Sample containment card for air or station contamination monitoring system and process

• US 5,635,403 A
• Filed: 11/14/1994
• Issued: 06/03/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/1991
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NFS Radiation Protection Systems, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc. (Babcock International Group PLC)
• Inventors: Bailey, William H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Warden, Jill
• Assistant Examiner(s): CARRILLO, BIBI SHARIDAN
• Application Number:
  US08/338,954
• Time in Patent Office: 932 Days
• Field of Search: 422/56, 422/58, 422/86, 422/87, 422/88, 422/101, 422/71, 422/55, 422/61, 422/102, 422/57, 436/5, 436/177, 436/178, 436/181, 436/66, 436/56
• US Class Current: 436/66
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 7/04 by filtration
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/25375 Liberation or purification of sample or separation of material from a sample [e.g., filtering, centrifuging, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/255 including use of a solid sorbent, semipermeable membrane, or liquid extraction
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/25875 Gaseous sample or with change of physical state

Abstract

A tracking and identification card for an air filter specimen, the card having a sheet-like base with a substantially flat support surface for supporting the specimen, the base having a substantially uniform thickness of from about 3 to about 20 mil, and having a focus axis oriented substantially normal to the support surface, a locator area on the support surface and provided with contact adhesive for adhesively holding the specimen in a particular position on the support surface upon contact of the specimen with the adhesive, a sheet-like cover in contact with and substantially overlying the adhesive, the cover being readily removable for exposing the adhesive and allowing the specimen to be placed in contact therewith, and indicia markings on the base for interfacing with an indicia reader for tracking the location and identity of the card within an air monitoring system.

Claims

1. A tracking and identification card for receiving and retaining a separate sheet-like sampled filter specimen having a geometric perimeter, said card comprising a sheet-like base means of substantially uniform thickness and having a substantially flat support surface with a focus axis oriented substantially normal to said surface, contact adhesive means on portions of said surface and including said axis, a plurality of specimen locator markings on said surface arranged substantially concentrically to each other about said axis, said markings lying predominantly radially outwardly from said adhesive means, said base means having an edge segment lying outside of said markings, said adhesive means for adhesively holding said specimen in a focused position on said surface with respect to said axis upon transport of said specimen to said card and placement of said specimen thereon into contact with said adhesive means with the specimen'"'"'s geometric perimeter substantially concentrically positioned with respect to said locator markings, an elongated sheet-like protective cover means in peelable contact with and substantially overlying said adhesive means, said cover means being readily removable for exposing said adhesive means and allowing said specimen to be placed in sticking contact with said adhesive means, and indicia means on said edge segment of said base means for interfacing with an electronic indicia reader means for tracking the location and identity of said card within an electronic monitoring system.

2. The card of claim 1 provided with a protective leaf means having an edge portion of hingedly connected to an edge portion of said base means, said leaf means folded by way of said edge portion hinge means over said support surface and over a sampled filter specimen adhesively secured to said surface whereby said specimen is protected from physical or chemical disturbance during handling of said card and specimen within said monitoring system, said leaf means being dimensioned such that the area of said support surface which said leaf means overlies when said leaf means is folded over said surface does not include the said edge segment of said base means which contains said indicia means, whereby said indicia means is exposed to view when said leaf means if folded over onto said specimen.

3. The card of claim 2 wherein said base means and said leaf means is each substantially rectangular and formed respectively with a top edge, a bottom edge, and opposite first and second side edges, said second side edge of said leaf means being hingedly connected to said second side edge of said base means to allow said leaf means to be folded over said base means, said base means being provided with a cut-out in its said first side edge, said cover means formed with an inner end and an outer end provided with a gripping section, said cover means extending from said second side edge of said base means to said first side edge of said base means with said gripping section lying across said cut-out, said cover means being secured to said base means substantially from end to end by said adhesive means whereby said cover means can readily be removed by gripping said section thereof overlying said cut-out and peeling said cover means upwardly away from said support surface.

4. The card of claim 1 wherein said locator markings comprise a plurality of concentric rings markings which denote the desired location for proper focusing of filter specimens of substantially circular perimeters of different radial dimensions. dimensions.

5. The card of claim 2 wherein said indicia means is a bar code printed on said edge segment.

6. The card of claim 2 wherein said leaf means is hingedly connected to said base means by perforated tear line means whereby said leaf means is detached readily from said base means for allowing said card and a filter specimen, which is adhesively secured to said base means, to be inserted into a radiation counting device and the specimen scanned by a radiation analyzer means.

7. The card of claim 1 wherein a dabber means is provided on said leaf means and held thereon by an easily removable attachment means, whereby said dabber means is made readily available by detachment from said leaf means for employment in contact sampling.

8. The method for supporting a separate sheet-like sampled filter specimen having a geometric perimeter for introduction into a radiation analyzer means for characterizing contaminant material contained by said specimen comprising:

i) providing a tracking and identification card 10 comprising a sheet-like base means of substantially uniform thickness and having a) a substantially flat support surface with a focus axis oriented substantially normal to said surface, b) contact adhesive means on portions of said surface and including said axis, c) a plurality of specimen locator markings on said surface arranged substantially concentrically to each other about said focus axis, said markings lying predominantly radially outward from said adhesive means, d) an edge segment lying outside of said markings and having indicia means thereon for interfacing with an electronic indicia reader means for tracking the location and identity of said card and specimen within an electronic monitoring system, said adhesive means adhesively holding said specimen in a focused position on said support surface with respect to said axis, e) an elongated sheet-like protective cover means in peelable contact with and substantially overlying said adhesive means, and f) a protective leaf means having an edge portion hingedly connected to an edge portion of said base means;

ii) peeling off said cover means and exposing said adhesive means;

iii) transporting said specimen to said card;

iv) placing said specimen thereon into contact with said adhesive means with said specimen'"'"'s perimeter substantially concentrically positioned with respect to said locator markings; and

v) folding said leaf means by way of said edge portion hinge means over said support surface and over said sampled filter specimen adhesively secured to said surface, whereby said specimen is protected from physical or chemical disturbance during handling of said card and specimen within said monitoring system, said leaf means being dimensioned such that the area of said surface which said leaf means overlies when said leaf means is folded over said support surface does not include said edge segment of said base means which contains said indicia means, whereby said indicia means is exposed to view when said leaf means is folded over onto said filter specimen.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein said base means and leaf means are each substantially rectangular and formed respectively with a top edge, a bottom edge and opposite first and second side edges, said second side edge of said leaf means being hingedly connected to said second side edge of said base means to allow said leaf means to be folded over said base means, said base means being provided with a cut-out in its said first side edge, said cover means formed with an inner end and an outer end provided with a gripping section, said cover means extending from said second side edge of said base means to said first side edge of said base means with said gripping section lying across said cut-out, said cover means being secured to said base means substantially from end to end by said adhesive means whereby said cover means can readily be removed by gripping said section thereof overlying said cut-out and peeling said cover means upwardly away from said support surface.