Dexter Research Center is an infrared R&D center surrounded by a volume manufacturing operation. Because our infrared gas and temperature detectors are rugged and long lasting, because they are passive and require no external power source or battery to remain active, and because they can be ordered to MIL-Spec, they have been a detector of choice for NASA and the U.S. space program and our armed services. Our infrared gas detectors have also served as multi-gas analyzers in hospital operating rooms around the world to assure patient safety during anesthesiology.
Dexter infrared gas leak detectors compete with semiconductors, oxidation, and catalytic technologies. Gases of interest, including carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, methane hydro carbons and refrigerants to name just a few, are often corrosive and reactive. With most sensor types, the sensor itself is directly exposed to the gas, often causing the sensor to drift or die too soon after installation. A Dexter infrared gas detector is remote and sealed against corrosion, contributing to its long life and reliable, stable performance. Our IR gas detectors are used in handheld monitors for infrared sensor gas detector designs, based on non-dispersive infrared sensor technology (NDIR), and as an infrared open-path gas detector.
Dexter gas detectors are available as thin-film and silicon-based thermopiles. Our gas detectors are similar in construction to those used in combat ground vehicles and aircraft to detect fire and trigger rapid automatic extinguishing protocols. In other applications, Dexter gas detectors continuously monitor for combustible, flammable, and toxic gasses and oxygen depletion without requiring an external power source or battery to remain active. Our product is used widely in health safety systems and industrial process control and can be used on oil rigs to identify toxic gas levels.
Gas detectors may be designed as fixed gas detectors or as portable gas detectors. Gas detectors from competing technologies and other infrared manufacturers have potential for high failure reports from use. Intensive MIL-STD-883H testing performed by Trialon
Corporation, an independent testing facility, confirm that Dexter Research’s silicon-based temperature sensor detectors meet the same rugged requirements of 1,000G for mechanical shock and 30G in random vibration for which our thin-film detectors are famous.
A Dexter IR gas detector is essentially an infrared sensor that is sensitive to changes in temperature as small as 0.1 degree C. This makes our infrared sensors exceptionally valuable in gas detection. Our gas detectors will operate between -40°C to 85°C without being affected by ambient temperature fluctuations.
Use of a gas analyzer is essential in any operations where there are many gases that can be harmful to humans, animals, plant life, or microorganisms. A Dexter gas detector, sometimes called a gas analyzer, continuously monitors the presence of target gas or gases within a defined area of interest, many times as part of a safety system. A Dexter gas sensor is integrated within a control system designed for automatic shutdown in the event of a leak or presence of an unwelcome gas by-product. The control system can also be programmed to simultaneously sound a gas alarm and send a text message or email alert to remote operators.
A product that includes a Dexter gas detector can sound an alarm if one or more required gases are suddenly absent or fall below required levels. This sensing capability, combined with rugged design, is what drives worldwide use of Dexter’s gas detectors in hospital operating rooms during anesthesiology. Our IR gas sensing technology monitors critical levels of multiple gases as a patient exhales to confirm his or her respiratory safety during a hospital operation.
Infrared (IR) gas detection is a well-developed and proven sensing technology. Early infrared gas analyzers from some competitors were overly complicated, cumbersome, and expensive. Not Dexter IR gas detectors. Our products are quiet, and they do not have electronic noise issues.
Our infrared detectors integrate well with microchip components, demonstrating a new and exciting potential for infrared gas sensing and analysis. Dexter gas analyzers have enjoyed an increase in demand in the commercial sector, as well as medical and military applications. These demands are met through our collaborative relationships with our customers.