Exit sign

An exit sign is a device in a public facility (such as a building, aircraft, or boat) denoting the location of the closest emergency exit in case of fire or other emergency. Most relevant codes (fire, building, health, or safety) require exit signs to be permanently lit. An exit sign is a device in a public facility (such as a building, aircraft, or boat) denoting the location of the closest emergency exit in case of fire or other emergency. Most relevant codes (fire, building, health, or safety) require exit signs to be permanently lit. Exit signs are designed to be absolutely unmistakable and understandable to anyone. In the past, this generally meant exit signs that show the word 'EXIT' or the equivalent in the local language, but increasingly exit signs around the world are in pictogram form, with or without supplementary text. Early exit signs were generally either made of metal and lit by a nearby incandescent light bulb or were a white glass cover with 'EXIT' written in red, placed directly in front of a single-bulb light fixture. An inherent flaw with these designs was that in a fire, the power to the light often failed. In addition, the fixtures could be difficult to see in a fire where smoke often reduced visibility, despite being relatively bright. The biggest problem was that the exit sign was hardly distinguishable from an ordinary safety lighting fixture commonly installed above doors in the past. The problem was partially solved by using red-tinted globes instead.