Creating improved 3D models from 2D data

An electronic device for displaying underground assets, the electronic device comprising:

• a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receiver configured to determine a geospatial position of the GNSS receiver;
• and
• an electronic distance measuring (EDM) device configured to capture a distance to a point of interest, wherein the GNSS receiver and the EDM device are configured to be communicatively coupled to a camera via one or more processors, wherein the one or more processes are configured to perform operations comprising:
• capturing a camera image, using the camera, of a ground having a ground surface;
• determining a placement of a virtual pit in the camera image using at least one of the GNSS receiver and the EDM device;
• generating a pit view comprising the virtual pit and a virtual representation of an underground asset based on asset data associated with the underground asset, the virtual pit comprising at least one depth marker along a wall of the virtual pit;
• and
• generating a superimposed image comprising the camera image and the pit view such that:
• a top opening of the virtual pit aligns with the ground surface in the camera image;
• and
• a portion of the virtual representation of the underground asset is shown inside the virtual pit and below the top opening of the virtual pit such that a distance between the top opening and the portion of the virtual representation of the underground asset inside the virtual pit provides a visual indication of a depth of the underground asset relative to the ground surface.