​The product feature spotlight this month falls on the USB interface of the addressable FireClass FC501 panel. The USB interface on the FC501 panel delivers solutions to a number of the challenges that the fire and security industry face.  Fire & security businesses need to be at the forefront of technology, with most laptops not including a serial port anymore, the integrated USB feature is a must have to ensure increased speed and flexibility when setting up a fire alarm system.  Fire alarm engineers demanded a tool that would reduce the amount of time they needed to spend on installing a fire alarm control panel, the USB feature on the FC501 fire alarm system includes a high speed functionality to upload and download to a laptop.  

Under the guidance of a qualified and trained fire alarm engineer the USB interface is so easy  use that a less qualified person could use a USB memory stick to install or recover site configuration data or update firmware with guidance from a trained fire alarm engineer or responsible person.  As with all FireClass products we strongly advise against anyone using the products who has not been trained to do so.  The USB interface allows the transfer of the configuration or firmware files, without requiring a laptop to be on site at all.  

With increasing security considerations on a number of our customers fire alarm system installs, FireClass were faced with providing solutions to address these issues.  Now, even if laptops are not allowed on site, a fire alarm engineer can still programme the fire alarm control panel using pre loaded information on the USB memory stick.