Use of pulsed light to deactivate toxic and pathogenic bacteria
First Claim
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1. A method comprising providing to a surface of an object with ink indicia thereon a series of ultraviolet light pulses with sufficient energy to deactivate bacteria thereon by a factor of 1000 or more, while maintaining the readability and/or machine detectability of the indicia.
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Abstract
A system and method are used to deactivate bacteria on articles such as pieces of mail or keyboards. With mail, the pulses are sufficient to destroy a substantial amount of the bacterial without also removing inks or other indicia from the mail.
35 Citations
18 Claims
- 1. A method comprising providing to a surface of an object with ink indicia thereon a series of ultraviolet light pulses with sufficient energy to deactivate bacteria thereon by a factor of 1000 or more, while maintaining the readability and/or machine detectability of the indicia.
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8. A system comprising:
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a first conveyor for transporting articles;
a second conveyor for transporting articles received from the first conveyor, and spaced from the first conveyor by a gap;
a lamp for providing light energy to deactivate bacterial spores on articles transported on the conveyor, the lamp being located to provide light between the conveyors, and through the gap to the articles. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification