Mail screening to detect mail contaminated with biological harmful substances
First Claim
1. A method for screening mail to detect a harmful substance conveyed by the mail;
- comprising steps of;
(a) automatically sampling air drawn from the vicinity of the mail to screen wherein the sampling comprises continuously sampling the air proximate each one of a plurality of mail handling stations, and further comprising the steps of;
(i) deploying a filter unit through which air proximate each one of the plurality of mail handling stations is filtered; and
(ii) at the end of a predetermined period of time, analyzing particles collected by each filter unit, in order determine if relatively low concentrations of potentially harmful particles were missed by the automatic evaluation of the air sampled at the mail handling station, such relatively low concentrations accumulating over the predetermined period of time into a detectable concentration in the filter;
(b) automatically evaluating the sampled air to detect a potentially harmful substance that is carried by the mail and which is picked up from the mail by the air moving in the vicinity of the mail, such evaluation being characterized as broadly determining if a potentially harmful substance must be present, as opposed to identifying a specific harmful substance, the evaluation comprising;
(i) determining if a particle count is the sample exceeds a predetermined threshold, and if so determining that a potentially harmful substance might be present; and
(ii) illuminating the sample to determine if a characteristic fluorescence indicating the presence of biological particles is detected, and if so, determining that a potentially harmful substance might be present;
(c) providing and indication if a potentially harmful substance is detected while the mail is being screened; and
(d) in response to the indication of a potentially harmful substance being detected, carrying out an assay of a sample of the potentially harmful substance, to confirm the indication and to attempt to identify a specific harmful substance that is being conveyed by mail.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A multi-tier approach for use in a mailroom for detecting bio-threats conveyed by mail. In a first tier procedure, mail entering the mailroom is continuously automatically screened at a mail screening station to detect a potential bio-threat contamination. If a potential bio-threat is detected, an alarm signal is generated, a sample of the potential bio-threat is collected, and a second tier procedure is initiated. The second tier procedure uses a manual test, such as a nucleic acid amplification and detection assay to detect any of a plurality of different specific bio-threats in the sample. If a specific bio-threat is found, appropriate steps are taken to limit spread of the bio-threat and exposure of personnel. A third tier procedure uses a manual assay to check for a specific toxin in background samples collected over a predefined time interval at each mail screening station and in the air handling system for the mailroom.
169 Citations
13 Claims
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1. A method for screening mail to detect a harmful substance conveyed by the mail;
- comprising steps of;
(a) automatically sampling air drawn from the vicinity of the mail to screen wherein the sampling comprises continuously sampling the air proximate each one of a plurality of mail handling stations, and further comprising the steps of; (i) deploying a filter unit through which air proximate each one of the plurality of mail handling stations is filtered; and (ii) at the end of a predetermined period of time, analyzing particles collected by each filter unit, in order determine if relatively low concentrations of potentially harmful particles were missed by the automatic evaluation of the air sampled at the mail handling station, such relatively low concentrations accumulating over the predetermined period of time into a detectable concentration in the filter; (b) automatically evaluating the sampled air to detect a potentially harmful substance that is carried by the mail and which is picked up from the mail by the air moving in the vicinity of the mail, such evaluation being characterized as broadly determining if a potentially harmful substance must be present, as opposed to identifying a specific harmful substance, the evaluation comprising; (i) determining if a particle count is the sample exceeds a predetermined threshold, and if so determining that a potentially harmful substance might be present; and (ii) illuminating the sample to determine if a characteristic fluorescence indicating the presence of biological particles is detected, and if so, determining that a potentially harmful substance might be present; (c) providing and indication if a potentially harmful substance is detected while the mail is being screened; and (d) in response to the indication of a potentially harmful substance being detected, carrying out an assay of a sample of the potentially harmful substance, to confirm the indication and to attempt to identify a specific harmful substance that is being conveyed by mail. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
- comprising steps of;
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13. A method for screening mail to detect a harmful substance conveyed by the mail, comprising the steps of;
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(a) automatically sampling air drawn from a vicinity of the mail to screen the mail; (b) automatically evaluating the sampled air to detect a potentially harmful substance that is carried by the mail and which is picked from the mail by the air moving in the vicinity of the mail, such evaluation being characterized as broadly determining if a potentially harmful substance might be present, as opposed to identifying a specific harmful substance, the evaluation comprising; (i) determining if a particle count in the sample exceeds a predetermined threshold, and if so determining that a potentially harmful substance might be present; and (ii) illuminating the sample to determine if a characteristic fluorescence indicating the presence of biological particles is detected, and if so, determining that a potentially harmful substance might be present; (c) providing an indication if a potentially harmful substance is detected while the mail is being screened; (d) in response to the indication of a potentially harmful substance being detected, carrying out an assay of a sample of the potentially harmful substance, to confirm the indication and to attempt to identify a specific harmful substance that is being conveyed by the mail; and (e) visually inspecting parcels or boxes of mail to detect a powder that may comprise a potentially harmful substance; and (f) if a power that may comprise a potentially harmful substance is visually detected during the step of visually inspecting, then using a portable infrared Raman spectrometer to attempt to identify the powder, and if the powder cannot be identified using the portable infrared Raman spectrometer, carrying out an assay of the powder, to attempt to identify a specific harmful substance comprising the powder, the assay comprising at least one of the following; (i) a nucleic acid amplification and detecting assay test; and (ii) an immunoassay test.
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Specification