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Wearable magnetic field utility locator system with sound field generation

  • US 10,024,994 B1
  • Filed: 11/11/2013
  • Issued: 07/17/2018
  • Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2006
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A buried utility locator system, comprising:

  • a portable buried utility locator including a plurality of antenna coils for receiving magnetic field signals from one or more buried utilities, the plurality of antenna coils including;

    a left magnetic field gradient antenna coil;

    a right magnetic field gradient antenna coil; and

    one or more omnidirectional nested magnetic field antenna coils configured to receive magnetic field signals in two or more orthogonal dimensions;

    a locator circuit coupled to an output of the left gradient coil and the right gradient coil to receive and process magnetic field gradient signals emitted from the buried utility;

    a DSP circuit coupled to an output of the locator circuit to generate a plurality of stereophonic audio signals representative of a direction of the locator relative to a buried utility;

    a visual display device coupled to an output of the locator circuitry to provide visual information associated with the depth and position of the buried utility;

    a plurality of audio transducers coupled to an output of the DSP circuit, wherein the plurality of audio transducers include magnetic elements having poles aligned to magnetically hold the plurality of audio transducers in a separable stacked configuration on a user'"'"'s garment; and

    a cable to detachably couple the plurality of audio signals to the plurality of audio transducers;

    wherein the plurality of audio signals are generated in the DSP to provide a stereophonic sound field providing directional sound corresponding to the position and depth of the buried utility from the audio transducers so as to supplement the buried utility information that is provided visually on the display.

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