Hardwire fire alarm panel walktest decoder
Techniques for conducting, with a single human inspector, a walktest of a fire alarm system having a fire alarm control panel that does not include an RS232 interface are provided. A fire alarm control panel is coupled to a plurality of field devices. The fire alarm control panel provides an output signal identifying a zone of a field device when the field device is activated. A walktest decoder is coupled to the fire alarm control panel and is coupled to a computing device. The walktest decoder converts the output signal from the panel to a format for reception and processing by the computing device. A mobile computing device is wirelessly coupled to the computing device. The mobile computing device receives a wireless signal from the computing device indicating the identified zone. The mobile computing device is used by the inspector to determine if the correct zone was identified.
1. A walktest system, comprising:
a fire alarm control panel coupled to a plurality of field devices and without a direct connection to a computing device, the fire alarm control panel configured to provide a panel output signal comprising a first format and identifying a zone of one of the plurality of field devices when the one of the plurality of field devices is activated during a test condition; and
a walktest decoder coupled with the fire alarm control panel, the walktest decoder comprising:
a relay; and
a controller having a ground pin or input that is directly coupled with a common output of the relay and having another pin that is directly connected to a normally open (NO) output of the relay, wherein the relay is configured to relay the panel output signal from the fire alarm control panel to the controller, wherein the controller is configured to convert the panel output signal from the first format to a second format to generate a decoder signal indicating the identified zone for transmission to the computing device.
2. The walktest system of claim 1 , wherein the fire alarm control panel comprises a notification appliance circuit (NAC) to provide the panel output signal comprising the first format.
3. The walktest system of claim 2 , wherein the relay is coupled to the NAC.
4. The walktest system of claim 3 , wherein the panel output signal powers the relay.
5. The walktest system of claim 3 , wherein a power input of the relay is directly connected to the NAC.
6. The walktest system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to convert the panel output signal from the fire alarm control panel to the second format for transmission over a USB interface.
7. The walktest system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to convert the panel output signal from the fire alarm control panel to the second format for transmission over an RS232 interface.
8. The walktest system of claim 1 , wherein the computing device generates a wireless signal corresponding to the panel output signal from the fire alarm control panel.
9. The walktest system of claim 8 , wherein the computing device is configured to transmit the wireless signal over a cellular network, a WIFI network, or a Bluetooth network.
10. A method for conducting a walktest, comprising:
activating a remote field device;
generating, at a fire alarm control panel without a direct output connection to a mobile computing device, an output signal comprising a first format and identifying a zone of the remote field device;
relaying, by a relay of a walktest decoder coupled with the fire alarm control panel, the output signal from the fire alarm control panel to a controller of the walktest decoder, the controller having a ground pin or input that is directly coupled with a common output of the relay and having another pin that is directly connected to a normally open (NO) output of the relay;
converting, by the controller of the walktest decoder, the output signal from the first format to a second format for receipt by the mobile computing device; and
wirelessly transmitting the converted output signal to the mobile computing device, the converted output signal indicating the identified zone.
11. The method of claim 10 , wherein converting the output signal comprises converting the output signal to a USB signal.
12. The method of claim 10 , wherein converting the output signal comprises converting the output signal to an RS232 signal.
13. The method of claim 10 , wherein wirelessly transmitting comprises wirelessly transmitting the converted output signal over a cellular network, a WIFI network, or a Bluetooth network.
14. A walktest decoder, comprising:
a relay coupled to a notification appliance circuit (NAC) of a fire alarm control panel with a non-RS232 output connection to a computing device; and
a controller, coupled to an output of the relay, the controller having a ground pin or input that is directly coupled with a common output of the relay and having another pin that is directly connected to a normally open (NO) output of the relay, wherein the relay is configured to receive an output signal comprising a first format from the fire alarm control panel and provide the output signal to the controller, wherein the controller is configured to convert the output signal from the first format to a second format for receipt and processing by the computing device.
15. The walktest decoder of claim 14 , wherein the second format is a USB format.
16. The walktest decoder of claim 14 , wherein the second format is an RS232 format.
17. The walktest decoder of claim 14 , wherein the controller is configured to wirelessly transmit the converted output signal to the computing device.
18. The walktest decoder of claim 17 , wherein the computing device is a smartphone, a laptop computer, or a tablet.
19. The walktest system of claim 1 , wherein the walktest decoder is directly connected to the computing device.
20. The walktest decoder of claim 14 , wherein the walktest decoder is directly connected to the computing device.