The Fire Exit Sign: A Tool for Easier Exit Location
The fire exit sign is a tool with unlimited capacity that shows where the emergency exit is. This type of sign, with the word “EXIT” is usually found in red or green colors. A fancy fire escape symbol is simply visible if visibility is reduced. Commonly, emergency lighting is placed above the sign.
Most exit signs around the world are in representational form, with or without the addition of text. Its function is to direct people to the nearest exit when there is a fire or other related disasters. Exit is an English word that comes directly from the Latin word meaning “to go out.” As visibility may decrease in a fire due to smoke or electrical lighting failure, the sign is frequently and durably illuminated, primarily with self-luminous material, where a phosphor coating inside a glass tube ignites due to beta decay. Some are photoluminescent, in which light from the environment is gradually amplified and reproduced, while others function like electric light, via a limited rechargeable power source.
In the early days, exit signs were usually made of metal and lit with an incandescent light bulb. The things were small and not bright, making them hard to see in a fire where burning usually reduces visibility. As the days went on, improved signs were developed to resemble today’s exit sign, in which the light bulb is placed inside the box and backlit the word “EXIT” on two sides. And because of this, the improved output of the starting signal responded to the problem of visibility. However, the main power must remain on for the signal to be useful.
Most fire exit signs, excluding countries like the US, Australia, and Singapore, are in a pictogram style. Some countries, including the United States, especially New York City, have authorized newer policies involving high-rise buildings to get glow-in-the-dark signs via a pictogram. Recently, exit signs in commercial buildings, hospitals, and department stores that meet fire code requirements can be noticed in every lane toward an exit. There are some situations where the building owner can avoid but is not responsible for some of these codes. On the other hand, the owner of the structure usually honors the terms regarding the exit signs.
Battery backup systems are the typical method of meeting modern building codes that require exit signs to be permanently illuminated. Today, exit signs use much less power. Several manufacturers have refurbished batteries with capacitors. Because this makes the invention environmentally friendly as it only contains conservative electronic components. This reduces regular battery change as the capacitor life is equivalent to the LED life.
Self-luminous exit signs do not need an external power supply as they only use a device similar to fluorescent lighting. Instead of electrical current they use tritium powered, which are rated to last up to two decades.
Most areas like Japan, Korea, China, and Australia use green exit signs because they provide the route to follow in an emergency. In Virginia, your exit signs must be red, while in Maryland they must be green. This difference in color designation is due to the country endorsing building codes that identify the color scheme of the sign.