Inventors:
William Allen - Colorado Springs CO, US
Leighton Ige - Honolulu HI, US
International Classification:
G01N001/24, G01N033/22, G01N033/15
US Classification:
073/031030, 073/031070, 073/863230, 073/863810
Abstract:
The present invention is a novel collection device that allows constituents of air to collect on a test strip included within the collection device. Specifically, the collector allows a removable test strip to be inserted in the collector while an air sample passes therethrough. Thereafter, the test strip is removed from the collector and analyzed to determine the constituents of air that passed through the test strip and collector. When using the collector to inspect for trace amounts of explosives within a package, the collector is connected to a package-collector interface because the shape of the package-collector interface corresponds to that of the collector. An air sample is extracted from the interior of the package and through both the interface and the collector, including the test strip. As the air is extracted, the constituents of air collect on the test strip. After collecting the constituents, the test strip is removed from the collector and inserted into a testing unit capable of detecting trace amounts of explosives. The testing unit subsequently analyzes the constituents and determines whether any of them are explosive.