METHODS, APPARATUS AND SYSTEMS FOR FACILITATING GENERATION AND ASSESSMENT OF ENGINEERING PLANS

• US 20120065944A1
• Filed: 08/11/2011
• Published: 03/15/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Certusview Technologies LLC (Dycom Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Certusview Technologies LLC (Dycom Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Nielsen, Steven, Chambers, Curtis, Farr, Jeffrey
• Granted Patent: US 8,977,558 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 703/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 3/38 Processing data, e.g. for analysis, for interpretation, for correction
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/103 Workflow collaboration or project management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/08 Construction

Abstract

Electronically generating an engineering plan for installation of equipment, such as cable system equipment, at a work site. First geographic information relating to a first location of the work site is compared with second geographic information representing a second location of an engineer generating the engineering plan (or of a plan generating tool being used by the engineer to generate the plan) to verify that the engineer/tool is sufficiently near to the work site. A digital image of a geographic area including the work site is displayed on the plan generating tool, and user input is acquired from the engineer (e.g., via a user input device associated with the plan generating tool) relating to at least one first position, relative to the displayed digital image, representing a first equipment location of at least a first piece of the equipment to be installed at the work site. A marked-up digital image including at least one first digital representation of the first piece of the equipment placed on the displayed digital image is generated, based at least in part on the user input, and information relating to the marked-up digital image is electronically transmitted and/or electronically stored so as to generate the engineering plan.

Claims

1. An apparatus for facilitating generation of an engineering plan for installation of equipment at a work site, the apparatus comprising:

a communication interface;

a display device;

a user input device;

a memory to store controller-executable instructions; and

a controller coupled to the communication interface, the display device, the user input device, and the memory, wherein upon execution of the controller-executable instructions by the controller, the controller;

A) controls the user input device and/or the communication interface to receive first geographic information relating to a first location of the work site;

B) compares the first geographic information relating to the work site to second geographic information representing a second location of the apparatus to verify that the apparatus is sufficiently near to the work site;

C) controls the display device to display a digital image of a geographic area including the work site;

D) acquires user input from the user input device, the user input relating to at least one first position, relative to the displayed digital image, representing a first equipment location of at least a first piece of the equipment to be installed at the work site;

E) controls the display device so as to generate a marked-up digital image including at least one first digital representation of the first piece of the equipment placed on the displayed digital image, based at least in part on the user input; and

F) controls the communication interface and/or the memory to electronically transmit and/or electronically store information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate the engineering plan.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in A), the controller:

A1) controls the user input device to receive the first geographic information relating to the work site as an address; and

A2) geo-codes the address to provide first geographic coordinates as the first geographic information relating to the work site.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in A), the controller:

A1) controls the communications interface to receive a work order requesting generation of the engineering plan at the work site; and

A2) processes the work order to extract from the work order the first geographic information relating to the work site.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in B), the controller:

B1) controls the communication interface to receive the second geographic information from at least one external device.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a positioning unit to determine the second geographic information.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in B):

the first geographic information relating to the work site includes first geographic coordinates representing the first location of the work site;

the second geographic information includes second geographic coordinates representing the second location of the apparatus; and

the controller compares the first geographic coordinates and the second geographic coordinates to verify that the apparatus is sufficiently near to the work site.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in C), the controller:

automatically selects the digital image for display based at least in part on at least one of the first geographic information and the second geographic information.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in B), the controller:

B1) determines a distance between the first location and the second location;

B2) compares the distance to a predefined range;

B3) if it is determined that the distance is within or equal to the predefined range, generates at least one first indication so as to indicate that the apparatus is sufficiently near to the work site; and

B4) if it is determined that the distance is not within the predefined range, generates at least one second indication so as to indicate that the apparatus is not sufficiently near to the work site.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the first geographic information includes first latitude and longitude coordinates for the first location, wherein the second geographic information includes second latitude and longitude coordinates for the second location, and wherein in B1), the controller:

compares the first latitude and longitude coordinates to the second latitude and longitude coordinates to determine the distance between the first location and the second location.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the controller further:

G) displays, via the display device, the at least one first indication or the at least one second indication together with the marked-up digital image.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein:

C), D), and E) are performed by the controller after B); and

if it is determined in B4) that the distance is not within the predefined range, the controller disables at least D).

G) displays, via the display device, the at least one first indication or the at least one second indication together with the marked-up digital image.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in B), the controller:

B1) determines a first distance between the first location and the second location;

B2) determines a second distance between the first location and a third location corresponding to a centroid of the digital image of the geographic area including the work site;

B3) determines a third distance between the second location and the third location;

B4) compares each of the first distance, the second distance, and the third distance to a predefined range;

B5) if it is determined that at least two of the first distance, the second distance and the third distance are within or equal to the predefined range, generates at least one first indication so as to indicate that the apparatus is sufficiently near to the work site; and

B6) if it is determined that less than two of the first distance, the second distance and the third distance are not within the predefined range, generates at least one second indication so as to indicate that the apparatus is not sufficiently near to the work site.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in C), the digital image includes at least one aerial image of the geographic area including the work site.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in D), the controller:

Dl) displays on the display device a plurality of drawing resources relating to the at least one first digital representation of the first piece of the equipment,

and wherein;

the user input includes a selection of at least one drawing resource of the plurality of drawing resources; and

the marked-up digital image includes;

the at least one first digital representation of the first piece of equipment; and

at least one text annotation relating to the first piece of equipment.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the plurality of drawing resources include a plurality of cable system drawing resources representing cable system equipment.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the plurality of cable system drawing resources includes at least one of:

icons representing different junction boxes;

an icon representing standard conduit;

an icon representing conduit for placement under a roadway; and

an icon representing a utility pole.

17. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein in F), the controller controls the communication interface to electronically transmit the information relating to the marked-up digital image in a suitable format to at least one computing device executing a CAD program, such that the CAD program processes the information transmitted in F) so as to generate at least one formal CAD design drawing.

18. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller further:

processes the information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate at least one of an equipment list, a bill of materials, a cost estimate, and a time estimate for the installation of the equipment at the work site.

19. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller further generates a site visit report based at least in part on the information relating to the marked-up digital image, the site visit report comprising at least one of:

at least a portion of the marked-up digital image;

an engineer certification;

a first identifier for a work order requesting generation of the engineering plan;

a second identifier for an engineer using the apparatus;

a date and time stamp;

a location stamp; and

at least one indication representing a comparison of the first geographic information relating to the work site and the second geographic information representing a second location of the apparatus.

20. In a system comprising a communication interface, a display device, a user input device, a memory to store controller-executable instructions, and a controller coupled to the communication interface, the display device, the user input device, and the memory, a method for generating an engineering plan for installation of equipment at a work site, the method comprising:

A) receiving via the user input device and/or the communication interface first geographic information relating to a first location of the work site;

B) comparing the first geographic information relating to the work site to second geographic information representing a second location of an engineer generating the engineering plan;

C) displaying on the display device a digital image of a geographic area including the work site;

D) acquiring user input from the user input device, the user input relating to at least one first position, relative to the displayed digital image, representing a first equipment location of at least a first piece of the equipment to be installed at the work site;

E) generating on the display device a marked-up digital image including at least one first digital representation of the first piece of the equipment placed on the displayed digital image, based at least in part on the user input; and

F) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate the engineering plan.

21. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing processor-executable instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, perform a method for generating an engineering plan for installation of equipment at a work site, the method comprising:

A) receiving first geographic information relating to a first location of the work site;

B) comparing the first geographic information relating to the work site to second geographic information representing a second location of an engineer generating the engineering plan;

C) displaying a digital image of a geographic area including the work site;

D) acquiring user input from a user input device, the user input relating to at least one first position, relative to the displayed digital image, representing a first equipment location of at least a first piece of the equipment to be installed at the work site;

E) generating a marked-up digital image including at least one first digital representation of the first piece of the equipment placed on the displayed digital image, based at least in part on the user input; and

F) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate the engineering plan.