Time domain induction method and apparatus for locating buried objects in a medium by inducing and measuring transient eddy currents
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method for locating a buried object in soil comprising:
- moving at least one transmitting loop in a direction over the soil, said at least one transmitting loop comprising a first elongated conductor orientated in a predetermined relationship to the direction of movement and a second elongated conductor oriented substantially perpendicular to the orientation of the first elongated conductor;
as the at least one transmitting loop moves over the soil, creating a direct current in the conductors of the at least one transmitting loop;
periodically interrupting the direct current in the conductors of said at least one transmitting loop to create an eddy current in the soil using time domain induction;
receiving a magnetic field resulting from the eddy current running through the soil; and
locating the buried object using the received magnetic field.
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Abstract
A method and apparatus locates buried objects in conductive soil by creating a direct current in a transmitting loop, periodically terminating the direct current in the transmitting loop to create an eddy current in the conductive soil using time domain induction, receiving a magnetic field resulting from the eddy current running through the conductive soil, and locating the buried object using the received magnetic field.
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Citations
25 Claims
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1. A method for locating a buried object in soil comprising:
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moving at least one transmitting loop in a direction over the soil, said at least one transmitting loop comprising a first elongated conductor orientated in a predetermined relationship to the direction of movement and a second elongated conductor oriented substantially perpendicular to the orientation of the first elongated conductor;
as the at least one transmitting loop moves over the soil, creating a direct current in the conductors of the at least one transmitting loop;
periodically interrupting the direct current in the conductors of said at least one transmitting loop to create an eddy current in the soil using time domain induction;
receiving a magnetic field resulting from the eddy current running through the soil; and
locating the buried object using the received magnetic field. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method for locating a buried object in conductive soil comprising:
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creating a direct current in at least one transmitting loop;
periodically interrupting the direct current in said at least one transmitting loop to create an eddy current in the conductive soil using time domain induction;
receiving a magnetic field resulting from the eddy current running through the conductive soil; and
locating the buried object using the received magnetic field, wherein the step of locating the buried object comprises the substep of using a parametric inversion algorithm.
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8. A method for locating a buried object in conductive soil comprising:
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creating a direct current in at least one transmitting loop;
periodically interrupting the direct current in said at least one transmitting loop to create an eddy current in the conductive soil using time domain induction;
receiving a magnetic field resulting from the eddy current running through the conductive soil; and
locating the buried object using the received magnetic field, wherein the step of locating the buried object comprises the substep of using a sphere model.
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9. An apparatus for locating a buried object in soil comprising:
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a platform moveable in a direction over the soil;
at least one transmitting loop mounted on the platform for movement therewith, said at least one transmitting loop comprising a first elongated conductor oriented substantially parallel to the direction of movement and a second elongated conductor oriented substantially perpendicular to the direction of movement;
a direct current generator feeding direct current to the conductors of said at least one transmitting loop, during movement of the platform and the at least one transmitting loop over the soil;
a time domain transmitter current controller;
a magnetic field detector; and
a locator for locating the buried object using a received magnetic field resulting from an eddy current running through the soil. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. An apparatus for locating a buried object in soil comprising:
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at least one transmitting loop;
means for moving the at least one transmitting loop in a direction over the soil, wherein said at least one transmitting loop comprises a first elongated conductor substantially parallel to the direction of movement and a second elongated conductor substantially perpendicular to the direction of movement;
means for creating a direct current in the conductors of the at least one transmitting loop, during the movement of the at least one transmitting loop;
means for periodically interrupting the direct current in the conductors of said at least one transmitting loop to create an eddy current in the soil using time domain induction;
means for receiving a magnetic field resulting from the eddy current running through the soil; and
means for locating the buried object using the received magnetic field. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. An apparatus for locating a buried object in conductive soil comprising:
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means for creating a direct current in at least one transmitting loop;
means for periodically interrupting the direct current in said at least one transmitting loop to create an eddy current in the conductive soil using time domain induction;
means for receiving a magnetic field resulting from the eddy current running through the conductive soil; and
means for locating the buried object using the received magnetic field, wherein the means for locating the buried object comprises means for using a parametric inversion algorithm.
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20. An apparatus for locating a buried object in conductive soil comprising:
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means for creating a direct current in at least one transmitting loop;
means for periodically interrupting the direct current in said at least one transmitting loop to create an eddy current in the conductive soil using time domain induction;
means for receiving a magnetic field resulting from the eddy current running through the conductive soil; and
means for locating the buried object using the received magnetic field, wherein the means for locating the buried object comprises;
means for using a sphere model.
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21. A method for locating a buried object in a medium comprising:
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selecting a transmitting loop geometry for the location of the buried object, from among a plurality of possible loop geometries;
setting the geometry of at least one transmitting loop to the selected geometry;
moving the at least one transmitting loop across the medium;
creating a direct current in at least one transmitting loop;
interrupting the direct current in the at least one transmitting loop to create an eddy current in the medium using time domain induction;
receiving a magnetic field resulting from the eddy current running through the medium; and
locating the buried object using the received magnetic field. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24)
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25. An apparatus for locating a buried object in soil, comprising:
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a platform moveable over the soil;
at least one transmitting loop mounted on the platform for movement therewith;
means for setting geometry of the at least one transmitting loop to a geometry selected from among a plurality of transmitting loop geometries;
a direct current generator for feeding current to the at least one transmitting loop;
a time domain transmitter current controller, for controlling the direct current fed through the at least one transmitting loop;
a magnetic field detector; and
a locator for locating the buried object using a received magnetic field resulting from an eddy current running through the soil.
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Specification