• Director: Kevin Jones
• Company Background:
  On leaving the university sector in 1998 after 8 years as a full time university academic, teaching and researching in the areas of mathematics, science, and technology education, Kevin became a founding co-director of Reeve Jones Pty Ltd, a company specialising in the development of market-niche, predominantly technology-based products. Once a market niche is identified, research and development programs are implemented by integrating Company expertise with selected consultants from the university and private sectors, followed by prototyping, evaluation, and intellectual property development activities. Engineering firms selected on a product-related, expertise basis manufacture Company products; alternatively a product licensing arrangement with an established, industry-active company is generated. Major Company projects to date have been in the mining, energy monitoring, and metal detection fields.

Two Current Projects: Metal Detection

Project 1: An ultra-lightweight, super-sensitive ferrous metal detection device (Ferrous Hound) designed for attachment to any metal detector as a ferrous/non-ferrous metal discriminator.

Project 2: A deep-seeking pulse induction (PI) / time domain metal detection system with a completely ferrite-independent operation mode.

Project Phase	Project 1: Ferrous Hound discriminator /magnetometer /gradiometer	Project 2: PI/time domain metal detector
Research and development programs	Complete	Complete
Production	Metal detector attachment version (only) now ready	Not ready

See http://www.thunting.com/cgi-bin/geotech/pages/main/index.pl for additional magnetometer/gradiometer information.

About Ferrous Hound:

Company research has highlighted three significant voids in the area of metal detection:

• firstly, the absence of small, handheld ferrous metal detectors similar in style and ease of use to the metal detecting "wands" familiar in security contexts;
• secondly, the paucity of small, ultra-lightweight, easily maneuverable, highly sensitive magnetometers/gradiometers capable of being used in a manner similar to existing metal detectors, but specialising in the detection of ferrous targets such as iron relics and meteorites; and
• thirdly, the acute level of consumer frustration with the highly unreliable ferrous metal discrimination capabilities of even the most expensive metal detectors.

  The currently available version has been specifically designed for attachment to any metal detector as a ferrous/non-ferrous metal discrimination system. The instrument's 100% nil response to non-ferrous metals such as gold and silver is invaluable when gold prospecting, and coin and jewellery hunting in trash iron locations. Ferrous Hound's extreme iron detection range (e.g. a small 250ml can tests at 55cm; a 400mm x 15mm iron bar tests at 1.2m ; both tests in air) has been designed to largely eliminate the time and effort lost in recovering ferrous trash, especially very deep large and small targets in dry, loose sand or hard, compacted soil; as well as significantly reducing the environmental damage arising from detecting activities in parks, public reserves, and similar locations.

  Since the operation of Ferrous Hound is independent of the operation of the metal detector to which it is attached, the metal detector effectively becomes a high-resolution (1.3nT-1.4nT) gradiometer if it is turned OFF and Ferrous Hound is turned ON. If the metal detector attachment version of Ferrous Hound is adapted as an independent field magnetometer/gradiometer, ground scanning detecting sweeps similar to operating a metal detector can be used. Refer to the Ferrous Hound User Manual, to optimise detecting efficiency in this application. In a ferrous/non-ferrous metal detecting discrimination context, pre-discrimination target location by the metal detector enables any preferred, effective Ferrous Hound target scanning technique to be employed.

If preferred, the metal detector electronics and search coil can be removed from the metal detector shaft. The Ferrous Hound sensor head can then be attached to the shaft using the bracket provided, creating an ultra-lightweight field magnetometer/gradiometer. The Ferrous Hound control housing is attached to the shaft or operator's belt using the fittings provided. Overall weight in these circumstances is only a fraction that of a metal detector/Ferrous Hound combination. This option is likely to suit those intent on detecting magnetic substances only. Meteorite searching and locating iron targets of interest are examples of this magnetometer/gradiometer application.