Subsurface object locator improvements

• US 20020135347A1
• Filed: 03/19/2001
• Published: 09/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Actuant Corporation
• Original Assignee: Actuant Corporation
• Inventors: Martin, Chris W., Morgan, Wayne D., Wiesemann, David L., Luebke, Thomas M.
• Granted Patent: US 6,674,276 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 324/67
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/24 Investigating the presence of flaws
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 3/15 specially adapted for use during transport, e.g. by a person, vehicle or boat

Abstract

A housing for a subsurface object locator has a bubble level vial for leveling surfaces using the housing and a scribe tip for marking a surface being probed with the locator.

Claims

1. In a hand-held subsurface object locator having a housing which contains circuitry for detecting a subsurface object behind a surface which is probed with the locator by sliding the locator along the surface, the improvement wherein said housing includes a bubble level vial.

2. The improvement of claim 1, wherein said vial is parallel to a long side surface of said housing.

3. The improvement of claim 1, wherein said vial is received in a cradle structure which is integrally molded into a wall of said housing.

4. In a hand-held subsurface object locator having a housing which contains circuitry for detecting a subsurface object behind a surface which is probed with the locator by sliding the locator along the surface, the improvement wherein said housing has a scribe tip.

5. The improvement of claim 4, wherein said scribe tip is provided at a lateral center of said housing.

6. The improvement of claim 4, wherein said scribe tip is located adjacent to an end of said housing.

7. The improvement of claim 4, wherein said scribe tip is located adjacent to an end surface of said housing and is pointed toward a surface to be probed by said housing and above a rear surface of said housing which is slid over said surface to be probed.

8. The improvement of claim 7, wherein said housing can be pivoted about an edge thereof to bring said scribe tip into contact with said surface being probed.