Patent ID: 7278186

Claim:
An apparatus for measuring a moisture content value within a volume comprising a fiber bale, the apparatus comprising: a frequency generator adapted to generate at least one source signal at a fundamental frequency of no more than about one kilohertz, probes disposed with surfaces in physical contact with the volume, where no current flows between the probes through the volume, one of the probes electrically connected to the frequency generator as a source probe, and adapted to receive the source signal and emit the source signal into the volume, thereby creating an electrical field having characteristics that are dependent at least in part on a moisture content of the volume, another of the probes operating as a receiver probe for sensing the electrical field and producing an output signal having an output property that is dependent at least in part on the source signal and the moisture content within the volume, and means for producing a moisture content value for the volume, where the moisture content value is based at least in part on the output property of the output signal.