METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING ACCESS TO A VIRTUAL WHITE LINE (VWL) IMAGE FOR AN EXCAVATION PROJECT

• US 20100205536A1
• Filed: 06/01/2009
• Published: 08/12/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Certusview Technologies LLC (Dycom Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Certusview Technologies LLC (Dycom Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Chambers, Curtis, Farr, Jeffrey, Nielsen, Steven E.
• Granted Patent: US 8,832,565 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/748
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06313 Resource planning in a project environment
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/203 Drawing of straight lines or curves
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2210/61 Scene description
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/00 Arrangements or apparatus for collecting fares, tolls or entrance fees at one or more control points handling coins or valuable papers, e.g. banknotes, G07D; apparatus for vending or hiring articles or services activated by coins, credit cards, paper currency or the like G07F7/00, G07F17/00

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for facilitating detection of a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area. Source data representing one or more input images of a geographic area including the dig area is electronically received at a first user location, which may be remote from the dig area. The source data is processed so as to display at least a portion of the input image(s) on a display device. One or more indicators are added to the displayed input image(s), via a user input device associated with the display device, to provide at least one indication of the dig area and thereby generate a marked-up digital image. A limited access file comprising information relating to the marked-up image may be transmitted to at least one party associated with the at least one underground facility.

Claims

1. An apparatus for facilitating detection of a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area may be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities, the apparatus comprising:

a communication interface;

a memory to store processor-executable instructions; and

a processing unit coupled to the communication interface and the memory, wherein upon execution of the processor-executable instructions by the processing unit, the processing unit;

electronically receives, via the communication interface, at least one user input relating to the dig area;

based on the at least one user input, renders a digital virtual white line image including at least one dig area indicator to provide at least one indication of the dig area with respect to a geographic area; and

transmits a limited access file comprising information relating to the digital virtual white line image, via the communication interface, to at least one party associated with the at least one underground facility so as to facilitate the detection of the presence or the absence of the at least one underground facility within the dig area.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the limited access file is a password protected file.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the limited access file has a proprietary format.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the limited access file has a proprietary filename extension.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the limited access file is an encrypted file.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the information related to the digital virtual white line image comprises a limited access virtual white line image or data usable to render the limited access virtual white line image.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the limited access file is configured so as to facilitate viewing of the digital virtual white line image only via a corresponding image file viewer.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the limited access file comprises version information identifying a corresponding version of the image file viewer to facilitate viewing of the digital virtual white line image.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the processing unit transmits the corresponding image file viewer, via the communication interface, to the at least one party associated with the at least one underground facility.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the image file viewer prevents write access to the limited access virtual white line image,

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the image file viewer prevents save access to the limited access virtual white line image.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the image file viewer prevents copy access to the limited access virtual white line image.

13. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the image file viewer is programmed to require an indication of acceptance of terms and/or conditions prior to permitting the limited access virtual white line image to be viewed.

14. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the image file viewer is programmed to determine whether an updated version of the image file viewer is available.

15. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the information relating to the digital virtual white line image comprises an image and dig area information relating to the at least one dig area indicator.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the dig area information comprises geographic coordinates of the dig area.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the dig area information specifies virtual white lines to be rendered on the image.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the dig area information comprises access permission information specifying access permissions for the dig area information.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the information relating to the digital virtual white line image comprises an XML file including the dig area information.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the information relating to the digital virtual white line image comprises metadata including the dig area information.

21. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the information relating to the digital virtual white line image comprises metadata including at least one of:

date and/or time information indicating when the digital virtual white line image was created;

creator information indicating a creator of the digital virtual white line image;

geographic location information identifying a location of the dig area;

provider information identifying a service used to create the digital virtual white line image; and

geographic coordinate information identifying geographic coordinates corresponding to the digital virtual white line image.

22. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the information relating to the digital virtual white line image comprises a descriptor file including at least one of:

date and/or time information indicating when the digital virtual white line image was created;

creator information indicating a creator of the digital virtual white line image;

geographic location information identifying a location of the dig area;

provider information identifying a service used to create the digital virtual white line image; and

geographic coordinate information identifying geographic coordinates corresponding to the digital virtual white line image.

23. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing unit transmits the limited access file with data identifying a ticket with which the digital virtual white line image is associated.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the data identifying the ticket comprises metadata associated with the digital virtual white line image.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the data identifying the ticket comprises a descriptor file.

26. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the data identifying the ticket comprises a ticket number,

27. A method for facilitating detection of a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area may be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities, the method comprising:

A) electronically receiving at least one user input relating to the dig area;

B) based on the at least one user input, rendering a digital virtual white line image including at least one dig area indicator to provide at least one indication of the dig area with respect to a geographic area; and

C) electronically transmitting a limited access file comprising information relating to the digital virtual white line image to at least one party associated with the at least one underground facility so as to facilitate the detection of the presence or the absence of the at least one underground facility within the dig area.

28. At least one computer-readable medium encoded with instructions that, when executed by at least one processing unit, perform a method for facilitating detection of a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area may be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities, the method comprising:

A) electronically receiving at least one user input relating to the dig area;

B) based on the at least one user input, rendering a digital virtual white line image including at least one dig area indicator to provide at least one indication of the dig area with respect to a geographic area; and

C) electronically transmitting a limited access file comprising information relating to the digital virtual white line image to at least one party associated with the at least one underground facility so as to facilitate the detection of the presence or the absence of the at least one underground facility within the dig area.