Methods, apparatus and systems for generating searchable electronic records of underground facility locate and/or marking operations

• US 8,994,749 B2
• Filed: 07/29/2011
• Issued: 03/31/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Certusview Technologies LLC (Dycom Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Certusview Technologies LLC (Dycom Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Nielsen, Steven, Chambers, Curtis, Farr, Jeffrey
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoang, Peter
• Application Number:
  US13/194,163
• Publication Number:
  US 20110283217A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,341 Days
• Field of Search: 345/629
• US Class Current: 345/629
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2365 Ensuring data consistency and integrity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T

Abstract

Generating a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician. The locate operation comprises identifying, using at least one physical locate mark, 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. A bare grid is displayed on display device and, via a user input device associated with the display device, at least one digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark is added to the displayed bare grid so as to generate a marked-up grid including the at least one digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark. Information relating to the marked-up grid is electronically transmitted and/or stored so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

Claims

1. A method for generating a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the method comprising:

A) displaying, on a display device, a bare grid;

B) adding to the displayed bare grid, via a user input device associated with the display device, at least one digital representation of at least one physical locate mark so as to generate a marked-up grid including the at least one digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark, wherein;

the at least one physical locate mark includes at least one of paint and a flag; and

the at least one physical locate mark is applied during the locate operation, the locate operation comprising, in response to a locate request ticket, identifying, using the at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities; and

C) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing information relating to the marked-up grid so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

D) prior to (A), determining that a digital image of a geographic area including the dig area is not accessible by the display device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein (D) comprises determining that an Internet connection is unavailable.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein (D) comprises determining that a GPS connection is unavailable.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

E) in response to (D), automatically generating a request to confirm that the bare grid should be displayed in A).

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

E) in response to (D), automatically generating a request to provide a reason for the use of the bare grid.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising, prior to B):

receiving the locate request ticket; and

conducting the locate operation pursuant to the locate request ticket.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein in C), the information relating to the marked-up grid includes at least one of:

a property address associated with the at least one physical locate mark;

a date or a time indicative of when the locate operation occurred;

a name of the locate technician performing the locate operation;

a name of a company responsible for performing the locate operation;

a name of the excavator performing the prospective excavation activities; and

a ticket number associated with the locate request ticket.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein B) further comprises:

adding to the displayed bare grid, via the user input device associated with the display device, at least one additional digital representation of at least one physical indication of a boundary of the dig area observed by the locate technician during performance of the locate operation, wherein the at least one physical indication of the boundary of the dig area includes at least one of white paint and a white flag.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein B) further comprises:

adding to the displayed bare grid, via the user input device associated with the display device, at least one indication of at least one of;

a type of the at least one underground facility;

a length of the at least one underground facility;

a circumference of the at least one underground facility; and

a material of the at least one underground facility.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein in C), the information relating to the marked-up grid includes at least one of:

a type of the at least one underground facility;

a length of the at least one underground facility;

a circumference of the at least one underground facility; and

a material of the at least one underground facility.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein B) further comprises:

adding to the displayed bare grid, via the user input device associated with the display device, at least one of;

at least one building;

at least one roadway; and

at least one environmental landmark.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein B) further comprises:

adding to the displayed bare grid, via the user input device associated with the display device, offset information relating to a distance between the at least one physical locate mark and the at least one of the at least one building, the at least one roadway, and the at least one environmental landmark.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable storage device encoded with instructions that, when executed on at least one processing unit, perform a method of generating a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the method comprising:

A) rendering, on a display device, a bare grid;

B) receiving user input relating to a geographic location of at least one physical locate mark;

C) adding to the displayed bare grid at least one digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark so as to generate a marked-up grid including the at least one digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark, wherein;

the at least one physical locate mark includes at least one of paint and a flag; and

the at least one physical locate mark is applied during the locate operation, the locate operation comprising, in response to a locate request ticket, identifying, using the at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities; and

D) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing information relating to the marked-up grid so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

8. An apparatus for facilitating generation of a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the apparatus comprising:

a communication interface;

a display device;

a user input device;

a memory to store processor-executable instructions; and

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

controls the display device to display a bare grid;

acquires, via the user interface, user input relating to a geographic location of at least one physical locate mark;

controls the display device to display a marked-up grid including at least one digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark based at least in part on the user input, wherein;

the at least one physical locate mark includes at least one of paint and a flag; and

the at least one physical locate mark is applied during the locate operation, the locate operation comprising, in response to a locate request ticket, identifying, using the at least one physical locate mark, 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; and

controls the communication interface and/or the memory to electronically transmit and/or electronically store information relating to the marked-up grid so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

25. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the processing unit, prior to controlling the display device to display a bare grid, determines that a digital image of a geographic area including the dig area is not accessible via the communication interface.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the processing unit determines that an Internet connection is unavailable.

27. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the processing unit determines that a GPS connection is unavailable.

28. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the processing unit further controls the display device to automatically generate a request to confirm that the bare grid should be displayed.

29. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the processing unit further controls the display device to automatically generate a request to provide a reason for the use of the bare grid.

30. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the information electronically transmitted by the communication interface and/or electronically stored by the memory and relating to the marked-up grid includes at least one of:

a property address associated with the at least one physical locate mark;

a date or a time indicative of when the locate operation occurred;

a name of the locate technician performing the locate operation;

a name of a company responsible for performing the locate operation;

a name of the excavator performing the prospective excavation activities; and

a ticket number associated with the locate request ticket.

31. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the processing unit further controls the display device to display the marked-up grid so as to include at least one additional digital representation of at least one physical indication of a boundary of the dig area observed by the locate technician during performance of the locate operation, wherein the at least one physical indication of the boundary of the dig area includes at least one of white paint and a white flag.

32. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the processing unit further controls the display device to display the marked-up grid so as to include at least one indication of at least one of:

a type of the at least one underground facility;

a length of the at least one underground facility;

a circumference of the at least one underground facility; and

a material of the at least one underground facility.

33. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the information electronically transmitted by the communication interface and/or electronically stored by the memory and relating to the marked-up grid includes at least one of:

a type of the at least one underground facility;

a length of the at least one underground facility;

a circumference of the at least one underground facility; and

a material of the at least one underground facility.

34. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the processing unit controls the display device to display the marked-up grid so as to include, based at least in part on the user input, at least one of:

at least one building;

at least one roadway; and

at least one environmental landmark.

35. The apparatus of claim 34, wherein the processing unit controls the display device to display the marked-up grid so as to include, based at least in part on the user input, offset information relating to a distance between the at least one physical locate mark and the at least one of the at least one building, the at least one roadway, and the at least one environmental landmark.

9. A method for generating a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the method comprising:

A) electronically receiving a digital image of a geographic area comprising the dig area, at least a portion of the received digital image being displayed on a display device;

B) adding to the displayed digital image, via a user input device associated with the display device;

(i) at least one first digital representation of at least one physical indication of the dig area observed by the locate technician during the locate operation, the locate operation comprising identifying, in response to a locate request ticket, using at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within the dig area, wherein;

at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities; and

(ii) at least one second digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark so as to generate a marked-up digital image; and

C) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable storage device encoded with instructions that, when executed on at least one processing unit, perform a method of generating a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the method comprising:

A) rendering, on a display device, a digital image of a geographic area comprising a dig area;

B) receiving first user input relating to a geographic location of at least one physical indication of the dig area observed by the locate technician during the locate operation, the locate operation comprising, in response to a locate request ticket, identifying, using at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within the dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities;

C) receiving second user input relating to a geographic location of the at least one physical locate mark;

D) adding to the displayed digital image, via a user input device associated with the display device, at least one first digital representation of the at least one physical indication of the dig area and at least one second digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark so as to generate a marked-up digital image; and

E) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

11. An apparatus for facilitating generation of a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the apparatus comprising:

a communication interface;

a display device;

a user input device;

a memory to store processor-executable instructions; and

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

controls the display device to display a digital image of a geographic area comprising a dig area;

receives, via the user input device, first user input relating to a geographic location of at least one physical indication of the dig area observed by the locate technician during performance of the locate operation, the locate operation comprising, in response to a locate request ticket, identifying, using at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within the dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities;

receives, via the user input device, second user input relating to a geographic location of the at least one physical locate mark;

generates a marked-up digital image including at least one first digital representation of the at least one physical indication of the dig area and at least one second digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark; and

controls the communication interface and/or the memory to electronically transmit and/or electronically store information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

12. A method for generating a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the method comprising:

A) electronically receiving a digital image of a geographic area comprising a dig area, at least a portion of the received digital image being displayed on a display device;

B) adding to the displayed digital image;

(i) at least one digital representation of at least one physical locate mark, wherein;

the at least one physical locate mark includes at least one of paint and a flag; and

the at least one physical locate mark is applied during the locate operation, the locate operation comprising, in response to a locate request ticket, identifying, using the at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within the dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities; and

(ii) an indication of a distance between a physical landmark and the at least one physical locate mark so as to generate a marked-up digital image; and

C) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising

D) determining that at least one additional indication of a distance between a physical landmark and the at least one physical locate mark is required;

and

E) automatically generating an alert relating to the at least one additional indication required.

14. A method for generating a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the method comprising:

A) displaying, on a display device, a digital image of a geographic area comprising a dig area;

B) electronically receiving first information relating to at least one location of at least one physical locate mark, wherein;

the at least one physical locate mark includes at least one of paint and a flag; and

the at least one physical locate mark is applied during the locate operation, the locate operation comprising, in response to a locate request ticket, identifying, using the at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within the dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities;

C) electronically receiving second information relating to at least one physical indication of the dig area observed by the locate technician during the locate operation;

D) based at least in part on the first and second information, digitally representing, on the displayed digital image, (i) at least one first digital representation of the at least one physical indication of the dig area and (ii) at least one second digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark so as to generate a marked-up digital image; and

E) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

15. A method for generating a searchable electronic record of a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the method comprising:

A) displaying, on a display device, a digital image of a geographic area comprising a dig area;

B) electronically receiving first information relating to at least one location of at least one physical locate mark, wherein;

the at least one physical locate mark includes at least one of paint and a flag; and

the at least one physical locate mark is applied during the locate operation, the locate operation comprising, in response to a locate request ticket, identifying, using the at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within the dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities;

C) electronically receiving second information relating to at least one location of the locate technician during the locate operation;

D) based at least in part on the first and second information, digitally representing, on the displayed digital image, (i) at least one first digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark and (ii) at least one second digital representation of the at least one location of the locate technician during the locate operation; and

E) electronically transmitting and/or electronically storing information relating to the marked-up digital image so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the second information comprises geographic coordinates provided by a GPS-enabled device.

17. A method for controlling a user interface displaying information relating to a locate operation performed by a locate technician, the method comprising:

A) displaying, on a display device, a digital image of a geographic area comprising a dig area;

B) based on first user input received via at least one user input device associated with the display device, adding to the displayed digital image, at least one digital representation of at least one physical locate mark so as to generate a marked-up digital image, wherein;

the at least one physical locate mark includes at least one of paint and a flag; and

the at least one physical locate mark is applied during the locate operation, the locate operation comprising, in response to a locate request ticket, identifying, using the at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within the dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities;

C) based on second user input received via the at least one user input device, deactivating the at least one digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark so as to hide the at least one digital representation on the marked-up digital image; and

D) based on third user input received via the at least one user input device, activating the at least one digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark so as to redisplay the at least one digital representation on the marked-up digital image.