NFPA Changes SCBA PASS Alert Tone

[x635 4,066]

Quote

 

Tentative Interim Amendment to the NFPA 1982, 2013 Edition Standard

On December 21, 2016, a new PASS tone was introduced to the fire service.  The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) issued a Tentative Interim Amendment (TIA) that required all manufacturers of Personal Alert Safety Systems (PASS) to change the alarm tone as required in the NFPA 1982, 2013 Edition standard for PASS devices manufactured after December 20, 2016.  This change was a result of firefighters expressing concerns about the performance and selection of the PASS tone chosen in the first iteration of the standard.  To our knowledge, none of those concerns raised to the NFPA committee were from Scott Air-Pak SCBA users. 

 

 

More information: http://www.scottsafetynation.com/nfpa_tentativeinterimamendment/

 

NEW TONE:

 

 

OLD TONE:

 

 

[Remember585 815]

We recently put into service new Scott Air Packs.  One of the most notable things about it is that the PASS alarm volumes are lower than our older units.

 

We put the packs in different locations in the training house and sent members in to locate them.  The volume of the older units would drown out the sound of the newer SCBAs.

 

To get more of a side by side comparison, we'd put the packs next to one another - both inside and outside the building - and noticed a marginal difference.

 

This is in no way a knock on the new units, and in no way is this a real "study," but this is definitely something we all should be weary of.

[BIGRED1 71]

I think the new one has a kind of high pitched almost tinny sound. The old one had more bass to it. 

[dwcfireman 656]

On 1/23/2017 at 11:05 AM, BIGRED1 said:

I think the new one has a kind of high pitched almost tinny sound. The old one had more bass to it. 

 

It seems with each new iteration of the PASS alarm receives a higher pitch.  The old school alarm is definitely at a much lower octave with more bass.

 

I was told that new alarm sounds are higher pitched due to a higher percentage of low frequency hearing loss among firefighters....Has anyone heard or know of any truth behind this?  Or is the higher pitch just easier to hear in a noisy environment?

[houlidsa 76]

All PASS are minimum of 95 db.   Its the pattern that it emits that is deceptive and people process as louder / not as loud.  The NFPA 2013 has those spaces between cycles (spike) in sound.  Because of those gaps it deceives the ear because of the way we process sound.

 

The NFPA TIA sound does away with those long valleys between spikes.  Making it sound louder whether it is or is not.

[houlidsa 76]

The 95 db minimum was set because the sound is distorted by heat.  So a PASS that is easily recognizable in the firehouse can be distorted and muffled in a fire.

[dwcfireman 656]

6 hours ago, EmsFirePolice said:

I thought it sounded something like this?? 

 

 

That is the OLD old alarm.

[houlidsa 76]

That's the pre 2013 alarm.  Back when each manufacturer had a proprietary alarms.  NFPA wanted the sound to be universal for universal recognition.