ILS sensors for drug detection within vehicles
US6067167A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | May 24, 1999 |
| Grant date | May 23, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 24, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01N21/39
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
On-board ILS sensors for detecting illegal drugs and based on intracavity laser spectroscopy (ILS) are provided for detecting the presence of drugs and their metabolized by-product vapors in an enclosed space, such as a vehicle. The sensor comprises: (a) a laser comprising a gain medium having two opposed facets within a laser resonator and functioning as an intracavity spectroscopic device having a first end and a second end, the first end operatively associated with a partially reflecting (i.e., partially transmitting) surface; (b) a reflective or dispersive optical element (e.g., a mirror or a diffraction grating) operatively associated with the second end to define a broadband wavelength laser resonator between the optical element and the first end and to thereby define an external cavity region between at least one facet of the gain medium and either the first end or the second end or both ends; (c) the external cavity region being exposed to air in the enclosed space to enable any drugs or their metabolized by-product molecules to enter thereinto; (d) a detector spaced from the first end; (e) appropriate electronics for measuring and analyzing the detector signal; (f) a housi…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.