Geographic map updating methods and systems

A processor implemented method for updating the position of a geographic feature within a base map including:

• identifying one or more geographic features;
• determining the position of a reference point along the one or more geographic features relative to the Earth's surface;
• correlating the measured geographic feature to a corresponding featured digitally represented within a base map;
• determining the difference in position between the reference point of base map geographic features and corresponding reference point of the geographic feature measured along the Earth's surface;
• translating one or more image tiles or other feature regions containing each geographic feature based on updated geographic feature position data;
• and
• storing the updated base map containing the translated map update region and geographic feature in a non-transitory electronic memory.

A processor implemented method for geographic map updating via a utility locating and mapping system including:

• performing a utility locating and mapping operation wherein one or more geographic features are identified and the positions thereof are determined;
• generating corresponding utility locating and mapping data including one or more of surface position coordinate and buried utility depth;
• associating the utility locating and mapping data and geographic feature position data;
• determining the difference in position between the newly identified geographic features from the utility locating and mapping data and the same geographic features within a base map;
• translating the image tiles or other feature regions containing the geographic feature on the base map based on updated geographic feature position data;
• correlating the utility locating and mapping data to the update geographic feature position(s) within the updated base map;
• and
• storing the updated base map in a non-transitory electronic memory.

A processor implemented method for geographic map data updating, comprising:

• determining data corresponding to position updates for one or more geographic features within a mapped area;
• determining data corresponding to the geographic features with a base map;
• aligning data corresponding to the geographic features within base map to data corresponding to the geographic features in the updated map area;
• geometrically modifying image tile or other feature region data to provide smooth and continuous boundaries to neighboring image tiles neighboring feature regions;
• and
• storing the geometrically modified image time or other feature region data in a non-transitory electronic memory.

A processor implemented method for geographic map data updating, comprising:

• determining position updates for data defining one or more geographic features within a mapped area;
• generating translation vectors data based on the position updates;
• determining a best fit position for the geographic features data and the base map data by processing the translation vectors data from the position updates using a best fit algorithm;
• translating data corresponding to base map data or data corresponding to regions within the base map surrounding the geographic features based on the determined best fit to generate an updated base map;
• and
• storing the data corresponding to the updated base map in a non-transitory memory.

A processor implemented method for aligning and improving the precision of map data from geographically updated base map data, comprising:

• identifying data corresponding to ones of a plurality of geographic features in a mapped area;
• determining position updates for the plurality of geographic features data;
• determining geographic map update data from a base map based on the determined position updates;
• associating the geographic map update data with the base map;
• determining one or more geographic features within the updated base map correlating to features corresponding to data within one or more other maps;
• determining data defining one or more translation vectors for the one or more other maps data based at least in part on alignment of correlating geographic features between the updated base map and the one or more other maps data;
• translating positioning data in the one or more other maps data based on the data defining the one or more translation vectors;
• and
• storing the geographic map update data and data associated with the translation of the one or more other maps in an electronic non-transitory memory.