Identification and validation of roads using aerial imagery and mobile location information
Systems and methods are described for identifying and validating the routes and characteristics of roads unknown to a road mapping database. The systems and methods may combine feature recognition analysis of aerial images with other information sources such as location tracking information from a mobile device or client in order to improve the accuracy of road information stored within a road mapping database. The systems and methods may also facilitate the collection of additional information regarding the characteristics of the identified roads from a client device or user thereof.
1. A computer-implemented method for mapping new roads, the method to be carried out by at least one processor executing instructions, the method comprising:
receiving, by the at least one processor, location tracking information from at least one mobile device, the location tracking information comprising a plurality of recorded mobile device location points;
determining, by the at least one processor, an absence of a spatial match between the location tracking information and known roads from a database;
identifying, by the at least one processor, a new road based on the location tracking information;
retrieving, by the at least one processor, information regarding an employer or job function of a user of the mobile device;
identifying, by the at least one processor, a feature of interest to the energy industry accessible via the new road based on the information regarding the employer or the job function of the user of the mobile device;
mapping, by the at least one processor, the new road to the feature of interest based on the location tracking information.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one mobile device includes a plurality of mobile devices.
3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining a density of travel on the new road.
4. The method of claim 3 , wherein determining the density of travel on the new road is performed based on a number of recorded journeys on the new road.
5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising processing an aerial image of a portion of global terrain containing the new road to confirm the presence of the new road.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein processing the aerial image includes accessing the aerial image to determine a plurality of points along a section of the new road that lie substantially in-between a time-consecutive pair of recorded mobile device location points within the location tracking information, and storing the plurality of points as points of the new road such that a spatial resolution of the new road is higher than a spatial resolution of the location tracking information.
7. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining at least one intersection of the new road with a public road and storing the at least one intersection in the road mapping database.
8. The method of claim 1 further comprising associating, by the at least one processor, the energy industry feature as a destination accessible via the new road in the road mapping database.
9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising identifying the energy industry feature according to the job information.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the energy industry feature comprises one of:
an oilfield development site;
a frac-water pit, frac pond or frac-water impoundment;
a well pad;
a drilling rig;
pipeline infrastructure;
a service road;
a clearing;
a tank battery;
a proppant store;
a drilling reserve pit;
a frac spread;
a sand mine;
a producing well;
a flare system,
solar panel arrays,
wind energy collectors,
hydroelectric structures,
saltwater disposal wells,
water wells,
energy storage facilities, and
electrical substations.
11. A system configured for mapping new roads, the system including at least one processor configured to execute instructions stored in a computer memory, the instructions configured to cause the at least one processor to:
receive location tracking information from at least one mobile device, the location tracking information comprising a plurality of recorded mobile device location points;
determine a departure from known roads based on an absence of a spatial match between the location tracking information and known roads from a database;
identify a new road based on the location tracking information;
retrieve information regarding an employer or job function of a user of the mobile device;
identify a feature of interest to the energy industry accessible via the new road based on the information regarding the employer or the job function of the user;
map the new road to the feature of interest based on the location tracking information.
12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the at least one mobile device includes a plurality of mobile devices.
13. The system of claim 11 , wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the processor to determine a density of travel on the new road.
14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the processor to determine the density of travel on the new road based on a number of recorded journeys on the new road.
15. The system of claim 11 , wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the processor to process an aerial image of a portion of global terrain containing the new road to confirm the presence of the new road.
16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the processor to process the aerial image by accessing the aerial image to determine a plurality of points along a section of the new road that lie substantially in-between a time-consecutive pair of recorded mobile device location points within the location tracking information, and
to store the plurality of points as points of the new road such that a spatial resolution of the new road is higher than a spatial resolution of the location tracking information.
17. The system of claim 11 , wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the processor to determine at least one intersection of the new road with a public road and storing the at least one intersection in the road mapping database.
18. The system of claim 11 , wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the processor to associate the energy industry feature as a destination accessible via the new road in the road mapping database.
19. The system of claim 11 , wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the processor to identify the energy industry feature according to the job information.
20. The system of claim 11 , wherein the energy industry feature comprises one of:
an oilfield development site;
a frac-water pit, frac pond or frac-water impoundment;
a well pad;
a drilling rig;
pipeline infrastructure;
a service road;
a clearing;
a tank battery;
a proppant store;
a drilling reserve pit;
a frac spread;
a sand mine;
a producing well;
a flare system,
solar panel arrays,
wind energy collectors,
hydroelectric structures,
saltwater disposal wells,
water wells,
energy storage facilities, and
electrical substations.