SansEC Spectroscopy
sensors
SansEC Spectroscopy (LAR-TOPS-192)
Spectroscopy using electric permittivity, magnetic permeability and electrical conductivity spatial profiles
Overview
This innovation builds off of NASA Langley Research Center's SansEC sensing system. SansEC is an open-circuit, resonant sensor that needs no electrical connections (thus the name SansEC or "without electrical connection"). This technology combines the SansEC circuit with a magnetic field reader to allow for detection of magnetic or electric field changes to produce a spectroscopy readout.
The Technology
This technology is a method of identifying material anomalies and defects on or within a material by observing and quantifying how a localized change in either conductivity, permeability or permittivity changes the responding electric field and magnetic fields. This approach has many advantages over typical spectroscopy methods, particularly because typical methods only measure changes in the electric field.
This advancement will allow for potentially deeper detection of a material's abnormalities/defects (including subsurface measurements) with limited electrical requirements. The technology has applications as diverse as medical oncology screenings or surface measurements of aeronautic skins.
Another promising application is bore hole geological spectroscopy. In such an application, an array of sensors could be embedded into bore hole drills for exploratory deep wells. As the drill tooling slides past the bore hole wall, spectroscopic sampling of the side walls reveals important dielectric property information that is highly useful to prospectors and geologists in determining the probability of specific resources that may exist in the subterranean geology.
Benefits
- Measures changes to both the magnetic and electric fields and characterizes one or more of a material's intrinsic electrical property in terms of permittivity, permeability, or conductivity.
- Spatially locates a surface or subsurface material anomaly.
- Easy to implement, only requiring a SansEC circuit and a magnetic field response recorder.
- Sensor does not require electrical connections.
- Lead free.
Applications
- Geological Spectroscopy, including in mining, bore hole and core sampling, farming and agriculture, ground penetrating radar, and remote sensing on Earth and terrestrial bodies.
- Nondestructive testing, including identifying delamination in non-conductive composites.
- Hazardous material monitoring.
- Zero-gravity fluid volume measurement.
- Noninvasive medical monitoring and scanning, including oncology applications.
Similar Results
Highly Accurate Level Sensor
The FAA and Aircraft Industry recognize the need to reduce fuel tank explosion risk
by eliminating ignition sources and changing fuel tank design and maintenance.
This technology can be utilized to wirelessly sense the level of fuel in aircrafts, thus
mitigating risk of inadvertent electrical failures and sparks. NO wires enter the fuel
tank and the radio frequency transponder typically requires 10 milliwatts of power or
less.
The technology can be used for dielectric tanks, by simply applying the sensors to the
tank surface (as pictured). Through certain techniques the technology can be applied
on metal tanks with no wires entering the tank from the outside.
Currently, there are more than 20,910 jet aircraft in service. This presents a large
market opportunity for retrofitting this technology onto existing airplane fuel tanks
Rapidly evolving aviation services are expected to spur worldwide requirement for
36,770 new jet aircraft by 2033. This presents a growing market for new installations.
Lightning Mitigation and Damage Detection
The NASA technology can be used to protect tall structures from lightning strike damage. When a lightning leader propagates through the atmosphere in the vicinity of a tall structure, the lightning electromagnetic emissions generated from the moving electrical charge will impinge upon the tall structure before the actual charge attaches. As the lightning leader propagates closer to the tall structure, the radiated emissions at the tall structure will grow stronger. The SansEC sensor is designed to operate within the lightning radiated emission spectrum and thus is passively powered by the external oscillating magnetic field from the lightning itself. The sensor will resonate and generate its own oscillating magnetic and electric fields which have been demonstrated to influence lighting attachment and propagation.
Wireless Electrical Devices Using Floating Electrodes
The technology presents a fundamental change in the way electrical devices are designed, using an open circuit in conjunction with a floating electrode, or an electrically conductive object not connected to anything by wires, and powered through a wireless device. This system uses inductor-capacitor thin-film open circuit technology. It consists of a uniquely designed, electrically conductive geometric pattern that stores energy in both electric and magnetic fields, along with a floating electrode in proximity to the open circuit. When wirelessly pulsed from the handheld data acquisition system (U.S. Patent Number 7,159,774, Magnetic Field Response Measurement Acquisition System), the system becomes electrically active and develops a capacitance between the two circuit surfaces. The result is a device that acts as a parallel plate capacitor without electrical connections.
Wireless Sensor for Pharmaceutical Packaging and Monitoring Applications
The SansEC sensor is an electrically open circuit without electrical connections. Having a device without circuits eliminates a common failure source of electrical systems. It consists of a uniquely designed thin-film electrically conductive geometric pattern that stores energy in both electric and magnetic fields. When wirelessly interrogated from the portable data acquisition system, the sensor becomes electrically active and emits a wireless response. The magnetic field response attributes of frequency, amplitude, and bandwidth of the inductor correspond to the physical property states measured by the sensor. Container damage, temperature, spoilage, or substance level is detected by changes in resonant frequency read by the accompanying magnetic
field data acquisition system. A unique feature of the sensor is its ability to measure more than one physical attribute at the same time. In addition, by eliminating electrical connections, damage to any area of the sensor will not prevent it from being powered or interrogated.
Wireless Chemical Sensor
The SansEC sensor is an open circuit without electrical connections, which functions as an electrical simple harmonic oscillator when exposed to a harmonic magnetic field. Its response is dependent upon the measured physical property. It consists of a uniquely designed thin-film electrically conductive geometric pattern that stores energy in both electric and magnetic fields. When wirelessly interrogated using the NASA developed Magnetic Field Response Recorder (U.S. Patent Number 7,159,774), the sensor becomes electrically active, and a chemical reactant works in tandem with the thin-film trace. If the chemical is present, it causes a change to the reactant, resulting in an alteration to the sensors magnetic field response attributes. This change is noted electronically by the Magnetic Field Response Recorder.
