DUBLIN:An intelligent fire detection system that can distinguish between cigarette smoke, burned toast and a genuine fire has been developed by technology giant Siemens.

It aims to reduce the number of false alarms which the Siemens claims can cost Irish businesses millions in lost productivity and place a huge burden the fire service.

"Once smoke is detected, the alarm won't activate until the density of the smoke increases to a certain level or there is a big temperature increase," says Siemens' International Fire Engineering consultant Don Scott.

"If the smoke is, let's say, from a cigarette and disperses after a few minutes, the system will record this but won't activate. So, it measures the risk."

To make these assessments the system links a network of fire, smoke and heat detectors to a control panel into which settings unique to a particular business are entered.

The system then compares readings from the various detectors with the set parameters and evaluates the situation in real time. The system can also be programmed to ignore the effects of commercial activity such as dust, vapors and vibrations.

You can also have different parameter settings around certain parts of a building.