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 A scientist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory has come up with a device to help investigators collect crime scene evidence in a new, efficient way.
The Hands-Off Sampler Gun – a handheld device that combines elements of nearly 20 devices, eliminates the shortcomings of low-tech sample gathering, according to its inventor, Torsten Staab, and increases the efficiency, safety and speed with which investigators collect samples.
The Sampler, Staab said, is an all-in-one device that includes, among other elements, a digital camera, sensors, barcode reader, universal sample-media adapter and electronic data acquisition and more. In addition, the Sampler Gun eliminates handwritten documentation by allowing the user to enter data electronically. It ensures the paperwork necessary for each piece of evidence collected is recorded accurately – maintaining a consistent paper trail and chain of custody.
Staab, currently a Project Leader for Homeland Defense Technologies in the Applied Engineering Technology (AET) division at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), invented the device while dealing with problems involving environmental sample collection.
 “I was working with an industrial hygienist at LANL trying to develop new methods for improving environmental sample collection and tracking,” Staab said. “The main problems I was trying to address with this device were – a, How to prevent/minimize the potential for sample cross-contamination; b, How to minimize exposure of the sample collector to potentially hazardous substances during sampling; and c, how to accurately and efficiently track all the multi-media - text, audio, and video - field data electronically with a single device?”
After analyzing these problems more closely, Staab realized that they applied to almost any type of sample collection and tracking, whether it might be at a crime scene or during environmental monitoring.
“My team and I decided to develop a modular, multi-purpose device that could be easily modified for various sampling operations,” he said.
Funding for the project, which was in development for three years, was provided by the U.S. Department of Defense through the Center for Commercialization of Advanced Technology and the Office of Technology Transfer and Commercialization at California State University, San Bernardino.
 What does it do?
And while it may resemble a Star Trek phaser, the device is actually closer to Dr. Bones’ futuristic tricorder. Just as its name implies, the device is a hand-held gadget resembling a gun that is lightweight and portable. It takes the place of any number of devices, and uses new technology to make the process easier and quicker. According to Staab:
- Field data can be acquired 10 times faster than traditional methods
- It minimizes/eliminates sample cross contamination and human exposure to hazardous samples
- Data integrity is ensured through high degree of device automation and integration
- The touch-screen interface provides effortless sample data collection
- It features fully integrated multi-media (voice, video, text) for sample data acquisition and management
- Universal, XML-based data format is used to allow data export to virtually any back-office IT-system
- Removable memory card for transferring data from device to PC
- Adaptable sampling mechanism supports a wide variety of common media, such as swabs, wipes, contact plates, filter paper, vials, etc.
- Pinpoint and track sample locations using built-in GPS and graphical information system software
- User can take digital pictures of handwritten labels and sampled object/scene
- It reduces required sampling staff by up to 50 percent
The device is not yet commercially available, though a number of companies have expressed interest in licensing the technology, Staab said. Beta users at LANL have been testing it, and a Hazardous Materials Response Team at the lab recently used it successfully during a drill.
What’s next?
While the Hands-Off Sampler Gun lends itself naturally to crime scene investigation, its uses are varied. Thanks to a grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the State of California, and in close collaboration with researchers from UCLA, UC Davis, University of Alaska, and the Wildlife Conservation Society, LANL is currently developing a smaller, leaner version of the sampling and tracking device for global avian surveillance. Funding and plans to deploy 150-200 of these new devices at bird banding stations around the globe (e.g., in Russia, Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Korea, Kongo, and Alaska) to track potential outbreaks of H5N1 (Bird Flu) starting in December 2007 are already in place. LANL is currently looking for a commercial partner who is interested in manufacturing and/or distribution and commercial support of these avian surveillance devices.
LANL’s Technology Transfer division will be hosting a commercialization workshop for potential licensees in October.
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