Sensing near the hazard
Gas and fire sensing is most useful near stoves, heaters and other likely sources, where mains power, neat cable routes or a dependable network connection may not be available.
GaSafe distributed sensing and automatic gas isolation
A Zambeel-originated safety system linked gas and fire sensing near potential hazards to automatic supply isolation, without requiring control wiring across an existing home or commercial kitchen.
OriginZambeel initiative, awarded HEC funding
DevelopmentPrototype completed in 10 months
ValidationRig and residential testing
Current stageBeta manufacturing planned
Engagement routeDevelop
Zambeel originated the product and carried sensing, controls, physical actuation and validation into an integrated, field-tested prototype.
How engagements workThe problem
A gas alarm can warn people. It cannot remove fuel from the situation.
Gas leakage and fire can escalate while a building is unoccupied, while people are asleep or before someone reaches the supply valve. Automatic isolation addresses that second part of the problem, but retrofit installations often place the sensors and shutoff point far apart.
Actuation at the supply
The shutoff mechanism belongs at the incoming supply, cylinder outlet or branch line. Connecting it to several sensing positions can otherwise turn a safety retrofit into a disruptive wiring project.
The system questionHow could distributed sensors remain easy to place while still making gas isolation dependable, supervised and independent of WiFi?
System architecture
GaSafe treated detection and isolation as one supervised control system.
The architecture combined sensing nodes placed around the property with an actuator node at the supply. Its own low-power radio network carried hazard status, control messages and a continuous indication that each node remained available.
Gas and fire nodes
Nodes were developed for natural gas, LPG and fire detection, with battery-powered and later plug-in arrangements for different installation conditions.
Independent radio network
Long-range low-power communication removed dependence on WiFi, internet availability and new control wiring across the site.
Heartbeat and battery state
Scheduled messages carried safety status and confirmed node health. Remaining nodes could indicate when one unit required battery attention.
Automatic supply isolation
A latching valve assembly closed on a hazard command and was designed to return to its safe state if the actuator lost power.
Fail-safe behaviour
The absence of a healthy signal also had to mean something.
A distributed safety system cannot assume that silence means everything is normal. The communication protocol therefore used each scheduled message as both operating data and a heartbeat.
Lost node supervision
If a sensor stopped reporting, other powered nodes indicated the condition. If the battery was not replaced within the defined period and the condition was not deliberately overridden, the actuator isolated the supply.
Low holding power
The selected valve was latched rather than held open continuously by electrical power, reducing steady energy demand at the actuator.
Closure on power loss
Stored energy in the actuator circuit provided the closing pulse when incoming power failed, allowing the normally closed valve mechanism to return to its safe state.
Fail-safe responseGaSafe was designed to isolate the gas supply in response to a detected hazard, prolonged loss of sensor supervision or loss of actuator power.
Energy management
Battery life depended as much on message timing as component selection.
The radio sequence was designed so sensing nodes could spend most of their time in low-power states while still reporting quickly enough for safety supervision.
Scheduled node activity
Transmit timing balanced response, heartbeat supervision and radio energy use across multiple sensors connected to one actuator.
Six-month continuous test
The unit completed a six-month uninterrupted battery test. Measured consumption over that period supported a projected operating life of at least one year.
Plug-in sensing option
A later sensing node used a wall socket where power was readily available, reducing battery size and routine battery replacement.
Validation
The system was tested as sensing, communication and physical actuation.
Zambeel developed purpose-built rigs and repeatable methods for the individual functions. Prototypes were then tested in actual homes to evaluate the system under realistic conditions.
Hazard response
Gas and fire sensing behaviour was exercised on controlled rigs and through supervised live tests using the intended sensor arrangements.
Communication coverage
Node-to-actuator links were tested across large residential properties and through the layouts and building materials encountered in actual installations.
Actuation and failure states
Valve operation, repeated closure, lost communication, low battery indication and power-loss shutdown were included in the verification programme.
Programme outcome
An internal idea became an integrated and field-tested safety prototype.
In 2023, GaSafe secured the World Bank-supported HEC Innovator Seed Fund award in the emerging technologies category.
Our project team completed the planned work in 10 months of the 12-month grant period and demonstrated the working system to the grant committee at its final review.
The next phase was defined around manufacturing development and complete-system certification with an external testing partner.
Capabilities involved
Product engineering across sensors, radio, controls and field validation.
GaSafe required decisions across electronics, embedded behaviour, power, mechanical integration, operator understanding and safety-state design to remain coherent at system level.
Product Definition and Industrial Design
Retrofit use cases, node roles, status indication and forms suitable for domestic and commercial-kitchen environments.
ExploreHardware Engineering and Systems Integration
Gas and fire sensing, PCB development, valve actuation, stored-energy closure and complete-system integration.
ExploreEmbedded Controls and Connected Systems
Low-power radio, node scheduling, heartbeat supervision, fault handling and actuator control logic.
ExplorePrototyping, Test and Validation
Purpose-built test rigs, sensor response methods, range testing, failure-state verification and residential trials.
ExploreRelated work
Other systems developed around distributed sensing and real operating environments.
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