September 20, 2006—axonX LLC, a Sparks, Md.-based company, plans to put an end to ravaging fires by teaming with the University of Maryland to validate its intelligent video-camera system, which can spot a small fire in less than five seconds.
axonX’s SigniFire system can detect fire, smoke and intrusion in structures such as warehouses, energy plants, art galleries and homes. The camera assesses minute pixel changes within its three dimensional field of view—occasionally using reflections to get around large objects blocking the line of sight—to detect fire faster and more accurately than any currently available commercial product, says the company.
“It’s the only video detection system that recognizes the big three dangers: smoke, fire and intrusion,” said George Privalov, chief technology officer and founder. “It eliminates most nuisance alarms because it actually sees the fireball and corona of a blaze. The camera knows it’s a fire rather than a light or hot surface.”
The company came to the University of Maryland to work with Jim Milke, associate chair and professor of the department of fire protection engineering, through a Maryland Industrial Partnerships (MIPS) project. This collaboration will help axonX get classified as a life-saving device by Underwriters Laboratories, as well as by Factory Mutual, an insurance company that tests fire protection equipment.
The National Fire Protection Association recently approved video surveillance systems as an effective way to detect fire, marking a significant change to its detector code.
Although axonX has yet to be approved by UL and FM, various customers are already installing SigniFire’s general eight-camera system, which costs around $20,000—half as much as some of their competitors. The system is scalable to fit any size and/or shape of building, says the company.
For more information, see the Web site.
