(19) United States (12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. … · 2014-03-25 · Patent Application Publication Method 1300 Dec. 31, 2009 Sheet 14 0f 19 @ US 2009/0327024 A1

US 20090327024A1

(12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. No.: US 2009/0327024 A1 (19) United States

Nielsen et al. (43) Pub. Date: Dec. 31, 2009

(54) METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR QUALITY ASSESSMENT OF A FIELD SERVICE OPERATION

(75) Inventors: Steven E. Nielsen, North Palm Beach, FL (US); Curtis Chambers, Palm Beach Gardens, FL (US); David Pennington, Juno Beach, FL (US); Jeffrey Farr, Jupiter, FL (Us)

Correspondence Address: WOLF GREENFIELD & SACKS, RC. 600 ATLANTIC AVENUE BOSTON, MA 02210-2206 (US)

(73) Assignee: CertusVieW Technologies, LLC, Palm Beach Gardens, FL (US)

(21) App1.No.: 12/493,109

(22) Filed: Jun. 26, 2009

Related US. Application Data

(63) Continuation-in-part of application No. 12/204,454, ?led on Sep. 4, 2008.

(60) Provisional application No. 61/076,253, ?led on Jun. 27, 2008, provisional application No. 61/102,151, ?led on Oct. 2, 2008, provisional application No.

Method 200

61/102,169, ?led on Oct. 2, 2008, provisional applica tion No. 61/102,186, ?led on Oct. 2, 2008, provisional application No. 61/102,205, ?led on Oct. 2, 2008, pro visional application No. 61/151,574, ?led on Feb. 11, 2009, provisional application No. 61/151,578, ?led on Feb. 11, 2009, provisional application No. 61/1 84,092, ?led on Jun. 4, 2009, provisional application No. 61/220,491, ?led on Jun. 25, 2009.

Publication Classi?cation

(51) Int. Cl. G06Q 10/00 (2006.01)

(52) us. c1. .......................................................... .. 705/9

(57) ABSTRACT

Methods, apparatus and systems for computer-aided determi nation of quality assessment for locate and marking opera tions. In one example, a quality assessment decision is solely under the discretion of a human revieWer, albeit facilitated in some respects by computer-aided display of information, and electronic record keeping and communication functions asso ciated With the quality assessment result(s). In another example, information related to a locate and marking opera tion is electronically analyzed such that a quality assessment is not based solely on human discretion, but rather based at least in part on some predetermined criteria and/ or metrics that facilitate an automated determination of quality assess ment.

Locate technician 21 O completes ticket and _/

provides dig area/“image

Approver views inbox and selects certain

—‘ locate technician and 1

ticket for quality control review

212

Apprcver reviews dig

area/image data of selected

ticket r218

Coaching referral routed to approveriribox - i

Ticket approval process / l is completed Q9 REFERRA‘: 224 i 220

‘f i A if . 1 . pprover pe owns

Cit-D rgkegotjer?éffe?eic { coaching activity with 234 pp 1 locator

l

f 226 ‘I T r222 QC approver routes N01

L ticket back to originating Ac‘fpt (If: ---' Um?“ and appfm’ai rover re one sign off_ coaching

app Y activities es

QC approver routes 228 @D ticket to QC technician

for execution 230 232

C10 technician completes / 0 . . ticket and provides . ngina mg apprmfer u dated locatenma e ——> views inbox and reviews i

t p 9 updated ticket

Patent Application Publication Dec. 31, 2009 Sheet 1 0f 19 US 2009/0327024 A1

Managers 114 Ticket approvai system 100

/

Locate service provider 0

Work management server 112

_ Database _1__3_2_ ' Ticket I

approval Tickets 1% ' application Dig Area , E I image

Processing data Unit lag

1(50 COMNi INT N154

Network L2_8_

QC technicians 120 160

Locate Technicians 122 I

Image capture mechanisms m

Patent Application Publication

Method 200

Dec. 31, 2009 Sheet 2 0f 19

is completed Ticket approval process

@ app rover

QC approver ‘routes ticket back to originating

l

Locate teohn man 21 O completes ticket and _,/

provides dig arealimage

‘data Approver views inbcx 212 and selects certain —/

it locate technician and ticket for quality control

review

214 Approver reviews dig

arealimage data of selected

US 2009/0327024 A1

Coaching referral routed to approver inbox - F

l

i I 220

(224 :l v rff . . . ‘ Approver pe orms

Tgkeg?ersgirefetzgtc L coaching activity with pp 1 lo tor

l

‘ 222 ‘ 1r 1/

Locator and approval’ sign off coaching

activities

QC approver routes 528 @ ticket to QC technician

for execution

L 230 - [r232 QC technician com ietes . . ticket and providis O?gmatmg approve!‘

u dated locate?ma e > views inbox and reviews p data 9 updated ticket

FIG. 2


m 6R

0 c.2300 dammmmmm 83mm #36 ~38; 012.1% E50 :33? nzsgzzo? H59

0.

F2 :00 dammmhmm SEER“ “E20; 80th“ “$56 £380 “a E50 .5503

“2522.65 E53

0 #2360 QMEMEME @383“ "5%:

82.2“ $55 .385 cnmmow .mmmtoz 8% 2522105. H5O n :52 HE; n .159 E5; mo\m~\n "E3

@220 5% .éEm nmomsmwlzw 42:28 £350

93k


Releet QC Popup Window 800

F

CROSS STREET: Hurforcl WORK PERFORMED iReiect Qu MEMBER CODES: '31

ality Control Request GENE

56533..“ Reaaan to Reject Quality Control Request:

BVgEBce—Nc " T-~N 810 \812 \

Ointernet QMODX "

Additional lnfarrnatian: ‘his is a placeholder for additionai infon-nution that was provided by the supervisor.

FIG. 8

Coaching Popup Window 900

CROSS STREET: Harford WORK PERFORMED MEMBER CODES! BGEBC-M BGEBCG-NC VBT-N

Ointernet

Reaeansh) for Quality Control: Member utility not seen as noted on manifest. VBT on manifest but has not been marked.

FIG. 9


Manager Summary GUI

Random Samples to Approve Pending Approvals

Pennington, David (Crew #23400) P 9 E 142

Fan‘. Jeff (Crew 1§4234M3G1Mp 12 @ 168

Smith, John (Crew #23402) AP 10 a 151

Use, Mary (Crew #23403) P 9/@ 134'

512 314

FIG. 71


/ 121s / 1&0?

Data Indicatipn Sources of Quuhty

7801 x

1860 Comm.

Interface / i

Automated Qu olity

Assesment Application ‘1 5 Processor

1200 /

f’ X 1305/ ' \mm

FIG. 12


1900 \ :1

1901

/ Receive Electronic information Associated

with a Fieid Service Operation

Analyze Information to Automaticaily Generate a Quality Assesment of the Fieid Service Operation

/ 1905

Output an Indication of the Quality of the Fieid Service Operation

End

FIG. 13


Data sources 1 16

‘Tickets 22

Textual ticket information L212

VWL spplioationlggg

VWL images 123 Automated quality assessment apptlcation

Ticket assessment / 120° application 1246

Ticket assessment “

outcomes 1242 ‘

_ _ > information

Locating equlpment processing data E59 ; component 1g10

Marking device |——> data 1252 k Quality

- 1 assessment

Locate receiver ----—--+ outcomes 121g data 1255

Feedback EM application 1260 ‘ component 1g14

EM images 1262 .

Facilities maps gag u

Historical tickets 1290

Other electronic Information andtcr '

records 1295

Patent Application Publication

Method 1300

Dec. 31, 2009 Sheet 14 0f 19

@

US 2009/0327024 A1

v

3

Receive compieied ticket and collect associated information, which may include,

‘ originating ticket information, WW. images, originating ticket assessment, iocaiing equipment data. andior EM images.

i Eiectronlcaliy analyze received information and automatically assess quality of locate

operation

APPROVED

1314

Categorize quality of iocate

operation Ifii‘ha Quatity assessment Coaching referral process is completed muted to coaching

ac REFERRAL Pe'sme'

( f: ) am , r132" " Coaching personnel

Ticket is routed to performs coaching _ _ 1328 personnel for review ___J activity with iocate

RSEl-tti'l'iB prompt i8 and a course of action technician routed to originating H is determined locate technician

+ " @ Onginating locate QC personnel routes 1324 technician processes 1330 ticketto QC technician J

_ prompt, completes _/ for execution ticket, and provides

updated ticket " lnion'nation QC technician 1323 F

completes ticket and r/ - provides updated 1 5 ticket infom'iaiion


2000 \ Cit-(i) 2001

i / Receive First, Second, ond Third Data

2003

Second Geographic Location within Threshold Distance

of First Geographic Location '?

Third Geographic Location within Threshold Distance

of First Geographic Location 'i‘

2007

Second Geographic Location within Threshoid Distance

of Third Geographic Location

/ 2009 i

Au tom??cd"? Automatically Categorize Operation - as Unsatisfactory Approve opemt‘on

End

FIG. 16


Ticket 5a O6‘l79—O6B--014- {7&3 N0 Utilities In ADC is corrwt- 9/2 Completed By: 31279 210? Completed On: 6/18/2009 0:51 AM 0 __ Plucestclmp: 33.54120. —84.0B482 2W9

This mggvm oblfgined from the ticket: @LWW 'The sketch was completed 1.8 miles from the [ocetlon shown. //

A ;The sketch was completed 1.8 miles from the ticket‘ locutlon.

2105

FIG. 17


@ 1410 Read ticket information into scoring V Math“ 149°

criteria / _ l 1412

Read other mformation into scoring _/ criteria

_ 1' , 1414 Generate ticket-speci?c content of L’)

assessment oriteria

1' 1416 Generate input devices-specific H content of assessment criteria

& Compile EXPECT DATA VS. 1418

ACTUAL DATA tabie to be used / for generating a iooate operations

|' f th quaityassczersgfgzzggre 0' a

t

EXPECT DATA vs. ACTUAL jzo DATA comparison is performed for

current locate operation

142 1424

Yes Generate falling locate operations _/ quaiity assessment soora Absolute fail?

ED Generate objective locate 326

operations quality assessment score


Automated ticket approval system 1500 4

Work management server 153g

Workforce management Automated quality application 1514 assessment application

Completed m tickets 1534 i212 121% w

Tickets 1220 EM "nages ' 1252

images Ticket assessment _ Locating application M

equipment date 1250

One-ca? centers ?g

Tickets 1220 Image server VWL E

irrmges A, In . 12:2 put Images

‘ 1 3O

Appiicelion Server 1315. Locating equipment

VWL /___1.5J8__? application Marklng

123D device 1520 Locate One-lie computers 1§16 receiver

Excavators Tickets lggg Completed 1 53 tickets 1234

-images EM images 1 262

Locate EM

tecigglil?iai‘ls appncation Loeating 123g equipment

data 1359

FIG. 19


- Method 1700

i 1710 Excavators may generate VWL images ,1

and submit locate request tickets

1» 1712 Tickets are transmitted to locate J

companies and processed

t Locate technicians in the fieid receive 1714 tickets and perform locate operations J

accordingly

' 1?16

During locate operations, information about __,1 the locate operations is collected onsite

i Completed tickets that incittde a collection 1713 of information about the locate operations __j

are transmitted to automated ticket approval application for processing

4' 1720 Aetomaticaily performing quality control __/

process on completed tickets

t Store compieted tickets, ticket approval 1322 outcomes, and any other associated

information

@ FIG. 20

(19) United States (12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. … · 2014-03-25 · Patent Application Publication Method 1300 Dec. 31, 2009 Sheet 14 0f 19 @ US 2009/0327024 A1

Documents