Common uses of Sirens
This article has been tasked with revealing the types of sirens that are most commonly used, as well as looking into the different tones of sirens and what they might indicate. This article will also briefly describe the history of sirens as well as appreciate their development over the years.
sirens have come a long way since their first wide use in the Second World War. These initial sirens were civil defense sirens and were designed to specifically warn the public of air raids. They were an effective warning and indicated that people should prepare for an on coming air raid. They were also used to warn against a nuclear attack especially during the Cold War, where it was widely believed that a nuclear war was imminent. Their use has evolved since then, and civil defense sirens are today used to warn against tornados, tsunamis, floods and other natural calamities. sirens do not have to indicate danger as in some places such as Haxtun Colorado in the United States; sirens are used to indicate certain times of the day.
There are two main types of sirens which are mechanical sirens and electronic sirens. Mechanical sirens have a rotating disk with holes at alternate positions around the disk. Radial veins on this disk force in air and a rotor interrupts this air flow. Because of the pressure caused by the release and blocking of air, a wailing sound is produced which is what we recognize as the siren sound. Some of the mechanical sirens produce sound in all directions at the same time. There are also others that have a rotor that turns the siren through 360 degrees to ensure that the sound travels in all directions.
Electronic sirens are the second common type of sirens that are popularly used today. The sirens are the newest type and are very effective in warning people in a wide area of danger. Electronic sirens sound very different from mechanical sirens as the way they are configured is also different. Electronic sirens use an electronic tone generator as well as a high powered amplifier with a horn loud speaker. Compression drivers are almost always incorporated into the electronic siren. These sirens are loud and can be configured to produce a variety of siren sounds such as a wail or yelp from the same systems. The amplifiers that are integrated in to the electronic siren increase both the quality and the pitch of the sound produced.
sirens used for civil defense have a distinct sound that is very different from that produced by emergency vehicle. This is for the purpose of making a distinction between the sound produced by civil defense sirens and emergency vehicle sirens. Civil defense sirens are normally placed on poles that are about 30 to 50 feet high on chimneys or on top of water tanks that are on elevated ground or high buildings. sirens usually have a high frequency and can be heard from far off places. This is to effectively warn many people through a large distance that there might be danger.
A majority of countries around the world use civil defense sirens mainly to warn residents against natural calamities. In Norway for example, there are 1250 operational sirens and are primarily located in cities. Switzerland has both mobile and fixed sirens (about 8500). Countries should take advantage of sirens for warning people of calamities. There should also be regularly conducted to ensure that they are in good working condition in case of emergency
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