DETECTION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS AND FISSILE MATERIAL ABOARD CARGO CONTAINERSHIPS
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A radiation detection system that measures radiation (e.g., signature energy-level gamma radiation and neutrons) is employed aboard a ship or other transport vehicle along with conventional cargo to monitor for the presence of a fissile material, as would be found in a nuclear weapon, or for the presence of other sources of radiation. The detection system can be used over the course of the cargo transport, thereby enabling finely tuned monitoring for fissile material across distances of many meters extending through surrounding cargo containers. Because the system can be utilized during a ship'"'"'s transport, a positive detection of fissile material can be made and acted upon while the ship is still at sea far from the destination port, where detonation of a nuclear weapon could have catastrophic consequences.
17 Citations
29 Claims
-
1. (canceled)
-
2. (canceled)
-
5. A method for detecting a radiation source aboard a cargo containership comprising:
-
loading a plurality of containers onto a cargo containership, wherein at least one but fewer than all of the containers is a detection container that contains a detection system configured to detect radiation entering the detection container from another container;
recording detection of gamma radiation by the detection system and determining if the detected gamma radiation exceeds a threshold so as to indicate the presence of the radiation source, the detection container also containing a transmitter for transmitting a signal beyond the detection container if the threshold is exceeded, wherein the spatial distribution of gamma radiation entering the detection container is imaged with an array of gamma detectors. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7)
-
-
8. A method for detecting a radiation source aboard a cargo containership comprising:
-
loading a plurality of containers onto a cargo containership, wherein at least one but fewer than all of the containers is a detection container that contains a detection system configured to detect radiation entering the detection container from another container; and
recording detection of radiation by the detection system and determining if the detected radiation exceeds a threshold so as to indicate the presence of the radiation source, the detection container also containing a transmitter for transmitting a signal beyond the detection container if the threshold is exceeded, wherein gamma radiation at 2615 keV is specifically measured and evaluated to determine whether the 208T1 daughter product of 232U is present. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17)
-
-
14. A method for detecting a radiation source aboard a cargo containership comprising:
-
loading a plurality of containers onto a cargo containership, wherein at least one but fewer than all of the containers is a detection container that contains a detection system configured to detect radiation entering the detection container from another container; and
recording detection of radiation by the detection system and determining if the detected radiation exceeds a threshold so as to indicate the presence of the radiation source the detection container also containing a transmitter for transmitting a signal beyond the detection container if the threshold is exceeded, wherein the contents of at least one detection containers essentially of components that are part of, connected to, or in communication with the detection system.
-
-
18. A method for detecting a radiation source aboard a cargo containership comprising:
-
loading a plurality of containers onto a cargo containership, wherein at least one but fewer than all of the containers is a detection container that contains a detection system configured to detect radiation entering the detection container from another container and an active interrogation system that includes a source configured to emit photons or neutrons; and
recording detection of radiation by the detection system and determining if the detected radiation exceeds a threshold so as to indicate the presence of the radiation source, the detection container also containing a transmitter for transmitting a signal beyond the detection container if the threshold is exceeded. - View Dependent Claims (19)
-
-
20. A method for detecting a radiation source aboard a cargo containership comprising:
-
loading a plurality of containers in the form of car bodies onto a cargo containership, wherein at least one but fewer than all of the containers is a detection container that contains a detection system configured to detect radiation entering the detection container from another container; and
recording detection of radiation by the detection system and determining if the detected radiation exceeds a threshold so as to indicate the presence of the radiation source, the detection container also containing a transmitter for transmitting a signal beyond the detection container if the threshold is exceeded.
-
-
21. A method for detecting a radiation source aboard a cargo containership comprising:
-
loading a plurality of containers onto a cargo containership, wherein a plurality but fewer than all of the containers are detection containers, each containing a detection system configured to detect radiation entering the detection container from another container; and
wherein the detection systems contained in distinct detection containers communicate with each other; and
recording detection of radiation by the detection system and determining if the detected radiation exceeds a threshold so as to indicate the presence of the radiation source, the detection container also containing a transmitter for transmitting a signal beyond the detection container if the threshold is exceeded. - View Dependent Claims (22)
-
-
23. (canceled)
-
24. A detection container comprising:
-
a cargo container having;
a length of about 20 feet or about 40 feet;
a width of about 8 feet; and
a height of about 8.5 or about 9.5 feet; and
a detection system including;
at least one radiation detector coupled with a power source, contained within the container and configured to detect radiation from outside the container, wherein the detector is a gamma-ray detector configured to detect 232U decay series gamma radiation; and
a transmitter contained within the cargo container, the transmitter being coupled with the radiation detector for transmitting data from the radiation detector. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28)
-
-
29-31. -31. (canceled)
Specification