Multi-layer fire curtain with segmented seams
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fire curtains made of fabric often fail endurance tests required for certification due to inadequate fire resistance, necessitating a more effective fire and smoke blocking solution for building openings.
Innovation Solution
A multi-layer rolling fire curtain assembly featuring a rotatable curtain roller with a fire-resistant inner and outer textile layer connected by horizontal seams, optionally including a non-textile fire retardant layer sandwiched between, and designed for ventilation at the edges to prevent combustion, guided by channels for deployment and retraction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single-layer fabric curtain is used, then the device complexity is low, but the fire resistance and endurance test performance are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The curtain is divided into multiple independent layers (inner curtain layer and outer curtain layer) that can be separately manufactured and tested. Each layer can be optimized for specific fire resistance requirements, and the segmented structure allows the curtain to better withstand fire endurance tests by distributing thermal and mechanical stresses across multiple layers rather than a single layer.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs composite material construction by combining different fabric layers with potentially different material properties. The inner and outer curtain layers can be made from different fire-resistant materials, creating a composite structure that leverages the strengths of each material to achieve superior fire resistance and endurance test performance compared to a single-material curtain.
2Reliability
If the curtain layers are completely sealed, then the fire barrier is continuous, but oxygen buildup between layers promotes combustion
Solution Approach 1:
The curtain incorporates localized venting features at specific positions rather than complete sealing or complete opening. The venting allows controlled oxygen release at strategic locations while maintaining the overall fire barrier integrity. This local quality approach prevents oxygen buildup and combustion promotion while preserving the continuous fire blocking capability of the curtain layers.
Data Source
AI summary
A multi-layer rolling fire curtain assembly includes: a rotatable curtain roller positionable about a structure opening; a multi-layer fire curtain wrappable about the curtain roller and to be deployable from the curtain roller between an extended position and an open position, the fire curtain having a first end fixed to the curtain roller, and a free end, the free end being movable between a retracted position and an extended position. The fire curtain has: a fire resistant inner curtain layer arranged closer to the curtain roller, and a fire resistant outer curtain layer arranged opposite the inner layer. The inner and outer layers are affixed to one another by horizontally oriented connection seams, to connect the inner and outer layers to each other, the connection seams being configured so that the outer and inner layers are spaced apart by a plurality of baggy areas formed between adjacent connection seams.