EN-60849EMERGENCY PURPOSES Voice Alarm SYSTEMS.NORM DESCRIPTION

EN-60849ObjectPA systems used to alarm in emergency situations.

Main performances.A sound system for emergency purposes shall permit the broadcasting of intelligible information of measures to be taken for the protection of lives within one or more specified areas.APLICATION

FDS TermsAlarma signal, or condition, warning of an emergencye.g.: evacuation adviceWarningimportant notice concerning any change of status which demands attention or activity e.g. hint that an emergency may happenCritical Signal Pathall components and interconnections between every emergency broadcast initiation point and the input terminals on, or within, each loudspeaker enclosure.

EN-60849DEFINITIONS

Requirements on equipmentsConcerning the manufacturer EN-60849

Continuous Availability [4.1b]The PA system shall be available all times Availability within 10 seconds after supplying power to the system [4.1c]primary or secondary power Maximum 3 Seconds from initiation until first emergency broadcast [4.1d]including reaction time of the detection system

EN-60849FUNCTIONS AVAILABILITY

FDS: Fire Detection SystemHighest Priority for Alarming [4.1a]disabling all other (general) PA functionsEN-60849ALARMING PRIORITY

Manual Alarming/Warning/Restoration> Automatic Alarming (evacuation)> Automatic Warning> no emergency: operational messages (e.g. for system check)EN-60849 EMERGENCY PRIORITIES [4.3]

If the voice alarm system is capable of operation in fully automatic mode, a manual intervention shall always be possible: [4.3.2]starting and stopping of prerecorded alarm messages [4.3.2a]selection of appropriate prerecorded alarm messages [4.3.2b]when using specific emergency messages, indication of which message and their relation to zones must be displayed [5.2.d]paging by using the emergency microphone (if any) [4.3.2d]selection of zones for prerecorded message or paging [4.3.2c]

EN-60849MANUAL INTERVENTION

A clear indication shall automatically be given at the designated control locations of: [5.2](the designated control location can be the firemans microphone)system availability [5.2 a]power supply availability [5.2 b]any fault condition [5.2 c]systems with several zones: current message broadcast into which zones: Alert, Evacuation, paging

EN-60849Automatic Status Indication

Indication of Failures [5.3]Failures must be indicated automatically at an designated place (e.g. main system)The failure shall be indicated within 100 seconds after occurance. The failure shall be indicated acoustically and visually.A receipt button and a reset button must be available.EN-60849Failure Indication (1)

Indication [5.3]Visual and acoustic indicationtone of 0.5 seconds duration, min. once within 5 secondspermanent or flashing visual indicator Manual reception by personaltone disappearsvisual indicator remains / changes to permanent on Reset of failure indication after failure recoveryvisual indicator extinguishes automatically - or -visual indicator extinguishes after manual resetvisual indicator shall extinguish after failure recovery !Acoustic tone must start again when other failure detectedEN-60849Failure Indication (2)

An automatic Surveillance must indicate each detected failureThe surveillance system testsComponents of the critical signal path (sources, amplifiers, cables etc.) the power supplyprimary supply [5.3a]secondary supply [5.3b]battery charger [5.3c]failure of protection circuits which may prevent the an emergency broadcaste.g. fuse, circuit breaker, isolator [5.3d]control circuits (processor etc.)EN-60849Surveillance (1)

Failure of elements of the critical signal pathfailure of microphone [5.3e](voice coil, pre-amplifier, wiring)failure of the critical signal path through amplifiers [5.3f]missing of amplifiers or critical modules [5.3g]failure of standby amplifier [5.3h]failure of tone generator or message memory [5.3i]failure of speaker circuits [5.3j] (short circuit, break) failure of connection between decentralised systems [5.3 o]failure of connection between PA system and emergency detection systemusually this surveillance is done by the emergency detection system [5.5] EN-60849Surveillance (2)

Microphone monitoring methods

Electrical monitoring :Disadvantage: conversion from sound to voltage can not be monitored, e.g. when the diaphragm is damaged

Acoustic monitoringa sound generator sends an acoustic signal to the capsulethe acoustic and electric function of the capsule is monitored very safe method !EN-60849Monitoring of the Microphone

advantage:star wiring possible.disadvantage:speakers must be modified or special speakers must be used; not suitable for existing speaker circuitsMethods of Speaker Circuit Surveillance(remind that the critical signal path ends at the speakers connector)1. Monitoring with DC currentEN-60849Monitoring Speaker Circuits (1)

Advantage:connection of different 100 volts speakers possible; star wiring possible; expansion of old systems possibleDisadvantage:Restriction when many speakers are connected on a line: a line break causing a few speakers to be cut off can not be detected because practically only high impedance deviation can be detected correctly (the speakers impedance can become 30% higher when the voice coil is hot !)2. Impedance Monitoring (used often)EN-60849Monitoring Speaker Circuits (2)Impe- dance measuring

3. Loop BackAdvantage:connection of different 100 volts speakers possible; very safe methodDisadvantage: star wiring not possible or difficult (line must be installed from speaker to speaker); expansion of old systems complicated when star wiring was used, line back necessaryEN-60849Monitoring Speaker Circuits (3)Pilot tone detector

4. Back Signal on Same LineAdvantage:connection of different 100 volts speakers possible, no line back necessary; very safe methodDisadvantage:star wiring not possible (line must be installed from speaker to speaker); expansion of old systems complicated when star wiring was used; practical problem: installation site of the end of line unit often not in documents (can not be found)EN-60849Monitoring Speaker Circuits (4)

Safety Against External InfluencePre-recorded messages and eventually attention-drawing signalsmust be stored in a non-volatile memory (solid state memory, no mechanical devices) [4.2i]availability must be monitored continuouslyexternal sources shall not be able to corrupt or derange the store or its contentsEN-60849Evacuation Message Memory

Requirements On The InstallationConcerning the InstallerEN-60849

Interface With Emergency Detection System [5.5]Continuous MonitoringThe communication link between the emergency detection system and the sound system is normally monitored by the emergency detection systemNotifications to the Emergency Detection SystemThe sound system must transfer minimum one fault information (any failure) to the emergency detection systemEN-60849

EN-60849Security FunctionsRedundant FacilitiesKeeping the Power [4.1m]an emergency power supply must be installed alwaysKeeping the Broadcast [4.1g]Failure of a single amplifier or loudspeaker circuit shall not result in total loss of coverage in the loudspeaker area served. architecture of the speaker circuitconfiguration power amplifiersException: regional directives for small buildings

EN-60849Emergency Power SupplyBatterys Capacity [5.6]Loss of AC mains at evacuation:double evacuation timeminimum 30 minutes for emergency modeLoss of AC mains without evacuation:minimum 24 hours (normal operation)When a building is not used for a longer period (e.g. weekend), then the system must be capable to operate the emergency mode for minimum 30 minutes after re-occupation of the building (e.g. 72 hours standby plus 30 minutes emergency mode).Refer to British Standard BS5839: part 8, for battery capacity calculation.

EN-60849A/B-wiring with 2 amplifiersA/B-wiring with standby amplifierKeeping of Broadcast (1)Electric Solution: A/B-WiringTwo-Line SystemIn case of failure of one line, the other line still serves the remaining speakers

EN-60849Example: corridorExample: wide areaAcoustic Solution:Connection of speakers by turns on the lines A and B in each directionIn case of a lines failure, the speaker area keeps served adequate (small gaps of coverage only)Keeping of Broadcast (2)

EN-60849Divided Emergency Speaker ZonesEmergency Speaker Zones [4.1k]Division into areas depending on evacuation methodresponsible: authoritiesCriterias for Division [4.1l]1) neighbour zones shall not disturb2) maximum one loudspeaker zone per emergency detection zoneresponsible: authorities, planer.

EN-60849z.B. 100 dBAz.B. 90 dBASound Pressure Level -1-Attention-Drawing Signals [Annex C]minimum: 65 dBA, in rest areas: 75 dBA6 - 20 dBA above background noisemaximum: 120 dBAthe sound pressure levels of all relevant areas must be confirmed and being documented [7.2 a]

EN-60849Messages

The standard does not write specific value for the sound pressure level of the reports. Instead it prescribes a specific value of the intelligibility .

Sound Pressure Level -2-

EN-60849IntelligibilityIntelligibility of MessagesThe Intelligibility of messages must be equal or higher than 0.7 CIS (common intelligibility scale; STI: 0,5) [5.1]This value must be obtained in each area [5.1]In a difficult acoustic environment, it is preferable to carry out an acoustical simulationMeasuring and Documentation of IntelligibilityConfirmation of intelligibility must be documented [7.2 a]Application of acknowledged with restrictions [Anhang A]Correlation curves to CIS in [Annex B]A specialised company may measure the intelligibility

EN-60849Alarm Signals -1-Attention-Drawing Signalminimum one suitable attention-drawing signal before message (refer to EN 457) [4.1 e]Distinguishable attention-drawing signals at different emergency cases [4.1 h]Attention-Drawing Signals and Messages [4.1 h]attention-drawing signal before message, 4-10 secondsduration of attention-drawing signal and messages until change or end of evacuationmax. 30 seconds between different messagespauses > 10 seconds: attention-drawing signal

EN-60849Pre-recorded messagesAll messages must be clear, short and pre-planned.

Lenguage Buyer should specify the used language(s).

Alarm Signals -2-

EN-60849Documentation -1-Operation Manual [7.1]must be quickly available (preferable at each operation place)Contents: practical operation of the systemaction to be taken in case of system failurePerformancegraphically if possiblein preferred languagebound document (copy)

EN-60849System Documentation [7.2a]To be kept by User or Maintenance CompanyContents:locations of each part of the devicesmeasuring results of the systemImpedance of each speaker circuitset values (when adjustable, e.g. volume)sound pressure level(s)intelligibilityDocumentation -2-

EN-60849Maintenance Instructions [7.3.2]To be kept by User or Maintenance CompanyContents:Maintenance procedures (order of works)Maintenance intervalsParts for maintenance, spare parts, special toolsSupplierseventually test certificatesDocumentation -3-

EN-60849Requirements on the OperationConcerns the user

EN-60849Log Book [7.2b]Responsible person must take care on itContents: details of all emergency casesdetails of tests and routine checksdetails of occurred failures and the repairDocumentation -4-

EN-60849Security of OperationMaintenance [7.3.1]should be done twice a year (maintenance and test)to be carried out by competent personResponsible person [4.2]nominated by owneris responsible for maintenancemust be trainedmanages the log book