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US 12,644,994 B1Granted
Utility locating devices employing multiple spaced apart GNSS antennas
AssigneeSeescan, Inc.
InventorMark S. Olsson
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present disclosure is directed to buried utility locating devices, systems, and methods having a plurality of spatially separated GNSS antennas. Baselines or other spatial relationships may be formed between pairs of position estimates associated with the GNSS antennas to determine information about the position, heading, and tilt/pose of the utility locating device.
Claims20
A transmitter device for utility locating, comprising:
- a transmitter element for generating an output current for provision to one or more utilities so as to generate a magnetic field for detection by a utility locator device;
- a multi-antenna GNSS element comprising two or more GNSS antennas spaced apart by a predetermined known spacing of at least 100 millimeters, wherein each receive GNSS signals and further supplying signals to at least one GNSS receiver to generate position output signals corresponding to the estimated position of the associated one of the GNSS antennas;
- a processing element comprising one or more processors coupled to the transmitter element for controlling current to the utility line(s) and further coupled to the GNSS element to receive the position output signals for purposes of processing and compressing the data and/or for making differential corrections to the position output data;
- a communication element comprising one or more radio transceivers coupled to the processing element for communicating position output signals, communicating data with other system devices, and/or receiving differential correction signals;
- a memory element having one or more non-transitory memories for storing data associated with the GNSS element and transmitter element;
- and
- a power element for supplying of electrical power.
4 more elements
A multi-antenna GNSS backpack device, comprising:
- a backpack element that may couple to the back of a user that further supports a multi-antenna GNSS element;
- a multi-antenna GNSS element comprising two or more GNSS antennas spaced apart by a predetermined known spacing at least 100 millimeters each receiving GNSS signals and further supplying signals to at least one GNSS receiver to generate position output signals corresponding to the estimated position of the associated one of the GNSS antennas;
- a processing element comprising one or more processors coupled to the GNSS element to receive the position output signals for purposes of processing and compressing the data and/or for making differential corrections to the position output signal data;
- a communication element comprising one or more radio transceivers coupled to the processing element for communicating position output signals, communicating data with other system devices, and/or receiving differential correction signals;
- and
- a memory element having one or more non-transitory memories for storing data associated with utilities and positioning data;
- and a battery element for supplying of electrical power.
4 more elements
A multi-GNSS antenna vehicle-mounted locating device, comprising:
- a vehicle-mounting element that may couple to a vehicle and include a multi-antenna GNSS element and further provide mounting of one or more utility locator devices;
- a multi-antenna GNSS element coupled to the vehicle-mounting element comprising two or more GNSS antennas spaced apart by a predetermined known spacing at least 100 millimeters each receiving GNSS signals and further supplying signals to at least one GNSS receiver to generate position output signals corresponding to the estimated position of the associated one of the GNSS antennas;
- a processing element comprising one or more processors coupled to the GNSS element to receive the position output signals for purposes of processing and compressing the data and/or for making differential corrections to the position output data;
- a communication element comprising one or more radio transceivers coupled to the processing element for communicating position output signals, communicating data with other system devices, and/or receiving differential correction signals;
- a memory element having one or more non-transitory memories for storing data associated with utilities and positioning data;
- and
- a power element for supplying of electrical power.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.