Method and apparatus of interrogating a volume of material beneath the ground including an airborne vehicle with a detector being synchronized with a generator in a ground loop
US5610523A · kind A · utility
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 29, 1993 |
| Grant date | Mar 11, 1997 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 29, 2013 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01V3/17
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A method of interrogating a volume of material beneath the ground. According to the method a transmitter is located to extend over and be supported by a surface area of ground encompassing and beneath which lies the volume of material. A generator device is used to generate transient electromagnetic pulses within the transmitter. An airborne vehicle, aboard which is a detector, is used to fly over the area of ground. The detector and the generator are synchronized to one another so that the detector has information regarding when the transient electromagnetic pulses are generated. The detector detects the resultant electromagnetic field of the transient electromagnetic pulses, which have certain magnitude and temporal characteristics. A received signal is formed by the detector, which signal is dependant upon the magnitude and the temporal characteristics of the detected electromagnetic fields. The received signal is thereafter processed to determine characteristics of the volume of material.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.