Enhancing Fire Safety Education Through PLC and HMI-Driven Interactive Learning

Fire safety plays a vital role in protecting lives, property, and the environment, and it keeps communities and organizations running safely. Many existing fire pump control systems fall short in educational and small-to-medium industrial settings: they often control only one pump at a time, rely heavily on manual monitoring, and come with high costs that limit accessibility. To address these gaps, we developed an affordable, hands-on educational kit that brings real-world fire safety systems into the classroom using modern automation technology. The system is built around a Delta DVP12SA211R PLC chosen for its built-in real-time clock, integrated RS-232/RS-485 ports for reliable communication, and expanded with DVP16SP11R digital I/O and DVP04AD-S2 analog input modules to interface with simulated sensors mimicking smoke detection and water pressure. Students interact with the system through a Delta DOP-110IS HMI, which features Ethernet connectivity for remote observation, electrical isolation for safe operation, and a 200 ms screen update rate to ensure responsive, realistic feedback. The kit enables learners to explore critical emergency scenarios, including automatic switching between jockey and main pumps, low-pressure alerts, and system failover, transforming theoretical concepts into tangible skills. In user evaluations, 57.1% of students with no prior experience reported that the simulations closely mirrored real-world systems, while 80% of those with a fire safety background found the kit reinforced their existing knowledge; notably, 57.1% of instructors rated it as highly effective for teaching core fire safety principles across diverse learner profiles. By integrating industrial-grade hardware with scenario-based learning, this tool not only deepens understanding of fire protection systems but also better prepares future engineers for the practical demands of fire safety and industrial automation careers.