Method and Apparatus for Sorting Materials According to Relative Composition

• US 20110116596A1
• Filed: 12/03/2010
• Published: 05/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Spectramet, LLC
• Original Assignee: Spectramet, LLC
• Inventors: Spencer, David B., Roos, Charles E., Sommer, Edward J. JR., Conley, R. Lynn
• Granted Patent: US 8,144,831 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 378/53
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 2501/0009 Sorting of fasteners, e.g. screws, nuts, bolts
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 2501/0036 Sorting out metallic particles
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 2501/0054 Sorting of waste or refuse
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/3416 according to radiation transmissivity, e.g. for light, x-rays, particle radiation detecting hidden objects G01V
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/3422 using video scanning devices, e.g. TV-cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/368 actuated independently
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2223/64 multiple-sample chamber, multiplicity of materials
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2223/643 object on conveyor
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 23/06 and measuring the absorption
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 23/087 using polyenergetic X-rays
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 23/12 the material being a flowing fluid or a flowing granular solid

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a metal sorting device including an X-ray tube, a dual energy detector array, a microprocessor, and an air ejector array. The device senses the presence of samples in the x-ray sensing region and initiates identifying and sorting the samples. After identifying and classifying the category of a sample, at a specific time, the device activates an array of air ejectors located at specific positions in order to place the sample in the proper collection bin.

Claims

1-10. -10. (canceled)

11. A sorting device to distinguish materials of differing composition, comprising:

an X-ray tube, wherein the X-ray tube is in a fixed position;

a first multi-energy detector having a photon counting rate of about 1 million counts per second, positioned in a fixed position to receive x-rays from the X-ray tube;

a detector array positioned to receive x-rays from the X-ray tube, wherein the detector array has a spatial resolution of 0.02 inches per pixel;

a microprocessor operationally connected to the first multi-energy detector and the detector array;

a computer memory operationally connected to the microprocessor;

an ejector controller operationally connected to the microprocessor; and

at least one ejector attached to the ejector controller.

12. The device of claim 11, wherein the first multi-energy detector is a multi-energy cadmium zinc telluride pixel detection system.

13. The device of claim 12, wherein the first multi-energy detector is a multi-energy detector array for detecting more than two energy levels simultaneously, wherein the energy levels range from about 1 KeV to about 160 KeV.

14. The device of claim 11, further comprising a second multi-energy detector, wherein the second multi-energy detector is positioned in a fixed position so that it is not in the primary path of x-ray transmission.