Tracking Device, System and Method
First Claim
1. A tracking device for use with a radioactive material comprising:
- a radiation detector associatable with a radioactive material in that it is adapted to be placed within a container for containing a radioactive material in a radiation shielded enclosed volume, to detect radiation activity from the material in the enclosed volume;
a radio frequency identification module associatable with a container for containing a radioactive material in a radiation shielded enclosed volume, which comprises at least;
a data register to store a unique product identification code, a processor with a data transfer link to each of the radiation detector and data register to receive and process a live data stream of activity data from the detector and associate this with the unique product identification code in a processed data packet, an antenna to enable transmission of a data item comprising both the unique product identification code and processed activity data to a remote data capture means;
wherein at least the antenna is adapted to be placed in mechanical association with a container but outside the radiation-shielded enclosed volume.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A tracking device for tracking with a radioactive material, a container including such a device, and a tracking method are described. The device has a radiation detector associatable with a radioactive material adapted to be placed in use within a container defining a radiation-shielded enclosure for containing a radioactive material, to detect radiation activity from the material. A RF identification module associatable with the container includes a data register to store a unique product identification code, a processor with a data transfer link to the radiation detector and data register to receive and process a live data stream of activity data from the detector and associate this with the unique product identification code in a processed data packet, and an antenna to enable transmission of a data item comprising both the unique product identification code and processed activity data to a remote data capture means.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A tracking device for use with a radioactive material comprising:
- a radiation detector associatable with a radioactive material in that it is adapted to be placed within a container for containing a radioactive material in a radiation shielded enclosed volume, to detect radiation activity from the material in the enclosed volume;
a radio frequency identification module associatable with a container for containing a radioactive material in a radiation shielded enclosed volume, which comprises at least;
a data register to store a unique product identification code, a processor with a data transfer link to each of the radiation detector and data register to receive and process a live data stream of activity data from the detector and associate this with the unique product identification code in a processed data packet, an antenna to enable transmission of a data item comprising both the unique product identification code and processed activity data to a remote data capture means;
wherein at least the antenna is adapted to be placed in mechanical association with a container but outside the radiation-shielded enclosed volume. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
- a radiation detector associatable with a radioactive material in that it is adapted to be placed within a container for containing a radioactive material in a radiation shielded enclosed volume, to detect radiation activity from the material in the enclosed volume;
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20. A method of tracking and verification of a plurality of radioactive material sources, over time, the method comprising:
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associating a radiation detector with a radioactive material by placing a radiation detector within a container defining a radiation-shielded enclosed volume in which is contained radioactive material; associating a radio frequency identification module with a radioactive material in data communication with the radiation detector, which module comprises at least a data register to store a unique product identification code, a processor to receive and process a data stream of activity data from the detector and associate this with the unique product identification code, and an antenna, such that at least the antenna is placed in mechanical association with a container but outside the radiation-shielded enclosed volume; operating the processor to produce a data item comprising both the unique product identification code and processed activity data; retrieving the data item via a remote data capture means; passing the data item to a radioactive source management system which includes at least a database having a set of electronic data records stored therein providing an associative reference between a unique identification code and an expected radioactive activity behaviour for each radioisotope source; for each data item so transmitted, using the unique product identifications code received by the management system to identify the first set of electronic data records stored in a data set by association with that code; comparing predicted activity data from the database with received activity data within predetermined tolerance limits; and outputting the result of that comparison as a verification of the radioactive material source. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22)
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Specification