Audible Alarm Rate Meters

Audible alarms are devices that emit a short "beep" or "chirp" when a predetermined exposure has been received. It is required that these electronic devices be worn by an individual working with gamma emitters. These devices reduce the likelihood of accidental exposures in industrial radiography by alerting the radiographer to dosages of radiation above a preset amount. Typical alarm rate meters will begin sounding in areas of 450-500 mR/h. It is important to note that audible alarms are not intended to be and should not be used as replacements for survey meters.

Most audible alarms use a Geiger-Müller detector. The output of the detector is collected, and when a predetermined exposure has been reached, this collected charge is discharged through a speaker. Hence, an audible "chirp" is emitted. Consequently, the frequency or chirp rate of the alarm is proportional to the radiation intensity. The chirp rate varies among different alarms from one chirp per milliroentgen to more than 100 chirps per milliroentgen