Image-based mapping locating system
US9465129B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 16, 2010 |
| Grant date | Oct 11, 2016 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Feb 25, 2034 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01V3/38
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A locator system for locating buried utilities such as conduits, cables, pipes or wires incorporates image-capturing and position and orientation measuring devices such as magnetic compass, accelerometers, gyros, GPS, and DGPS. The system may include other sensors such as gas concentration sensors. The system associates images captured during the locate process with buried utility position data and the other sensor data. These data and images may be further associated with terrain images from satellites or aerial photography to provide a highly precision map and database of buried utility locations and visual images of the burial site. Information so obtained may be transferred to a hand-held personal communication device (such as a smart phone) capable of displaying an augmented or virtual reality display showing the location of buried utilities in combination with photo-images and/or terrain maps.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.