Tips: Where am I? You are Here!
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Tips: Where am I? You are Here!

T

he latest release of the LMX200® software introduced the new SplitView feature which shows a real-time MapView beside your data cross-section when using an external GPS. It displays your current position as a blue dot in real-time as you are collecting data. This has garnered a lot of excitement from our customers. But why is this helpful?

1. Return to a location – during a utility survey you may locate an object on the GPR data and place an interpretation on it (pink dot in Figure 1). Now, say you want to return to that location. Simply look at the MapView screen (Figure 1) and navigate as your current position (blue dot) moves toward the interpretation you marked earlier.

gpr mapping gps position
Figure 1
Blue dot is where the LMX200® is located. This makes it easy to return to the location of a target indicated by the pink interpretation dot.

 

2. Predicting where a target might be – most utility locators snake back and forth with the LMX200® and mark out targets as they cross them. By placing interpretations on the screen, you can see the linearity of buried targets. But what if an object doesn’t show up where it’s expected to be? You can keep on surveying and see if the target shows up on the next pass. Knowing that it is linear, you can extrapolate where the target is, even if it doesn’t show up on the screen. A missed target is usually caused by changing ground conditions that attenuated the GPR signal at one location. The five pink dots in Figure 2 indicate the linearity of a target that is not clearly seen in the last crossing of the target.

GPR GPS map poisition
Figure 2
With multiple linear interpretations, you can predict where the next target will be (even if it is weak or not visible).

 

3. Random walk coverage – a powerful feature in our EKKO_Project™ software is the ability to take lines of geo-referenced GPR data and create depth slices. Rather than laying out a rectilinear grid, the user simply walks back and forth collecting data over a given area (analogous to cutting the grass). The quality of the resulting depth slices depends on the accuracy of the GPS, as well as how closely spaced your lines are. Using the MapView feature in real-time, you can see if you are drifting away from your previous lines (Figure 3). Alternatively, if there is a noticeably large gap in your data, you can return to that area and collect additional data before generating your depth slices.

gpr survey map
Figure 3
The GPS path shows where there are large gaps in the GPR data.

 

Knowing your real-time position during an LMX200® survey using the new position indicator in MapView has many benefits, including easier and improved target interpretations in the area, quickly identifying areas where more data is required for better depth slice generation and rapidly relocating previously marked targets. This powerful update is free for all LMX200® customers and can be downloaded from our website.

 

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