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Timber construction and fire safety are two terms which often lead to discussions, especially if it concerns multi-storey timber buildings. The scientific investigations presented here demonstrate the extent to which the use of a timber facade provides sufficient fire safety for people and the environment. Research work on prefabricated timber frame facade systems is carried out at the Department of Timber Construction at University of Innsbruck. The investigations are performed in three steps. Step 1: Typical fire exposure of buildings, building classes, requirements of high-rise buildings (>22 m fire escape level) and the properties of the materials in question are investigated. Special attention is given to the use of sustainable and ecological materials. Step 2: Performing reaction to fire tests and fire resistance tests with various materials and constructions which are included in classification reports. For this facade system also a connector system and a specific joint design for easy mounting was developed in a PhD thesis. Step 3: This facade element is tested for its suitability for its use in high-rise buildings. In fire tests is shown that the wooden substructure in the facade does not contribute the fire during a certain time. So the ban of inflammable materials in high-rise buildings could be mitigated. The scientific results show that the use of timber in prefabricated facade elements can meet the required criteria.

Dış kaçış merdivenlerinde erişime ve kullanıma yönelik sorunların var olması ve sürekliliği nedeniyle binalarda yangın güvenliği açısından tehlikeli durumlar söz konusudur. Bu çalışmanın amacı, dış kaçış merdivenlerindeki tehlike kaynaklarının ortadan kaldırılması ya da azaltılması ve bu kaynakların kullanıcılar üzerinde oluşturabileceği zararların önlenmesidir. Çalışmada, mevcut binalarda bulunan dış kaçış merdivenlerindeki tehlikelerin önlenmesine yönelik yapılacak düzenlemelerde, hangi tehlike kaynaklarının dikkate alınması gerektiğini tespit etmek ve çözüm üretmek amacıyla yeni bir risk analizi modeli önerilmiştir. Bu model, İstanbul’un 10 ilçesinde yapılan alan çalışmasıyla sınanmış ve dış kaçış merdivenlerindeki risklerin yüksek olduğu belirlenmiştir. Elde edilen sonuçlar, önerilen modelin dış kaçış merdivenlerinde var olan tehlike kaynaklarının, bina sayısı ve tehlike düzeyi dikkate alınarak derecelendirilmesinde ve risklerin analiz edilerek tehlikelere karşı çözümler üretilmesinde, başarılı bir biçimde kullanılabileceğini göstermiştir.

Purpose: The balcony in the apartment is important space not only as a fire escape but also as a buffer for heat and sound insulation. However, with the legalization of balcony expansion for residential apartments in Korea in 2006, many households have eliminated the balcony space altogether to increase the inner space, often without sufficient consideration for the effects on the indoor environment. This study examined the sound insulation performance of exterior-facing windows in enclosed balconies and the changes in the indoor acoustic environment due to expansion to provide a basis for appropriate balcony expansion. The apartments for the field test were chosen where two balcony types can be compared, and the sound insulation performance for the eighteen balcony windows was measured. The windows installed were typical double window with thickness 16 mm or 22 mm. Measurements of the weighted standard sound pressure level difference showed a decrease of about 3 dB in sound insulation performance due to expansion. For common exterior noise levels of 70-85 dB(A), the indoor noise level can exceed 45 dB(A), the limit level regulated in Korea. However, it was found that the sound insulation performance of the window and the quality of the construction have more influence on indoor noise levels than balcony expansion itself.

People’s behavior in the fire circumstances of the high-rise building is a typical study instance of environmental stresses. We replicated this scene in our virtual environment using Unity 3D. The technology creates a virtual environment by combining 3D modeling technology, computer graphics, wide-angle stereo display and a series of hardware and software technologies. The project built a high-rise building fire escape system which providing a highly immersive virtual environment and giving participants a more realistic experience. Virtual reality was used to simulate the fire scene, and data of how people reacted was collected to analyze the credibility and effectiveness of virtual environment on studying environmental stresses.

In view of the high frequency of the fire happened in city housing, and the situation that it is difficult for people to run out from fire due to the outdatedness of low-rise escape system, low-rise escape system was designed for low-rise resident to escape from fire. Based on the load, the transmission time, temperature, etc, the design of this escape system was accomplished. The main components, layouts and working principles of the system are introduced. Then the fixation plate, the circular guide, the main rivet, etc. are selected or designed based on the knowledge of , structural mechanics and material mechanics and so on. Performance test showed that the load range of the low-rise escape system is about 120-150 kilograms per side, the overall capacity is 300-350 kg, escape speed is about 30 seconds per person, it is resistant to high temperature and tear, and all the parameters meet the expected goals.

The way-finding behaviour and response during a fire emergency in a virtual environment (VE) was experimentally investigated. Forty participants, divided into two groups, were required to find the emergency exit as soon as possible in a virtual hotel building because of a fire escape demand under condition 1 (VE without virtual fire, control group) and condition 2 (VE with virtual fire, treatment group). Compared to the control group, the treatment group induced significantly higher skin conductivity and heart rate, experienced more stress, took longer time to notice the evacuation signs, had quicker visual search and had a longer escape time to find the exit. These results indicated that the treatment condition induced higher physiological and psychological stress, and had influenced the escape behaviour compared to the control group. In practice, fire evacuation education and fire evacuation system design should consider the response characteristics in a fire emergency.

For layout space in the limited land resources and improving the utilization efficiency of urban transportation bridge and traffic conditions, in this paper, according to the request of four lanes of roof, two-way urban light rail traffic in the box, considering the requirements of pipeline layout, water supply and drainage, and fire escape, lighting, ventilated at the same time, based on the existing related specification, give full play to the characteristics of the concrete box girder, preliminarily design out of the single box three rooms inclined web box girder for double-deck traffic of urban bridge, in order to provide the reference design.

Facility Management (FM) is well known for its interdisciplinary knowledge and along with the growing number of green buildings and low-carbon buildings, the FM system become increasingly complex. Many practitioners consider Building Information Modeling (BIM) as the most important technology to bring about improvements. The purpose of this paper is to develop a BIM-enabled FM system which integrates FM, BIM and building management system to improve information sharing and monitoring, FM system control, and equipment management. A case study is implemented to validate the feasibility of the BIM-enabled FM system. Four functionalities are demonstrated in detail: Equipment Information Monitoring (EIM), Dynamic Data Display and Warning (D3W), Energy-Saving Analysis (ESA), and Intelligent Fire Escape Route (IFER). The results show that BIM-enabled FM system facilitates the FM more accurate, timely, safe and efficient.

Background Although proven measures for reducing injury due to motor vehicle collision and residential fires exist, the number of families properly and consistently using child passenger restraints and smoke alarms remains low. This paper describes the design of the Safety In Seconds (SIS) 2.0 study, which aims to evaluate the impact of a smartphone app on parents9 use of child restraints and smoke alarms. Methods SIS is a multisite randomised controlled trial. Participants are parents of children aged 4–7 years who are visiting the Pediatric Emergency Department or Pediatric Trauma Service. Parents are randomised to receive tailored education about child passenger safety or about fire safety via the SIS smartphone app. A baseline and two follow-up surveys at 3 months and 6 months are conducted. Primary outcomes are: (1) having the correct child restraint for the child9s age and size; (2) restraining the child in the back seat of the car; (3) buckling the child up for every ride; (4) having the restraint inspected by a child passenger safety technician; (5) having a working smoke alarm on every level of the home; (6) having hard-wired or lithium battery smoke alarms; (7) having and (8) practising a fire escape plan. Discussion Finding ways to communicate with parents about child passenger and fire safety continues to be a research priority. This study will contribute to the evidence about how to promote benefits of proper and consistent child restraint and smoke alarm use. Trial registration number NCT02345941; Pre-results.

Currently, elevators are not considered as a proper means of escape in fires and people have been educated and trained to use staircases for fire escape. However, it is difficult for all the occupants to evacuate only by staircases timely and safely in super high-rise buildings, especially for the old and disabled. Considering the fact that super high-rise buildings are constructed in increasing numbers in many Asian cities, it becomes much more necessary to reconsider the use of elevators for emergency escape. Besides a mechanically safe elevator system, people’s cooperation is of critical importance to assure an efficient egress process. To explore people’s attitude to the use of elevators for fire escape in high-rise buildings and the diversity based on demographics, a study was conducted via face-to-face interviews in two different cities of China. Respondents’ demographics and their responses to hypothetical fire scenarios were collected via a set of structured questions. The results showed that most people would consider using elevators for fire escape in super high-rise buildings. The main influencing factors of their attitude were firemen’s instruction and the height of their location in the building. Statistical diversity was found based on demographics. These results indicated that people’s attitude to elevator evacuation was positive and further study should be very important.

Problem statement: The aim of this research is to investigate the fire evacuation problem from the student dormitory by using the Numerical method. The Fire Dynamics Simulator Software was used in the research with the evacuation function (FDS + Evac.). The problem under investigation concerns the building that has the open-air centre. The characteristics of the building are included with 5 floors, 2 open-air fire escape stairs located at 2 sides of the building. In addition, there is a single exit to the outside of the building and the sprinkler system is not installed inside the building. Approach: The simulation was designed to study the problem that has a source of fire occurring at the room closed to the open-air stair. The stairs will be severely affected by the smoke. The experimentation's are composed of 4 cases, which are (1) the first case assumes the true size of the door is 1 m (2) the second case assumes the true size of the door is 1 m and the smoke barrier is installed at the beam located before the stair entrance (3) the third case assumes the true size of the door is 2 m and (4) the fourth case assumes the true size of the door is 2 m and the smoke barrier is installed. Results: The results are shown that the escape time from the building with the 1 m door is 465 sec and the 2 m door is 265 sec. The time differentiation between the 1 m door and the 2 m door is 200 sec. The reason is the waiting occurred at the entrance if the smoke barrier is not installed. In this case, the smoke in the stairs without a smoke barrier installation has more than the smoke in case if the smoke barrier is installed. However, this research collected the data of the gas volume and found that the gas volume is not yet harmful to human life but the gas can be an obstacle to evacuation in the building that has an open-air centre. Conclusion: For safety reasons, the building’s user should improve the door size and install the smoke barrier at 2 sides of the stairs for all floors to increase the evacuation ability.

Increased scrutiny of federally funded programs combined with changes in fire management reflects a demand for new fire program analysis tools. We formulated an integer linear programming (ILP) model for initial attack resource allocation that operates in a performance-based, cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) environment. The model optimizes the deployment of initial attack resources for a user-defined set of fires that a manager would like to be prepared for across alternative budget levels. The model also incorporates fire spread, multiple ignitions, simultaneous ignitions, and monitoring of resources on a landscape. It also evaluates the cost effectiveness of alternate firefighting resources and alternative pre-positioning locations. Fires that escape initial attack are costly during the extended attack phase of fire management. To address this within the scope of initial attack, we constructed and analyzed alternative objective functions that incorporate a proxy for internalizing the cost of fires that escape initial attack. This type of model can provide the basis for a wider scale formulation with the potential to measure an organization's performance and promote a higher level of accountability and efficiency in fire programs. Keywords fire escape, initial attack, integer linear programming, optimal deployment, performance, wildland fire Language: en

In recent years, "high hell" fire events occurred frequently, and there is difficult to find a perfect solution to prevent the burning in buildings from outside to inside. Through a comparative analysis, this article considers that to build an escape tower or an independent high-level bridge can solve this problem in a certain extent. This article also elaborates on the advantages and disadvantages of this design. Hopefully in the future architectural practices there will be more secured high-rise building coming out.

Problem statement: This study investigates the fire evacuation problem of the library building by using the Fire Dynamics Simulator with Evacuation (FDS+Evac.) programming. Approach: The assumption is made that the sprinkler system is installed in the building but the system is malfunction, which is considered as the worst case of the situation. The simulations are divided into 4 cases, which are case 1; the numbers of evacuating persons are 517 persons and the heat release rate is 5 MW, case 2; the numbers of evacuating persons are 517 persons and the heat release rate is 7 MW, case 3; the numbers of evacuating persons are 788 persons and the heat release rate is 5 MW and case 4; the numbers of evacuating persons are 788 persons and the heat release rate is 7 MW. Results: The results are shown that the 1st case and the 2nd case have the evacuation times of 8.63 and 8.81 min, respectively. There is no dead person found from both cases. For the 3rd and the last case, the evacuation times are 18.17 and 18.83 min, respectively. The 3rd case has 1 dead person and the last case has 18 dead persons, respectively. Conclusion: The number of evacuating person and a size of fire have a directly impact on the evacuating person. The reasons are the crowded situation of evacuation and a higher toxicity that is occurred. So, the stairway of the building has to be improved and changed to be the fire escape. This brings to the increasing in the capability of the evacuation.

For the current lack of convenient, reliable and safe lifting of the fire escape equipment, design a device along the rope, using functions with self-locking worm gear structure. Then assess the strength of the contact state and reliability of the structure, use ANSYS to analysis the contact stress and dynamic characteristics. Finally, improve the winch device design to increase the safety factor. The check calculation and experiments showed that the device can be safely hoisting the target.

A differential computer model specifically designed to quantify smoke movement during a fire in a high-rise structure is described. The basic conservation equations are transformed into a computer code which can be used to determine the paths that smoke will take during a fire. The program is a tool for fire protection engineers to design a smoke management plan with the ultimate goal of improving occupant safety in the event of a fire. The computer code is based on a modified and improved differential smoke control model for the conditions in the floor spaces, stairwells and elevator shafts and it considers a complete set of variables that influence the motion of smoke throughout the building. Program output suggests ways to alter the pressure distribution within the building by using air handling equipment, so that occupants will have smoke-free areas on the floors and inside of the fire escape stairwells. Results for several example cases are provided, and the results are used to illustrate how smoke movement can be managed in order to mitigate dangerous conditions within the building.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the uses and exterior design of the balconies in urban housing from the ancient times to the 19th century. In doing so, the paper seeks to investigate the cultural identity of the balcony in urban housing. The results are as follow. First, in the urban housing the balcony space were made for protection from the heat, light and ventilation; gardening; views toward the streets, city, waterside, inner court, domain for men; breathing french air; watching ceremony, festivals and events; simple houseworks like drying, carpet cleaning and hair coloring; lever installation and fire escape. Second, as part of exterior design the typical projecting characteristic of the balconies was emphasized and they became an impotent decorative element. The monotonous facade changed to a lively design with a rhythmical sense. On the facade the effects of horizontal movement, symmetry or asymmetry from the main entrance, and the center-projection (rialto) were created. In the urban housing the balconies were used for cultural activities which supplement and enlarge the function of the interior space, and moreover the rich effects of the facade contributed to the creation of attractive urban landscape.

This study focuses on the life risk investigations in residential building fires. A total of 419 cases in residential building fires during 1998-2000 in some area of Taiwan are examined. Contexts of investigations include possible influencing variables or factors related to the activities of pre-fire as well as during fire and the resulting life casualties. Possible influencing variables or factors are measured by two questionnaires that include both fire departments and the households who owned or lived in the fire-hit residential buildings. The resultant fire life risk (the dependent variable) in this study is a dichotomous variable with two categories, casualties and non-casualties. Factors such as fire-fighting situations, degree of difficulty of fire escape, and disabled people in the building are mostly significant to estimate the life risk. That disabled people exist in the building in case of a fire has the strongest effect on life risk. A statistical interpretation is given of the model-developed estimates in terms of the odds ratio. Given that particular identified characteristics considered in residential buildings exist or not, the changes of the probabilities of causing casualties in case of a fire are predicted. The findings show that logistic regression used in this research provides good meaningful interpretations that can be used for future safety improvements.

Performance-based design on building fire safety provisions as an alternative to prescriptive code design is going to be developed in Hong Kong. But how to do this is not yet clear. In this transition period, alternative approach to design for projects with difficulties in complying with prescriptive codes is allowed. Projects would be considered case by case individually. There are always arguments on the design for means of escape (MoE), as the usable floor area will be affected. In this paper, the prescriptive approach of the MoE code with respect to the local buildings characteristics and occupants characteristics are reviewed. Deficiency and inadequacy of the MoE code, which is not yet updated quick enough for getting an appropriate fire safety solution for some building or occupancy types, are discussed. The possibility of adopting performance-based design approach in this transition period is examined. MoE design in a public transport interchange is taken as an example in this paper. Evacuation for...

The article traces the history of the fire escape - in its classic form, a system of iron balconies and ladders on the outside of a building, which is used for emergency exit - in the United States. It shows how this device was called into being by state and city laws in the latter half of the nineteenth century and how, when its drawbacks as a means of egress from large buildings became clear to lawmakers and property owners, was abandoned and replaced with another system: protected, interior stairs. The fire escape is an example of a publicly-constructed technology, in that its existence, development, and demise were controlled by local government rather than the market.

The paper presents a novel framework for 3D autonomous navigation for tracked vehicles. The framework takes care of clustering and segmentation of point clouds, traversability analysis, autonomous 3D path planning, motion planning and flippers control. Results illustrated in an exper- iment section show that the framework is promising to face harsh terrains. Robot performance is proved in three main experiments taken in a training rescue area, on fire escape stairs and in a non-planar testing environment, built ad-hoc to prove 3D path planning functionalities. Performance tests are also presented.

Forty-eight workers who had escaped large underground coal-mine fires were interviewed using an open-ended protocol. This information, and the actual experiences of one eight-person mine-section crew who escaped from a fire, were used to construct an 18-frame (page) table-top simulation exercise, which was then field tested with 134 miners. The exercise is a research tool that measures miners' proficiency in the information-gathering and decision-making skills related to escaping from a mine fire. It also helps miners to learn and practice these cognitive skills. The exercise was found to be valid and reliable. All miners reported that the exercise was authentic and would help them to remember important information. The exercise total score, and all but two item scores, significantly discriminated among miners with different levels of training. The two items that did not discriminate dealt with whether or not to abandon a helpless fellow miner. When the exercise total score data were pooled, only 13.6% of the miners achieved a desirable score of 90% mastery or greater. The simulation is important because it teaches and assesses critical judgment and decision-making skills that are rarely addressed in miner training.

It discusses the status quo of escape system under the trend of the increasingly high building fire nowadays, and researches its feasibility and operation advantages and disadvantages with TRIZ theory. It makes relevant investigation and research in combination with a part of urban high buildings and the latest escape facilities. Besides, it makes certain preconceptions and prospects on the development of the future high building fire escape system.

To fetch up the deficiency of fire escape education and exercise in our country, a virtual simulation system of fire escape was designed and implemented in this study. From the practical application, according to the characters of the constructed virtual environment, use modeling technology based on graphics and image to make up a approximately real fire scene. The simulation results showed that the system has more interactivity, and its ability to participate in experience makes the simulation training system become an innovative disaster prevention and relief methods.

Development is progressing of an improved airbag restraint system for passenger vehicles which we call "airstop." It consists of an airbag in front of the chest, an airbag in front of the feet and under the seat, and an inflated airseat. This system has an impact load transmission to the subject of one-third or less of the vehicle longitudinal or vertical loads. The experimental work leading to the airstop design is reviewed, with acceleration data presented for vertical and inclined drops of the initial full-length airbag system and an astronaut airbag restraint system, swing and drop impacts of airstop systems, and a DC-7 crash test of a chest and foot airbag system. The airstop system is designed for automatic deflation of the bags and the seats after a crash, greatly facilitating fire escape from the aircraft. The weight of the airseat system is less than the weight of present seats. Language: en