Buried object locating methods and apparatus using multiple electromagnetic signals

• US 9,696,447 B1
• Filed: 10/14/2013
• Issued: 07/04/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/09/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seescan, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Seescan, Inc.
• Inventors: Martin, Michael J., Cox, David A., Olsson, Mark S., Schaffer, Dawn E., Merewether, Ray
• Primary Examiner(s): Patidar, Jay
• Application Number:
  US14/053,401
• Time in Patent Office: 1,359 Days
• Field of Search: 324326-329
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/88 Radar or analogous systems specially adapted for specific applications electromagnetic prospecting or detecting of objects, e.g. near-field detection, G01V3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/885 for ground probing prospecting or detecting using electromagnetic waves G01V3/12
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/03 Details of HF subsystems specially adapted therefor, e.g. common to transmitter and receiver
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 3/08 operating with magnetic or electric fields produced or modified by objects or geological structures or by detecting devices with electromagnetic waves G01V3/12
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 3/15 specially adapted for use during transport, e.g. by a person, vehicle or boat
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors

Abstract

A method of locating buried objects using a locator having at least one antenna array including three mutually orthogonal antennas each sharing a common center point includes simultaneously determining a plurality of magnetic fields associated with a plurality of different electromagnetic signals and providing a visual indication of the determined magnetic fields on a display of the locator.

Claims

1. A method of locating a plurality of buried utilities, comprising:

simultaneously receiving a plurality of electromagnetic field signals emitted by a corresponding plurality of buried utilities at a first antenna array of a magnetic field sensing locator, the first antenna array including three nested substantially mutually orthogonal magnetic field antennas;

wherein the plurality of electromagnetic field signals include at least a first magnetic field signal emitted by a first buried utility and a second magnetic field signal emitted by a second buried utility different from the first buried utility;

simultaneously determining information associated with the plurality of magnetic fields in the locator; and

providing a visual indication of the determined information associated with the magnetic fields emitted by the plurality of buried utilities on a visual display the locator.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the visual indication of the determined information associated with the magnetic fields is provided as a graphic representation on a graphic user interface (GUI).

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the visual indication includes an indication of distortion of the determined magnetic fields.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the visual indication of the determined magnetic fields includes an indication of a tilt of the magnetic field relative to a reference orientation.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving GPS signals in a GPS receiver disposed in the locator and storing positional information determined from the GPS signals in a non-transitory memory of the locator in conjunction with the determined magnetic field information.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing municipal map data associated with the buried utilities in the locator for presentation of the map information in conjunction with the determined magnetic field information and positional information.

7. A method of locating a plurality of buried objects by sensing ones of a plurality of different electromagnetic signals emitted by ones of the plurality of objects, comprising the steps of:

simultaneously sensing ones of the plurality of magnetic field signals emitted from corresponding ones of the plurality of buried objects with an antenna array including three concentrically positioned nested circular antenna coils, wherein the plurality of buried objects include at least a first buried object, and a second buried object different from the first buried object;

simultaneously determining a plurality of different locations of the plurality of buried objects based on the sensed ones of a plurality of magnetic field signals; and

simultaneously providing a display including information associated with the ones of a plurality of magnetic fields and ones of the plurality of buried objects.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the displayed information includes a visual display of magnetic field distortion.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the displayed information includes a display of positional uncertainty associated with the buried objects.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the display of position uncertainty includes a broken line display associated with the positional uncertainty.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising simultaneously providing an audible indication associated with the buried objects.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the audible information includes synthesized voice information.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the synthesized voice information includes right or left directional information.

14. A buried utility locator for detecting a plurality of buried utilities, comprising:

a first antenna array including three or more substantially mutually orthogonal nested circular magnetic field antenna coils for receiving magnetic field signals emitted from the plurality of buried utilities;

a second antenna array including three or more substantially mutually orthogonal nested circular magnetic field antenna coils for receiving magnetic field signals emitted from the plurality of buried utilities, the second antenna array positioned above the first antenna array when the locator is in a vertical operating orientation;

an electronic circuit having inputs operatively coupled to outputs of the first and second antenna arrays, the electronic circuit configured to simultaneously determine a plurality of different locations of the plurality of buried utilities based in part on the plurality of different magnetic field signals received at the first antenna array and the plurality of different magnetic field signals received at the second antenna array, wherein the plurality of buried utilities include at least a first buried utility, and a second buried utility different from the first buried utility; and

a display device configured to simultaneously provide a visual display of the plurality of different buried utility locations.

15. The locator of claim 14, further comprising a GPS receiver for receiving GPS signals and determining and storing the positional information in conjunction with the determined location information.

16. The locator of claim 14, further comprising a circuit for providing an audible indication of the plurality of different locations.

17. The locator of claim 14, further comprising a memory for storing municipal map data associated with the buried utilities for presentation of the map information in conjunction with the determined location information.