Method of detection in an electrically conductive medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12490924-B2
Application number	US-202117998908-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 12, 2021
Priority date	May 15, 2020
Publication date	Dec 9, 2025
Grant date	Dec 9, 2025

Abstract

This method can be used to locate or identify an object in an electrically conductive medium with a detection system that comprises n electrodes in direct electrical contact with the conductive medium. The n electrodes can be placed in at least three different states: transmitting, receiving, disconnected. Before a series of measurements, the operating point of the detection system is determined according to a given a priori setpoint, or a previous configuration of the system, or a previous measurement result of one of the electrodes, by the configuration of the state of each of the electrodes, the frequency of a sinusoidal component of an electrical signal transmitted by one of the transmitting electrodes, or the amplitude of the electrical signal transmitted by one of the electrodes configured in the transmitting or receiving state.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1 . A method of detection in an electrically conductive medium by means of a detection system containing:
a plurality of electrodes in direct electrical contact with said medium, the state of which can be chosen from the list {emitting, receiving, disconnected}, a device for measuring at least one electrical value for each of said electrodes configured in the emitting or receiving state, chosen from the list {electric intensity passing through the electrode, electric potential of the electrode}, a switching device making it possible to configure each of said electrodes in the state chosen from the list {emitting, receiving, disconnected}, at least one processor exchanging information with the measurement device and the switching device, wherein the method comprises: a) the processor determines an operating point of the detection system as a function of: a setpoint given a priori, and/or an earlier configuration of the detection system, and/or a result of an earlier measurement at the level of at least one of said electrodes transmitted by the measurement device, the determination of said operating point of the detection system comprising the determination of the following three parameters: state of each of the electrodes, chosen from the three states: emitting, receiving, disconnected, a frequency of at least one sinusoidal component of an electrical signal emitted by at least one of the electrodes configured in the emitting state, an amplitude of the electrical signal emitted by at least one of the electrodes configured in the emitting state, b) the switching device receives information about the operating point of the system determined by the processor and configures the detection system in the determined operating point, c) a series of measurements is carried out by the measurement device, a series of measurements consisting of evaluating at least one electrical value at the level of each of the electrodes configured in the receiving or emitting state, and the measurement device transmits the measurement data to the processor.

2 . The detection method according to claim 1 , characterized in that the processor further calculates, based on the measurement data, at least one item of mapping data of the conductive medium.

3 . The method of detection in an electrically conductive medium according to claim 2 , characterized in that, if an object is detected in a step d, an amplitude and/or a shape and/or a frequency of the sinusoidal components of the electrical signal emitted by each of the electrodes configured in the emitting state for an operating point determined in a later a) are determined as a function of the distance of the detected object.

4 . The method of detection in an electrically conductive medium according to claim 2 , characterized in that, if an object is detected based on a calculated item of mapping data, positions on said system of the electrodes configured in the emitting state for an operating state determined in a later a) are determined as a function of a shape and/or a position of a detected object.

5 . The method of detection in an electrically conductive medium according to claim 2 , characterized in that known references are used to determine the at least one item of mapping data.

6 . The detection method according to claim 1 , characterized in that a), b) and c) are repeated in the same order at least once, and in that setpoints are transmitted to said processor in order to control the repetition of a), b) and c) either before the first a) of the detection method by a remote or non-remote operator or during the detection method by a remote operator.

7 . The method of detection in an electrically conductive medium according to claim 1 , characterized in that the operating point of the system determined in a) can be chosen from the list {“range” mode, “locating” mode and “identification” mode}, the “range” mode making it possible to obtain a maximum detection range in one or more given directions of said medium, the “locating” mode making it possible to obtain a maximum accuracy concerning the locating of a previously detected object, the “identification” mode making it possible to obtain a best resolution concerning the shape and/or the composition of a previously detected object.

8 . The method of detection in an electrically conductive medium according to claim 7 , characterized in that a), b) and c) are repeated in the same order at least once and the operating point of the detection system passes automatically from an a) to the next:
from the “range” mode, if it was in this mode, to the “locating” mode when an object is detected and this object is located at a distance smaller than a threshold distance d2, from the “locating” mode, if it was in this mode, to the “identification” mode when an object is detected and this object is located at a distance smaller than a threshold distance d3 or with a shape and/or nature corresponding to a setpoint, from the “locating” mode, if it was in this mode, to the “range” mode when an object is detected and the distance at which a detected object is situated becomes greater than a threshold distance d2.

9 . The method of detection in an electrically conductive medium according claim 1 , characterized in that a shape and/or a frequency and/or an amplitude of the electrical signal emitted by the electrodes configured in the emitting state for an operating point determined in an a) are chosen at the end of a frequency scan.

10 . The method of detection in an electrically conductive medium according to claim 1 , characterized in that the signal emitted by at least one of the electrodes configured in the emitting state for an operating point determined in an a) is the combination of at least two sinusoidal signals having different frequencies.

11 . The computer program comprising program code instructions for executing the steps of the method according to claim 1 when said program is executed on a computer.

12 . A system of detection in an electrically conductive medium comprising:
a plurality of electrodes in direct electrical contact with said medium, the state of which can be chosen from the list {emitting, receiving, disconnected}, a device for measuring at least one electrical value for each of said electrodes put in the emitting or receiving state, chosen from the list {intensity of the electric current passing through the electrode, electric potential of the electrode}, a switching device making it possible to configure each of said electrodes in the state chosen from the list {emitting, receiving, disconnected}, at least one processor exchanging information with the measurement device and the switching device, and configured to determine an operating point of the detection system as a function of: a setpoint given a priori, and/or an earlier configuration of the system, and/or a result of an earlier measurement at the level of at least one of said electrodes transmitted by the measurement device, the determination of said operating point of the system comprising the determination of the following three parameters: state of each of the electrodes, chosen from the at least three states: emitting, receiving, disconnected, frequency of at least one sinusoidal component of an electrical signal emitted by at least one of the emitting electrodes, amplitude of the electrical signal emitted by at least one of the electrodes configured in the emitting state, the processor transmitting information about the determined operating point to the switching device.

13 . The mobile system in an electrically conductive medium

Assignees

• Elwave
• Inst Mines Telecom

Inventors

• Delplanque Quentin Vincent
• Ifrek Lyes
• Boyer Frédéric
• Lebastard Vincent Paul Yannick

Classifications

• G01V3/38

  Processing data, e.g. for analysis, for interpretation, for correction · CPC title

• G01V2003/085

  Receivers · CPC title

• G01V2003/084

  Sources · CPC title

• A61B5/282 Primary

  Holders for multiple electrodes (for introduction into the body A61B5/287) · CPC title

• G01V3/08 Primary

  operating with magnetic or electric fields produced or modified by objects or geological structures or by detecting devices (with electromagnetic waves G01V3/12) · CPC title