Interrogator and Interrogation System Employing the Same
First Claim
1. An interrogator, comprising:
- an antenna array having coils that define multiple areas;
a metal sensing subsystem configured to transmit a pulse to each coil of said antenna array and receive a response therefrom; and
a control and processing subsystem configured to estimate and subtract a background signal level from said response from each coil and provide a residual therefrom, thereby discerning a presence of a metal object in at least one of said multiple areas.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An interrogator, methods of discerning the presence of an object, and interrogation systems employing the same. In one embodiment, the interrogation systems include multiple interrogators that communicate with a base command unit to track a location of an object. In another embodiment wherein the object is an RFID object (e.g., an object with an RFID tag), the interrogators employ signal processing techniques such as precharging the RFID object, and correlating a reference code with a reply code from the RFID object using selected techniques to increase a sensitivity of the interrogator, especially for adverse environments. In other embodiments, the interrogation systems include variations of metal instruments and sponges employed therewith. In yet another embodiment, the interrogation system includes metal interrogators capable of discerning the presence of a metal object, especially in a presence of another metal object.
72 Citations
30 Claims
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1. An interrogator, comprising:
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an antenna array having coils that define multiple areas;
a metal sensing subsystem configured to transmit a pulse to each coil of said antenna array and receive a response therefrom; and
a control and processing subsystem configured to estimate and subtract a background signal level from said response from each coil and provide a residual therefrom, thereby discerning a presence of a metal object in at least one of said multiple areas. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method of operating an interrogator, comprising:
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providing an antenna array having coils that define multiple areas;
transmitting a pulse to each coil of said antenna array and receiving a response therefrom; and
estimating and subtracting a background signal level from said response from each coil and providing a residual therefrom, thereby discerning a presence of a metal object in at least one of said multiple areas. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification