Radiation measurement alarm system

• US 6,628,201 B2
• Filed: 12/26/2001
• Issued: 09/30/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Chung Nam Cho
• Original Assignee: Chung Nam Cho
• Inventors: Shikano, Shinobu, Cho, Chung Nam
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Taon Ngoc
• Application Number:
  US10/032,788
• Publication Number:
  US 20020125999A1
• Time in Patent Office: 643 Days
• Field of Search: 340/600, 340/691.1, 340/691.6, 340/573.1, 340/539.11, 340/539.22, 340/539.26, 340/539.29, 250/286, 250/336.1, 250/388, 250/484.5, 368/10, 368/11, 342/74, 342/359
• US Class Current: 340/600
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 7/00 Details of radiation-measuring instruments

Abstract

A combination of a master machine and a plurality of slave machines communicate wireless with each other. In case of a radiation leak accident, multitudes of inhabitants or workers dealing with the accident are made to carry the slave machines. The slave machine measure the degree of radiation exposure in real time, and notifies this measured result automatically to the master machine by wireless communication. The master machine recognizes the accurate radiation dose of the exposure and determines the degree of danger. The master machine notifies in real time the determined result individually to people carrying the slave machine, who are exposed victims or people that have a possibility of being exposed, according to the danger degree. The master machine is made to extract true radiation measurement data from the measurement signal data sent by the slave machine, by discriminating noise. This true radiation measurement data is made to be compared to a previously prescribed safety standard data, and the danger degree is determined. An alarm signal is made so that it can be transmitted to the slave machine, according to the determined result.

Claims

1. A radiation measurement alarm system comprising:

a master machine;

a plurality of slave machines;

a radiation detecting means in each of said plurality of slave machines for detecting radiation;

a slave machine transmitting apparatus for transmitting data from said slave machine to said master machine;

a slave machine receiving apparatus for receiving signals from said master machine;

an alarm apparatus in each of said plurality of slave machines for at least one of sending and receiving emergency data;

an alarm display part in each of said plurality of slave machines for notifying a user of said slave machine of radiation exposure with at least one of sound and illumination;

a slave machine control part for controlling each of said plurality of slave machines, wherein, when radiation is detected by said radiation detecting means, said slave machine transforms a detected radiation signal into electric measurement signal data and transmits said measurement signal data from said slave machine transmitting apparatus;

a master machine transmitting apparatus for sending information from said master machine to at least one of said plurality of slave machines;

a master machine receiving apparatus for receiving signals from said plurality of slave machines;

a data processing part in said master machine, for at least one of receiving, storing, retrieving and analyzing data received from said master machine receiving apparatus;

a master machine control part for controlling said master machine; and

output means part for outputting contents of processing in said data processing part and said master control part.

2. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said radiation detecting means comprises:

a sensor for detecting radiation and transforming a detection signal into an electric measurement signal; and

a preamplifier for amplifying said electric measurement signal from said sensor.

3. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said slave machine transmitting apparatus comprises:

a slave machine transmitting part for transmitting high frequency wave with a surface wave transmitter and a transistor;

a slave machine modulating part for modulating measured signal data into said high frequency wave; and

a transmission pattern antenna part.

4. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said slave machine receiving apparatus comprises:

a reception pattern antenna part;

a reception high frequency preamplifier part; and

a slave machine demodulating part for demodulating high frequency wave signals into reception data.

5. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said alarm apparatus comprises an emergency transmitting switch for transmitting an emergency radio wave whenever said emergency transmitting switch is pushed.

6. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said slave machine control part comprises:

a command interpretation means for interpreting a command sent from said master machine;

a command responding means corresponding to said command,

an ID management means; and

a time management means.

7. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said master machine transmitting apparatus comprises:

a transmitting part for transmitting high frequency wave with a surface wave transmitter and a transistor;

a modulating part for modulating sending data to said high frequency wave;

a variable gain amplifier part for controlling an output of a radio wave outputted from a transmission antenna of said master machine; and

a transmission antenna part.

8. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said master machine receiving apparatus comprises:

a non-directional receiving antenna;

a directional receiving antenna;

an antenna switching part for switching between said non-directional receiving antenna and said directional receiving antenna;

a reception preamplifier part; and

a demodulating part for demodulating high frequency wave signal into reception data.

9. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said data processing part comprises:

data receiving means for receiving measured signal data, sent from said slave machine with said master machine receiving apparatus, and registering and storing said measured signal data;

a noise discrimination apparatus for taking out said measurement signal data from said data receiving means, analyzing said measurement signal data to distinguish and remove noise signals in order to extract and transform into true radiation measurement data, and storing said true radiation measurement data;

danger degree determination means for comparing said true radiation measurement data with previously prescribed safety standard data to determine the danger degree and instructing countermeasures; and

alarm signal transmitting means for transmitting an alarm signal transmitted from said master machine to said slave machine.

10. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said master machine control part comprises:

gain control means enabling a gain control of a variable gain amplifier part;

distance measuring means for specifying a range by measuring distance a radio wave can reach and enabling measurement of said distance with said gain control means;

direction specifying means for specifying a direction of a radio wave with a directional receiving antenna;

reserved time configuration means configuring a reserved time from said master machine to said slave machine control part of said slave machine;

command transmitting means enabling a transmission of commands as data;

response signal receiving means for receiving response signals from said slave machines corresponding to transmission from said master machine; and

ID recognizing means for specifying said slave machine transmitting a response signal by recognizing an ID added beforehand to said signal.

11. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said output means outputs data including at least one of a range and distance a radio wave can reach, a specified direction that said radio wave is to reach, results of identification of said slave machines, a true radiation measurement data extracted from said measurement signal data, the determined result of a degree of danger of said true radiation measurement data, and the contents of alarms sent to said slave machine.

12. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein:

said master machine specifies and ascertains a number of said slave machines within a specified range area;

said master machine identifies said number of said slave machines from an ID by having a variable gain amplifier part of said master machine transmitting apparatus able to control and vary an output of a radio wave outputted from a transmission antenna part, by having a range of said radio wave can reach processed and specified by a gain control of said variable gain amplifier, by having said master machine transmit a call-out signal to said slave machines within said specified range area, by having said master machine receive signals from said slave machines receiving said call-out signal from said master machine.

13. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claim 1, wherein said master machine checks a location of a person possessing said slave machine by:

having a reception antenna part of said master machine receiving apparatus provided with both a non-directional receiving antenna and a directional receiving antenna;

having an antenna switching part of said master machine receiving apparatus switching between said non-directional receiving antenna and said directional receiving antenna, making the direction of radio waves being limited to a specified direction;

having a transmission distance measured using said non-directional receiving antenna; and

having said non-directional receiving antenna switched to said directional receiving antenna to determine direction.

14. The radiation measurement alarm system according to claims 1, wherein said radiation measurement alarm system has relaying means fore relaying radio waves between said master machine and said plurality of slave machines.