Patent ID: 7999666

Claim:
In a fire alarm system comprising a fire alarm control panel, a fire alarm network connected to the fire alarm control panel, an emergency exit lighting unit in communication with the fire alarm network, the emergency exit lighting unit comprising a lamp for providing illumination of an exit and/or illumination of the exit route, a backup battery, a controller that connects the backup battery to the lamp upon detection of loss of main power, and a network interface which interfaces with and receives communications from the fire alarm control panel via the fire alarm network, the emergency lighting unit having a unique identifier with respect to the fire alarm network, a method for testing the emergency exit lighting unit, comprising: receiving, by the emergency lighting unit, a communication sent from the fire alarm control panel related to state information of the emergency lighting unit; accessing, by the emergency lighting unit, the state information for at least one aspect related to the emergency lighting unit; and sending, by the emergency lighting unit, at least a part of the state information to the fire alarm control panel.