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Buried asset detection simulator using retrofitted electromagnetic locate device

  • US 10,304,351 B2
  • Filed: 06/08/2017
  • Issued: 05/28/2019
  • Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2016
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A printed circuit card assembly (PCBA) configured for retrofitting a conventional electromagnetic locator device (ELD) for a simulator system, the PCBA comprising:

  • a printed circuit board (PCB) including a plurality of electrical components;

    at least one orifice in the PCB configured for fastening to the conventional ELD;

    a first communications bus for transferring data;

    a first power network for distributing power;

    a power connector configured for conductively coupling the first power network with a power network on the conventional ELD;

    at least three data connectors, each data connector configured for communicatively coupling with a separate one of at least three antenna amplifiers on the conventional ELD;

    a low-power radio frequency (RF) receiver communicatively coupled with the first communications bus and conductively coupled with the first power network, the RF receiver configured for receiving, over RF, emulated electromagnetic (EM) field data;

    a processor communicatively coupled with the first communications bus and conductively coupled with the first power network, the processor configured for;

    a) reading the emulated EM field data received by the RF receiver, which comprises at least three constituent parts, wherein each constituent part corresponds to EM field data for a specific one of the at least three antenna amplifiers on the conventional ELD;

    b) disassembling the emulated EM field data into said at least three constituent parts;

    c) transmitting to each one of the at least three antenna amplifiers on the conventional ELD, via the at least three data connectors, the constituent part of the emulated EM field data that corresponds to said antenna amplifier, thereby emulating an EM field on the conventional ELD.

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