When a fire detection system is electrically supervised, what does it mean?

When a fire detection system is electrically supervised, it means that the system is continuously monitored for malfunctions or faults in its power supply. This monitoring ensures that any single outage in the power supply will immediately signal a fault condition. The electrical supervision aspect is critical for maintaining the integrity and reliability of the fire detection system, as it helps ensure that the system is always operational and ready to detect fires.

In a supervised system, if there is an interruption in power—be it due to a disconnection, a fault in the wiring, or a failure of the power supply—the system can alert operators or maintenance personnel that there is a problem. This level of monitoring enhances safety, as it helps to identify issues before they affect the system's performance in detecting a fire.

Other options do not accurately capture the essence of an electrically supervised fire detection system. Manual operation is not a requirement for supervision; battery backup is only one component of a system's functionality and may not indicate supervision; and while some systems may reset after a fault, this does not define supervision but rather the system's response to a fault condition.