Method of processing data from a spectrophotometer

• US 20030122080A1
• Filed: 11/08/2002
• Published: 07/03/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/12/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Agresearch Limited
• Original Assignee: Agresearch Limited
• Inventors: Davey, Peter James, Lea, John C. M., Burling-Claridge, Geordie Robert
• Granted Patent: US 6,958,479 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 250/339.07
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/02 Details
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/0264 Electrical interface; User interface
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/0272 Handheld
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/28 Investigating the spectrum using colour filters G01J3/51

Abstract

A method of processing data from at least one spectrophotometer characterized by the steps of transferring the data from the spectrophotometer to a control processing unit, processing the data at the central processing unit, and transferring the processed data to the output device.

Claims

1. A method of processing data from at least near infrared spectrophotometer that has a unique electronic identifier, utilizing a central processing unit that is physically remote from the spectrophotometer, characterized by the steps of:

a) assigning a unique electronic identifier to each spectrophotometer that is connected to the central processing unit;

b) transferring the data from the spectrophotometer to the central processing unit that has access to individual calibrations for each of the spectrophotometers from which it receives data to process;

c) determining, by recognizing the unique electronic identifier associated with the data, which spectrophotometer has sent the data to the central processing unit;

d) processing the data at the central processing unit;

e) calibrating the spectrophotometer at the central processing unit; and

f) transferring the processed data to an output device.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the central processing unit has access to a standard set of calibrations which can be used in the processing of data for a plurality of spectrophotometers.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the output device is the spectrophotometer from which the data has been received.

4. A method as claimed in claims 1 to 3, wherein the data sent to the central processing unit has information about the data of the sample analyzed by the spectrophotometer.

7. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a central processing unit has access to a data repository of calibrations for a plurality of spectrophotometers.

8. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a central processing unit has access to a data repository for data processed from a plurality of spectrophotometers.

5. A near infrared spectrophotometer for connection to a central processing unit that is physically remote from the spectrophotometer, in order that the central processing unit can analyze the data received by the spectrophotometer, the spectrophotometer output includes a unique identifier that is sent with the data in the central processing unit in order that the central processing unit can determine from which spectrophotometer the data originated.

6. A spectrophotometer as claimed in claim 5, which includes a data buffer that can hold the data from the material analyzed.

9. A method substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.

10. A spectrophotometer substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.