Magnetic sensing buried utility locator including a camera

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11579331-B1
Application number	US-202017001200-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Aug 24, 2020
Priority date	Oct 12, 2005
Publication date	Feb 14, 2023
Grant date	Feb 14, 2023

Abstract

Buried utility locator systems, including a camera, for detecting buried utilities and determining information therefrom based on sensing electromagnetic emissions from the buried utilities are disclosed. Images and/or video captured by the camera are stored in association with the determined information in a non-transitory memory.

First claim

We claim:

1. A buried utility locator system, comprising:
a locator, including a housing assembly and an elongated sensor assembly with an elongated supporting structure, having a top and bottom end;
a magnetic field sensor array, including a plurality of sensors positioned in the elongated sensor assembly along the elongated supporting assembly, for sensing magnetic fields in a plurality of orthogonal axes;
electronics coupled to outputs of the plurality of sensors including a processing element for determining information about a buried utility based on the sensor outputs including at least a buried utility depth or a position of the buried utility relative to a locator position; and
a camera including an image sensor and optics having a predefined image field of view for capturing an image or video of an area in proximity to the locator.

2. The system of claim 1 , further including a non-transitory memory for storing the captured image and/or video in association with the determined information.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the camera is positioned at or near the bottom end of the locator body.

4. The system of claim 2 , further including a rangefinder apparatus for determining a distance from the camera to a ground surface over which the locator system is positioned.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the determined distance is stored in the non-transitory memory in association with the captured image and/or video and the determined information.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the magnetic field sensor array further comprises a first pair of electromagnetic (EM) sensor arrays that are vertically spaced-apart and a second pair of EM sensors that are horizontally spaced-apart and disposed to form a horizontal gradient sensor pair between the sensor arrays.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the first pair of EM sensor arrays comprise an upper and a lower sensor array which are each enclosed within a generally hemispherical top and bottom molded plastic shell in a watertight manner.

8. The system of claim 6 , wherein the first pair of sensor arrays each include the concentric EM field sensor elements each having a sensor axis disposed in a mutually orthogonal arrangement that facilitates the detection of a three-dimensional (3D) EM field.

9. The system of claim 1 , further including a housing assembly comprising a user interface and a handle.

10. The system of claim 9 , wherein the user interface includes a visual display, a user input device, and an audio output.

11. The system of claim 10 , further comprising an audio user interface (AUI) comprising a software control element stored in an internal memory configured to control the AUI by providing a ratcheting element that changes the audio output in response to a signal strength detected by the sensors.

12. A buried utility locator for magnetic sensing of buried conductive objects, comprising:
a housing;
a three dimensional magnetic field (3D EM field) sensing antenna array disposed on or coupled to the housing to receive magnetic field signals emitted from a buried conductive object and provide corresponding output signals, wherein the 3D EM field sensing antenna array comprises a first pair of sensor arrays which each include concentric EM field sensor elements each having a sensor axis disposed in a mutually orthogonal arrangement that facilitates the detection of the 3D EM field; and
an electronic circuit, including a sensor conditioning assembly and a processor circuit assembly, operatively coupled to the magnetic field array for receiving and processing the output signals from the magnetic field antenna array to determine buried object information including at least a buried object depth and a buried object position relative to the locator.

13. The locator of claim 12 , further comprising a camera disposed on the locator; a video processing electronic circuit operatively coupled to an output of the camera to process images or video generated by the camera; and
a non-transitory memory for storing the images or video generated by the camera and the determined buried object information.

14. The Locator of claim 13 , wherein the camera is positioned at or near the bottom of the locator when the locator is positioned in a vertical operating orientation.

15. The Locator of claim 13 , wherein the camera provides a video stream output or one or more stills of a viewing area based on a predefined field of view and based on an estimate of the distance between the camera and a ground surface.

16. The locator of claim 15 , further including a range finding system disposed on the locator to determine the estimate of the distance between the camera and a ground surface.

17. The locator of claim 15 , wherein the video processing circuit receives one or more images from the camera and determines a size of an object within the viewing area based at least in part on a predefined field of view.

18. The locator of claim 15 , wherein the video processing circuit receives one or more images from the camera and determines a distance to an object within the viewing area based at least in part on the predefined field of view.

19. The locator of claim 12 , further comprising a reconfigurable graphical user interface (GUI) disposed on or within the housing.

20. The locator of claim 19 , wherein the reconfigurable (GUI) includes a horizontal gradiometer function and a guidance arrow indicator.

Assignees

• Seescan Inc

Inventors

• Olsson Mark S
• Stuart Paul G
• Cox David A
• Merewether Ray
• Shaffer Dawn E
• Levin Ryan B
• Martin Michael J

Classifications

• G01V11/00 Primary

  Prospecting or detecting by methods combining techniques covered by two or more of main groups G01V1/00 - G01V9/00 · CPC title

• G01V3/12

  operating with electromagnetic waves {(operating with millimetre waves G01V8/005)} · CPC title

• G01V3/15 Primary

  specially adapted for use during transport, e.g. by a person, vehicle or boat · CPC title

• G01V3/165

  operating with magnetic or electric fields produced or modified by the object or by the detecting device (with electromagnetic waves G01V3/17) · CPC title