed in the floor or in the lower area of the wall remain visible even with large smoke layer thicknesses. The high luminance of the tapes makes it possible to reflect the light on the underside of light smoke layers. Since the temperature in the floor area outside the smoke layer is lower than on the ceiling, the system described remains undamaged and ready for use even after the smoke extraction phase.

The lighting fixtures preferably comprise a modular system of easily connectable elements 12 which can be embedded in the floor or the wall. They consist of robust metal profiles in different lengths, with a rectangular (Fig. 1, 3) or triangular (Fig. 2) cross-section, the light exit being carried out on one of the wider edges. The cross-section of the profiles 14 in the standard system is approx. 50 x 25 mm, the element length is 1 m or 2 m. The profile 14 is provided on the top with a tread and scratch-resistant, transparent cover 16. The elements 12 can be connected in a watertight manner and are equipped internally with plug-in screw terminals 18 for the electrical wiring, which are arranged in such a way that the elements can be placed against one another practically without joints. The light source of the system consists of light-emitting diodes 22 arranged in a matrix with at least 3000 cd light intensity or other light sources.

The color of the LEDs 22 can be adapted to the circumstances within the scope of the availability. The spacing of the LEDs 22 is predetermined such that an almost homogeneously luminous surface is formed on the transparent cover 16 of the profile 14. A single element 12 is - depending on the total visible length - in 10 to 20 cm long Segments divided, which are all switched separately and generate the virtual movement through targeted control. A transfer signal ensures the progress of the virtual movement with any number of interconnected elements 12. The LEDs 22 enable a fail-safe, maintenance-free operation of the system due to their long lifespan of more than 50,000 hours. The low power consumption enables simple power supplies with the option of battery supply. Due to the minimal heating of the LEDs 22 and the integrated electronics 20, the housing of the system can be designed to be completely closed.

In a first version "Guideline", the system is designed as follows. On the one hand, a stand-alone version with integrated electronics for generating the virtual movement of the light strip is provided. The system is controlled by an external signal, e.g. B. activated by the fire alarm system or an associated smoke detector, the direction of movement, the speed of movement and the intensity is determined by DIP switches or one-time programming and cannot be influenced by external signals. This system is particularly suitable for retrofitting existing escape route lighting and for improving signage in smaller areas, e.g. B. in elevator vestibules, hotel corridors and as an escape route sign in front of stairs or exits. Apart from a system-compatible power supply, no other components are required.

A second version "Smartline" creates additional security and flexibility. In this second version, the individual, external control of the direction of movement, the speed of movement, the lighting intensity and any other parameters to be specified (e.g. color) made possible by the control system. The individual elements are electrically connected by a bus system (SL-Bus, optionally EIB-compatible), in which each element can be addressed with its own address.

The bus topology is designed so that an interruption in the bus line cannot lead to failure of all subsequent elements. The parameters mentioned above can be programmed separately for each element using a central control unit. In the event of danger, a higher-level host computer can change the virtual direction of movement at any time. B. if the escape route would point towards the source of the fire. After the evacuation phase, the fire department can be shown the way into the building by specifying the virtual direction of movement.

Each element is activated by a message, which is composed of a 16-bit address word and an 8-bit control word. The 16-bit address word enables the interconnection of 65535 elements in one system. The parameters of any element are set by an 8-bit control word.

The basic structure of the 8-bit control word is shown below:

Bit no .: function

1 MSB operating state

2 LSB operating state

3 virtual direction of movement right / left

4 Detect takeover signal

5 Activate the transfer signal 6 Intensity high / low

7 speed MSB

8 speed LSB

Value bit 1 and bit 2: operating state binary 00 corresponding to decimal 0 from binary 01 corresponding to decimal 1 steady light binary 10 corresponding to decimal 2 flashing binary 11 corresponding to decimal 3 variable control

From this it can be seen that an element can assume four possible operating states: off, permanently switched on, flashing and variably controlled. The light intensity of the elements can be specified in 2 steps, the virtual movement speed in four steps by a higher-level control system.

The new escape route signaling system can generally be installed in three ways:

The elements 12 with a rectangular cross section can be installed in the floor as well as in the wall at a medium height. When laying the floor, however, viewing distances must be observed due to the vertical radiation upwards.

The elements 12 with a triangular cross section are intended for laying in wall corners instead of or on the normal baseboard. The 45 ° radiation in the room results in very good visibility, and it can also be retrofitted without any chiseling work. In corridors and narrow rooms, the. The light bar is laid lengthways to the escape routes and the direction of escape is determined by moving the dark zone along the bar. In halls or large corridors, the elements can be parallel in the visibility distance installed in the floor with each other, whereby the elements are controlled synchronously by the control system so that a uniform visual impression is created.

The elements 12 to be installed in the floor are inserted into prepared joints and, after the electrical connections 18 have been connected, glued to a sealing material. The elements 12 with a triangular cross section are screwed or glued into floor corners. This enables simple, time-saving and material-saving installation and maintenance of the system. The installation of the system in a modified form is also conceivable in handrails.

The existing building stock can be successively retrofitted at danger points with the rescue route signaling system "GuideLines", whereby later upgrading to "SmartLine" technology is possible without any problems. In the case of new buildings, the installation of the "SmartLine" system can be planned from the start. In connection with a special control system or the general building management system, the safety of people in the building can be significantly increased in the event of a fire with comparatively little effort.

B E Z Ü G S Z E I C H E N L I S T E

100 escape route signaling system

10 light strips

12 elements

14 metal profiles

16 cover

18 screw terminals

20 microcontrollers

22 LEDs

24 board

Claims

P a t e n t a n s r u c h e Escape route signaling system (100) for objects, in particular for buildings, structures, high-rise buildings, large assembly rooms or facilities, underground train stations, shopping centers, tunnel structures, industrial complexes, museums, department stores, airports, hotels or ships, with escape route signs, thereby characterized in that the escape route signage is a light strip (10). Escape route signaling system (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that the light strip (10) in the activated state represents changeable pictograms or dark segments moving in the direction of escape. Escape route signaling system (100) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the light strip (10) in the activated state, illuminated areas are switched on and off alternately, at least 80% of the illuminated area being switched on at the same time. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the light strip (10) represents a virtual movement in the activated state. 5. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises lighting elements which are composed of a modular system of elements (12) to be connected. 6. Escape route signaling system (100) according to claim 5, characterized in that the elements are metal profiles (14) with a rectangular or triangular cross section. 7. Escape route signaling system (100) according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the elements (12) have a cross section of approximately 50 x Have 25 mm. 8. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of claims 5 to 7, characterized in that the elements (12) have a length of about I m to 2 m. 9. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of claims 5 to 8, characterized in that the elements on at least one side have a tread and / or scratch-resistant, transparent cover (16). 10. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of claims 5 to 9, characterized in that the elements (12) can be connected in a watertight manner. 11. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of claims 5 to 10, characterized in that the elements (12) are equipped with internally pluggable screw terminals (18) for electrical wiring. 12. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of claims 5 to 11, characterized in that the elements (12) in segments of approximately 10 to 20 cm Length are divided. 13. Escape route signaling system (100) according to claim 12, characterized in that the segments can be controlled or switched separately and generate a virtual movement by targeted control. 14. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of claims 5 to 13, characterized in that DIP switches or a one-time programming are provided in each element, which predetermined the signal output of each element. 15. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of claims 5 to 13, characterized in that each element has an integrated microcontroller (20) for individual control, for example the direction of movement, the luminous intensity and / or the luminous color. 16. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of claims 5 to 15, characterized in that a central control system and a bus system are provided, the central control system being connected to each element (12) via the bus system. 17. Escape route signaling system (100) according to claim 16, characterized in that each element (12) has a microcontroller (20) which is connected to the central building management system via the bus system. 18. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a matrix-shaped arrangement of light-emitting diodes (22) or other light sources is provided as the light source of the system. 19. Escape route signaling system (100) according to claim 18, characterized in that the light-emitting diodes (22) have a luminous intensity of at least 3000 cd. 20. Escape route signaling system (100) according to at least one of claims 18 or 19, characterized in that the luminous color of the light-emitting diodes (22) or other light sources is variable.