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WO2009139959A2 - Système mobile d'identification d'un danger de rayonnement - Google Patents

Système mobile d'identification d'un danger de rayonnement Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2009139959A2
WO2009139959A2 PCT/US2009/038069 US2009038069W WO2009139959A2 WO 2009139959 A2 WO2009139959 A2 WO 2009139959A2 US 2009038069 W US2009038069 W US 2009038069W WO 2009139959 A2 WO2009139959 A2 WO 2009139959A2
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WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
radiation
sensor
radiation sensor
determining
mobile vehicle
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Ceased
Application number
PCT/US2009/038069
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English (en)
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WO2009139959A3 (fr
Inventor
David L. Frank
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Innovative American Technology Inc
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Innovative American Technology Inc
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Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Innovative American Technology Inc filed Critical Innovative American Technology Inc
Priority claimed from US12/409,733 external-priority patent/US20090236538A1/en
Publication of WO2009139959A2 publication Critical patent/WO2009139959A2/fr
Publication of WO2009139959A3 publication Critical patent/WO2009139959A3/fr
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Ceased legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01V—GEOPHYSICS; GRAVITATIONAL MEASUREMENTS; DETECTING MASSES OR OBJECTS; TAGS
    • G01V5/00—Prospecting or detecting by the use of ionising radiation, e.g. of natural or induced radioactivity
    • G01V5/20—Detecting prohibited goods, e.g. weapons, explosives, hazardous substances, contraband or smuggled objects
    • G01V5/26—Passive interrogation, i.e. by measuring radiation emitted by objects or goods
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01V—GEOPHYSICS; GRAVITATIONAL MEASUREMENTS; DETECTING MASSES OR OBJECTS; TAGS
    • G01V5/00—Prospecting or detecting by the use of ionising radiation, e.g. of natural or induced radioactivity
    • G01V5/20—Detecting prohibited goods, e.g. weapons, explosives, hazardous substances, contraband or smuggled objects
    • G01V5/271—Detecting prohibited goods, e.g. weapons, explosives, hazardous substances, contraband or smuggled objects using a network, e.g. a remote expert, accessing remote data or the like

Definitions

  • the present invention generally relates to the field of hazardous material detection, and more particularly relates to a mobile system for detecting and identifying hazardous materials
  • a method identifies materials associated with radiation that has been detected
  • the method includes receiving a set of radiation data associated with at least one radiation source from a set of radiation sensors mechanically coupled to a mobile vehicle At least one histogram is generated based on the set of radiation data The at least one histogram represents a spectral image of the radiation source At least one histogram is compared to multiple spectral images associated with known materials The at least one histogram is determined to substantially match at least one of the multiple spectral images A determination is made as to whether the material associated with the at least one of the multiple spectral images is a hazardous material Personnel are notified that the at least one radiation source is a hazardous material in response to determining that the material associated with the at least one of the multiple spectral images is a hazardous material
  • a system is suitable for detecting radiation and identifying materials associated with radiation that has been detected
  • the system includes at least one mobile vehicle including at least one set of radiation sensors that are mechanically coupled to a portion of the mobile vehicle
  • At least one information processing system is communicatively coupled to the at least one mobile vehicle
  • the information processing system is adapted to receive a set of radiation data associated with at least one radiation source from a set of radiation sensors mechanically coupled to the mobile vehicle
  • At least one histogram is generated based on the set of radiation data
  • the at least one histogram represents a spectral image of the radiation source
  • At least one histogram is compared to multiple spectral images associated with known materials
  • the at least one histogram is determined to substantial!) match at least one of the multiple spectral images
  • a determination is made as to whether the material associated with the at least one of the multiple spectral images is a hazardous material
  • Personnel are notified that the at least one radiation source is a hazardous material in response to determining that the material associated with the at
  • FIG 1 is a block diagram illustrating a general overview of an operating environment according to one embodiment of the present invention
  • FIG 2 is a schematic view of a directional detector set for determining the direction of a radiation source according to one embodiment of the present invention
  • FIGs 3-4 show two examples of a mobile environment for detecting radiation and identifying the source of the radiation that has been detected according to various embodiments of the present invention
  • FIG 5 is an operational flow diagram illustrating one process of detecting radiation and identifying hazardous materials associated with the radiation using a mobile environment according to one embodiment of the present invention.
  • FIG 6 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed view of an example of an information processing system suitable for use in an embodiment of the present invention
  • FIG 1 a general view of an operating environment 100 is illustrated
  • a mobile environment such as a ground vehicle (e g , car/truck), water vehicle (e g , boat), and/or an air vehicle (e g , helicopter or a drone), or a combination thereof (e g , an amphibious vehicle or a plane with water landing pontoon) for enabling the detection, analysis, and identification of hazardous materials such as CBRNE materials
  • the operating environment 100 enables mobile non-invasive analysis of vessels, vehicles, containers, buildings, seaports, waterways, borders, metropolitan areas, strategic areas, and the like, for the detection and identification of hazardous materials such as radiological materials, fissile materials, explosives, chemicals, and biological materials
  • hazardous materials such as radiological materials, fissile materials, explosives, chemicals, and biological materials
  • Various sensor systems within a mobile environment are able to analyze a slow moving or stopped vehicle, container, package, or cargo in a non-invasive approach
  • FIG 1 shows one or more sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 that each including a plurality of sensors 114, 116
  • the sensors 114, 116 of the sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 comprise gamma radiation sensors and/or neutron sensors
  • Each of the sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 can include a combination of gamma and neutron sensing devices
  • radiation detectors are cadmium zinc telluride detectors, sodium iodide detectors, and the like
  • Neutron detectors can be solid-state neutron detectors, which provide shock resistance
  • the gamma detectors may be equipped with collimators and/or lenses that gather the radiological particles and focus these particles onto the detectors Shock resistance detectors
  • FIG 2 shows two sensor sets 202, 204 coupled together to form a 360 degree DDS detector set 200
  • a DDS detector set 202 includes a first sensor 206 and a second sensor 208
  • these sensors 206, 208 can be radiation sensors such as gamma ray sensors and/or neutron detectors
  • Each sensor 206, 208 includes a first end 210, 212, a second end 214, 216, and a body 218, 220, situated between the first end 210, 212 and the respective second end 214, 216
  • a first portion 222 of the first sensor body 218 is coupled to a first portion 224 of the second sensor body 220 creating a back-to- back configuration as shown in FIG 2
  • the first sensor body 218 is coupled to the first portion 224 of the second sensor body 220 so that the body portions 218, 220 are adjacent to each other
  • the sensing portion of the first radiation sensor and a sensing portion of the second radiation sensor are adjacent in close proximity with each other
  • one sensor 206 could be a gamma sensor while the other sensor 208 could be a neutron sensor
  • both sensors may be gamma sensors
  • Both sensors 206, 208 are oriented back-to-back
  • the first sensor set 202 and the second sensor set 204 are similarly configured with two back-to-back sensors The two back-to-back sensors are situated perpendicular to each other thereby creating substantially 90 degree angles between the sensor sets 202, 204
  • FIG 2 shows only one configuration that may be applicable to the present invention, and other configurations
  • each first sensor may substantially shield the other second sensor from radiation being absorbed by the first sensor (e g , a sensing portion of a first radiation sensor and a sensing portion of a second radiation sensor are adjacent in close proximity with each other and facing opposite directions), and/or each first sensor will sense a traveling particle (e g , gamma or neutron particle) entering into the first sensor earlier in time than the second sensor sensing the particle entering the second sensor Therefore, to determine the direction of the radiation source, the data analysis and monitoring manager 138 compares the energy counts at each sensor in a DDS sensor set, and/or the timing relationships between the energy counts between the back-to-back sensors, and identifies the sensor associated with the larger energy count relative
  • FIG 1 shows separate DDS arrays 110, 112
  • any of the other arrays 102, 104, 106, 108 can be configured to be a DDS array as well
  • Each sensor array 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 is communicatively coupled to a sensor interface 118, 120, 122, 124, 126, 128 either by a wired and/or a wireless communication link
  • the sensor interfaces 118, 120, 122, 124, 126, 128 communicatively couple the sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 to a first network 130, thereby creating a distributed sensor network
  • the first network 130 includes wired and/or wireless technologies and the sensor interface units 118, 120, 122, 124, 126, 128 are communicatively coupled to the first network 130 either wirelessly and/or via wired mechanisms
  • the sensor interfaces 118, 120, 122, 124, 126, 128 assign a unique IP
  • the sensor interfaces 118, 120, 122, 124, 126, 128, in one embodiment, are sensor integration units ("SFJ") that provide the calibration automated gain control, calibration verification, remote diagnostics, and connectivity to the processor for spectral analysis of the sensor data SIUs are discussed in greater detail in in U S Patent 7,269,527 entitled “System Integration Module For CBRNE Sensors ', filed on Jan 17, 2007, which is commonly owned and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety It should be noted that although FIG 1 shows each of the sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108 110 112 coupled to a separate sensor interface 114, 116 a single sensor interface can be coupled to all of the sensor arrays 102, 104
  • One or more micro-neutron pulse devices 132 are also optionally included within the operating environment 100 and are communicatively coupled to the first network 130 and/or a second network 134
  • a micro-neutron pulse device 132 is an active analysis device that emits neutron pulses and whereby gamma feedback identifies shielded radiological materials such as highly enriched uranium, explosives, illicit drugs, or other materials
  • the first and second networks 130, 134 can include any number of local area networks and/or wide area networks It should be noted that even though FIG 1 shows two networks 130, 134, a single network can be implemented or additional networks can be added
  • the operating environment 100 also includes an information processing system 136 communicatively coupled to the first network 130 via one or more wired and/or wireless communication links
  • the information processing system 136 includes a data collection manager 138 and is communicatively coupled to one or more data storage units 140
  • the one or more storage units 140 can reside within the information processing system 136 and/or outside of the system 136 as shown in FIG 1
  • the data collection manager 138 manages the collection and/or retrieval of data 142 generated by the sensors 114, 116 within the sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 and optionally the micro neutron pulse detector 132
  • the data 142 generated by each of the sensors 114, 116 is detailed spectral data from each sensor device that has detected radiation such as gamma radiation and/or neutron radiation
  • the data collection manager 138 stores the data 142 received/retrieved from the sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 and/or the neutron pulse detector 132 in one or more data storage devices 140
  • a data storage device 140 can be a single hard-drive, two or more coupled hard-drives, solid state memory devices, and/or optical media such as (but not limited to) compact discs and digital video discs, and the like It should be noted that this list of storage devices is not exhaustive and any type of storage device can be used It should also be noted that information processing system 136 including the data collection manager 138 is modular in design and can be used specifically for radiation detection and identification and/or for data collection for explosives and special materials detection and identification
  • the operating environment 100 also includes an information processing system 144 communicatively to the at least a second network 134 via one or more wireless and/or wired communication technologies
  • the information processing system 144 includes a data analysis and monitoring manager 146 that analyzes and monitors the data 142 retrieved/received from the sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 and optionally the micro-neutron pulse detector 132
  • the data analysis and monitoring manager 146 includes a multi-channel analyzer 148 and a spectral analyzer 150 The data analysis and monitoring manager 146 and each of these components 148, 150 are discussed in greater detail below
  • a user interface 152, a manifest database 154, and a materials database 156 are communicatively coupled to the information processing system 144 either directly or via a network (e g the second network 134)
  • the user interface 152 in one embodiment, is one or more displays, input devices, output devices and/or the like that allows a user to monitor and/or interact with the information processing system 144
  • the data and analysis functionality of the information processing system 144 which is discussed in greater detail below, can either be automated and/or supplemented with human interaction
  • the user ⁇ nterface(s) 152 enables this human interaction
  • the manifest database 154 includes a plurality of manifests 158 associated with shipping cargo, which can be cargo on a water vessel, a ground vessel (e g , cars, trucks, and/or trains), and/or an air transportation vessel
  • a manifest 160 includes a detailed description of the contents of each container or cargo that is to be examined by the sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 and/or the neutron pulse device(s) 132
  • the manifests 158 are used by the information processing system 144 to determine whether the possible materials, goods, and/or products within the container package, car, truck, or the like, match the expected authorized materials, goods, and/or products, described in the manifest 158 for the particular entity under examination
  • the use of a manifest 158 during examination of an entity is discussed in greater detail below
  • the materials database 156 includes materials information 160 such as chemical material information, biological material information, radioactive material information, nuclear material information, and/or explosive material information
  • the materials information 160 can include isotope information for known isotopes
  • isotope information can include spectral images, histograms, energy levels, and/or the like associated with known isotopes
  • the materials information 160 in one embodiment, is used by the data analysis and monitoring manager 146 to determine whether any hazardous materials are within an entity that is being examined This identification/detection process is discussed in greater detail below
  • manifest database 154 and the materials database 156 are shown in FIG 1 as being separate from the information processing system 144, one or more of these databases 154, 156 can reside within the information processing system 144 as well Furthermore, the components of the information processing system 136 and the information processing system 144 can be implemented within a single information processing system as compared to multiple systems as shown in FIG 1
  • the operating environment 100 also includes a remote monitoring information processing system 162 communicatively coupled to the second network 134
  • a user interface 164 which can be one or more displays, input devices, output devices and/or the like that allows a user to monitor and/or interact with the remote system 162, is communicatively to the system 162
  • the remote monitoring system 162 includes a computer memory, and storage, and enables a user to remotely monitor, manage, and/or control the remote information processing system 162 and/or the data analysis and monitoring processes being performed at the information processing system 144
  • the remote monitoring system 162 can be a device such as a wireless communication device, portable computer, desktop and/or the like, that receives notifications from the information processing system 144 regarding the data analysis and monitoring processes
  • one or more monitors/camera systems 166 such as (but not limited to) a closed circuit television system is also included within the operating environment 100
  • the cameras within this system 166 can be deployed in a mobile environment such as a vehicle or at stationary portal communicatively coupled to a mobile environment Therefore, an operator can monitor a scanning process occurring in the mobile environment and/or at a stationary portal
  • an examined entity tracking system 168 is also included within the operating environment 100
  • the examined entity tracking system 168 tracks and monitors the identity of each entity such as a truck, car, train, boat, plain, cargo container, package, and the like, being examined
  • the tracking system 168 can include digital cameras, radio frequency identification tag (“RFID”) readers, bar code scanners, character recognition mechanisms, marking systems, and the like that allow the tracking system to identify an entity currently being examined This allows the information processing system 144 and/or an operator to determine if an entity has previously been examined and to also flag an entity when hazardous materials potentially reside within the entity
  • RFID radio frequency identification tag
  • FIGs 3-4 show two examples of a mobile environment applicable to various embodiments of the present invention
  • FIG 3 shows a ground vehicle such as (but not limited) to a car or a truck
  • FIG 4 shows a marine vehicle such as (but not limited to) a boat
  • the mobile environments can be used as main radiation and identification systems, or as intercept vehicles, when a stand-off radiation system detects radiation emissions
  • a stand-off radiation system can be situated at fixed locations for detecting radiation emissions at a distance This system can then dispatch mobile units to intercept the source prior to the radiation source becoming a threat to an area protected by the stand-off radiation detection system
  • FIG 3 shows a mobile environment 300 such as a Sport Utility Vehicle comprising a plurality of sensor arrays 302, 304, 306, 308, 310
  • Each sensor array 302, 304, 306, 308, 310 includes one or more sets of sensors 312, 314, 316, 318, 320, 322, 324, 326, 328, 330
  • each sensor array 302, 304, 306, 308, 310 can include gamma sensors and/or neutron sensors
  • one or more of the sensor arrajs can also include a micro-neutron pulse device(s) 132 as well
  • at least two of the sensor arrays 302, 304 are DDS arrays for detecting and determining the direction of a radiation source
  • each of the DDS arrays 302, 304 includes two sensors 312, 314, 316, 318 that are configured in the back-to back configuration discussed
  • the DDS arrays 302, 304 are situated within the mobile environment 300 perpendicular to each other to provide a 360 degree detection zone
  • the mobile environment 300 of FIG 3 includes at least one sensor array 306 comprising gamma sensors and at least one sensor array 308 comprising neutron sensors
  • the mobile operating environment 300 in one embodiment, also includes the remaining items discussed above with respect to HG 1 with the exception of the remote information processing system 162 and the user interface 164 Therefore, the mobile environment 300 can detect radiation and hazardous materials, determine the direction of radiation emission, and identify detected hazardous materials while the mobile en ⁇ ironment 300 is travelling
  • one or more of the items in the operating environment of FIG 1 can be situated at a location that is remote to the mobile operating environment 300
  • the mobile operating environment 300 accesses these remote items via one or more networks 130 134
  • the mobile operating environment 300 can include onl) the sensor arrays 302, 304, 306, 308, 310, a user interface 142, and networking equipment
  • the sensor arrays 302, 304, 306, 308, 310 perform their operations
  • the data collected by the sensor arrays 302, 304, 306, 308 is transmitted over a network 130 so that the data analysis and monitoring manager 146 can perform data analysis operations such as radiation direction identification and hazardous material identification
  • the resulting information can be passed back to the mobile operating environment 300 via one of the networks 130, 134 and displayed to a user within the mobile operating environment via the user interface 130
  • the locations of the sensor arrays 302, 304, 306, 308, 310 within the mobile environment 300 as shown in FIG 3 are only one example, and do not limit the present invention in any way
  • the sensor arrays 302, 304, 306, 308, 310 can be situated about a front portion 332, a rear portion 334, one or more side portions 336, a top portion 338, a bottom portion 340, and/or any portion therebetween, of the mobile operating environment 300
  • FIG 4 shows a marine mobile operating environment 400 such as a boat
  • the mobile environment 400 includes a plurality of sensor arrays 402, 404, 406, 408, 410
  • Each sensor array 402, 404, 406, 408, 410 includes one or more sets of sensors 412, 414, 416, 418, 420, 422, 424, 426, 428, 430
  • at least two of the sensor arrays 402, 404 are configured as DDS arrays for detecting and determining the direction of a radiation source
  • each of the DDS arrays 402, 404 includes two sensors 412, 414, 416, 418 that are configured in the back-to back configuration discussed above
  • the DDS arrays 402, 404 are situated within the mobile environment 400 perpendicular to each other to provide a 360 degree detection zone
  • the mobile environment 400 of FIG 4 includes at least one sensor array 406 comprising gamma sensors and at least one sensor array 408 comprising neutron sensors
  • the mobile operating environment 400 in one embodiment, also includes the remaining items discussed above with respect to FIG 1 with the exception of the remote information processing system 162 and the user interface 164 Therefore, the mobile environment 400 can detect radiation and hazardous materials, determine the direction of radiation emission, and identify detected hazardous materials while the mobile environment 400 is travelling
  • the mobile en ⁇ ironment 400 can locate, detect, and identify radiological and fissile materials within other vessels, in waterways, or on the high seas
  • a communications capability allows the mobile environment 400 to report the findings and radiological data to another vessel and/or a land based operations center as needed
  • the locations of the sensor arrays 402, 404, 406, 408, 410 within the mobile environment 400, as shown in FIG 4, are only one example and do not limit the present invention in any way
  • the sensor arrays 402, 404, 406, 408, 410 can be situated on a front portion 432, a rear portion 434, one or more side portions 436, a top portion 438 a bottom portion 440, and/or any portion therebetween, of the mobile operating environment 400
  • a mobile system By implementing the operating environment 100 (or at least a portion of the operating environment 100) within a mobile environment, a mobile system is created that is able to (1) determine the direction of a radiation source, (2) utilize gamma detectors for detecting and identifying any isotopes present within an entity/area being examined and/or approached by the mobile environment, (3) utilize neutron detectors for identifying the presence of fissile materials within an entity/area being examined and/or approached by the mobile environment (4) perform optional long range radiation detection, (5) perform neutron pulse operations for detection of shielded fissile materials, explosives, and other materials of interest, and (6) optionally detect and identify chemical, biological, and materials within an entity/area being examined and/or approached
  • implementing the operating environment 100 within a mobile environment allows for much larger areas to be scanned than stationary or fixed systems
  • a car/truck can drive around a city, airport, marine, sea port, and the like, and perform scanning operations
  • the DDS arrays determine the direction of a radiation source so operators within the car/truck, or remotely located operators, can determine the direction of travel needed to locate a radiation source
  • an information processing system located in the moving vehicle can include a GPS positioning module (not shown)that identifies the GPS position of the moving vehicle Mapping software, operating with the information processing system, can accurately track the position of the moving vehicle relative to a geographical map of a region
  • the position of the moving vehicle on the map of the region can be displajed to a user such as by using graphic display software and a graphic display monitor coupled to the information processing system
  • the information processing system on the moving vehicle can capture two or more relative directions of the radiation source, i e , relative to the moving vehicle This then allows the information processing system to accurately calculate and track a specific radiation source location on the map
  • the information processing system such as with tracking software, can triangulate the geographic location of the specific radiation source by using two relative directions of the radiation source coupled with two respective geographic locations of the vehicle (using the GPS position of the vehicle), determined as the moving vehicle moves in
  • the mobile environments discussed above can be used in conjunction with stationary or fixed portals as well
  • one or more of the sensor arrays 102 104, 106, 108, 110, 112 can be deployed at strategic locations within a city, marina, port, airport, building, housing communities, waterway channels, on the sides of a waterway channel under a bridge, on the sides of a roadway under a bridge or in stand-alone positions along the water channel or roadways, entranceways into harbors, at buoys, or the like for detecting radiation
  • These sensor arrays can then generate radiation alarms when radiation is detected
  • a mobile detection and identification system can then be dispatched to the area associated with the sensor array(s) that detected the radiation for further detection and analysis
  • the sensor arrays 102, 104, 106, 108, 110 112 scan an entity/area to be examined
  • Each of the gamma and/or neutron sensors generates signals indicative of any gamma and/or neutron radiation detected
  • this sensor data 142 is collected by the data collection manager 138 and stored within one or more data storage units 140
  • the data analysis and monitoring manager 146 then analyzes the data 142 to determine if any hazardous materials have been detected and/or the direction of where a radiation source is located
  • the data analysis and monitoring manager 146 includes a multi channel analyzer ("MCA") 148 comprising one or more devices a device composed of multiple single channel analyzers (' SCA”)
  • MCA multi channel analyzer
  • the MCA 148 uses analog to digital converters combined with computer memory that is equivalent to thousands of SCAs and counters and is dramatically more powerful and cost efficient than individual SCAs
  • the SCA interrogates analog signals received from the individual radiation sensors 114, 116, and determines whether the specific energy range of the received signal is equal to the range identified by the single channel If the energy received is within the SC ⁇ , an SCA counter is updated Over time the SCA counts are accumulated At a given time interval, a multi-channel analyzer 148 includes a number of SCA counts, which result in the creation of at least one histogram 170
  • the histogram 170 represents the spectral image of the radiation that is present within the entity/area being examined In other words, the histogram 170 is a fingerprint of the entity being examined
  • the histogram 170 is used by the spectral analyzer 150 to identify isotopes that are present in materials residing within in the entity/area under examination
  • One of the functions performed by the data and analysis manager 146 is spectral analysis, performed by the spectral analyzer 138, to identify the one or more isotopes, explosives or special materials residing within the entity/area under examination
  • the spectral analyzer 150 compares one or more spectral images (e g , represented by histograms 170, and/or by other collections of data associated with the sensors) of the radiation that has been detected within the entity/area to known isotopes that are represented by one or more spectral images stored 160 in the materials database 156 By capturing multiple variations of spectral data for each isotope there are numerous images that can be compared to one or more spectral images of the radiation present
  • the materials database 156 holds one or more spectral images 160 of each isotope to be identified These multiple spectral images represent various levels of acquisition of spectral radiation data so isotopes can be compared and identified using various amounts of spectral data available from the one or more sensors Whether there are small amounts or large amounts of data acquired from the sensors, the spectral analyzer 150 compares the acquired radiation data from the one or more sensors 114, 116 to one or more spectral images 160 for each isotope to be identified This significantly enhances the reliability and efficiency of matching acquired spectral image data from the one or more sensors to spectral image data of each possible isotope to be identified
  • the manifest database 154 includes a detailed description 156 of the contents of each entity/area that is to be examined
  • the manifest 156 can be referred to by the data analysis and monitoring manager 146 to determine whether the possible materials, goods, and/or products, contained in the entity/area match the expected authorized materials, goods and/or products, described in the manifest 156 for the particular entity/area under examination
  • the spectral analyzer 150 is able to utilize various methods to provide multi-confirmation of the isotopes identified Should more than one isotope be present, the spectral analyzer 150 identifies the ratio of each isotope present
  • methods that can be used for spectral analysis such as that discussed above include 1) a margin setting method as described in United States Patent No 6,847,731 entitled “Method And System For Improving Pattern Recognition System Performance' , filed August 7, 2000, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, and 2) a LINSCAN method (a linear analysis of spectra method) as discussed in U S Provisional Patent Application No 11/624,067, filed on January 17, 2006, by inventor David L Frank, and entitled "Method For Determination Of Constituents Present From Radiation Spectra And, If Available, Neutron And Alphas Occurrences", the collective entire teachings of which being herein incorporated by reference With respect to analysis of collected data pertaining to explosives and/or special materials, the
  • neutron pulse devices 132 can also be deployed within the operating environment 100 as discussed above
  • the neutron pulse devices 132 include coincident counting capabilities
  • the gamma detectors within the neutron pulse device are used to identify chemical and explosives materials from the gamma response to the neutron pulse
  • a more detailed discussion on using micro-neutron pulse device is provided in the provisional U S Patent Application No 61/128,115, entitled “Mobile Frame Structure With Passive/ Active Sensor Arrays For Non-Invasive Analysis For CBRNE Materials Present", filed on 05/19/2008, by the same inventor as the present application, and which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety
  • the sensor array configurations discussed above are advantageous because the sensor array configurations on mobile environments can yield greater scan times, which allows for spectral analysis and hazardous material identification with respect to an object being examined Therefore, the sensor array configurations as discussed above enable the scanning entity, such as the mobile environment, to quickly and effectively operate for a system to analyze the object and/or area of interest, thereby enabling identification of hazardous materials within the entity and/or area of interest, even while remotely located
  • FIG 5 is an operational flow diagram illustrating one process of detecting radiation and identifying hazardous materials associated with the radiation using a mobile environment such as a car, truck, boat, helicopter, and the like
  • the operational flow diagram starts at step 502 and flows directly into step 504
  • the data analysis and monitoring manager 146 receives a first set of detected radiation data from a first set of sensors 306 that are mechanically coupled to the mobile entity 300
  • the manager 146 receives a second set of detected radiation data from at least a second set of sensors 308 that are mechanically coupled to the mobile entity 300
  • the manager 146 can receive gamma (and/or neutron) counts and associated energy counts detected by the sensor arrays 306, 308 It should be noted that neutron pulse information can also be provided to the manager 146 as well
  • the manager 146 optionally receives a third set of detected radiation data from an optional set of direction radiation sensors 302 (and/or 304) that are mechanically coupled to the mobile entity 300 As discussed above, this third set of detected radiation data enables the manager 146 to determine the direction from which the radiation is being emanated It should be noted that the detectors sets 302 (and/or 304) 306, 308 can perform their detection operations while the mobile entity is moving and/or stationary
  • the manager 146 at step 510, generates one or more histograms 170 based on at least the first set of detected radiation data and the second set of detected radiation data, as discussed above
  • the manager 146 at step 512, compares spectral images associated with the generated histograms to a set of spectral images 156 associated with known materials
  • the manager 146 at step 514, determines if a match exists between the spectral images associated with the generated histograms 170 and the set of spectral images 156 associated with known materials If the result of this negative is negative, the
  • the manager 146 compares the identified material with a manifest 158 associated with the entity being examined The manager 146, at step 526, determines if the manifest includes the identified material If the result of this determination is negative, the identified material is unauthorized and the manager 146 at step 520, notifies personnel The control flow then exits at step 522 If the result of this determination is positive, the manager 146, at step 528, determines that the identified material is authorized and the control flow then exits at step 530
  • FIG 6 is a high level block diagram illustrating a more detailed view of a computing system 600 such as the information processing system 144 useful for implementing the data and analysis manager 146 according to various embodiments of the present invention
  • the computing system 600 is based upon a suitably configured processing system adapted to implement an embodiment of the present invention
  • a personal computer, workstation, or the like may be used
  • the computing system 600 includes one or more processors, such as processor 604
  • the processor 604 is connected to a communication infrastructure 602 (e g , a communications bus, crossover bar, or network)
  • a communication infrastructure 602 e g , a communications bus, crossover bar, or network
  • Various software embodiments are described in terms of this exemplary computer system After reading this description, it should become apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the rele ⁇ ant art(s) how to implement an embodiment of the present invention using other computer systems and/or computer architectures
  • the computing system 600 can include a display interface 608 that forwards graphics, text, and other data from the communication infrastructure 602 (or from a frame buffer) for display on the display unit 610
  • the computing system 600 also includes a main memory 606, preferably random access memory (RAM), and may also include a secondary memory 612 as well as various caches and auxiliary memory as are normally found in computer systems
  • the secondary memory 612 may include, for example, a hard disk drive 614 and/or a removable storage drive 616, representing a floppy disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, an optical disk drive, and the like
  • the removable storage drive 616 reads from and/or writes to a removable storage unit 618 in a manner well known to those having ordinary skill in the art
  • Removable storage unit 618 represents a floppy disk, a compact disc, magnetic tape optical disk, etc which is read by and written to by removable storage drive 616
  • the removable storage unit 618 includes a computer readable medium having stored therein computer software and/or data
  • the computer readable medium may include non-volatile memory, such as ROM.
  • a computer medium may include, for example, volatile storage such as RAM, buffers, cache memory, and network circuits
  • the computer readable medium may comprise computer readable information in a transitory state medium such as a network link and/or a network interface, including a wired network or a wireless network that allow a computer to read such computer- readable information
  • the secondary memory 612 may include other similar means for allowing computer programs or other instructions to be loaded into the computing system 600
  • Such means may include, for example, a removable storage unit 622 and an interface 620 Examples of such may include a program cartridge and cartridge interface (such as that found in video game devices), a removable memory chip (such as an EPROM, or PROM) and associated socket, and other removable storage units 622 and interfaces 620 which allow software and data to be transferred from the removable storage unit 622 to the computing system 600
  • the computing system 600 includes a communications interface 624 that acts as an input and output and allows software and data to be transferred between the computing system 600 and external devices or access points via a communications path 626
  • communications interface 624 may include a modem, a network interface (such as an Ethernet card), a communications port, a PCMCIA slot and card, etc
  • Software and data transferred via communications interface 626 are in the form of signals which may be, for example, electronic, electromagnetic, optical, or other signals capable of being received by communications interface 624
  • the signals are provided to communications interface 624 via a communications path (i e , channel) 626
  • the channel 626 carries signals and may be implemented using wire or cable, fiber optics, a phone line, a cellular phone link, an RF link, and/or other communications channels
  • the terms ' computer program medium,” “computer usable medium,” “computer readable medium ', “computer readable storage product”, and “computer program storage product” are used to generally refer to media such as main memory 606 and secondary memory 612, removable storage drive 616, and a hard disk installed in hard disk drive 614
  • the computer program products are means for providing software to the computer system
  • the computer readable medium allows the computer system to read data, instructions, messages or message packets, and other computer readable information from the computer readable medium
  • Computer programs are stored in main memory 606 and/or secondary memory 612 Computer programs may also be received via communications interface 624 Such computer programs, when executed, enable the computer system to perform the features of the various embodiments of the present invention as discussed herein In particular, the computer programs, when executed, enable the processor 604 to perform the features of the computer system

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  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • High Energy & Nuclear Physics (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Geophysics (AREA)
  • Analysing Materials By The Use Of Radiation (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un système, un procédé et un véhicule mobile qui identifient les matières associés à un rayonnement détecté. Le procédé consiste à recevoir un ensemble de données de rayonnement associées à un rayonnement émis par au moins une source de rayonnement en provenance d'un ensemble de détecteurs de rayonnement couplés mécaniquement au véhicule mobile, à générer au moins un histogramme à partir de cet ensemble de données de rayonnement, le ou les histogrammes représentant l'image spectrale du rayonnement émis par la source de rayonnement, à comparer le ou les histogrammes à une pluralité d'images spectrales associées à des matières connues, et à identifier le ou les histogrammes correspondant sensiblement à au moins une image spectrale de la pluralité d'images spectrales, puis à déterminer si la matière concernée est une matière dangereuse. S'il a été déterminé que la matière associée à au moins une image spectrale de la pluralité d'images spectrales est une matière dangereuse, une notification est transmise au personnel pour l'avertir que la ou les sources de rayonnement sont une matière dangereuse.
PCT/US2009/038069 2008-03-24 2009-03-24 Système mobile d'identification d'un danger de rayonnement Ceased WO2009139959A2 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (16)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US7059008P 2008-03-24 2008-03-24
US61/070,590 2008-03-24
US12811508P 2008-05-19 2008-05-19
US12811408P 2008-05-19 2008-05-19
US61/128,115 2008-05-19
US61/128,114 2008-05-19
US20849209P 2009-02-25 2009-02-25
US61/208,492 2009-02-25
US20919409P 2009-03-04 2009-03-04
US61/209,194 2009-03-04
US21007509P 2009-03-13 2009-03-13
US21012209P 2009-03-13 2009-03-13
US61/210,075 2009-03-13
US61/210,122 2009-03-13
US12/409,733 2009-03-24
US12/409,733 US20090236538A1 (en) 2008-03-24 2009-03-24 Mobile radiation threat identification system

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2009139959A2 true WO2009139959A2 (fr) 2009-11-19
WO2009139959A3 WO2009139959A3 (fr) 2010-01-07

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Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2011140537A1 (fr) * 2010-05-07 2011-11-10 Cbg Corporation Outil de détection de rayonnement directionnel

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JP3211493B2 (ja) * 1993-07-15 2001-09-25 石川島播磨重工業株式会社 Ｘ線検査車両
CN1181336C (zh) * 2002-10-16 2004-12-22 清华大学 一种车载移动式集装箱检查系统
US7099434B2 (en) * 2002-11-06 2006-08-29 American Science And Engineering, Inc. X-ray backscatter mobile inspection van
US6928141B2 (en) * 2003-06-20 2005-08-09 Rapiscan, Inc. Relocatable X-ray imaging system and method for inspecting commercial vehicles and cargo containers

Cited By (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2011140537A1 (fr) * 2010-05-07 2011-11-10 Cbg Corporation Outil de détection de rayonnement directionnel
CN102985852A (zh) * 2010-05-07 2013-03-20 Cbg公司 定向辐射检测工具
US8759749B2 (en) 2010-05-07 2014-06-24 Cbg Corporation Directional radiation detection tool
CN102985852B (zh) * 2010-05-07 2016-08-03 Cbg公司 定向辐射检测工具

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