Patent ID: 8903045

Claim:
A variable geometry backscatter inspection system for inspecting a surface of an object, the system comprising: a conveyance configured to move along a line of travel; a source of a pencil beam of penetrating radiation, the source coupled to the conveyance and having an axis of emission; a variable geometry detector array, the array comprising: a first detector coupled to the conveyance and having a first alignment vector, the first alignment vector parallel to the line of travel; a second detector movably coupled to the conveyance and having a second alignment vector, the second detector movable between a first position and a second position, wherein the second alignment vector is parallel to the line of travel in the first position; such that the array presents a first solid angle when viewed from a point on the line of travel when the second detector is in the first position, and a smaller solid angle when the second detector is in the second position.