METHODS, APPARATUS AND SYSTEMS FOR SUBMITTING VIRTUAL WHITE LINE DRAWINGS AND MANAGING NOTIFICATIONS IN CONNECTION WITH UNDERGROUND FACILITY LOCATE AND MARKING OPERATIONS
First Claim
1. An apparatus for providing information regarding a locate and/or marking operation comprising detecting and/or marking, in response to at least one locate request ticket, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities, the apparatus comprising:
- a communication interface;
a memory to store processor-executable instructions; and
a processing unit communicatively coupled to the communication interface and the memory, wherein upon execution of the processor-executable instructions by the processing unit, the processing unit;
electronically receives, via the communication interface, first input relating to the dig area;
based on the first input, renders a digital virtual white line image including at least one dig area indicator to provide at least one indication of the dig area with respect to a geographic area;
controls the communication interface to receive second input regarding a notification type and/or a notification communication method for at least one notification indicating a status and/or providing information relating to the performance of the locate and/or marking operation;
generates the at least one notification based at least in part on the notification type and/or the notification communication method; and
further controls the communication interface and/or the memory to electronically transmit and/or electronically store the at least one notification so as to inform at least one party associated with providing at least one locate request relating to the locate and/or marking operation of the status and/or performance of the locate and/or marking operation.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Methods, apparatus, and systems for providing information regarding a locate and/or marking operation to identify a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area. At least one notification indicating a status of the locate and/or marking operation is electronically transmitted and/or stored so as to inform at least one party associated with requesting the operation (a “requesting party,” e.g., an excavator, a property owner, a facility owner, a regulatory authority, a damage investigator, etc.) of the status of the operation. In one aspect, a requesting party may designate a preferred format, content, and/or method of receiving notifications regarding the locate and/or marking operation. In another aspect, a computer-generated GUI is provided to facilitate submission of requests, generation of “virtual white line” images to indicate one or more dig areas on a digital image of a work site, and/or selection of notifications and preferences for same. In yet another aspect, a requesting party may provide an acknowledgement of receipt (e.g., a “return receipt”) for one or more received notifications.
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Citations
61 Claims
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1. An apparatus for providing information regarding a locate and/or marking operation comprising detecting and/or marking, in response to at least one locate request ticket, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities, the apparatus comprising:
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a communication interface; a memory to store processor-executable instructions; and a processing unit communicatively coupled to the communication interface and the memory, wherein upon execution of the processor-executable instructions by the processing unit, the processing unit; electronically receives, via the communication interface, first input relating to the dig area; based on the first input, renders a digital virtual white line image including at least one dig area indicator to provide at least one indication of the dig area with respect to a geographic area; controls the communication interface to receive second input regarding a notification type and/or a notification communication method for at least one notification indicating a status and/or providing information relating to the performance of the locate and/or marking operation; generates the at least one notification based at least in part on the notification type and/or the notification communication method; and further controls the communication interface and/or the memory to electronically transmit and/or electronically store the at least one notification so as to inform at least one party associated with providing at least one locate request relating to the locate and/or marking operation of the status and/or performance of the locate and/or marking operation. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54)
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55. At least one computer-readable medium encoded with instructions that, when executed on at least one processing unit, perform a method for providing information regarding a locate and/or marking operation comprising detecting and/or marking, in response to at least one locate request ticket, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities, the method comprising:
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A) electronically receiving first input relating to the dig area; B) based on the first input, rendering a digital virtual white line image including at least one dig area indicator to provide at least one indication of the dig area with respect to a geographic area; C) electronically receiving second input regarding a notification type and/or a notification communication method for at least one notification indicating a status and/or providing information relating to the performance of the locate and/or marking operation; D) generating the at least one notification based at least in part on the notification type and/or the notification communication method; and E) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing the at least one notification so as to inform at least one party associated with providing at least one locate request relating to the locate and/or marking operation of the status and/or performance of the locate and/or marking operation.
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56. A method for providing information regarding a locate and/or marking operation comprising detecting and/or marking, in response to at least one locate request ticket, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities, the method comprising:
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A) electronically receiving first input relating to the dig area; B) based on the first input, rendering a digital virtual white line image including at least one dig area indicator to provide at least one indication of the dig area with respect to a geographic area; C) electronically receiving second input regarding a notification type and/or a notification communication method for at least one notification indicating a status and/or providing information relating to the performance of the locate and/or marking operation; D) generating the at least one notification based at least in part on the notification type and/or the notification communication method; and E) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing the at least one notification so as to inform at least one party associated with providing at least one locate request relating to the locate and/or marking operation of the status and/or performance of the locate and/or marking operation. - View Dependent Claims (57, 58, 59, 60, 61)
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Specification