Patent ID: 7468672

Claim:
A method for detection and identification of illegal drugs, explosives, toxic chemicals, decaying animal and vegetable matter, and concealed human beings located in confined spaces of shipping containers, storage containers and other cargo containers and secure spaces, the method comprising the steps of: providing an analytical chemical detector which has low power requirements and is powered by a battery to operate the detector and to sample the atmosphere within the confined spaces, disposing the analytical chemical detector in said confined spaces for a period of time wherein there is an accumulation of target chemicals associated with the illegal drugs, explosives, toxic chemicals, decaying animal and vegetable matter, and human effluvia, the analytical chemical detector being sensitive to minute concentrations of the target chemicals, providing a means for accumulating, adding and processing chemical analysis measurements periodically over said period of time as the target chemicals accumulate to significant concentrations in said confined spaces, providing digital signal processing algorithms to identify the target chemicals, providing a means for reporting the presence of the target chemicals to a device located outside of the confined spaces.