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Summary of Tracefind Technology |
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TRACEFIND SCANNER TECHNOLOGY
TRACEFIND technology was developed to allow precision detection and location of objects and substances that require portable sensors, typically in situations that are not amenable to any automated structure for handling and/or testing. Applications of this type range from operating room scanning of a patient during surgery to a night watchman making his or her rounds over several thousand square feet of a chemical plant.
In the case of a patient undergoing surgery, the placement of the patient on the operating table with various lines and devices attached to the patient precludes any kind of scanning such as a CAT scan or an MRI scan. Due to the tight spaces involved and the myriad obstructions, this application requires a scanner that is hand-held and preferably not much larger than a large flashlight. Furthermore, due to the need to scan around and between various lines connected to the patient, the scanner itself cannot require any connections to other equipment.
The night watchman application represents an entirely different environment that, surprisingly, has similar requirements. In order for a night watchman to carry the scanner on his belt, etc. or in his hand, the device must be similar in size to a flashlight and not require wire connections to other equipment.
In both of these examples it can be seen that it is permissible for the device to require a docking station for charging and information transfer to a host/display unit. In most cases it is also permissible to have wireless communication of data to a host (such as a Bluetooth connection).
TRACEFIND technology is applicable to manual, portable scanning applications that require precision detection of subtle events or anomalies. This technology is applicable to most types of sensor technologies. The technology is compact enough to be implemented in small hand-held instruments and provides not only a dramatic improvement in detection sensitivity and accuracy, but also provides three-dimensional mapping of the space being scanned, with spatial coordinates giving the precise location of the detected targets. In operation the technology is transparent to the operator and, in fact, requires virtually no operator training to use.
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For applications, such as inspection of individuals for narcotics or explosives, the operator scans the hand-held instrument around the subject’s body, only paying the normal amount of attention to giving full coverage. The more time spent scanning the subject the more accurate the results. But even with a body scan limited to the normal 30 seconds or so, TRACEFIND technology will provide dramatically more accurate results. The results of a scan can be presented in whatever manner a designer chooses, from yes/no to a three-dimensional plot of the scanned space showing any significant spots of interest. Because the TRACEFIND architecture maps and accumulates information, regions of interest that are giving weak indications of a potential problem can be further scanned to increase accuracy. This is a crucially important capability of TRACEFIND-based instruments that allows accuracy that was not previously possible.
As an example, consider TSA use of a hand-held scanner to detect the presence of explosive materials hidden on a subject. TRACEFIND technology allows use of a sensor technology that will give reactive signals so sensitive that it can detect a single molecule of an explosive substance. This level of sensitivity alone would be useless given the typical and frequent false-positive readings due to minute traces of chemicals organic and inorganic chemicals that normally exist in non-ideal environments. Examples are ammonia, nitrates, phosphorous and even gunpowder from party-poppers that passed through in carry-on luggage the day before. Since TRACEFIND technology maps, analyzes and memorizes all data collected, it is always aware of what is normal for a space and what is different.
Keep in mind that this powerful concept means that you could have a stick of dynamite sitting on a nearby table that is, for whatever reason, normally there. TRACEFIND knows this and still recognizes that there are more dynamite molecules in the environment than is normal. So like a dog’s nose, TRACEFIND has the ability to cancel out extremely strong background sensor reading and pick out very subtle differences.
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