Optical ground tracking apparatus, systems, and methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9841503-B2
Application number	US-201615150208-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 9, 2016
Priority date	Feb 13, 2012
Publication date	Dec 12, 2017
Grant date	Dec 12, 2017

Abstract

Optical ground tracking apparatus for use with buried object locators or other instruments or devices are disclosed. In one embodiment, a buried object locator includes a locator module disposed in our coupled to the housing to sense a buried object based on emitted magnetic fields, and a surface tracking module for determining motion information of the buried object locator based on light reflected from a tracking surface.

First claim

We claim:

1. A buried object locator, comprising:
a housing;
a buried object locator module disposed in or coupled to the housing, the buried object locator module including magnetic field antennas and electronic circuitry to sense a buried object and generate buried object information corresponding with the position and orientation of the buried object based on sensed magnetic fields emitted from the buried object;
a surface tracking module for:
detecting light reflected from a tracking surface;
determining a motion of the buried object locator relative to the tracking surface, based at least in part on analysis of light patterns associated with the surface; and
generating motion information corresponding with the sensed motion; and
an integration module configured to associate the buried object information with corresponding motion information and store the associated information in a non-transitory memory.

2. The buried object locator of claim 1 , further including:
an electronic circuit for generating a tracking light pulse or beam; and
optics for sending the tracking light pulse or beam to the tracking surface so as to reflect a portion therefrom for use in the determining a motion of the buried object locator.

3. The buried object locator of claim 2 , wherein the optics include a light emitting diode (LED) for sending the tracking light pulse or beam.

4. The buried object locator of claim 1 , wherein the light reflected from the tracking surface is detected using a color sensor.

5. The buried object locator of claim 1 , further comprising a distance measurement module for measuring a distance between a reference position between the buried object locator and the ground and generating distance information; wherein the motion information is further based on the distance information.

6. A method for tracking the position of a buried object locator, comprising:
determining buried object information by sensing magnetic fields emitted from the buried object and processing the received magnetic fields;
detecting, in a surface tracking module of the buried object locator, light reflected from a tracking surface;
determining a motion of the buried object locator relative to the tracking surface, based at least in part on analyzing light patterns associated with the surface;
generating motion information corresponding with the sensed motion in a processing element of the buried object locator;
associating the buried object information with corresponding motion information; and
storing the associated buried object information and motion information in a non-transitory memory of the buried object locator.

7. The method of claim 6 , further comprising:
generating a tracking light pulse or beam; and
sending the generated tracking light pulse or beam to the tracking surface so as to reflect a portion therefrom for use in the determining a motion of the buried object locator.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the information corresponding to the sensed motion is location or tracking information.

9. The method of claim 7 , further comprising controlling, from the processing element, the generated output light.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the generated output light is generated based at least in part on previously received reflected light.

11. The method of claim 6 , further comprising generating a map of the buried object relative to the surface based at least in part on the buried object information and the motion information.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising providing a visual display of the buried object information and corresponding motion information on a display of the buried object locator.

Assignees

• Seescan Inc

Inventors

• Olsson Mark S
• Chapman Eric M
• Merewether Ray
• Aldridge Sequoyah

Classifications

• G01S17/86

  Combinations of lidar systems with systems other than lidar, radar or sonar, e.g. with direction finders · CPC title

• G01V3/15 Primary

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

• G01J3/50

  using electric radiation detectors · CPC title

• G01V3/10

  using induction coils · CPC title

• G01B11/14

  for measuring distance or clearance between spaced objects or spaced apertures (G01B11/26 takes precedence; rangefinders G01C3/00) · CPC title