Marking apparatus having environmental sensors and operations sensors for underground facility marking operations, and associated methods and systems
Marking information relating to use of a marking device to perform a marking operation may be acquired from one or more input devices, 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 to another device (e.g., a remote computer/server) for storage, processing and/or analysis. In one example, a marking device may include one or more environmental sensors and/or operational sensors, and the marking information may include environmental information and operational information derived from such sensors. Environmental and/or operational information may be used to control operation of the marking device, assess out-of-tolerance conditions in connection with use of the marking device, and/or provide alerts or other feedback. Additional enhancements are disclosed relating to improving the determination of a location (e.g., GPS coordinates) of a dispensing tip of the marking device during use, a group/solo mode, and tactile functionality of a user interface.
1. An apparatus for performing a marking operation to mark on ground, pavement, or other surface a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility, the apparatus comprising:
an actuator to dispense a marking material to form at least one locate mark on the ground, pavement or other surface to mark the presence or the absence of the at least one underground facility;
a memory including processor-executable instructions stored thereon;
at least one input device to provide marking information regarding the marking operation, the at least one input device configured to sense at least one environmental condition of an environment in which the apparatus is located and provide an output signal indicative of the at least one environmental condition; and
a processor configured to execute the processor executable instruction stored in the memory, the processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the actuator, and the at least one input device to receive the output signal indicative of the at least one environmental condition, wherein upon execution of the processor-executable instructions stored in the memory, the processor compares the output signal indicative of the at least one environmental condition to at least one target value or range of target values representing the at least one environmental condition and determines whether an out-of-tolerance environmental condition is present during the marking operation, wherein if the processor determines that the out-of-tolerance condition is present during the marking operation, the processor does at least one of:
logs an out-of-tolerance indication into an electronic record stored in the memory;
controls at least one output device of the marking apparatus to generate an alert; and
disables actuator.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the marking information includes environmental information represented at least in part by the output signal indicative of the at least one environmental condition, and wherein upon execution of the processor-executable instructions, the processor logs into the memory at least some of the environmental information.
3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the processor logs into the memory the at least some of the environmental information based at least in part on at least one actuation of the actuator.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 , further including a hand-held housing to which the actuator is mechanically coupled.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 , further including a holder configured to hold a marking material dispenser providing the marking material.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input device comprises a temperature sensor and wherein the at least one environmental condition is an ambient temperature of the environment.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input device comprises a temperature sensor and wherein the at least one environmental condition is a surface temperature of the ground, pavement, or other surface on which the marking material is to be dispensed.
8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input device comprises a humidity sensor and wherein the at least one environmental condition is humidity of the environment.
9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input device comprises a light sensor and wherein the at least one environmental condition is an amount of ambient light in the environment.
10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input device comprises a communication interface of the apparatus, configured to receive environmental information regarding the at least one environmental condition of the environment in which the apparatus is located.
11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input device comprises an image capture device.
12. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the memory is further configured to store the at least one target value or range of target values.
13. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input device comprises a first input device configured to sense a first environmental condition of the environment in which the apparatus is located and a second input device configured to sense a second environmental condition of the environment in which the apparatus is located, and wherein the processor is configured to process a first output signal of the first input device in combination with a second output signal of the second input device to assess a state of the environment in which the apparatus is located.
14. The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the apparatus further comprises a third input device to provide marking information regarding the marking operation, the third input device configured to sense at least one operating condition of the apparatus and provide a third output signal indicative of the at least one operating condition.
15. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one input device is a first input device and the output signal indicative of the at least one environmental condition is a first output signal, and wherein the apparatus further comprises a second input device to provide marking information regarding the marking operation, the second input device configured to sense at least one operating condition of the apparatus and provide a second output signal indicative of the at least one operating condition.
16. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the marking information includes operational information represented at least in part by the second output signal, and wherein upon execution of the processor-executable instructions, the processor logs into the memory at least some of the operational information.
17. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the processor logs into the memory the at least some of the operational information based at least in part on at least one actuation of the actuator.
18. The apparatus of claim 16 , further comprising a location tracking system communicatively coupled to the processor and configured to determine a location of the apparatus.
19. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the second input device includes an accelerometer, and wherein the at least one operating condition is an acceleration of the apparatus.
20. The apparatus of claim 19 , wherein the accelerometer is a first accelerometer located at a first position of the apparatus, and wherein the apparatus further comprises a second accelerometer located at a second position of the apparatus.
21. The apparatus of claim 20 , wherein each of the first and second accelerometers is a three-axis accelerometer.
22. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the second input device includes an accelerometer configured to sense an inclination of the apparatus.
23. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the second input device includes an inclinometer and wherein the at least one operating condition is an inclination of the apparatus.
24. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the second input device includes a proximity sensor and wherein the at least one operating condition is a distance.
25. The apparatus of claim 24 , wherein the distance is between the apparatus and a target surface.
26. The apparatus of claim 25 , wherein the proximity sensor is disposed proximate to a tip of the apparatus and wherein the distance is between the tip of the apparatus and the target surface.
27. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the second input device includes a yaw rate sensor and wherein the at least one operating condition is a yaw rate of the apparatus.
28. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the second input device senses a first operating condition of the apparatus and wherein the apparatus further comprises a third input device configured to sense a second operating condition of the apparatus and provide a third output signal indicative of the second operating condition, and wherein the processor is configured to process the second output signal in combination with the third output signal to assess a state of operation of the apparatus.
29. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising the at least one output device, wherein the at least one output device includes at least one of:
a tactile indicator to generate a tactile alert in response to the out-of-tolerance condition when determined by the processor to be present
a speaker to generate an audible alert in response to the out-of-tolerance condition when determined by the processor to be present; and
a visual indicator to generate a visible alert in response to the out-of-tolerance condition when determined by the processor to be present.