Discovery



The Discovery Concept
Exciting and innovative, Discovery takes the advanced features of XP95 and adds
new dimensions of sophistication - giving you total reassurance in installations
where adaptability to changing conditions and protection against unwanted alarms
are paramount. Even in the unlikely event of control equipment processor
failure, Discovery is still able to perform. Discovery also puts four bytes of
non-volatile memory at the disposal of the user. All this is possible because
Discovery incorporates signal processing in the detector head.
The Discovery Range
Using well-established sensing technologies, the Discovery range
includes ionisation and optical smoke monitors, plus a temperature monitor.
Additionally, a multi-sensor monitor combining optical smoke and temperature
sensing has been developed. A manual call point incorporating Discovery
technology is also available.
Sensitivity Selection
Discovery offers five sensitivity bands. Monitors are
factory-set to a mid-range sensitivity which can be altered as appropriate. For
example, a monitor in a cleanroom might be set to a higher sensitivity than one
in an office. Or different sensitivities might be selected for day and night
use. This system enhances detection reliability whilst mitigating against false
alarms. The multi-sensor monitor may be operated as a smoke monitor, a heat
monitor or a combination of both.
Drift compensation
Discovery incorporates an algorithm to ensure that the analogue
count reported to the panel is not affected by extraneous factors such as
contamination which could lead to drift. If the count moves from its normal
clean-air value it is, within permitted limits, compensated back to reduce
unwanted alarms.
Non-Volatile Memory
Discovery has a non-volatile memory that may be accessed by the
control panel. This records unchanging information, such as the month of
manufacture and information under control of the panel such as the sensitivity
setting. Self-changing data, such as the degree of drift compensation, is also
held in the memory, but a significant amount of memory is reserved for customers
to use freely. This part - four bytes of data - may be used to record any data
required, eg, commissioning date, last service date, site reference number,
project number or whatever is important to the customer. This area of the memory
is accessed very easily by defined polling routines known as 'read' and 'write'
modes.
Failsafe operation
If a microprocessor in the control panel were ever to fail,
Discovery would not be lost altogether. In the event of a fire, an alarm signal
similar to a conventional alarm would still be transmitted.
Compatibility
To access the benefits described above, control equipment
utilising the Discovery protocol must be used. Discovery is backward compatible
with all XP95 panels, provided that they do not already have drift compensation
algorithms. The mounting bases are identical to those of XP95, featuring the
patented XPERT card addressing system that has proved so simple, reliable and
effective. Existing XP95 isolators and interfaces will be used with all
Discovery fire monitors.