Patent Grant
12048411
This disclosure relates generally to modular forensic evidence collection systems and related methods.
Traditionally, conventional, radiological and nuclear evidence collection teams have two tools to collect particulates, hairs, fibers, radioactive particulates and nuclear fallout debris, a commercial hand-held vacuum cleaner (e.g., a conventional vacuum cleaner) and a brush and pan. However, smaller particles of conventional, radiological and nuclear materials (i.e., evidence) are typically missed utilizing conventional vacuum cleaners, and the vacuum cleaners become contaminated and/or damaged by the particles. Current approaches are also difficult to employ in wet environments, where water residue makes removal and separation of the evidence difficult to perform.
Some embodiments of the present disclosure include a modular particle collection system including a hollow lower member, a hollow upper member separably attached to the hollow lower member, a collection container separably attached to a longitudinal end of the hollow lower member opposite the hollow upper member, an inlet portion extending radially from the hollow lower member and configured to be fitted to a first portion of a vacuum system, and an outlet portion extending radially outward from the hollow upper member and configured to be fitted to a second portion of the vacuum system.
One or more embodiments of the present disclosure include a method of making a modular collection system. The method may include forming a hollow lower member, forming a hollow upper member, attaching the hollow upper member to the lower member, and attaching a collection container to a longitudinal end of the hollow lower member opposite the hollow upper member.
Some embodiments of the present disclosure include a modular particle collection system. The modular particle collection system may include a lower member including an outer wall defining a cylindrical interior, and a lip formed at a longitudinal end of the lower member, the outer wall and lip forming a recess therebetween. The modular particle collection system may further include an upper member separably attachable to the lower member, a collection container having a longitudinal end inserted into the recess defined between the outer wall and lip of the lower member and separably attachable to the lower member, an inlet portion extending radially from the lower member and configured to be fitted to a first portion of a vacuum system, an outlet portion extending radially outward from the upper member and configured to be fitted to a second portion of vacuum system, an inlet aperture extending through the inlet portion and into an interior of the lower member, and at least one flap member disposed over an interface of the inlet aperture and the interior of the lower member.
For a detailed understanding of the present disclosure, reference should be made to the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like elements have generally been designated with like numerals, and wherein:
The illustrations presented herein are not actual views of any modular particle collection system or any component thereof, but are merely idealized representations, which are employed to describe the present invention.
As used herein, any relational term, such as “first,” “second,” “top,” “bottom,” “upper,” “lower,” “side,” etc., is used for clarity and convenience in understanding the disclosure and accompanying drawings, and does not connote or depend on any specific preference or order, except where the context clearly indicates otherwise. For example, these terms may refer to an orientation of elements of a modular particle collection system when attached to a vacuum system and utilized in a conventional manner. Furthermore, these terms may refer to an orientation of elements of a modular particle collection system when as illustrated in the drawings.
As used herein, the term “substantially” in reference to a given parameter, property, or condition means and includes to a degree that one skilled in the art would understand that the given parameter, property, or condition is met with a small degree of variance, such as within acceptable manufacturing tolerances. For example, a parameter that is substantially met may be at least about 90% met, at least about 95% met, or even at least about 99% met.
As shown in
In one or more embodiments, each of the upper member 102 and the lower member 104 may have a general hollow cylindrical shape. In some embodiments, a bottom portion (e.g., bottom end) of the upper member 102 may be tapered proximate the interface between the upper member 102 and the lower member 104 to enable relatively easy insertion of the upper member 102 into the lower member 104. In one or more embodiments, the bottom portion of the upper member 102 may include a threaded portion and an upper portion of the lower member 104 may include a correlating threaded portion on which the threaded portion of the upper member 102 may be threaded. In additional embodiments, the bottom portion of the upper member 102 may form a friction (e.g., press) connection with the upper portion of the lower member 104. For instance, an inner diameter of a wall defining the lower member 104 may be larger than an outer diameter of a wall defining the upper member 102 such that the upper member 102 may be insertable into the lower member 104.
In one or more embodiments, the lower member 104 may include an open top longitudinal end, and the upper member 102 may include an open bottom longitudinal end such that, when the upper member 102 and the lower member 104 are assembled together, an interior of (i.e., a first cavity defined by) the lower member 104 is connected to an interior of (i.e., a second cavity defined by) the upper member 102. As a result, the interiors of the upper and lower members 102, 104 may be in fluid communication with each other when the upper and lower members 102, 104 are assembled together, as depicted in
In some embodiments, the upper member 102 may have a cap portion 109 capping a longitudinal end of the upper member 102 opposite the lower member 104 of the modular particle collection system 100. In one or more embodiments, the cap portion 109 may be integral to the upper member 102 (e.g., may form a single piece with the upper member 102). In other embodiments, the cap portion 109 may be a distinct attachment to the upper member 102.
The collection container 106 may be separably attachable to a longitudinal end of the lower member 104 opposite the upper member 102. For instance, the collection container 106 may have a threaded portion that may be threaded into and/or onto a threaded portion of the lower member 104. Furthermore, an interior of the collection container 106 may be open to (e.g., connected to) the interior of the lower member 104 such that particles brought into the lower member 104 (via airflow caused by the vacuum system 101) may fall into the collection container 106, as is described in greater detail below.
The inlet portion 108 may be attached to the lower member 104 and may extend radially from the lower member 104 (e.g., radially from a center longitudinal axis of the lower member 104). In some embodiments, the inlet portion 108 may be tapered in a direction extending from the lower member 104 to a distal end of the inlet portion 108. For instance, the inlet portion 108 may be tapered such that the inlet portion 108 may be inserted into an attachment portion of a vacuum system 101 (e.g., a fitting of a vacuum system 101). For example, the inlet portion 108 may be insertable into any conventional vacuum fitting. The inlet portion 108 may have an inlet aperture 111 extending therethrough along a central longitudinal axis of the inlet portion 108, and the inlet aperture 111 may extend to an interior of the lower member 104. In other words, the inlet aperture 111 of the inlet portion 108 may be in fluid communication with in the interior of the lower member 104. In some embodiments, the inlet portion 108 may be integral to the lower member 104 (e.g., may form a single piece with the lower member 104). In other embodiments, the inlet portion 108 may be a distinct attachment to the lower member 104. The inlet portion 108 is described in greater detail below in regard
The outlet portion 110 may be attached to the upper member 102 and may extend radially from the upper member 102. In one or more embodiments, the outlet portion 110 may be sized and shaped to attach (e.g., be fitted to) to a body portion of the vacuum system 101 (i.e., a portion of the vacuum system 101 configured to generate suction and drive operation of the vacuum system 101). The outlet portion 110 may have an outlet aperture 113 extending therethrough along a central longitudinal axis of the outlet portion 110, and the outlet aperture 113 may extend to an interior of the upper member 102. In other words, the outlet aperture 113 of the outlet portion 110 may be in fluid communication with in the interior of the upper member 102. In some embodiments, the outlet portion 110 may be integral to the upper member 102 (e.g., may formed a single piece with the upper member 102). In other embodiments, the outlet portion 110 may be a distinct attachment to the upper member 102. The outlet portion 110 is described in further detail in regard to
In some embodiments, the upper member 102 may include a plurality of guide members 116a, 116b, 116c disposed within the interior of the upper member 102 and extending from one lateral side of an internal cylindrical surface of the upper member 102 to an opposite lateral side of the internal cylindrical surface of the upper member 102. In one or more embodiments, each guide member of the plurality of guide members 116a, 116b, 116c may include an at least substantially planar fin. In some embodiments, longitudinal ends of the plurality of guide members 116a, 116b, 116c may converge relative to one another on a lateral side of the upper member 102 proximate to the outlet portion 110 of the modular particle collection system 100 and may diverge relative to one another on a lateral side of the upper member 102 proximate to the inlet portion 108 of the modular particle collection system 100.
The plurality of guide members 116a, 116b, 116c may be oriented and designed to guide airflow and particle flow from the inlet portion 108 of the modular particle collection system 100 to the outlet portion 110 of the modular particle collection system 100. In some embodiments, the plurality of guide members 116a, 116b, 116c may include at least three guide members. In additional embodiments, the plurality of guide members 116a, 116b, 116c may include at least five or more guide members. In some embodiments, a number of guide members may be at least partially dependent on a size of particles to be collected by the modular particle collection system 100. For instance, the larger the particle, the fewer number of guide members may be included within the modular particle collection system 100.
Referring still to
In some embodiments, one or more of the upper member 102, the lower member 104, the inlet portion 108, and the outlet portion may be formed via an additive manufacturing process (i.e., 3D printing). For instance, the upper member 102, the lower member 104, the inlet portion 108, and the outlet portion 110 can be formed via any suitable additive manufacturing processes known in the art. As a non-limiting example, in one or more embodiments, the upper member 102, the lower member 104, the inlet portion 108, and the outlet portion 110 may be formed via fused deposition modeling. In other embodiments, the upper member 102, the lower member 104, the inlet portion 108, and the outlet portion 110 can be formed via one or more additive manufacturing processes, such as, for example, direct metal deposition, micro-plasma powder deposition, direct laser sintering, selective laser sintering, electron beam melting, electron beam freeform fabrication, inkjet 3D printing, and other additive manufacturing process. In yet further embodiments, the upper member 102, the lower member 104, the inlet portion 108, and the outlet portion 110 can be formed via injection molding.
In some embodiments, the flap member 120 may have a general rectangle shape and may be secured to an interior wall of the lower member 104 along one side edge 121 of the flap member 120. The one side edge 121 of the flap member 120 may extend in a vertical direction along an interior wall of the lower member 104. As a result, an opposite side edge the flap member 120 may separate from the interior wall of the lower member 104 when opened. In one or more embodiments, the flap member 120 may be secured to the interior wall of the lower member 104 with one or more fasteners and/or adhesive. Furthermore, the flap member 120 may include a flexible material such that the flap member 120 can flex (e.g., bend, deform, etc.) when the modular particle collection system 100 is in use (due to airflow through the inlet portion 108 and lower member 104 caused by suction created by vacuum system 101). For instance, the flap member 120 may include one or more of a polymer material, a rubber material, or a mesh material.
Because the flap member 120 opens along a side edge of the flap member 120 as opposed to an upper edge or lower edge and because the lower member 104 has a cylindrical-shaped interior, the flap member 120 may induce rotational airflow (e.g., cyclonic airflow) within the interior of the lower member 104 of the modular particle collection system 100 when the modular particle collection system 100 is in use. Furthermore, when the modular particle collection system 100 is utilized to collect particles (e.g., suck up particles), the flap member 120 may also prevent direct impact of particles into any filter included within the modular particle collection system 100 (described below in regard to
Referring to
In some embodiments, the filter 122 may include a water-resistant air filter. In some instances, the filter 122 may include a mesh filter designed to capture certain sizes of particles. In further embodiments, the filter 122 may include a HEPA filter. In some embodiments, the filter 122 may include multiple stacked filters (i.e., multiple filters in parallel with each other) where each filter 122 of the multiple stacked filters is designed to capture a different size of particle. In one or more embodiments, the filter 122 may include one or more regions of differing types of filter material. For instance, one region of the filter 122 may be configured to filter out large particles and another region of the filter 122 may be configured to filter out small particles. In further embodiments, the modular particle collection system 100 may include a relatively coarse mesh material preceding the filter 122 (e.g., in a direction of airflow through the modular particle collection system 100) to protect the filter 122 from relatively larger debris. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the modular particle collection system 100 may include a first flap member at the inlet portion 108 (described above) and a second flap member at the outlet portion 110; e.g., within the outlet aperture 113. The dual flap members may prevent fluids (in a wet environment) or particles from escaping the modular particle collection system 100 when being handled during and outside of use.
In view of the foregoing, parts (e.g., the upper and lower members 102, 104, the filter 122, the collection container 106, etc.) of the modular particle collection system 100 may be mixed and matched, allowing an operator to stock spare parts as needed to accomplish a particular task (e.g., clean up radiated particles). Furthermore, due to parts of the modular particle collection system 100 being 3D printed, as described above, the modular particle collection system 100 may be mass produced via injection molding.
Moreover, the modular particle collection system 100 permits the use of different upper members to enable attachment to and use of different vacuum systems. Moreover, the modular particle collection system 100 permits the use of different lower members to enable attachment to and use of different vacuum attachments (e.g., wands, brushes, squeegees). Additionally, enabling different lower members enables the modular particle collection system 100 to accommodate different sizes and/or types of collection containers. In some embodiments, the modular particle collection system 100 may be attachable to conventional (e.g., commercial) vacuum systems.
The modular particle collection system 100 may also include the following features and/or elements. The collection container 106 may include an evidence collection sample jar, which eliminates loss of fine powder particles due to static electricity within the vacuum system 101.
Referring to
The airflow may pass through the filter 122, and the relatively smaller particles may be captured within the filter 122 of the modular particle collection system 100. The airflow may pass into the interior of the upper member 102. Furthermore, the plurality of guide members 116a, 116b, 116c within the upper member 102 may at least substantially evenly distribute the airflow across the filter 122 to maximize collection while minimizing filter 122 clogging. Furthermore, as noted above, the plurality of guide members 116a, 116b, 116c may guide airflow toward the outlet portion 110 of the modular particle collection system 100. The airflow may pass through the outlet portion 110 and into the body of the vacuum system 101 where the airflow may be distributed from the vacuum system 101 via conventional manners.
Referring to
The following examples include experimental procedures performed by the inventors and results obtained by the inventors in regard to the above-described modular particle collection system. The following experiments were performed to assess the performance of the modular particle collection system for collecting powder from a surface. The powder was made using Sol-Gel methods and incorporating scandium. Five samples were produced, each weighing 0.5 g. The samples were packaged in quartz vials; and the samples were irradiated using high-energy bremsstrahlung.
The irradiation conditions and time of irradiation for each vial were different. For ease of explanation, the total activity of each vial was determined for a fictitious Zero Time (T+0). The total activity in a vial at time T+t was a function of the starting amount of ground-state 44Sc in the vial, Ag0, and the starting amount of metastable-state 44mSc in the vial, Am0. These values have been calculated to correspond with zero time, and can be used in Eq. 1, along with values for the decay constants of these two isotopes, to determine the total scandium activity in the vials at a time, t, after time zero. Parameter values for Ag0 and Am0 for zero time for each of the five vials are shown in Table 1.
At different stages in each experiment the radioactivity of materials was assessed using a well counter assembled using 2 in ×4 in ×16 in NaI scintillation detectors and conventional electronics and data acquisition equipment. Background measurements were taken at the start of each experiment cycle; the total background changed by ˜3% over the course of the experiments. Measurements were then taken of Sc-containing items using the whole gamma-ray spectrum, and then background was subtracted to generate a total number of counts. Each measurement was performed for 300 live-time seconds. A brief summary of the procedure of each experiment is provided herein. The results are provided below in Table 2.
Experiment 1: This experiment involved vacuuming the above-described powder from an aluminum plate, PLATE #1. PLATE #1 was 1 m×1 m in area; prior to the experiment, the plate's surface was roughly sanded using a 220-grit jitter-bug orbital sander. Vial #1 was used as a starting material. The following explanation includes the steps taken in Experiment 1.
Experiment 2: This experiment used Vial #2 and PLATE #2, which was the same as PLATE #1, but otherwise was a duplicate of Experiment 1.
Experiment 3: This experiment used Vial #3 and PLATE #3, which was the same as PLATE #1. Experiment 3 was similar to Experiments 1 and # but a) only used a 15 micron filter at the interface of an upper member and a lower member of the modular particle collection system, b) only had one session of vacuuming, and c) did not include making an upper plenum measurement.
Experiment 4: This experiment reused PLATE #3, which was cleaned and wiped following Experiment 3. As starting material it used Vial #4. It was similar to experiments #1 and #2 but a) only used a 15 micron filter and b) only had one round of vacuuming.
Experiment 5: This experiment involved vacuuming powder from an array of nine 12″×12″ concrete paver tiles. As starting material it used Vial #5.
The results for each experiment are summarized below in Table 2. All calculations accounted for decay from T+0 until the time a measurement started, no decay correction was applied for the 300-second live-time measurement period. Uncertainty values in the Table 2 are combined Type A, 1−σ uncertainties for the derived quantities. The Type A, 1−σ uncertainties may include uncertainties based on statistical analysis of a series of measurements (e.g., statistical data obtained from quality control results); Type B uncertainties were not assessed but are not expected to be greater than 1% for results reported with uncertainties. The Type B uncertainties are obtained by non-statistical procedures, such as, for example, information associated with authoritative published numerical quantity, information associated with the numerical quantity of a certified reference material, data obtained from a calibration certificate, information obtained from limits deduced through experience, and/or scientific judgment. No uncertainties are presented for mass values related to the filter or plenum measurements; the Type A uncertainties for the below measurements are less than 0.1%, but Type B uncertainties are unknown and not considered to be negligible (due to variable geometry and absorption). A reasonable bounding estimate for Type B uncertainties, as expanded uncertainties with a coverage factor, for these calculations would be ±10%.
Observations:
Emptying the vials has an efficiency of 95-97%.
Emptying the jars has an efficiency of 95-97%.
Vacuuming semi-rough aluminum with the prototype vacuum collection system yields a recoverable mass fraction of 72% with a standard deviation of 6%.
The mass of material collected in the filters from vacuuming the aluminum ranged from 2.5% to 15%; a comparable level of material was also left in the prototype's upper plenum (i.e., upper member).
For the sol-gel particles used in these trials, the 10 micron filter became clogged after cleaning approximately ⅓ m2. The 15 micron filter did not become clogged after cleaning 1 m2.
In conclusion, the modular particle collection system 100 studied in these examples exhibits an efficiency of about 72%±6%, which is significantly better rate of collection in comparison to conventional particle collection systems. Other embodiments of modular collections systems employing different implementations of the claims of this patent could be designed to achieve higher collection efficiencies.
The embodiments of the disclosure described above and illustrated in the accompanying drawings do not limit the scope of the disclosure, which is encompassed by the scope of the appended claims and their legal equivalents. Any equivalent embodiments are within the scope of this disclosure. Indeed, various modifications of the disclosure, in addition to those shown and described herein, such as alternate useful combinations of the elements described, will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the description. Such modifications and embodiments also fall within the scope of the appended claims and equivalents.
This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 63/177,704, filed Apr. 21, 2021, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety by this reference.
This invention was made with government support under Contract Number DE-AC07-05-ID14517 awarded by the United States Department of Energy. The government has certain rights in the invention.
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