Patent application number | Description | Published |
20150133405 | Methods - The present invention relates to the use of selective aquaporin inhibitors, e.g., of aquaporin-4 or aquaporin-2, e.g., certain phenylbenzamide compounds, for the prophylaxis, treatment and control of aquaporin-mediated conditions, e.g., diseases of water imbalance, for example edema (particularly edema of the brain and spinal cord, e.g., following trauma or ischemic stroke, as well as the edema associated with glioma, meningitis, acute mountain sickness, epileptic seizures, infections, metabolic disorders, hypoxia, water intoxication, hepatic failure, hepatic encephalopathy, diabetic ketoacidosis, abscess, eclampsia, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and lupus cerebritis, as well as edema consequent to microgravity and/or radiation exposure, as well as edema consequent to invasive central nervous system procedures, e.g., neurosurgery, endovascular clot removal, spinal tap, aneurysm repair, or deep brain stimulation, as well as retinal edema), as well as hyponatremia and excess fluid retention, and diseases such as epilepsy, retinal ischemia and other diseases of the eye associated with abnormalities in intraocular pressure and/or tissue hydration, myocardial ischemia, myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury, myocardial infarction, myocardial hypoxia, congestive heart failure, sepsis, and neuromyelitis optica, as well as migraines, as well as to novel assays for identifying aquaporin inhibitors. | 05-14-2015 |
20150342967 | METHODS - The present invention relates to the use of selective aquaporin inhibitors, e.g., of aquaporin-4 or aquaporin-2, e.g., certain phenylbenzamide compounds, for the prophylaxis, treatment and control of aquaporin-mediated conditions, e.g., diseases of water imbalance, for example edema (particularly edema of the brain and spinal cord, e.g., following trauma or ischemic stroke, as well as the edema associated with glioma, meningitis, acute mountain sickness, epileptic seizures, infections, metabolic disorders, hypoxia, water intoxication, hepatic failure, hepatic encephalopathy, diabetic ketoacidosis, abscess, eclampsia, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and lupus cerebritis, as well as edema consequent to microgravity and/or radiation exposure, as well as edema consequent to invasive central nervous system procedures, e.g., neurosurgery, endovascular clot removal, spinal tap, aneurysm repair, or deep brain stimulation, as well as retinal edema), as well as hyponatremia and excess fluid retention, and diseases such as epilepsy, retinal ischemia and other diseases of the eye associated with abnormalities in intraocular pressure and/or tissue hydration, myocardial ischemia, myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury, myocardial infarction, myocardial hypoxia, congestive heart failure, sepsis, and neuromyelitis optica, as well as migraines, as well as to novel assays for identifying aquaporin inhibitors. | 12-03-2015 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20150032600 | COMMUNICATION NETWORK FOR COLLECTING DATA AND EXECUTING ELECTRONIC TRANSACTION SERVICES - In certain embodiments, a system for executing electronic transaction services comprises one or more processors operable to access first charge information associated with electronic transactions related to a plurality of nodes, access second charge information associated with electronic transactions related to a plurality of regulatory authorities, access a plurality of previously executed electronic transactions associated with a user, determine one or more transaction patterns based on the plurality of previously executed electronic transactions, determine a current cost associated with the one or more transaction patterns based at least in part on the first and second charge information, and determine, based at least in part on the first and second charge information, one or more proposed electronic transactions associated with a proposed cost less than the current cost. | 01-29-2015 |
20150032601 | COMMUNICATION NETWORK FOR COLLECTING DATA AND EXECUTING ELECTRONIC TRANSACTION SERVICES - In certain embodiments, a system for executing electronic transaction services comprises one or more interfaces operable to receive access credentials for a plurality of accounts associated with an entity, one or more processors communicatively coupled to at least one of the one or more interfaces, the one or more processors operable to access account data from the plurality of accounts, the one or more interfaces further operable to receive a service request from a user to execute a fund transfer involving a first of the plurality of accounts associated with the entity, the one or more processors further operable to determine one or more second of the plurality of accounts associated with the entity, and filter the one or more second of the plurality of accounts based on fund transfer limitations associated with the one or more second accounts to determine one or more proposed accounts. | 01-29-2015 |
20150032619 | COMMUNICATION NETWORK FOR COLLECTING DATA AND EXECUTING ELECTRONIC TRANSACTION SERVICES - In certain embodiments, a system for executing electronic transaction services comprises one or more interfaces operable to receive access credentials for a plurality of accounts held with a plurality of enterprises, wherein the plurality of accounts are associated with an entity and one or more processors communicatively coupled to at least one of the one or more interfaces, the one or more processors operable to access, account data from the plurality of accounts, monitor transactions in the plurality of accounts, determine one or more transaction patterns, determine one or more proposed transactions, wherein the one or more proposed transactions represent electronic transfers of funds involving one or more of the plurality of accounts, and determine one or more advantages to the entity associated with the one or more proposed transactions. | 01-29-2015 |
20150032620 | COMMUNICATION NETWORK FOR COLLECTING DATA AND EXECUTING ELECTRONIC TRANSACTION SERVICES - In certain embodiments, a system for executing electronic transaction services comprises one or more interfaces operable to receive service data related to a plurality of service requests, receive a first message identifying a user, an electronic transaction service, and a problem associated with the user and the electronic transaction service, communicate a second message to one or more service administrators identifying the user, the electronic transaction service, and the problem, receive, from at least one of the one or more service administrators, authorization credentials and a limit to the use of the electronic transaction service for the user, and one or more processors operable to determine whether the authorization credentials satisfy authorization criteria, and, if the authorization credentials satisfy the authorization criteria, apply the limit to a subsequent service request by the user. | 01-29-2015 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20130251894 | MARKING METHODS USING MARKING DISPENSER WITH MACHINE-READABLE ID MECHANISM - Marking methods for dispensing markers on the ground are provided. The marking methods use a marking dispenser having a machine-readable ID mechanism. The ID mechanism has data storage capability. In one embodiment, the marking dispenser may be provided with a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag. In another embodiment, the marking dispenser may be provided with a barcode. The type of information that may be encoded in the ID mechanism may include, but is not limited to, product-specific information, user-specific information, other predetermined information of interest, and any combination thereof. The ID information encoded in the ID mechanism may be collected and used for various purposes, such as, but not limited to, real-time product verification, tracking which user location received a batch of marking paint, tracking marking paint inventory, tracking marking paint problems, and tracking marking paint usage. | 09-26-2013 |
20140022272 | ELECTRONICALLY DOCUMENTING LOCATE OPERATIONS FOR UNDERGROUND UTILITIES - A technician performs a locate operation of an underground utility in a dig area of proposed excavation by applying one or more physical colored markers (e.g., paint, flags, other colored markers) to ground, pavement or other surface to indicate a presence or an absence of the underground utility in the dig area. A digital image of a geographic area comprising the dig area is displayed on a display device, and one or more electronic colored markers corresponding to the physical colored marker(s) are added to the displayed digital image so as to generate a marked-up image. Information relating to the marked-up image is electronically transmitted and/or electronically stored so as to document the locate operation. | 01-23-2014 |
20140035587 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR GENERATING ELECTRONIC RECORDS OF LOCATE OPERATIONS - Exemplary apparatus include locate devices that generate, store and/or transmit electronic records of locate information relating to detection of underground facilities. An exemplary method for analyzing and processing locate information includes a computer-implemented method for visually rendering (e.g., in a display field of a display device) various aspects of locate operations. In one implementation, an output stream of data packets may be provided, wherein each data packet includes one or more flag fields that are set or reset upon at least one actuation of an actuation system of a locate device, and wherein at least some of the data packets include locate information relating to a locate operation. | 02-06-2014 |
20140074970 | Methods And Apparatus For Generating Output Data Streams Relating To Underground Utility Marking Operations - Methods and apparatus for generating electronic records of marking operations for underground facilities/utilities. Electronic records of marking information may be logged/stored in local memory of a marking device, formatted in various manners, processed and/or analyzed at the marking device itself, and/or transmitted in whole or in part to another device (e.g., a remote computer/server) for storage, processing and/or analysis. In one example, an output stream of data packets is provided, wherein each data packet includes one or more flag fields that is/are set or reset upon at least one actuation of the marking device. | 03-13-2014 |
20140122149 | METHODS, APPARATUS, AND SYSTEMS FOR PROVIDING AN ENHANCED POSITIVE RESPONSE IN UNDERGROUND FACILITY LOCATE AND MARKING OPERATIONS - A positive response notification to provide information regarding locate and/or marking operations for underground facilities may include time-stamp information to provide proof of a time at which the locate and/or marking operation was completed by a locate technician, and/or place-stamp information to provide proof of a presence of the locate technician at or near a work site. An electronic manifest image and/or a virtual white line image similarly may be included in a positive response notification. In one example, such images may be bundled together based on respective descriptor files (or descriptor metadata) that associates the corresponding images with a locate request ticket for the operation. In another example, a positive response notification may include environmental information regarding one or more environmental conditions present at or near the work site during the locate and/or marking operation. | 05-01-2014 |
20140236656 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR ASSESSING RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH LOCATE REQUEST TICKETS BASED ON HISTORICAL INFORMATION - Locate and/or marking operations involve detecting and/or marking a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area is planned to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities. One or more attributes of a locate and/or marking operation requested in a locate request ticket are assessed to provide one or more ticket assessment outcomes. Ticket information is obtained from the locate request ticket, and historical information (e.g., historical damage reports, historical records of previously completed locate request tickets) is selected and analyzed based on the ticket information so as to assign at least one risk designation to the ticket. The risk designation(s) is/are transmitted and/or stored so as to facilitate clearing the locate request ticket and/or dispatching a locate technician to perform the locate and/or marking operation. | 08-21-2014 |
20140278661 | METHODS, APPARATUS, AND SYSTEMS FOR DISPATCHING SERVICE TECHNICIANS - Scheduling of activities for field service technicians may be improved by modifying availability constraints associated with appointment windows for activities. Activities may be scheduled based on a performance deadline and relevant shift times of the resources to whom the activity may be allocated, as well as a variety of parameters relating to activities, resources and/or relevant environmental conditions (e.g., weather, traffic). An activity may be moved from one calendar day to another, a location constraint at the beginning and/or the end of a technician's shift may be removed or modified, and/or information updates may be provided in real time or near real time (e.g., every five minutes or less) throughout a work day to facilitate scheduling. In one example for scheduling dispatch of locate technicians for locate operations, ticket information relating to locate request tickets, as well as resource information relating to available technicians, may be extracted from a ticket database and a resource/technician database to provide appropriate inputs to a scheduling engine, based at least in part on matching available resources to performance deadlines associated with locate requests. | 09-18-2014 |
20140304041 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR ANALYZING LOCATE AND MARKING OPERATIONS WITH RESPECT TO ENVIRONMENTAL LANDMARKS - Methods, apparatus and systems including a computer comprising at least one hardware processor, at least one tangible storage medium (memory), and at least one input/output (I/O) interface for evaluating a quality of a locate and/or marking operation. First information relating to the locate and/or marking operation is compared to second information relating to one or more environmental landmarks. One or more indications of a quality assessment of the locate and/or marking operation is automatically generated based on such a comparison, and the one or more indications of the quality assessment are electronically stored on the at least one tangible storage medium, and/or electronically transmitted via the at least one I/O interface, so as to provide an electronic record of the quality assessment. | 10-09-2014 |
20140347396 | METHODS, APPARATUS, AND SYSTEMS FOR ACQUIRING AND ANALYZING VEHICLE DATA AND GENERATING AN ELECTRONIC REPRESENTATION OF VEHICLE OPERATIONS - Geo-referenced and/or time-referenced electronic drawings may be generated based on electronic vehicle information to facilitate documentation of a vehicle-related event. A symbols library, a collection of geo-referenced images, and any data acquired from one or more vehicles may be stored in memory for use in connection with generation of such drawings, and a drawing tool graphical user interface (GUI) may be provided for electronically processing vehicle data and geo-referenced images. Processed geo-referenced images may be saved as event-specific images, which may be integrated into, for example, an electronic vehicle accident report for accurately depicting a vehicle accident. | 11-27-2014 |
20150083044 | MARKING APPARATUS FOR RECEIVING ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION REGARDING UNDERGROUND FACILITY MARKING OPERATIONS, AND ASSOCIATED METHODS AND SYSTEMS - Methods, apparatus and systems for marking a presence or absence of an underground facility. Marking material is dispensed, via actuation of an actuation system of a marking device, onto a target surface. Environmental information regarding at least one environmental condition of an environment in which the marking device is located is received via at least one communication interface of the marking device, and marking information is logged into local memory of the marking device. In one aspect, the stored marking information includes at least some of the environmental information. | 03-26-2015 |
20150149242 | METHODS, APPARATUS, AND SYSTEMS FOR ACQUIRING AN ENHANCED POSITIVE RESPONSE FOR UNDERGROUND FACILITY LOCATE AND MARKING OPERATIONS BASED ON AN ELECTRONIC MANIFEST DOCUMENTING PHYSICAL LOCATE MARKS ON GROUND, PAVEMENT, OR OTHER SURFACE - A positive response notification to provide information regarding locate and/or marking operations for underground facilities may include time-stamp information to provide proof of a time at which the locate and/or marking operation was completed by a locate technician, and/or place-stamp information to provide proof of a presence of the locate technician at or near a work site. An electronic manifest image and/or a virtual white line image similarly may be included in a positive response notification. In one example, such images may be bundled together based on respective descriptor files (or descriptor metadata) that associates the corresponding images with a locate request ticket for the operation. In another example, a positive response notification may include environmental information regarding one or more environmental conditions present at or near the work site during the locate and/or marking operation. | 05-28-2015 |
20150185778 | LOCATING EQUIPMENT DOCKING STATION COMMUNICATIVELY COUPLED TO OR EQUIPPED WITH A MOBILE/PORTABLE DEVICE - A docking station to dock locating equipment (e.g., marking devices, locate devices, combined locate and marking devices) may be communicatively coupled to and/or equipped with a mobile/portable device (e.g., a mobile phone, personal digital assistant or other portable computing device) that provides processing, electronic storage, electronic display, user interface, communication facilities and/or other functionality (e.g., GPS-enabled functionality) for the docking station. A mobile/portable device may be mechanically and/or electrically coupled to the docking station. The mobile/portable device may provide redundant, shared and/or backup functionality for the docking station to enhance robustness. In one example, the mobile/portable device itself serves as a docking station for the locating equipment. | 07-02-2015 |
20150193717 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR ANALYZING LOCATE AND MARKING OPERATIONS - Methods and apparatus to evaluate a quality of a locate and/or marking operation performed at a work site of proposed excavation in response to a locate request ticket. A display device displays a first portion of a graphical user interface based on first information from the locate request ticket, and further displays a second portion of the graphical user interface based on second information relating to the locate and/or marking operation as performed at the work site by a field technician. One or more indications of a quality assessment of the locate and/or marking operation are generated based on a comparison of at least some of the first information and at least some of the second information, and an electronic record of the quality assessment is stored and/or transmitted based on the indication(s). | 07-09-2015 |
20150193955 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING ACCESS TO A VIRTUAL WHITE LINE (VWL) IMAGE FOR AN EXCAVATION PROJECT - Methods and apparatus for facilitating detection of a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area. Source data representing one or more input images of a geographic area including the dig area is electronically received at a first user location, which may be remote from the dig area. The source data is processed so as to display at least a portion of the input image(s) on a display device. One or more indicators are added to the displayed input image(s), via a user input device associated with the display device, to provide at least one indication of the dig area and thereby generate a marked-up digital image. A limited access file comprising information relating to the marked-up image may be transmitted to at least one party associated with the at least one underground facility. | 07-09-2015 |
20150234819 | VIRTUAL WHITE LINES FOR INDICATING PLANNED EXCAVATION SITES ON ELECTRONIC IMAGES - Methods and apparatus for facilitating detection of a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area. Source data representing one or more input images of a geographic area including the dig area is electronically received at a first user location, which may be remote from the dig area. The source data is processed so as to display at least a portion of the input image(s) on a display device at the first user location. One or more indicators are added to the displayed input image(s), via a user input device associated with the display device, to provide at least one indication of the dig area and thereby generate a marked-up digital image. In one example, the indicator(s) is/are added to the displayed input image(s) without acquiring geographic coordinates corresponding to the indicator(s). | 08-20-2015 |
20150243054 | APPARATUS, SYSTEMS AND METHODS TO GENERATE ELECTRONIC RECORDS OF UNDERGROUND FACILITY MARKING OPERATIONS PERFORMED WITH GPS-ENABLED MARKING DEVICES - A technician performs a locate operation of an underground utility in a dig area of proposed excavation by applying one or more physical colored markers (e.g., paint, flags, other colored markers) to ground, pavement or other surface to indicate a presence or an absence of the underground utility in the dig area. A digital image of a geographic area comprising the dig area is displayed on a display device, and one or more electronic colored markers corresponding to the physical colored marker(s) are added to the displayed digital image so as to generate a marked-up image. Information relating to the marked-up image is electronically transmitted and/or electronically stored so as to document the locate operation. | 08-27-2015 |
20150269500 | METHODS, APPARATUS AND SYSTEMS FOR ONSITE LINKING TO LOCATION-SPECIFIC ELECTRONIC RECORDS OF LOCATE OPERATIONS - Providing access at a jobsite to an electronic record of a locate operation. Data related to the locate operation is acquired by locate equipment and transmitted to a data repository for storage in the electronic record of the locate operation. A site-specific access mechanism is provided that establishes a link to the electronic record of the locate operation. In one example, the site-specific access mechanism is a physical mechanism, such as a printout of a website address, a barcode, or an RFID tag. In another example the site-specific access mechanism is a virtual mechanism, such as geographic location information provided by a location tracking system (e.g., GPS apparatus) and/or derived from information available to a wireless communications system or WiFi network. In one aspect, the access mechanism may be configured for use at the jobsite only by a person particularly authorized to access the electronic record of the locate operation. | 09-24-2015 |
20150332202 | APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR EVALUATING A QUALITY OF A LOCATE OPERATION FOR UNDERGROUND UTILITY - Methods and apparatus to evaluate a quality of a locate operation performed at a work site of proposed excavation following issuance of the instruction to a field-service technician. An input/output (I/O) interface receives an electronic manifest of the locate operation. The electronic manifest includes geographic information indicating a first location at which the electronic manifest was created. A distance is determined between the first location and a second location at which the locate operation was requested to be performed. One or more indications of a quality assessment of the locate operation are generated based on whether the distance is within or equal to a predefined range. | 11-19-2015 |
20150339607 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING LOCATE AND MARKING OPERATIONS - Methods and apparatus for facilitating a locate and/or marking operation by assessing risk associated with the locate and/or marking operation. A communication interface receives a locate request ticket generated by a one-call center. A processor parses the locate request ticket to extract ticket information obtained from the locate request ticket. The processor further performs a statistical analysis of historical information that is selected based on the ticket information and includes historical damage reports for underground facility infrastructure and/or historical records of previously completed locate request tickets. At least one risk designation is assigned to the locate request ticket based on the statistical analysis of the historical information. The risk designation is transmitted or stored to facilitate clearing the locate request ticket and/or dispatching a locate technician to perform the locate and/or marking operation. | 11-26-2015 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20120328162 | METHODS, APPARATUS, AND SYSTEMS FOR PERFORMING INSTALLATIONS OF ENGINEERED SYSTEMS AND GENERATING SITE VISIT MANIFESTS FOR SAME - Improvements to an installation process for an engineered system involve consolidation of the number of visits to a work site by field staff and/or particular work performed in a given site visit. A site visit manifest is generated to provide electronic documentation of pre-installation and/or installation activity. Various types of electronic information may be generated and/or collected in connection with any of multiple possible phases of a given installation at a particular work site for purposes of generating a site visit manifest. Additionally, different information components of a site visit manifest may be selectively viewed/accessed (e.g., based on different levels of permission or access-rights) to facilitate one or more of review of the work performed, quality, productivity and/or cost assessments of same, and billing functions. Particular examples of improved processes relating to installation of Fiber to the Premises (FTTP) subscriber drops are provided. | 12-27-2012 |
20120330849 | METHODS, APPARATUS, AND SYSTEMS FOR PERFORMING INSTALLATIONS OF ENGINEERED SYSTEMS AND GENERATING SITE VISIT MANIFESTS FOR SAME - Improvements to an installation process for an engineered system involve consolidation of the number of visits to a work site by field staff and/or particular work performed in a given site visit. A site visit manifest is generated to provide electronic documentation of pre-installation and/or installation activity. Various types of electronic information may be generated and/or collected in connection with any of multiple possible phases of a given installation at a particular work site for purposes of generating a site visit manifest. Additionally, different information components of a site visit manifest may be selectively viewed/accessed (e.g., based on different levels of permission or access-rights) to facilitate one or more of review of the work performed, quality, productivity and/or cost assessments of same, and billing functions. Particular examples of improved processes relating to installation of Fiber to the Premises (FTTP) subscriber drops are provided. | 12-27-2012 |
20130002854 | MARKING METHODS, APPARATUS AND SYSTEMS INCLUDING OPTICAL FLOW-BASED DEAD RECKONING FEATURES - A position of a marking device is monitored by receiving start position information indicative of an initial position of the marking device, capturing one or more images using one or more camera systems attached to the marking device, and analyzing the image(s) to determine tracking information indicative of a motion of the marking device. The tracking information and the start position information are then analyzed to determine current position information. In one example, images of a target surface over which the marking device is carried are analyzed pursuant to an optical flow algorithm to provide estimates of relative position for a dead-reckoning process, and the current position information is determined based on the estimates of relative position and the start position information. | 01-03-2013 |
20130006718 | METHODS, APPARATUS AND SYSTEMS FOR CHRONICLING THE ACTIVITIES OF FIELD TECHNICIANS - Tracking or monitoring activities associated with employees, such as field technicians working in the field, is based on receiving and processing activity information related to activities conducted by the employees. Activity information may include location information associated with individual activities or equipment, employee status information (e.g. clocked-in or clocked-out), travel information, or other information associated with an employee's activities. In an example, tracking employee activities may include receiving field service activity information, associating at least one data source with at least one technician, associating an acquisition event with at least one time window and at least one location, and generating a timeline associated with the at least one technician and at least one data source, where generating the timeline includes reconciling the acquisition event with the received field service activity information. | 01-03-2013 |
20130044918 | VIRTUAL WHITE LINES FOR INDICATING PLANNED EXCAVATION SITES ON ELECTRONIC IMAGES - Methods and apparatus for facilitating detection of a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area. Source data representing one or more input images of a geographic area including the dig area is electronically received at a first user location, which may be remote from the dig area. The source data is processed so as to display at least a portion of the input image(s) on a display device at the first user location. One or more indicators are added to the displayed input image(s), via a user input device associated with the display device, to provide at least one indication of the dig area and thereby generate a marked-up digital image. In one example, the indicator(s) is/are added to the displayed input image(s) without acquiring geographic coordinates corresponding to the indicator(s). | 02-21-2013 |
20130085670 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR USING LOCATION DATA TO ELECTRONICALLY DISPLAY DISPENSING OF MARKERS BY A MARKING SYSTEM OR MARKING TOOL - One or more markers are dispensed on ground, pavement or other surface in a dig area to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities, so as to provide a visual indication of a presence or an absence of one or more underground utilities in the dig area. One or more signals are wirelessly transmitted in response to the dispensing of the one or more markers, wherein the signal(s) represent(s) first data relating to a location at which the marker(s) is/are dispensed, and/or one or more characteristics of the dispensed marker(s). | 04-04-2013 |
20130101180 | SEARCHABLE ELECTRONIC RECORDS OF UNDERGROUND FACILITY LOCATE MARKING OPERATIONS - Methods and apparatus for generating a searchable electronic record of a locate operation in which a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area may be identified using one or more physical locate marks. Source data representing one or more input images of a geographic area comprising the dig area is received and processed so as to display at least a portion of the input image(s) on a display device. One or more digital representations of the physical locate mark(s) applied to the dig area during the locate operation are added to the displayed input image(s) as “locate mark indicators” so as to generate a marked-up image. Information relating to the marked-up image is electronically transmitted and/or electronically stored so as to generate the searchable electronic record of the locate operation. | 04-25-2013 |
20130103318 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR GENERATING ELECTRONIC RECORDS OF LOCATE AND MARKING OPERATIONS - Systems and methods for generating electronic records of locate operations and marking operations are described. Exemplary systems and methods include marking devices that generate, store and/or transmit electronic records of marking information, locate devices that generate, store and/or transmit electronic records of locate information, and locate devices and marking devices that communicate with each other (and optionally with other devices or systems) to share/exchange locate information and/or marking information. An exemplary method for analyzing and processing locate information and marking information includes a computer-implemented method for visually rendering (e.g., in a display field of a display device) various aspects of locate and marking operations. | 04-25-2013 |
20130116855 | METHODS, APPARATUS, AND SYSTEMS FOR ACQUIRING AND ANALYZING VEHICLE DATA AND GENERATING AN ELECTRONIC REPRESENTATION OF VEHICLE OPERATIONS - Geo-referenced and/or time-referenced electronic drawings may be generated based on electronic vehicle information to facilitate documentation of a vehicle-related event. A symbols library, a collection of geo-referenced images, and any data acquired from one or more vehicles may be stored in memory for use in connection with generation of such drawings, and a drawing tool graphical user interface (GUI) may be provided for electronically processing vehicle data and geo-referenced images. Processed geo-referenced images may be saved as event-specific images, which may be integrated into, for example, an electronic vehicle accident report for accurately depicting a vehicle accident. | 05-09-2013 |
20130125042 | METHODS AND APPARATUS EMPLOYING A REFERENCE GRID FOR GENERATING ELECTRONIC MANIFESTS OF UNDERGROUND FACILITY MARKING OPERATIONS - A grid is displayed on a display device to provide a reference for a geographic area including an excavation site. User input is acquired that relates to a geographic location of at least one physical locate mark applied by a technician to a ground surface at the excavation site to indicate a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility at the excavation site. Based on the user input, at least one digital representation of the at least one physical locate mark is added to the displayed grid so as to generate a marked-up image. Information relating to the marked-up image is electronically stored and/or electronically transmitted so as to generate an electronic manifest. | 05-16-2013 |
20130135343 | METHODS, APPARATUS AND SYSTEMS FOR GENERATING SEARCHABLE ELECTRONIC RECORDS OF UNDERGROUND FACILITY LOCATE AND/OR MARKING OPERATIONS - A bare grid is displayed on a display device. At least one digital representation of at least one physical locate mark is added to the displayed grid to generate a marked-up grid. The physical locate mark(s) include(s) non-white paint and/or a non-white flag, and is/are applied during a locate operation performed after generation of and pursuant to a locate request ticket relating to a dig area that is planned to be excavated or disturbed during prospective excavation activities. The locate operation comprises providing at least one visible warning to an excavator performing the prospective excavation activities, using the physical locate mark(s), of a presence or an affirmative absence of at least one underground facility at the dig area specified in the locate request ticket. Information relating to the marked-up grid is electronically stored and/or transmitted so as to generate a searchable electronic record of the locate operation. | 05-30-2013 |
20130147637 | METHODS, APPARATUS AND SYSTEMS FOR GENERATING SEARCHABLE ELECTRONIC RECORDS OF UNDERGROUND FACILITY MARKING OPERATIONS AND ASSESSING ASPECTS OF SAME - Assessing at least one aspect relating to a marking operation performed by a locate technician, based on an electronic representation of the marking operation. The marking operation comprises identifying, using at least one physical locate mark, a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility within a dig area, wherein at least a portion of the dig area may be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities. The physical locate mark(s) is/are digitally represented on a display device so as to generate an electronic visual representation of the marking operation. A length associated with at least a portion of the digitally represented physical locate mark(s) is determined and, based on the determined length, one or more aspects relating to the marking operation is/are automatically assessed. Exemplary aspects include a cost of the marking operation, a productivity of the locate technician, and/or a competence of the locate technician. | 06-13-2013 |
20130162431 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR GENERATING ALERTS ON A LOCATE DEVICE, BASED ON COMPARING ELECTRONIC LOCATE INFORMATION TO FACILITIES MAP INFORMATION AND/OR OTHER IMAGE INFORMATION - A locate receiver to detect an underground facility includes an RF antenna to receive a magnetic field and provide an output signal based on the received magnetic field, and a processing circuit for determining a magnetic field strength of the magnetic field based on the output signal. The locate receiver also includes a display device, a memory and a processor. A map image based on facilities map data is displayed on the display device. The processor compares a first location at which an indication of detection of the underground facility is generated to a second location of a facility line as indicated by the first map data, and generates an alert based on a disagreement between the first location and the second location. | 06-27-2013 |
20130182009 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR OVERLAYING ELECTRONIC LOCATE INFORMATION ON FACILITIES MAP INFORMATION AND/OR OTHER IMAGE INFORMATION DISPLAYED ON A LOCATE DEVICE - A digital image (e.g., a facility map, an aerial/satellite image, an engineering drawing) is displayed on a display device of a locate receiver used to detect a presence or absence of an underground facility. Image data used to generate the image is selected based on information obtained from a ticket associated with a locate operation for which the locate receiver is used, and geographic information indicative of a location of the locate receiver. Based on a strength of a magnetic field received by an RF antenna of the locate receiver, one or more electronic markings representing a detected presence of the underground facility are overlaid on the displayed digital image. | 07-18-2013 |
20130186333 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR OVERLAYING ELECTRONIC MARKING INFORMATION ON FACILITIES MAP INFORMATION AND/OR OTHER IMAGE INFORMATION DISPLAYED ON A MARKING DEVICE - A marking device for a marking operation to mark a presence or an absence of one or more underground facilities is configured to access and display facilities map information, and/or other image information, as a visual aid to facilitate the marking operation. In various aspects, methods and apparatus relate to: selection of a “base” facilities map, or information from a database of facilities map data, relating to a given work site/dig area; selection of a pan and/or zoom (resolution) for displaying facilities map information; updating displayed facilities map information while a marking device is used during a marking operation (e.g. changing pan, zoom and/or orientation); overlaying on the displayed facilities map information marking information and/or landmark information relating to the marking operation; and storing locally on the marking device, and/or transmitting from the marking device, facilities map information and/or overlaid marking/landmark information (e.g., for further processing, analysis and/or subsequent display). | 07-25-2013 |
20130187942 | ELECTRONICALLY DOCUMENTING LOCATE OPERATIONS FOR UNDERGROUND UTILITIES - A technician performs a locate operation of an underground utility in a dig area of proposed excavation by applying one or more physical colored markers (e.g., paint, flags, other colored markers) to ground, pavement or other surface to indicate a presence or an absence of the underground utility in the dig area. A digital image of a geographic area comprising the dig area is displayed on a display device, and one or more electronic colored markers corresponding to the physical colored marker(s) are added to the displayed digital image so as to generate a marked-up image. Information relating to the marked-up image is electronically transmitted and/or electronically stored so as to document the locate operation. | 07-25-2013 |
20130194303 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR DISPLAYING AND PROCESSING FACILITIES MAP INFORMATION AND/OR OTHER IMAGE INFORMATION ON A MARKING DEVICE - A marking device for a marking operation to mark a presence of an absence of one or more underground facilities is configured to access and display facilities map information, and/or other image information, as a visual aid to facilitate the marking operation. In various aspects, methods and apparatus relate to: selection of an “base” facilities map, or information from a database of facilities map data, relating to a given work side/dig area; selection of an pan and/or zoom (resolution) for displaying facilities map information; updating displayed facilities map information while a marking device is used during a marking operation (e.g. changing pan, zoom and/or orientation); overlaying on the displayed facilities map information marking information and/or landmark information relating to the marking operation; and storing locally on the marking device, and/or transmitting from the marking device, facilities map information and/or overlaid marking/landmark information (e.g., for further processing, analysis and/or subsequent display). | 08-01-2013 |
20130231984 | METHODS, APPARATUS AND SYSTEMS FOR DETERMINING CORRECTNESS AND COMPLETENESS OF LOCATE OPERATIONS - One or more pieces of equipment (e.g., a locate wand, a marking tool) are used to perform an operation to identify, in response to a ticket, a presence or an absence of an underground facility at a dig area. Data relating to the use of the equipment to perform the operation is electronically processed to determine whether the operation was completed correctly. In one example, ticket information from the ticket also is processed with the data relating to the use of the equipment to determine whether the operation was completed correctly. In another example, the equipment includes a marking apparatus, and data relating to the use of the marking apparatus that is processed includes one or more of marker characteristic information, timing information, supply information and location information relating to one or more markers dispensed by the marking apparatus. | 09-05-2013 |
20130233883 | MARKER DETECTION MECHANISMS FOR USE IN MARKING DEVICES AND METHODS OF USING SAME - Marking devices for dispensing a marking substance on the ground and marking methods are provided. The marking devices and marking methods use one or more detection mechanisms to detect one or more characteristics of the marking substance. In some embodiments, the detection mechanism may be, but is not limited to, an optical sensor, an olfactory sensor, a weight sensor, a switch device, and any combination thereof. The one or more detection mechanisms may provide, for example, the capability to: (1) determine the type of marking substance that is installed in the marking device; (2) determine in advance of or during a marking operation the amount of marking substance within the marking dispenser; and (3) determine when the marking dispenser is becoming empty. | 09-12-2013 |
20130265138 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR USING MARKING INFORMATION TO ELECTRONICALLY DISPLAY DISPENSING OF MARKERS BY A MARKING SYSTEM OR MARKING TOOL - One or more markers are dispensed on ground, pavement or other surface in a dig area to be excavated or disturbed during excavation activities, so as to provide a visual indication of a presence or an absence of one or more underground utilities in the dig area. One or more signals are wirelessly transmitted in response to the dispensing of the one or more markers, wherein the signal(s) represent(s) first data relating to marking information that is provided by a tag reader and that is associated with the dispensed marker(s). | 10-10-2013 |
20130268199 | LOCATING EQUIPMENT COMMUNICATIVELY COUPLED TO OR EQUIPPED WITH A MOBILE/PORTABLE DEVICE - Locating and/or marking equipment, such as a locate transmitter or locate receiver, a marking device, or a combined locate and marking device, may be communicatively coupled to and/or equipped with a mobile/portable device (e.g., a mobile phone, personal digital assistant or other portable computing device) that provides processing, electronic storage, electronic display, user interface, communication facilities and/or other functionality (e.g., GPS-enabled functionality) for the equipment. A mobile/portable device may be mechanically and/or electronically coupled to the equipment, and may be programmed so as to log and generate electronic records of various information germane to a locate and/or marking operation (e.g., locate information, marking information, and/or landmark information). Such records may be formatted in various manners, processed and/or analyzed on the mobile/portable device, and/or transmitted to another device (e.g., a remote computer/server) for storage, processing and/or analysis. The mobile/portable device also may provide redundant, shared and/or backup functionality for the equipment to enhance robustness. | 10-10-2013 |
20140067263 | Hand-held marking apparatus with location tracking system and methods for logging geographic location of same - Marking apparatus and methods to mark ground, pavement or other surfaces to provide a visual indication of a presence or an absence of an underground utility in a dig area. An example marking tool has a hand-held housing, a marking dispenser coupled to the housing to dispense one or more markers in the dig area, and a triggering system to trigger the marking dispenser so as to dispense the marker(s). An example marking tool also may include a logging system to receive data associated with a marking event initiated by the triggering system, time tag the data, and store the time-tagged data in data storage in the marking tool. | 03-06-2014 |
20150253449 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR DISPLAYING AND PROCESSING FACILITIES MAP INFORMATION AND/OR OTHER IMAGE INFORMATION ON A LOCATE DEVICE - A locate device for a locate operation to detect a presence or an absence of one or more underground facilities is configured to access and display facilities map information, and/or other image information, as a visual aid to facilitate the locate operation. In various aspects, methods and apparatus relate to: selection of an appropriate “base” facilities map, or information from a database of facilities map data, relating to a given work site/dig area; selection of an appropriate pan and/or zoom (resolution) for displaying facilities map information; appropriately updating displayed facilities map information while a locate device is used during a locate operation (e.g. changing pan, zoom and/or orientation); overlaying on the displayed facilities map information locate information and/or landmark information relating to the locate operation; and storing locally on the locate device, and/or transmitting from the locate device, facilities map information and/or overlaid locate/landmark information (e.g., for further processing, analysis and/or subsequent display). | 09-10-2015 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20100302700 | ELECTRICAL SWITCHING APPARATUS PROVIDING COORDINATED OPENING WITH A CIRCUIT INTERRUPTER AND METHOD OF OPERATING THE SAME - An electrical switching apparatus includes a number of separable contacts, an operating mechanism structured to open and close the separable contacts, a number of sensors structured to sense at least current flowing through the separable contacts, and a processor structured to cooperate with the operating mechanism to open and close the separable contacts. The processor determines a fault from the sensed current flowing through the separable contacts. The processor further responsively opens the separable contacts if the sensed current associated with the fault is less than the interrupting rating of the electrical switching apparatus. The processor keeps the separable contacts closed and waits for another circuit interrupter to interrupt the fault if the sensed current associated with the fault is greater than the interrupting rating. | 12-02-2010 |
20110019318 | ELECTRICAL SWITCHING APPARATUS AND PROTECTION APPARATUS DETERMINING THERMAL AGE OF ANOTHER APPARATUS OR A NUMBER OF INSULATORS - An electrical switching apparatus is for another apparatus including a number of insulators, a number of temperature sensors operatively associated with the number of insulators, and a number of conductors operatively associated with the number of insulators. The electrical switching apparatus includes a number of separable contacts, an operating mechanism structured to open and close the separable contacts, a number of sensors structured to sense a number of currents flowing through the separable contacts and through the conductors, a processor structured to input the sensed currents from the sensors, and an output. The processor calculates at least one of: (a) a thermal age of the other apparatus from a number of sensed temperatures from the temperature sensors, and (b) the thermal age of the other apparatus from the sensed currents. The output includes the thermal age of the other apparatus. | 01-27-2011 |
20110043190 | ROGOWSKI COIL, MEDIUM VOLTAGE ELECTRICAL APPARATUS INCLUDING THE SAME, AND METHOD OF PROVIDING ELECTROSTATIC SHIELDING FOR A ROGOWSKI COIL - A Rogowski coil includes a core, a Rogowski coil winding disposed on the core, an insulator disposed on the Rogowski coil winding disposed on the core, and a conductive winding disposed on the insulator disposed on the Rogowski coil winding disposed on the core. The conductive winding includes an electrical connection structured to be grounded. When the conductive winding is grounded, the grounded conductive winding provides electrostatic shielding for the Rogowski coil winding of the Rogowski coil. | 02-24-2011 |
20110046808 | CONTROLLER AND SYSTEM INCLUDING A CONTROLLER FOR DETECTING A FAILURE THEREOF - A controller for a load includes separable contacts, an operating mechanism structured to open and close the separable contacts, a processor circuit cooperating with the operating mechanism to open and close the separable contacts, and an output controlled by the processor circuit. The output is structured to cause a remote circuit interrupter to open a power circuit electrically connected in series with the separable contacts. The processor circuit is structured to detect failure of the controller to control the load and activate the output. | 02-24-2011 |
20110050154 | ELECTRICAL SWITCHING APPARATUS INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF ROGOWSKI COILS AND METHOD OF CALIBRATING THE SAME - An electrical switching apparatus includes a plurality of poles each having a Rogowski coil and a conductor passing through an opening thereof, and a processor circuit including a sensor circuit including a plurality of inputs each electrically interconnected with an output of the Rogowski coil of a corresponding pole. The sensor circuit further includes a number of outputs having values each corresponding to current flowing through the conductor, a memory including for each corresponding pole an offset value and a gain correction factor for the sensor circuit, and a gain correction factor for the Rogowski coil, a number of routines, and a processor cooperating with the sensor circuit and the routines to provide for each pole a corrected current value as a function of a corresponding one of the values, the sensor circuit offset value and gain correction factor, and the Rogowski coil gain correction factor. | 03-03-2011 |
20110116196 | PROTECTION RELAY, ELECTRICAL SWITCHING APPARATUS, AND SYSTEM INCLUDING A NUMBER OF CONTROLLERS FOR DETERMINING AND OUTPUTTING FAULT CURRENT AVAILABLE AT A LOAD AND INCIDENT ENERGY OR PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT LEVEL OPERATIVELY ASSOCIATED THEREWITH - A protection relay for an electrical switching apparatus for a load includes a number of voltage sensors structured to sense voltage applied to the load, a number of current sensors structured to sense current flowing to the load, and a processor cooperating with the number of voltage sensors and the number of current sensors. The processor determines a fault current available at the load. An output cooperates with the processor. The output is structured to output the determined fault current and a number of: incident energy at the electrical switching apparatus, and a personal protective equipment level operatively associated with the electrical switching apparatus. The processor determines from the determined fault current the number of: the incident energy at the electrical switching apparatus, and the personal protective equipment level operatively associated with the electrical switching apparatus. | 05-19-2011 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090326320 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VISUALIZING TISSUE DURING ABLATION PROCEDURES - Systems for visualizing cardiac tissue during an ablation procedure are provided. In general, the systems include an imaging module configured to measure absorbance data at first and second wavelengths wherein the ratio of these absorbance values identifies the nature of the tissue (e.g., lesion, de novo tissue, etc.). The imaging module can also include a video system having at least two chips with corresponding bandpass filters centered at the first and second target wavelengths. The system can also include a processor and/or video monitor for combining the images produced by the various chips, determining treated and non-treated tissue based on the ratio of absorbance values at the target wavelengths, and displaying images of the treatment area. Methods of visualizing cardiac treatment areas during ablation procedures are also provided herein. | 12-31-2009 |
20110229141 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR UNDERWATER OPTICAL COMMUNICATION - The systems and methods of the invention provide for improved underwater communication systems. In particular, the systems and methods of the invention provide for improved underwater optical modems including optical transmitters and optical receivers that allow omni-directional transmission and reception of optical signals underwater and having a range of about 100 m and allowing data rates greater than 1 Mbit/s. The systems and methods of the invention also provide for underwater communication networks having a plurality of optical modems communicating with each other. | 09-22-2011 |
20120170935 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ESTABLISHING AN UNDERWATER OPTICAL COMMUNICATION NETWORK - The systems and methods described herein provide a reconfigurable, long-range, optical modem-based underwater communication network. In particular, the network provides a low power, low cost, and easy to deploy underwater optical communication system capable of being operated at long distances. Optical modem-based communication offer high data rate, omni-directional spatial communication in the visual spectrum. The omni-directional aspect of communication is advantageous because precise alignment of communication units may not be required. The optical modems may be deployed via unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) and physically connected by tethers. | 07-05-2012 |
20140293286 | N-WAVELENGTH INTERROGATION SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MULTIPLE WAVELENGTH INTERFEROMETERS - In an interrogation system for multiple wavelength interferometers a fringe spectrum that includes non-quadrature-spaced radiation-intensity samples is analyzed to obtain a high resolution relative phase measurement of the optical path-length difference associated with the fringe spectrum. The fringe spectrum can be analyzed to obtain a fringe number and a quadrant as well, which can be combined with the relative phase measurement to obtain a high precision measurement of the absolute optical path-length difference. An environmental condition corresponding to the absolute optical path-length difference can be measured using the measurement of the absolute optical path-length difference. | 10-02-2014 |
20150132004 | Optical Communication Systems and Methods - A system and method to broadcast an optical signal through an amorphous medium, including a primary emitter capable of producing a primary optical signal during at least one broadcast period and capable of transmitting the primary optical signal through the amorphous medium. A secondary emitter, separate from the primary emitter and in operation during at least a portion of the broadcast period, produces a secondary emission detectable by a detector during the broadcast period. A signal entrainment controller, in communication with the primary emitter and the secondary emitter, synchronizes the secondary emitter with the primary emitter to generate a resultant signal of higher intensity than the primary signal by itself. | 05-14-2015 |
20150141845 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VISUALIZING TISSUE DURING ABLATION PROCEDURES - Systems for visualizing cardiac tissue during an ablation procedure are provided. In general, the systems include an imaging module configured to measure absorbance data at first and second wavelengths wherein the ratio of these absorbance values identifies the nature of the tissue (e.g., lesion, de novo tissue, etc.). The imaging module can also include a video system having at least two chips with corresponding bandpass filters centered at the first and second target wavelengths. The system can also include a processor and/or video monitor for combining the images produced by the various chips, determining treated and non-treated tissue based on the ratio of absorbance values at the target wavelengths, and displaying images of the treatment area. Methods of visualizing cardiac treatment areas during ablation procedures are also provided herein. | 05-21-2015 |
20150372769 | Optical Communication Systems and Methods - An underwater system including at least one input device that is in sensory communication with water and generates input signals. The system further includes at least one optical transmitter and at least one optical receiver that allow omni-directional transmission and reception through water of optical signals representing the input signals, and allow data rates greater than 1 Mbps. | 12-24-2015 |