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PASS - Professional Audience Safety System |
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PASS is a combination hardware/software system, which, when properly integrated into a laser projector, can guarantee the safety of Audience Scanning laser shows. Since Audience scanning is a critical element of success for laser lightshow companies and entertainment laser system sales, PASS will increase the market for laser shows in territories where Audience Scanning is restricted, and PASS also helps to ensure the continued success in markets where Audience Scanning is currently a routine practice.
PASS includes numerous redundant systems in its circuitry and is constantly monitoring all redundant circuitry while analyzing the outcome. If there is a conflict (i.e. one system says it is safe, and another system says it is not) PASS immediately (within 10 microseconds) terminates laser output, closes the shutter, and opens the projector interlock. Thus, PASS aggressively and vigorously protects the audience from system failures. The software portion of PASS is integrated within certain pieces of Pangolin software. This allows continuous real-time safety analysis, and may optionally generate a new safety-related signal, which is used to improve the accuracy of the PASS circuitry. This new signal is something we call the “S coordinate” (safety coordinate). Pangolin software computes a sophisticated algorithm to arrive at “S”. It includes information about what the beam velocity should be, and also this signal can carry information about how many times the beam has scanned over a particular area, thus, helping the PASS circuitry to account for the “multiple-pulse” aspects of the laser safety standards. If everything is working correctly, then PASS will never need to interrupt the light output from the projector. However, if there is a minor problem with the show programming such that the beam is traveling dangerously slow, or stops scanning altogether, PASS will momentarily interrupt the light coming from the projector, by manipulating the color and blanking signals. Once the show programming resumes normal operation with the laser beam moving sufficiently fast so as to not present a hazard, PASS will allow the light to resume coming out of the projector. The PASS hardware and software does this in a very intelligent way so as to not destroy the intended visual effect. It is only in the event of a major problem detected within the projector (or within PASS itself) that PASS will take drastic action. PASS is one circuit board, barely bigger than a credit card with 15 active components, 158 passive components, and 5 adjustments (pots) It modulates all 6 color channels PLUS a
separate intensity and shutter signal. PASS will maintain safety
even in the face of 5 simultaneous failures! PASS has been in research and development for nearly 10 years. It is a complete system that monitors laser system health, using multiple redundant circuits, all working in concert to ensure audience safety. It includes evolutionary features such as the simultaneous combination of “effect size”, “velocity” and power supply monitors, as well as revolutionary features, such as continuous light monitoring and the “S coordinate”. Having undergone intense scrutiny by the laser safety community, and being the safety system within the first projector for which the CDRH ever granted a Variance for General Audience Scanning, thus allowing Audience Scanning laser shows to be performed in the United States, PASS is currently the only credible solution, to ensure the continued success of the laser entertainment industry.
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PASS includes a number of unique features, which
all work together. And all of the systems within PASS were designed
such that there is redundancy. That is, there are always at least
two circuits observing any condition (power supply, light output,
scanner dynamics, system logic). For maximum reliability, each of
these “at least two circuits” are implemented in different ways,
thus, making it extraordinarily unlikely that both circuits would
fail in exactly the same way at exactly the same time. And the
output of these circuits are pooled, such that all circuits must
agree that there is a safe condition, in order for PASS to allow
light to emanate from the projector.
This page last updated: Monday, June 16, 2008 12:00 AM
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