Abstract:
A smoke detector and signal device is adapted for attachment to an interior door knob or to the window of a room. The device includes a housing containing an interconnected array of components including a smoke responsive transducer, an electric power source, a signal light, and an electronic circuit device interconnecting the array of components. The device includes connectors for either attaching the housing to the window for displaying the signal light to the outside or to the door knob of the room to provide a lighted signal of the precise location of the door knob to an occupant within the room.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a smoke detector for use in protecting occupants of a building and, more particularly, to a smoke detector signal light device which when activated will show the location of a door knob to the occupant of a room or, more particularly, to the location of an occupied room through a window to fire or rescue personnel on the outside. 
     Smoke detectors are most commonly operatively connected to an audible alarm to provide a signal of smoke and/or a fire to the occupants of a building. It is also known to operatively connect a light to a smoke alarm. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,148,023 and 4,717,910 disclose smoke detectors that include built-in emergency lights, as well as the usual audible alarm. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,227,191, 4,258,291, 4,489,308 and 5,140,301 all describe smoke alarm-activated lights which illuminate or show the location of a door to the occupant of a building. Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,886,637 discloses a smoke detector built into the upper edge of a door that includes a signal light and an audible alarm. 
     None of the foregoing patents, however, disclose or suggest the use of a smoke alarm and signal light in direct association with a door knob or similar door operator to pinpoint the location thereof to an occupant. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,177,461 describes a window-mounted signal light that can be observed from outside the building that is activated by a smoke detector including an audible alarm housed in a conventional ceiling-mounted unit separate from the lighted signaled device. U.S. Pat. No. 4,612,535 describes an outdoor audible alarm that is activated by a separate indoor smoke detector. U.S. Pat. No. 5,745,040 describes an exterior audible and visible signaling device that is activated by a smoke alarm inside the building. 
     The foregoing prior art, however, does not show or suggest a unitary smoke detector and lighted signal device that can be attached to a window to provide a lighted indication of the presence of a building occupant to fire or rescue personnel on the outside. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with the present invention, a unitary smoke detector and signal light device is attachable to or directly adjacent a door knob or a window of a room to provide a lighted signal showing the location of the door knob or to display through the window to the exterior of the building a signal light indicative of room occupancy. 
     In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, a unitary smoke detector and signal device is particularly adapted to use on in direct association with a manual operator for a door. This device includes a housing that is mounted on the door operator, the housing having mounted therein an interconnected array of components that include a smoke responsive transducer, a replaceable electric power source, a signal light, and an electric circuit device that operatively interconnects the components of the array. The signal light is particularly adapted to provide an occupant of the building with a visual indication of the exact location of the door. 
     In one embodiment, a door knob comprises the housing for the device. The door knob includes a removable cover that provides access to the array of components therein. Preferably, the cover is centered on the outer face of the knob and the signal light is mounted in the cover. 
     In another embodiment, for use of a door operator that includes a cover plate, the housing comprises an annular body having an open interior lined by a radial mounting flange and the flange is dimensioned to be captured behind the cover plate to secure the device in plate. The mounting flange may comprise a continuous annular flange or a plurality of circumferentially spaced tabs. 
     In any of the foregoing embodiments, the array of components may include an audible alarm. For use with a door operator comprising a conventional door knob or latch-type handle, the housing may include an open attachment ring permitting the housing to be removably hung from the door knob. 
     In accordance with another embodiment, the smoke detector and signal device is especially adapted for demountable attachment to either a door knob or to a window of a room. The device includes a housing having mounted therein an interconnected array of components, including a smoke responsive transducer, an electric power source, a signal light, and an electronic circuit that operatively interconnects the array of components. Means are provided for demountably attaching the housing to either of the window for displaying the signal light therethrough or the door knob for lighted signaling of the location thereon. The attaching means preferably comprises a hanger attached to the housing for suspending the device from the door knob. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the housing includes a flat enclosing wall and the hanger comprises a flat hanger strip that extends from and is generally coplanar with the flat enclosing wall. The hanger strip includes an aperture to receive the door knob and may also include a mounting face to which is applied an exposable adhesive surface layer for attachment to a window or other surface. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the interior of a room showing embodiments of the invention on a door knob and on a window. 
     FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevation in detail taken on line  2 — 2  of FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on line  3 — 3  of FIG.  2 . 
     FIG. 4 is a plan view partly in section taken on line  4 — 4  of FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 5 is a sectional detail taken on line  5 — 5  of FIG.  4 . 
     FIG. 6 is a detail of an alternate embodiment taken line  6 — 6  of FIG.  4 . 
     FIG. 7 is a front elevation view of another embodiment of the smoke detector and signal device of the present invention. 
     FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the FIG. 7 device on a door knob. 
     FIG. 9 is a side elevation view of FIG. 7, modified slightly to show an alternate embodiment. 
     FIG. 10 is a front elevation view of another embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken on line  11 — 11  of FIG.  10  and showing in phantom its adaptation mounting on a door knob. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     As shown in FIG. 1, one embodiment of the invention comprises a smoke detector and signal light device built into a door knob  10  to provide a visual signal of the exact location of the door knob when activated by the detection of smoke within the room. In another embodiment, a window mounted detector and signal device is mounted directly on a window  13  and oriented to direct a lighted signal of room occupancy to rescue personnel on the outside. In another embodiment to be described hereinafter, a single unitary smoke detector and lighted signal device can be demountably attached to either a door knob or to a window to provide the respective signaling functions described above. 
     Referring also to FIGS. 2 and 3, in this embodiment the detector and signal device utilizes a door knob  10  for the housing. The knob  10  includes a removable cover  14  in the center of which is mounted a signal light  15 . The interior of the knob  10  houses an array of the other components comprising a detector and signal device, namely, a smoke detector module  16  comprises a conventional smoke responsive transducer, one or more batteries  17 , and, optionally, an audible alarm  18  in the form of a small speaker. A small electronic circuit board operatively interconnects the array of components, including the signal light  15 , such that the detection of smoke in the room will cause the light to be illuminated, thereby providing an exact indication of the location of the door knob  10 . If the optional alarm speaker  18  is included, it is activated simultaneously with the light  15 . 
     In FIGS. 4-6, details of the window mounted detector and signal device  11  are shown. The detector and signal device  11  may be attached to the window casing  21 . Alternately, the housing  22  for the device includes a transparent front wall  23  over which an exposable transparent adhesive layer may be applied such that the device may be attached directly to the window pane  25 . One edge of the housing  22  includes an enclosure  26  for all of the components of the device, except for a lighted signal  27 . The lighted signal is mounted on a housing back wall  28  and preferably includes an array of LEDs  30  or other low power lights. All of the remaining components, including a smoke transducer, batteries, circuit device, and audible alarm (if used) are contained in the small enclosure  26 . The LEDs  30  are electrically connected to the batteries and circuit device with suitable wiring contained in the back wall  28 . 
     The lighted signal  27  which is visible outside the building through the transparent front wall  23  and window pane  25  may be in the form of a displayed message. As shown in FIG. 5, the message provided by the lighted signal  27  may be an indication that a “child” is present in the room. Alternately, as shown in FIG. 6, the lighted signal  27  may be in the form of a “help” signal. The combination of the interior door knob-mounted device  10  and the window mounted device  11  provides assistance to the occupant of the room to directly locate the exit door  12  and to fire or rescue personnel on the outside precisely to locate the window  13  of the room occupied by a particular person, in particular, a child. 
     FIGS. 7-9 show another embodiment of the invention in the form of a dual use detector and signal device  31  which may be hung on a door knob, suspended from the window casing  21 , or modified slightly to be adhesively attached directly to the window pane  25 . The detector and signal device  31  includes a housing for all of the components, including a smoke responsive transducer  33 , a signal light  34 , an audible alarm  35 , a battery  36  and a circuit device  37  interconnecting the array of components. The battery  36  may be enclosed in a removable cover  38  attached to the remainder of the housing  32  with a simple resilient connection  40  of the type well known in the art. Thus signal light  34  protrudes through or is visible through the front wall  41  of the housing  32 . The rear wall  42  of the housing includes a planar upper extension  43  provided with an aperture  44  large enough to fit over the door knob so the device  31  may be easily hung thereon. 
     A slightly modified version of the embodiment is shown in dashed lines in FIG.  9 . The upper extension  43  from the rear wall  42  may be replaced with an alternate upper extension  45  formed integrally with the front wall  41 . The alternate extension surface  45  may be provided with an aperture  46  for hanging the unit on a door knob and, in addition, is provided on its front face with a peel-off paper layer  47  beneath which is an exposable adhesive layer  48  to accommodate direct attachment of the device  31  to a window pane  25 . The signal light  34  is thus visible through the window to the outside of the dwelling and an optional audible alarm  35  provides a smoke signal to the occupant inside. 
     In FIGS. 10 and 11, there is shown compact smoke detector and signal device  50  that is particularly suitable for mounting on a door knob  51  where it is not suitable to use the interior of the knob as in the device  10  of FIGS. 2 and 3. If the door knob is used to house the components of a lock set or other locking device, or for esthetic reasons the door knob cannot be replaced, the device  50  provides an alternate means of mounting and a display that is somewhat less intrusive than the previously described embodiments. 
     The detector and signal device  50  includes a circular housing  52  within which an array of operating components such as those described with respect to the previous embodiments is housed. The interior of the circular housing  52  is open and defined by a thin mounting flange  53 . The flange may be continuous or, as shown in FIG. 10, may comprise a circumferential array of truncated sectors  54 . The cover plate  55  associated with the door knob  51  is loosened and the flange  53  is inserted behind the cover plate, after which the cover plate may be again secured in position. The open slots  56  between the sectors  54  provide flexibility to allow the flange to be easily positioned and may also provide clearance for screws or other fasteners associated with the cover plate  55 . 
     The outer peripheral edge of the housing  52  includes an annular signal light  57  that is preferably in the form of a light pipe  58  providing a solid ring of light around a door knob  51  when the smoke detector is activated. As with the other embodiments of the invention described herein, the audible alarm may be eliminated in which case an audible alarm signal to the room occupant would be provided by another device, such as a conventional ceiling or wall mounted smoke detector.