Small article monitor

This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Small article monitor" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (December 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

A Small Article Monitor or SAM is a monitoring device designed to screen small items of up to 50 pounds weight for

each time it is powered up. It also monitors its own operation during normal use and indicates any failures. It runs continuously, updating backgrounds whenever no weight is detected inside the chamber. A new count is initiated every time a door open/door close sequence is detected.

Because of overall interference a Geiger counter would be rendered ineffective within the walls of a nuclear containment building for screening individual articles (i.e., clothing, tools, etc.) for specific contamination. A SAM can measure nuclear contamination of specific articles without interference from its outside environment due to the thickness of its lead casing. SAMs range in weight from 1900lbs to 3500lbs.