Thursday, December 28, 2006

US Patent 7155343 - Nanocircuits and Embedded Circuits

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7155343.pdf

It is common to combine sensing devices with electronic circuitry and memory devices for a variety of applications in "smart" devices. However, conventionally the sensor, circuitry and memory are incorporated in a circuit package. This patent suggests instead embedding nanoelectronic components in a spreadable medium such as paint, cement, or dye to coat walls, clothing, windows, etc. and provide an environmental sensing and recording array. Claim 1 reads:

1. A method for detecting environmental analog data comprising: providing a plurality of sensors, each sensor comprising an input, an analog to digital converter, a timer, memory, an output and a power source, said input detecting analog data, converting said analog data to digital data, said timer signaling the time to record data, said memory storing the input and the time the data was recorded, and said output transmitting digital data upon request; providing a spreadable medium; embedding a plurality of nanocircuits in said spreadable medium; and associating said spreadable medium with a surface.

A similar idea was earlier proposed by Boeing which uses RFID tags embedded in paint.
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7068170.pdf