Notification Delivery System for Underground Facility Safety
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing systems for notifying and managing underground conduit locations are often inaccurate and incomplete, leading to potential damage during excavation, as the expansion of underground facilities has outpaced the ability of contact centers to maintain up-to-date information, and safety messages are frequently delivered too late or too early to be effective.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method and system for delivering notifications through a Notification Delivery System (NDS) that processes tickets specifying activities, locations, and timeframes, enabling targeted safety and compliance messages to be sent via various channels, such as email, facsimile, or video, to stakeholders before excavation occurs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If contact centers manually maintain information about underground facilities, then information can be updated through human processes, but the information becomes inaccurate and incomplete as underground facilities expand rapidly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical processes of information collection and updating with an automated computer-based system that receives location data electronically, processes it through algorithms, and distributes notifications automatically. This substitution eliminates human error and speed limitations in maintaining facility location accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables automatic self-updating of facility location information through electronic data exchange between utility companies and the notification system. The system autonomously processes new facility locations, updates databases, and generates notifications without requiring manual intervention from contact center personnel.
2Reliability
If safety messages are delivered too late, then information is current, but stakeholders do not have sufficient time to take preventive measures
Solution Approach 1:
The notification system dynamically adjusts message delivery timing based on the specific activity schedule and location. The system calculates optimal notification times that provide adequate advance warning while accounting for the urgency and nature of each excavation activity, ensuring messages are delivered at the most effective moment for each situation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by automatically notifying stakeholders in advance of scheduled excavation activities. The notification is triggered proactively based on received activity data, allowing stakeholders to prepare appropriate safety measures before the excavation begins, rather than reacting after the fact.
3Reliability
If comprehensive information about all underground facilities is collected, then complete coverage is achieved, but the complexity of managing and distributing this information increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The notification system segments the comprehensive facility information into distinct, manageable components organized by utility type, location, and stakeholder category. This segmentation allows the system to process and distribute targeted notifications to specific groups without being overwhelmed by the total data volume, reducing operational complexity while maintaining completeness.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are a computer implemented method, computer program product, and system for providing notifications. A ticket that specifies at least one activity to be performed, a location at which the activity is to be performed, and a period of time in which that activity is to occur is received. A message to be delivered is identified based on the activity, the location, and the period of time, wherein the message describes one or more measures to be taken based on the activity. The identified message describing the one or more measures is delivered to enable at least one of the measures to be taken before the activity occurs in the period of time specified in the ticket.