Patent ID: 7411517

Claim:
An apparatus for wirelessly communicating characteristics of a down hole environment in a tubular string, with the tubular string being concentrically positioned within a well bore and said well bore containing a drilling fluid, the tubular string being a conductive material and wherein the tubular string has an inner diameter portion, the apparatus comprising: a sensor means, positioned within a pocket in the tubular string, for collecting information of the characteristic and processing the information; a sensor electronics module electrically connected to said sensor means; a first modem means for modulating the information from the sensor module; a sensor antenna coil winding, electrically connected to said first modem means, for generating a modulated electromagnetic wave said sensor antenna coil winding positioned within an inner pocket formed on said inner diameter portion; a probe concentrically positioned within the tubular string; a probe antenna coil winding, disposed within the probe, for receiving the modulated electromagnetic wave and generating an output wherein said probe antenna coil winding concentrically positioned about said outer periphery so that a gap is formed between said sensor antenna coil winding and said probe antenna coil winding forming a passage for the drilling fluid and for the transmission of the modulated electromagnetic wave; a second modem means for demodulating the electromagnetic wave received from said sensor means.