Screening system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2021072419-A1
Application number	US-201917054210-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	May 10, 2019
Priority date	May 11, 2018
Publication date	Mar 11, 2021
Grant date	—

Abstract

An example screening system includes a plurality of detectors about a screening area. Each detector includes a sensor configured to detect information from one or more objects moving along a path from an entrance to an exit of the screening area. The plurality of detectors include a first detector configured to detect information from a first location of the path, and a second detector configured to detect information from a second location of the path. The second detector is configured to adapt its functionality based on a finding of the first detector for a given one of the one or more objects.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A screening system comprising:
a plurality of detectors about a screening area, each detector comprising a sensor configured to detect information from one or more objects moving along a path from an entrance to an exit of the screening area, the plurality of detectors comprising a first detector configured to detect information from a first location of the path, and a second detector configured to detect information from a second location of the path; wherein the second detector is configured to adapt its functionality based on a finding of the first detector for a given one of the one or more objects.

2 . The screening system of claim 1 , wherein the first and second detectors are each configured to analyze chemical information from the objects, and the second detector utilizes a detection library and is configured to eliminate one or more compounds from the detection library for the given one of the one or more objects based on the chemical information gathered by the first detector for the given one of the one or more objects.

3 . The screening system of claim 1 , wherein the detection library comprises at least one of the following groups of restricted compounds: chemical warfare agents, biological warfare agents, toxic industrial chemicals, explosives, narcotics, and radiological materials.

4 . The screening system of claim 1 , wherein the chemical information gathered by the first detector is a fluorescent response of an analyte sampled from the given one of the one or more objects.

5 . The screening system of claim 1 , wherein to adapt its functionality, the second detector is configured to adapt one or more of the following: dwell time, illumination intensity, wavelength, spot size, detection threshold, and library of target compounds.

6 . The screening system of claim 1 , comprising:
a controller comprising a processor configured to correlate data from the plurality of detectors for the given one of the one or more objects, and determine a security risk for the given one of the one or more objects based on the correlated data.

7 . The screening system of claim 6 , wherein the one or more objects are first objects and the screening area is a first screening area, the screening system comprising:
a third detector situated in a second screening area that is separate from the first screening area, the third detector configured to detect information from one or more second objects associated with particular ones of the one or more first objects; wherein the controller is configured to further base its determination of the security risk for the given one of the first objects on data from the third detector for a given one of the one or more second objects that is associated with the given one of the first objects.

8 . The screening system of claim 7 , wherein the controller is configured to change how the third detector analyzes a particular one of the second objects based on data from one or more of the detectors for a particular one of the first objects that is associated with the particular one of the second objects.

9 . The screening system of claim 8 , wherein the controller is configured to modify a dictionary or one or more weighting factors that the third detector uses to analyze the particular one of the second objects based on the data from one or more of the detectors for the particular one of the first objects that is associated with the particular one of the second objects.

10 . The screening system of claim 7 , wherein the controller is configured to change how one or more of the plurality of detectors analyze a particular one of the first objects based on data from the third detector for a particular one of the second objects that is associated with the particular one of the first objects.

11 . The screening system of claim 10 , wherein the controller is configured to modify a dictionary or one or more weighting factors that one of the detectors uses to analyze the particular one of the first objects based on the data from one or more of the detectors for the particular one of the second objects that is associated with the particular one of the first objects.

12 . The screening system of claim 7 , comprising:
a conveyor configured to move the one or more second objects through the second screening area.

13 . The screening system of claim 6 , comprising an imaging device configured to record images of objects moving along the path, wherein the controller is configured to correlate the images of individual ones of the first objects with the data from the plurality of detectors for those individual objects.

14 . The screening system of claim 13 , wherein the controller is configured to assign an electronic tag to images of a particular first object and to data related to the first object from one or more of the detectors as part of the correlation.

15 . The screening system of claim 13 , wherein the objects are humans, and the imaging device is a third detector configured to screen the humans for one or more biological or behavioral characteristics.

16 . The screening system of claim 15 , wherein the one or more bodily threat indications comprise one or more of body temperature above a predefined threshold, sweating, fidgeting, and human bulkiness.

17 . The screening system of claim 1 , further comprising an automated transport device configured to move the objects from the entrance to the exit of the screening area along the path.

18 . The screening system of claim 17 , wherein the automated transport device comprises a moving walkway.

19 . The screening system of claim 18 , wherein moving walkway comprises a skirt guard, and at least one of the first and second detectors is disposed within the skirt guard, the skirt guard comprising at least one aspirating inlet that provides fluid communication between the object and said at least one of the plurality of detectors.

20 . The screening system of claim 1 , wherein one of the plurality of detectors is a metal detector.

21 . The screening system of claim 1 , wherein one of the plurality of detectors is a millimeter wave scanner.

22 . A method of installing detectors about a screening area, comprising:
installing a first detector about a screening area, the first detector configured to detect information from one or more objects at a first location on a path between an entrance and an exit of the screening area; installing a second detector about the screening area, the second detector configured to detect information from the one or more objects at a second location on the path that is different from the first location; adapting functionality of the second detector for a given one of the one or more objects based on a finding of the first detector for the given one of the one or more objects.

23 . The method of claim 22 , wherein the adapting comprises eliminating compounds from a detection library of the second detector from consideration for the given one of the one or more objects based on the chemical information gathered by the first detector for the given one of the one or more objects.

24 . The method of claim 22 , wherein the path comprises a moving walkway configured to move the objects towards the exit, and the first and second locations are locations along the moving walkway.

Assignees

• Carrier Corp

Inventors

• Birnkrant Michael J
• Harris Peter R

Classifications

• G01V3/00 Primary

  Electric or magnetic prospecting or detecting; Measuring magnetic field characteristics of the earth, e.g. declination, deviation · CPC title

• G01V3/165 Primary

  operating with magnetic or electric fields produced or modified by the object or by the detecting device (with electromagnetic waves G01V3/17) · CPC title

• G07C9/30

  not involving the use of a pass · CPC title

• G01V8/005

  operating with millimetre waves, e.g. measuring the black losey radiation · CPC title