A fire alarm system is an alarm that receives signals from different
fire alarms, assesses these and then triggers the appropriate action. A wide range of different
technologies can be used for fire detection. The most common alarms are smoke and temperature
detectors.
The main reason behind the use of fire alarm systems is to detect the outbreak of fire at a very
early stage, even without human presence, and therefore prompt the appropriate steps to be
taken. After a fire has been detected, an acoustic or visual warning signal (siren and flashing
lights) is emitted. Depending on the system design, the fire brigade can also be alerted or an
automatic extinguishing system can be activated.
