Fire robots in modern automatic fire extinguishing technologies.

Fire robots in modern automatic fire extinguishing technologies.

Fire robots in modern automatic fire extinguishing technologies

The official date of the creation of the first fire robot in our country is considered to be June 18, 1984. On this day, the first fire robot, created by specialists from Karelia, went on permanent duty to protect the monuments of wooden architecture on Kizhi Island – TASS report “Robot in Kizhi” [Kizhi, 18, TASS], newspaper “Pravda”, June 19, 1984 (Fig. 1). This was written about in detail in the magazines “Soviet Union”, No. 12, 1984, “Science in the USSR”, No. 2, 1985 and in other periodicals.

When the Chernobyl disaster occurred, the first fire robot and two similar products were sent to Chernobyl by telegram from the USSR Minister of Internal Affairs A.V. Vlasov. There they cleared a significant part of the roof at the 70 m mark from radioactive debris and saved the health of many chemical troops soldiers who had to do this work manually.

The Chernobyl NPP Management Review noted the «deep promise» of the technical solutions. Particularly relevant for the NPP from the bitter experience of the Chernobyl NPP was the need to literally replace firefighters in hazardous areas. After all, all the firefighters who protected the Chernobyl NPP turbine hall died from radiation. The State Committee for Atomic Energy made a decision to create robotic firefighting complexes to protect the turbine halls of NPPs. And such a complex was created at the Leningrad NPP. These complexes allow, in the event of a fire in conditions of smoke and radiation, to irrigate the roof trusses of the turbine hall according to pre-set programs, preventing the collapse of structures.

Fire robots began to be actively used in the 2000s. In our country, the development, creation and implementation of fire robots are carried out by the Federal State Institution VNIIPO EMERCOM of Russia, NPO Engineering Center for Fire Robotics «FER» (which includes the Fire Robot Plant), Bauman Moscow State Technical University, and the University of Integrated Safety Systems. Today, fire robots are widely used in many areas of industry and economic activity.

Fire robots are automatic fire extinguishing systems (AFS), considered one of the most reliable means of fighting fires: they are activated by objective indicators and ensure prompt extinguishing of the source of fire at its initial stage without human intervention.

It should be noted that the list of objects subject to protection by AUP is regulated by NPB 110*03 and industry regulatory documents. The presence of automatic fire extinguishing systems in fire safety systems of objects is also a requirement of insurance companies to reduce the degree of risk. The scope of application of automatic fire extinguishing systems has significantly increased with the advent of AUP on
based on serially produced robotic fire-fighting systems (RFCS), providing wide technical capabilities, allowing their use where traditional sprinkler and deluge AUP are ineffective or unacceptable. These are high-span buildings and structures: hangars
for aircraft, machine rooms of thermal power plants and nuclear power plants (Fig. 2), sports and exhibition complexes with people, warehouses for various purposes. These are also outdoor fire-hazardous facilities: fuel and lubricant tank farms, loading and unloading racks, helipads, transformer substations.

Fig. 1. Irrigation with a spray jet. Transfiguration Church, Kizhi Island	Fig. 2. Fire robots protecting the machine rooms of the thermal power plant, Petrozavodsk

Fire robots form the basis of robotic fire-fighting systems. Among the known types of fire robots, including android and mobile ones, the most widely used in practice are stationary fire robots based on monitor nozzles (Fig. 3, 4).

Fig. 3. Software-controlled fire robot with a flow rate of 20 l/s	Fig. 4. Software-controlled fire robot with IR scanner and TV camera, with a flow rate of 40 l/s.

Technical requirements for fire robots of this type are presented in GOST R 53326*2009, according to which a fire robot is an automatic device that manipulates a fire nozzle in a spherical coordinate system, made on the basis of a stationary monitor nozzle with remote control with a fixed or mobile installation.

The fire robot includes a fire detection device and a software control device. It is designed to extinguish and localize fires or cool technological equipment and building structures. In doing this work, the fire robot replaces a fireman in life-threatening areas.

One of the valuable qualities of fire robots is the ability to protect a fairly large area — 5 * 15 thousand m2 with a flow rate of 20 * 60 l/s, respectively. Water supply is carried out only through the main network. It is important that the targeted delivery of water and foam is carried out by air throughout the protected area directly to the source of fire, and not to the estimated area determined by the project once and for all. At the same time, the required irrigation intensity is maintained due to the metered supply, respectively, of the thermal power of the source of fire.

Fire robots can be equipped with IR scanners for automatic fire detection and TV cameras for video monitoring. Their sensitivity allows detecting a fire source with an area of ​​0.1 m2 within the protected zone, and the response time is a matter of seconds, during which the size of the fire is determined in a three-dimensional coordinate system. Automatic fire extinguishing systems — robotic fire fighting complexes (AFRC) — are formed on the basis of fire robots connected by an RS*485 bus with network controllers and control devices. The AFRC diagram is in Figure 5.

Fig. 5. Scheme of AUP RPK

All information about fire extinguishing is recorded by video cameras and an electronic protocol with registration of the sequence of actions. During duty hours, the system is in self-test mode: if necessary, it itself reports the need for correction of the system, which keeps it in constant readiness.

For the convenience of using these installations in construction, standard design solutions have been developed: the use of the AUP RPK in fire protection of high-span structures — sports complexes and aircraft hangars.

Thus, the working project of the AUP RPK for multifunctional air-supported structures with an area of ​​1000, 3000 and 7000 m2, respectively, recommended by the Federal State Institution VNIIPO EMERCOM of Russia as standard projects, was used for a universal sports complex in Novogorsk, Moscow Region (Fig. 6). The universal sports hall of this complex is an air-supported structure that completely covers the sports core and rests on the stylobate of the building with a height of 3.9 m.

The sports core of the complex with dimensions of 90×64 m in plan includes 2 halls separated by a transformable partition. Hall No. 1 is an ice arena (64 x 38 m) and Hall No. 2 is a universal sports hall (64 x 52 m). Maximum height of the subfloor space is 26.6 m.

Fig. 6. Universal sports complex. Scheme of installation of fire robots on the site plan	Fig. 8. Cinema and concert hall. Scheme of installation of fire robots on the site plan

The task of the AUP RPK was to ensure fire extinguishing of the halls and, if necessary, cooling of the dome structures. At the same time, all fire automatic equipment, including communications, should be mounted on the stylobate of the building, i.e. no higher than 3.9 m, and should not be connected to the flexible shell of the dome, starting from the stylobate.

To solve this problem, 2 PR*LSD*S40(25)U*IK robots were installed on the stylobate wall along the perimeter of the hall in hall No. 1 and 4 PR*LSD*S40(25)U*IK robots in hall No. 2.

When placing robots on objects with air-supported structures, the possibility of sagging of the shell should be taken into account and the possibility of its damage should be excluded when moving the barrel in working mode.

The total consumption during simultaneous operation of two robots is 50 l/s. The addressable flame detectors «Ladoga PP*A» with the receiving station «Ladoga*A» are adopted as fire detection devices that initiate the launch of the AUP RPK. Information about the triggering of the detectors is transmitted to the device for interfacing with the object (USO) via the interface interfacing unit. Before the start of the extinguishing process, the fire robots determine the exact coordinates of the fire source and its area in a three-dimensional coordinate system based on the address of the zone determined by the fire flame detectors. A typical scheme for protecting an object with fire robots is shown in Figure 7.

Fig. 7. Typical scheme of protection of the object by fire robots (PR)

A similar installation with the use of AUP RPK is equipped: Palace of Athletics in Gomel in the Republic of Belarus
(fire robots PR*LSD*S50U*IK — 8 units, year of installation — 2005), sports complex in Neryungri (fire robots PR*LSD*S40U*IK — 6 units, year of manufacture — 2007), universal sports complex in Yaroslavl (fire robots PR*LSD*S20U*IK*TV — 8 units, year of installation — 2008), sports complex «Orenburg» in Orenburg (fire robots PR*LSD*S20U*IK — 4 units, year of installation — 2007), Sports Palace of Trade Unions «Nagorny» in Nizhny Novgorod (fire robots PR*LSD*S20U — 4 units, year of installation — 2007).

Let us consider the application of the AUP RPK for fire protection of entertainment facilities using the example of the concert hall of the exhibition pavilion No. 3 «Crocus Expo», for which special technical conditions for fire 68 Safety algorithm (Fig. 8) were developed. In accordance with these conditions, the concert hall for 6000 seats is allocated as a separate fire compartment, the stage box is protected by traditional water fire extinguishing systems, and the auditorium with a balcony is equipped with the AUP RPK. The requirement for irrigation of each point of the auditorium with two streams in case of fire is met by only four fire robots PR * LSD * S40U * IK * TV. The total flow rate with the simultaneous operation of two robots is 80 l/s.

Open installation of fire robots is not always aesthetically justified, in addition, due to free access, the equipment can be put out of order. At this facility, at the request of the customer, fire robots are installed in niches in the wall behind decorative panels. This solution allows the use of barrel equipment at facilities with increased design requirements. A special feature of fire robots is that they have an additional degree of mobility. In the «Alarm» mode, the robots move out of the niche, go to a combat position, carry out monitoring, find the source of the fire, and carry out automatic fire extinguishing. In the standby mode, the fire robots move into the niche, closing the opening behind them. Such systems should find wide application for fire protection of sports and entertainment complexes and other places of mass presence of people.

The use of the AUP RPK for the protection of aircraft hangars will be considered using the example of a mounted installation in an aircraft hangar of Gazprom's Ostafyevo base airport, the design of which was carried out according to special technical conditions (Fig. 9).

Fig. 9. Aircraft hangar. Installation diagram of fire robots on the facility plan

The AUP RPK includes 12 fire robots PR*LSD*S40UE*IK with ejector devices and IR*scanners, each of which can supply both foam solution and water.

The purpose of the installation is to extinguish fires in automatic, automated, remote modes and cool load-bearing building structures and aircraft located near the source of the fire, in remote mode.

Given the specifics of the protected facility, the spill of undischarged aviation fuel residue is taken as the main fire load.

A 3* percent solution of fluorinated foaming agent PO*RZF is used as a fire extinguishing agent. The volume of foaming agent is calculated based on the operating time of the foam fire extinguishing system, 2*fold reserve and filling of the foaming agent supply network.

The total stock of foam concentrate is stored in stainless steel tanks with a capacity of 200 l, mounted on the walls of the hangar above the second tier of fire robots and connected by a pipeline made of brass pipes. This system of communicating vessels allows for significant savings in foam concentrate.

The foam concentrate is dispensed by ejector devices included in the PR. The foam concentrate is supplied to the ejector devices of the fire robots through solenoid valves with an electric drive.

The feed water supply of the AUP RPK is provided as a ring, water-filled (up to the butterfly valves), the pressure in the standby mode is maintained by an automatic water feeder installed in the fire extinguishing pump station.

The estimated flow rate of the PR is 20 l/s. The pressure before their butterfly valves is at least 0.65 MPa.
The total flow rate of the installation, based on the operation of 2*x PR for extinguishing and 2*x PR for cooling, is 80 l/s.
The operating time of the foam fire extinguishing installation for premises of category B1 in terms of fire hazard is taken
15 minutes. 69 Safety Algorithm No. 3 2010

The operating time of the water cooling system consists of the operating time of the foam fire extinguishing system and additional time for smoke settling. The automatic fire alarm system initiating the launch of the AUP RPK is implemented using addressable flame detectors «Ladoga PPA».

To ensure the ability to quickly locate and extinguish a fire throughout the entire hangar area, including under the aircraft fuselage, fire robots and flame detectors are placed on 2 levels.

The load-bearing structures are monitored for overheating using the Protectowire thermal cable. The operating principle of the fire extinguishing system: when the Ladoga PPA flame detectors are triggered, the signals are sent to the RPK control equipment via the interface coupling unit. The RPK AUP specifies the coordinates of the fire source in three-dimensional space using the IR*scanners of the fire robots. After determining the coordinates of the fire source, the RPK AUP selects the robots that will extinguish the fire and gives the command to open their butterfly valves and the corresponding solenoid valves
to supply foam concentrate. In automatic mode, fire extinguishing begins after a time delay that ensures the evacuation of people from the fire zone, in automated mode — after the operator's standard actions.

During the process of extinguishing the fire source, the elevation angle of the PR is adjusted in order to take into account the ballistics of the jet in
depending on the pressure at the PR outlet. During fire extinguishing, the fire source search program for adjacent zones continues to operate, automatically monitoring the possibility of fire spreading. When the fire coordinates change, the fire extinguishing program is automatically adjusted. The fire extinguishing program automatically stops after a calculated time interval, and the fire source search program continues throughout the protected zone.

The fire source search program is periodically repeated if no fire source is detected and can only be switched off by the operator.

The existing television surveillance system at the facility provides the operator, if necessary, with the ability to adjust the extinguishing process using remote controls.

The operating principle of the cooling unit: when a signal is received about overheating of the supporting building structures, the operator cools the building structures by supplying water using no more than 2* robots.

Fire robots have been mass-produced in Russia for over 10 years, including at the Fire Robot Plant, which is certified in the ISO 9001:2000 international quality standard system. Fire robots are also certified in the fire safety standards system and GOST R, and meet the requirements of the maritime register and explosion protection for the conditions of the objects of application.

The developed technical solutions for fire extinguishing technology using fire robots AUP RPK are Russian know-how. The novelty of the technical solutions is confirmed by patents2.

In Russia and the CIS, more than 30 facilities are equipped with fire robots. These include aircraft hangars at Sheremetyevo-1 (2 hangars, a 3rd is planned), Ostafyevo (Gazprom's base airport), Vnukovo (VIPangar); a helipad in Igarka, a tank farm and a loading/unloading rack of TNK*BP in Petrozavodsk, a cinema and concert hall of the Crocus Exhibition Complex in Moscow, sports complexes (listed above), etc.

At present, fundamentally new developments are being carried out that are capable of coping with technical problems that were previously unsolvable, raising the level of fire safety above known world standards, significantly reducing fire damage, saving water, electricity, and capital costs.

Such equipment is necessary in every city, at every fire-hazardous facility. The main advantage of fire robots is a full-process fire extinguishing system: detection of a fire at an early stage, determination of coordinates and area of ​​the fire in a three-dimensional coordinate system, precise supply of extinguishing agent with high intensity by air and rapid extinguishing according to an optimized program, termination of extinguishing in the absence of signs of combustion, repeated extinguishing when a fire appears. We are confident that it is precisely this kind of automatic fire extinguishing equipment that should replace the currently used sprinkler and deluge systems with thousands of point sprinklers, with many hours of standard extinguishing where there is no longer a fire, and which usually ends with a flood, after which it is necessary to deal with the consequences of fire extinguishing.

The software of fire robots is constantly being improved. Its development is self-testing in standby mode, so that in the «Alarm» mode the system is reliably in full combat readiness.

In our age of computer technology, priority should be given to intelligent systems that respond to real developments, provide self-regulation functions and are flexibly reprogrammable.

The fire extinguishing efficiency of fire robots is also being improved. It is proposed to use ultrasound to form a two-component spray of water: with large particles of 100*400 microns, possessing high energy, used for the flight range, and the smallest particles formed during cavitation at the transition of the flow from low to high speed, in steam bubbles, where water disintegrates into molecules when boiling (the size of a water molecule is up to 0.1 nm). These smallest particles have a high efficiency of fire extinguishing associated with a significant volume absorption of thermal energy, due to the multiple increase in the contact surface of water.

And this is already nanotechnology. And here is its own know-how. For tunnels, where the consequences of road accidents are especially significant, it is proposed to use mobile robots, quickly moving along a monorail on bolides and effectively operating right at the scene of the accident.

Where there are problems with water, the use of robotic firefighting systems with nitrogen-water fire extinguishing is especially effective. After all, air is everywhere, and it contains 78% nitrogen — an inert gas used in fire extinguishing. Nitrogen generators are now widely used. A stream of nitrogen, «reinforced» by ejected sprayed water, creates an increased concentration of nitrogen locally at the site of the fire. When the oxygen in the air decreases to 10%, the combustion stops.

Robotic fire-fighting and security systems using dual-purpose robots both extinguish fires and protect the facility from unauthorized access, using hydromechanical action on a moving object (Fig. 10).

The use of such systems is especially relevant on long-distance vessels, where such robots, connected to the vessel's fire pipeline, equipped with television surveillance and telecontrol systems, can be used as a non-lethal weapon to combat pirates (Fig. 11).

In conclusion, I would like to note that fire robotics is the basis of breakthrough technologies that will allow us to respond to the challenges of the elements and solve fire safety problems with the greatest efficiency in the 21st century.

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2Patent for invention No. 2319530 dated 03/20/2008 «Robotized fire complex»; patent for invention No. 2128536 dated 01/22/1997 «Robotized fire extinguishing system».

Yu. Gorban
CEO, Chief Designer
CJSC «Engineering Center of Fire Robotics «FER» —
collective member of the National Academy of Fire Safety Sciences,
E. Sinelnikova
Deputy Head of Department, PhD (Federal State Institution VNIIPO EMERCOM of Russia)