Cable detection apparatus and method

• US 7,235,980 B2
• Filed: 03/21/2006
• Issued: 06/26/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Radiodetection Limited
• Original Assignee: Radiodetection Limited
• Inventors: King, James Ian, Pearson, Richard D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hirshfeld; Andrew H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, HOAI AN D
• Application Number:
  US11/311,427
• Publication Number:
  US 20060158172A1
• Time in Patent Office: 462 Days
• Field of Search: 324/542, 324/539, 324/537, 324/500, 324/260, 324/326, 324/543, 324/173, 324/175, 324/67, 324/158.1, 324/74, 324/247, 324/527, 324/613
• US Class Current: 324/542
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 15/00 Tags attached to, or associated with, an object, in order to enable detection of the object record carriers for use with machines having a detectable tag or marker G06K19/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 3/081 the magnetic field is produced by the objects or geological structures characterised by the method of magnetic field measurement G01R33/00

Abstract

A cable detection apparatus is disclosed having a filter, the filter transmitting components of a signal detected substantially at certain harmonics of a first frequency. The filter may also attenuate the signal at certain even harmonics thereof. A method of detecting and/or locating cables in the same manner is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A method of noise reduction in a cable detection apparatus, the method comprising:

filtering a cable detection input signal to increase the relative strength of signal components at a plurality of harmonics of a first frequency to at least one non-harmonic frequency between two of said harmonics of the first frequency;

frequency shifting the filtered signal to frequency shift the high relative strength frequencies of the filter to coincide with reduced relative strength frequencies of the filtered signal; and

emitting electromagnetic radiation substantially at at least one frequency corresponding to reduced strength frequencies of the filtered signal.

2. A method according to claim 1, the filtering further comprising reducing the relative strength of signal components at even harmonics of the first frequency to the strength at the plurality of harmonics of first frequency.

3. A method according to claim 1, further comprising outputting a sound signal corresponding to the frequency shifted signal.

4. A method according to claim 1, further comprising repeating at least one of the filtering steps.

5. A processing system for noise reduction in a cable detection apparatus, the processing system comprising:

a program memory storing instructions for controlling a processor; and

the processor for reading and implementing the instructions stored in the program memory;

wherein the program instructions stored in the program memory comprise instructions for controlling the processor to detect harmonics of signal components of a cable detection input signal, filter the cable detection input signal to increase the relative strength of the signal components at a plurality of harmonics of a first frequency to at least one non-harmonic frequency between two of said harmonics, perform frequency shifting the filtered signal to frequency shift the high relative strength frequencies of the filter to coincide with reduced relative strength frequencies of the filtered signal, and emit electromagnetic radiation substantially at at least one frequency corresponding to reduced strength frequencies of the filtered signal.

6. A carrier medium carrying processor readable code for controlling a processor to detect harmonics of signal components of a cable detection input signal, filter the cable detection input signal to increase the relative strength of the signal components at a plurality of harmonics of a first frequency to at least one non-harmonic frequency thereof between two of said harmonics, perform frequency shifting the filtered signal to frequency shift the high relative strength frequencies of the filter to coincide with reduced relative strength frequencies of the filtered signal, and emit electromagnetic radiation substantially at at least one frequency corresponding to reduced strength frequencies of the filtered signal.