Emergency exit indicators

摘要

A system for identifying emergency exits in a building includes a strobe light which is tethered at an elevated location with respect to the floor of the building. The strobe light is normally held at the elevated position by an electromagnet, which electromagnet is kept energized as long as a smoke detector connected thereto does not sense a dangerous level of smoke. As soon as the smoke detector detects smoke above a certain threshold level, the electromagnet is deenergized and the strobe light drops to a position suspended just above the floor. The strobe light includes its own battery source which is connected to the strobe light by a switch which closes when the strobe light is dropped. An electric motor is provided to rewind the tether when the smoke detector no longer indicates an emergency situation. By tethering the strobe light, the light can be dropped beneath the smoke level in the building, allowing people crawling along the floor to determine the location of emergency exits.