Metal detector coil

• US 4,866,424 A
• Filed: 01/11/1988
• Issued: 09/12/1989
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/1988
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: EG&G Astrophysics Research Corporation (Revvity, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: EG&G Astrophysics Research Corporation (Revvity, Inc.)
• Inventors: Parks, Stephen I.
• Primary Examiner(s): Swann, III, Glen R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MULLEN, THOMAS J
• Application Number:
  US07/142,632
• Time in Patent Office: 610 Days
• Field of Search: 340/551, 340/572, 324/260, 324/243
• US Class Current: 340/551
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/167 Measuring radioactive content of objects, e.g. contamination whole body counters G01T1/163

Abstract

A coil for a metal detector is constructed from a ribbon cable having a plurality of spaced parallel conductors. The ribbon is formed into a loop where its opposing ends confront each other. The conductors are joined in an off-set manner at the end of the cable to form a single conductor into a loop. Various configurations of coil placement are shown to compensate for various external disturbances such as nearby metal objects, for example.

Claims

1. A walk-through, person-screening metal detector comprising bistatic coil means in a portal with transmitting coil means on one side and receiving coil means on the opposite side of the portal, said transmitting coil means being multiple coils and having changeable interconnection means for changing a field pattern in local regions of the portal to compensate for the effects of adjacent metal near t portal, and with gaps between adjacent parts of said multiple coils for adjustably controlling sensitivity variations within a volume contained by the receiving coil means disposed on said portal to intercept a field induced in a contraband item by the transmit coil means, detector means coupled to said coils, and alarm means responsive to said detector means for reporting contraband metal passing the portal.

2. The metal detector of claim 1 wherein said multiple coils comprise a plurality of spacially separated wires embedded in plastic and radially disposed for reducing time constants and balancing displacement currents, said wires being held in alignment at fixed radial distances from one another by a common matrix of insulation, applied before said multiple coils are formed from said wires.

3. The metal detector of claim 1 and connector cables joining said receiving coil means, and balanced preamplifier means at leakage terminals of said coil means at leakage terminals of said coil means for reducing the effect of noise leakage induced in said connector cables before signals picked up by said receiving coil means reach associated receiver electronics.

4. The detector of claim 1 and switch means for reconfiguring the coils to adjust performance when different amounts and kinds of metal are encountered adjacent said detector, said switch means changing an effective pattern of sensitivity by altering intersecting angles of flux produced by said transmitting coil means and received by said receiving coil means for reducing the effects of adjacent metals.

5. A coil array for a walk-through, pulsed-field metal detector, said array comprising:

a. first receiver coil means having four loops of conductor material, constructed from a ribbon cable with no dipolar or quadrupolar moment, and with gaps between conductors of adjacent coils;

b. second receiver coil means constructed similar to and inverted with respect to said first receiver coils;

c. said first and second coils being aligned so that the least sensitive zone of said first coil coincides with the most sensitive zone of the second coil and vice versa.

6. The coil array of claim 5 and transmitting coil means comprising four coils with significant gaps between the coils, and means for interconnecting said coils to fill in said gaps between conductors of adjacent coils.

7. The coil array of claim 5 wherein said coils are constructed from flat ribbon conductors.

8. The coil array of claim 5 and means for forming said coils from conductors which are held in a spaced parallel arrangement.

9. The coil array of claim 8 and preamplifier means closely adjacent said coils for amplifying signals picked up by said receive coils before external effects act upon said picked up signals.

10. The coil array of claim 8 and means for packaging said coils in a plurality of separate panels which may be disassembled for shipment.

11. The coil array of claim 8 wherein said conductors form five vertically distributed loops coupled to have no dipolar or quadrupolar moment.

12. The coil array of claim 8, wherein said conductors form at least three vertically distributed loops coupled to have no dipolar or quadrupolar moment.