Patent ID: 6680994
Filing Date: 2004-01-20
Classification: G01M

Abstract:
A method for non-intrusively monitoring the gaseous contents of a sealed container comprising:transmitting an ultrasonic transmitted signal through a wall of the sealed container into the gaseous contents of the container from a transmitter; receiving an ultrasound signal from within the container using a receiver; and analyzing the changes in the received ultrasound signal so as to deduce the level of one or more components of the gaseous contents of the container due to the way in which the transmitted signal is modified into the received ultrasound signal by the gaseous contents of the container, without having to unseal the container, and wherein the deduced level of one or more components of the gaseous contents of the container is corrected for temperature by performing the method at a number of frequencies; providing a structural wall so as to isolate the gaseous contents of the container from the transmitter and the receiver, the structural wall being separate from the the one or more components of the gaseous contents of the container arising from a leakage of gas into the gaseous contents of the container, and wherein the transmitter and/or receiver can be removed without having to unseal the container.