DETECTION APPARATUS FOR SECURITY SYSTEMS

Abstract: Detection apparatus for a security and/or surveillance system is disclosed, which comprises a detection coil for detecting an AC magnetic field generated when a magnetically active tag or marker comes into proximity with said detection coil, characterised in that the detection coil has a ferromagnetic core formed of a material possessing high magnetic permeability and low coercive force. The apparatus preferably includes a screening material.

Description: DETECTION APPARATUS FOR SECURITY SYSTEMS This application relates to detection apparatus for security and surveillance systems, in particular but not necessarily exclusively for systems relying on magnetic detection of special markers or tags, which are often used in electronic article surveillance (EAS), e.g. in retail premises. Detection systems in general use large, relatively flat, pile-wound, air-cored induction coils for reception of ac magnetic fields generated when tags pass through the detection zone. The coil axis is usually perpendicular to the direction of travel of persons walking through the detection zone. This type of detection * system is prone to interference from external sources of ac magnetic fields such as cash registers, motors and electrical cables, since these will also induce voltages in the pick-up coils. These extraneous signals complicate the recognition of the signals from the markers, and generally cause false alarms or reduce the genuine detection rate. Additionally, this type of detection suffers from further unwanted signals which are generated by external (normally) 'passive' objects such as iron and steel panels or other metal fixtures close to the detection volume, since these objects are driven to produce unwanted magnetic signals by the magnetic field which is generated by the EAS system, which is used to interrogate the tags in and around the detection volume. Screen material can be employed to shield the air- cored detection coils from unwanted external signals, but these have to cover at least the entire area of the coil, so are expensive, cumbersome, difficult to install and aesthetically undesirable. This invention is concerned, inter alia, with methods for reducing or eliminating these problems, and with apparatus constructed accordingly. In accordance with one aspect of the invention, detection coils are used which have a ferromagnetic core of high permeability and low coercive force, suitable exemplary materials being soft ferrite, transformer steel or mumetal. In one embodiment of the invention, the detector coil is wound onto a rod or long block of the core material. This will produce substantially the same performance in the far- and mid-field as a dipole air- cored detection coil of diameter equivalent to the length of the core rod or block. The solid cored coil has advantages of lower overall size, but the primary advantage in accordance with this invention is that the magnetic flux entry points to the detection coil are considerably more confined, being located at the tips of the core rather than spread out over the entire plane of the air-cored coil. This means that the position of flux entry and exit may be easily manipulated and moved around by moving or shaping the ends of the core. For example, the core ends may be pointed inwards to the detection zone to reduce sensitivity to external interference. The advantage of this well-defined flux control is that the receivers can be shielded more effectively from unwanted external fields, as described below. Suitable core materials will generally have an effective relative magnetic permeability of between 1 and 10,000, preferably between 30 and 1000. The effective permeability may be governed either by intrinsic material properties or core shape, or a combination of the two. Typically, rod cross-sections will be a few cm 2 and rod length from 5-50 cm, although these dimensions are given as typical examples only. Furthermore in accordance with, and as a preferred component of, this aspect of the invention small areas of screening material may be placed behind or around the flux entry points at the tips of the rod; these provide effective screening of the receive system for unwanted external systems. The quantity, and hence the weight and cost, of screening material is considerably less than is required for an air-cored coil, and the ease with which it can be manipulated is improved. Since only a small amount of material is needed, there may be gaps between screens, allowing lines of sight into the detection zone and hence improving the aesthetic appearance of the detection apparatus. Suitable screens include (for example) plain metal sheet of thickness in the range 0.3 to 2.5 mm, typically about 1 mm, or laminated sheets, or perforated sheets or meshes. The screen material should preferably be non- ferromagnetic and a good conductor, such as one formed of copper, aluminium or stainless steel or other alloy with such qualities. * The choice of screen thickness will depend upon the operating and detection frequency of the EAS system. We have 4 found that a versatile, cheap and lightweight screen can be made for a kHz frequency system by laminating together a plurality of sheets (typically ten sheets) of plain aluminium foil, similar to cooking foil, each separated by a layer of paper or other electrical insulator. In cases where the most effective screening is required, aluminium plates of thickness in the range of 0.1 mm to 3.5 mm, preferably 0.3 to 2 mm, are advantageously used. A detection system constructed and screened according to this invention is relatively insensitive to external electrically-driven sources of noise, and may also be placed very close to otherwise troublesome iron panels or other ferromagnetic objects such as railings or checkout panels, thus increasing the performance and location versatility of the EAS system. A representation of a screened solid cored coil is shown in Figure 1 (described in more detail hereinafter), while the equivalent screened air-cored coil is shown in Figure 2. The solid core may be shaped to further enhance its performance by flaring the tips or bending them inwards, or by forming a four-pointed or multiply pointed cruciform structure from the material, for example as shown in Figure 3 and described hereinafter. In a second aspect, the invention provides a method for reducing the 'drive' or 'interrogation* magnetic field of the EAS system in the area outside the detection zone while increasing the field inside the detection zone. This has the simultaneous advantages of reducing the power requirement of the drive system and reducing the amplitude of extraneously-generated unwanted signal from external ferromagnetic objects excited by the drive field. This- is currently accomplished (e.g. as disclosed in U.S. -patent 4,769,631) by the use of large sheets of non- conductive high permeability material which cover all or most 4 of the area behind the drive coil. Because these materials (as proposed by prior inventions) generate considerable magnetic signal (response) themselves, prior inventions have had to rely on timing sequences for marker detection, which reduce the overall detectability of the markers. According to a further aspect this invention, the rearward reduction of the interrogation field can be achieved by a shield with a combination of high magnetic permeability and electrically conducting materials. A shield of this type can produce negligible interfering magnetic signal, particularly when used with screened detection coils of this invention. In addition, the thickness and hence the weight of material required is less than in shields known from the prior art. According to a further aspect of this invention, the shield consists of two components; and the second component is a larger, electrically conductive shield placed behind the first component and covering all or most or most of the area enclosed by the drive coil. The first component is preferably a relatively thick section of low coercivity material (for example transformer steel or low-coercivity ferrite) placed close to but behind the drive coil. This first component need not cover the whole area enclosed by the drive coil, but need only be a few centimetres in width (as indicated by way of example in Fig. 6). The purpose of this first component is to reduce the field by magnetic flux conduction at the point where it is strongest: i.e. directly behind the drive coil. The first component must not form a shorted turn for the drive coil - i.e. it must not be a continuously conductive loop or plane but must have a slit or insulated gap. The magnetic flux which would normally pass into objects behind the coil is diverted nto the low reluctance component, and hence is confined and controlled. The second component is a larger, electrically conductive shield placed behind the first component and covering all or most of the area enclosed by the drive coil as shown in Fig. 6. The purpose of the second component is to reduce the rearward residual weaker field, not deflected by the first component, by eddy current opposition. The electrical conductivity of this second component is desirably chosen not to produce too great a resistive loading on the drive circuitry. If in addition the second component has magnetic flux conduction properties, then its efficacy is further enhanced. We have found that the properties required of the second component are best met by sheets of steel. In particular magnetic stainless steels such as type 430 steel have particularly advantageous combinations of magnetic permeability and electrical conductivity. The high flux density which would otherwise cause significant loading and high levels of unwanted magnetic interference on passing into the second component directly behind the coil is diverted by the first component which is interposed between the two. As an alternative embodiment of this invention, the function of the first and second components may be incorporated in a single element, such as a large sheet of material such as transformer steel or magnetic stainless steel which covers the entire area to the rear of the drive coil. In order to avoid resistive loading, however, the sheet will preferably be slit in a direction approximately radial to the drive coil, as shown in Fig. 7. To further improve the properties of this single element, the thickness may be increased close to the drive coil as shown in Fig. 7, e.g. by lamination or suitable joining of additional material. In order to reduce acoustic noise which may be generated in these shield components, it will also be desirable.to use additions of suitable sound-damping material such as self-adhesive acoustic deadening material, e.g. of the sort used by automobile manufacturers. It should be noted that the advantage of the shielding material described above is that suitable choice of advantageous symmetric positioning of the shield with respect to the drive and receive coils renders it almost entirely passive - i.e. not producing unwanted magnetic signal on the receive circuitry. As illustrated examples of the configuration of the shield, the first component may be fabricated from transformer sheet steel such as 'Losil' sheet - in a thickness preferably between 0.25 mm and 1 mm (either in a single layer or in a laminated structure incorporating sound damping material). The shield may be in the form of a single loop (with gap) or it may be fabricated from a number of discrete pieces more or less joined together to form a loop approximating to the shape in Fig. 6(a). The second component of, for example, type 430 stainless steel may be of a similar thickness to the first component. The first component is placed between the coil and the second component, and the separation between components is between 1 mm and 20 mm. Referring now to the drawings, Figure 1 shows a schematic view of a solenoid wound receiver coil 12 on a magnetically permeable core 11 with screening elements 13. Figure 2 shows a schematic view of a pile-wound receiver coil 25 with a large screening element 24 behind it. Figure 3 shows a various core geometries for receiver cores of this invention. Figure 4 shows a hollow cored receiver coil 41 wound onto an electrically conductive former 42 in the form of a hollow extruded aluminium member containing an insulating gap 43. Figure 5 shows a receiver coil 51 wound onto an aluminium foil flux trapper 53 insulated from itself by an insulating layer 52. The whole structure is wound onto an insulating former 54. Figure 6 shows a rearfield magnetic screen consisting of a first component 61, a second component 62, a drive coil 63; this figure also illustrates a gap 64 which is formed in the first component 61. Fig. 6(a) shows an exploded isometric view and 6(b) shows a schematic plan view. Fig. 7 shows a single-element magnetic shield 71 constructed from a single component, with slits to minimise eddy current effects, and a drive coil 72. The two views are of similar projections to Fig. 6. In an alternative aspect of this invention, the pick up coil is wound onto a hollow, open ended conductive metal box, which is made with an insulating gap along its length so that it should not form a shorted turn magnetically linked to the coil. Currents are induced in the box so as to counter the emergence of magnetic flux along the length of the box, confining the position of the flux entry and exit points to the ends of the box. The flux-confining box may also be placed around the outside of the receiver coil with equal effectiveness, provided that the box is close-fitting onto the coil (less than about 5 mm clearance). If the box is placed outside the coil then the box, if earthed, can also duplicate the function of an electrostatic screen for the receiver coil (against electrostatically-induced voltage pick up from external sources). One example of a box of this type is an extruded aluminium form with a small gap along its length (Fig. 4). Alternatively, the box may consist of one or more insulated layers of copper or aluminium sheet wound on an insulating former (Fig. 5). In certain circumstances, the conductive flux- containing box can be dispersed with altogether, since the windings of the detector coil act to a certain extent as a flux-confining box. It is important to note that the^advantageous properties are only found for the solenoid-wound detector coils of the present invention, not for conventional pile-wound coils. Because hollow coils do not contain nonlinear magnetic materials, this type of construction is applicable to regions where the magnetic fields are strong - such as, for example, very-close to the drive coil. In fact, this construction can itself be used as a configuration for the drive coil of a security system. The advantages discussed herein in relation to the ferrite detector apply equally to these devices.

Claims: CLAIMS : 1. Detection apparatus for a security and/or surveillance system, which comprises a detection coil for detecting an AC magnetic field generated when a magnetically active tag or marker comes into proximity with said detection coil, characterised in that the detection coil has a ferromagnetic core formed of a material possessing high magnetic permeability and low coercive force. 2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said core is a soft ferrite; a transformer steel; or mumetal. 3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, characterised in that said core has end regions which are shaped to provide one or more inwardly curving elements. 4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, characterised in that said core has an effective relative magnetic permeability in the range 1 to 10,000. 5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4, characterised in that said core has an effective relative magnetic permeability in the range of 30 to 1,000. 6. Apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, characterised in that said core has an axial length in the range 5 to 50 cm. 7. Apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, characterised in that a magnetic screening material is provided in the vicinity of flux entry points of said core. 8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7, characterised in that said screening material is located behind or around the flux entry points. 9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7 or 8, characterised in that said screening material is a metallic sheet. 10. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7, 8 or 9, characterised in that said screening material is arranged to have high magnetic permeability and electrical conductivit . 11. Detection apparatus for a security and/or surveillance system, which comprises a detection coil for detecting an AC magnetic field generated when a magnetically active tag or marker comes into proximity with said detection coil, characterised in that the apparatus further comprises a screening material which is arranged to have high magnetic permeability and electrical conductivity. 12. Apparatus as claimed in one of claims 7 to 11, characterised in that said screening material comprises two components. 13. Apparatus as claimed in claim 12, characterised in that said first component is a relatively thick sectioned element of a material possessing low magnetic coercivity; and in that said second component is larger than* said first component and covers all or substantially all of the area enclosed by said drive coil. 14. Apparatus as claimed in one of claims 7 to 11, characterised in that said screening component is a single element which covers substantially the entire area behind the drive coil. 15. Apparatus as claimed in claim 14, characterised in that said single element is a laminated material. 16. Apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 7 to 15, characterised in that the apparatus further includes sound damping material. 17. Apparatus as claimed in claim 12, characterised in that said first component is fabricated from Losil sheet steel or from a material possessing substantially similar magnetic properties. 18. Apparatus as claimed in claim 17, characterised in that said first component is a sheet of thickness in the range 0.25 mm to 1.0 mm. 19. Apparatus as claimed in claim 17 or 18, characterised in that said second material is formed of Type 430 Stainless steel or from a material possessing substantially similar magnetic properties. 20. Apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, characterised in that said core is in the form of a hollow, open-ended electrically conductive box having an insulating gap at a point along its length. 21. Apparatus as claimed in claim 20, characterised in that said box is formed of aluminium.

Inventors: AASBRINK LEIF, DAVIES DAFYDD GERAINT, AASBRINK, LEIF, DAVIES, DAFYDD, GERAINT
Applicants: SCIENT GENERICS LTD, SCIENTIFIC GENERICS LIMITED
Application year: 1991
Main classification: G08B13
IPC codes: G08B13