Cartridge weight monitoring

1. A fire suppression system, comprising:

a cartridge for holding a pressurized gas, the cartridge operatively connected to a valve;

a monitoring assembly connected to the cartridge, the monitoring assembly comprising:

a support bracket for securing the cartridge to the monitoring assembly; and

at least one weight sensor for detecting a weight of the cartridge; and

a controller to trigger a communication of a trouble condition when the monitoring assembly detects a weight variance greater than a threshold.

2. The fire suppression system of claim 1 , wherein the threshold is determined based upon a minimum amount of pressurized gas needed to actuate the valve.

3. The fire suppression system of claim 1 , wherein the fire suppression system further comprises a cylinder for holding a fire suppression agent.

4. The fire suppression system of claim 1 , wherein the support bracket is in contact with the at least one weight sensor.

5. The fire suppression system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one weight sensor is in contact with the valve.

6. The fire suppression system of claim 5 , wherein the valve and the cartridge are vertically oriented, with the cartridge positioned above the valve.

7. The fire suppression system of claim 5 , wherein the valve and the cartridge are vertically oriented, with the cartridge positioned below the valve.

8. The fire suppression system of claim 5 , wherein the valve and the cartridge are horizontally oriented.

9. The fire suppression system of claim 1 , wherein the valve comprises a piercing pin, the piercing pin positioned approximately central to the support bracket.

10. A cartridge monitoring assembly, comprising:

a support bracket for securing a cartridge containing a pressurized gas to the cartridge monitoring assembly for a pressurized gas triggering device; and

at least one weight sensor for detecting a weight of the cartridge, wherein a controller triggers a communication of a trouble condition when the cartridge monitoring assembly detects a weight variance greater than a threshold.

11. The cartridge monitoring assembly of claim 10 , wherein the at least one weight sensor comprises at least one electrical weight sensor in contact with the support bracket of the monitoring assembly.

12. The cartridge monitoring assembly of claim 10 , wherein the at least one weight sensor comprises at least one mechanical weight sensor connected to the support bracket of the monitoring assembly.

13. The cartridge monitoring assembly of claim 10 , wherein the at least one weight sensor comprises at least one of: a spiral spring, a cantilever, a helical coil, a strain gauge, and a load cell.

14. The cartridge monitoring assembly of claim 10 , wherein the at least one weight sensor is in contact with a valve, the valve comprising a piercing pin positioned approximately central to the support bracket, the valve configured to release the pressurized gas when activated.

15. A method for detecting a weight of a cartridge installed within a fire suppression system, the method comprising:

receiving from a monitoring assembly, at a controller, a weight of a cartridge installed within the fire suppression system, the cartridge holding a pressurized gas;

comparing the weight of the cartridge with a previously calculated full weight value to determine a weight variance of the cartridge; and

triggering a communication, with the controller, when the weight variance of the cartridge is greater than a threshold.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the threshold is between 2 and 30 grams.

17. The method of claim 15 , wherein the threshold is determined based upon a minimum amount of the pressurized gas needed to actuate a valve.

18. The method of claim 15 , wherein the weight variance of the cartridge is caused, at least in part, by a leak of the pressurized gas.

19. The method of claim 15 , further comprising sending the communication to a panel, the panel configured to initiate an alarm, wherein the alarm comprises at least one of: an audible alarm signal, a visual indicator, and a digital alarm signal.