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Methods and apparatus for providing on a display device an electronic rendering of a marking operation to mark on ground, pavement, or other surface a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility. One or more electronic locate marks are displayed in a display field of the display devi

Methods and apparatus for providing on a display device an electronic rendering of a marking operation to mark on ground, pavement, or other surface a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility. One or more electronic locate marks are displayed in a display field of the display device, based at least in part on one or more actuation data sets representing at least one physical locate mark created by an actuation of a marking device used for the marking operation. Exemplary actuation data sets comprise at least two pieces of geographic information for a corresponding physical locate mark. Electronic locate marks may be rendered statically or dynamically in the display field (e.g., as feedback during the marking operation, and/or in a timed sequence so as to recreate the marking operation), and may be overlaid on a digital image of work site/dig area in which the marking operation is performed.

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1. A method for providing on a display device an electronic rendering of a marking operation to mark on ground, pavement, or other surface a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility, the method comprising: A) displaying in a display field of the display device at least one electro

1. A method for providing on a display device an electronic rendering of a marking operation to mark on ground, pavement, or other surface a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility, the method comprising: A) displaying in a display field of the display device at least one electronic locate mark based at least in part on at least one actuation data set representing at least one physical locate mark created by an actuation of a marking device used for the marking operation, wherein the at least one actuation data set comprises at least two pieces of geographic information for the at least one physical locate mark. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein: the at least two pieces of geographic information for the at least one physical locate mark include at least two geo-location data event entries in the at least one actuation data set, each geo-location data event entry comprising a longitude coordinate and a latitude coordinate; andA) comprises displaying in the display field the at least one electronic locate mark based at least in part on the longitude coordinate and the latitude coordinate of each of the at least two geo-location data event entries. 3. The method of claim 1, wherein A) comprises displaying the at least one electronic locate mark in the display field of the display device during the marking operation. 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the display device is coupled to or included in the marking device, and wherein A) comprises providing essentially real-time feedback during the marking operation, via the at least one electronic locate mark, to a user of the marking device. 5. The method of claim 3, wherein the display device is disposed at a remote location from the marking operation, and wherein A) comprises providing essentially real-time feedback, via the at least one electronic locate mark, to a supervisor monitoring the marking operation from the remote location. 6. The method of claim 1, wherein: the at least one physical locate mark includes a plurality of physical locate marks;the at least one actuation data set includes a plurality of actuation data sets;each actuation data set of the plurality of actuation data sets is associated with a different physical locate mark of the plurality of physical locate marks, and includes the at least two pieces of geographic information for the different physical locate mark; andA) comprises displaying in the display field of the display device the at least one electronic locate mark based at least in part on the plurality of actuation data sets. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein prior to A), the method comprises: B) filtering, averaging and/or interpolating the at least two pieces of geographic information in at least some respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets. 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the at least one electronic locate mark includes a single electronic locate mark based on at least two actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets. 9. The method of claim 7, wherein: the at least one underground facility includes a first underground facility of a first type;the plurality of actuation data sets and the plurality of physical locate marks correspond to the first underground facility of the first type; andthe at least one electronic locate mark includes a single electronic locate mark based on all of the plurality of actuation data sets corresponding to the first underground facility of the first type. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the single electronic locate mark includes an essentially continuous solid line displayed in the display field of the display device. 11. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one electronic locate mark includes a plurality of electronic locate marks. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein each electronic locate mark of the plurality of electronic locate marks represents a different one of the plurality of physical locate marks. 13. The method of claim 11, wherein: each actuation data set includes at least two geo-location data event entries constituting the at least two pieces of geographic information, the at least two geo-location data event entries having respective unique geo-location data time stamps; andA) comprises dynamically displaying in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks based at least in part on the unique geo-location data time stamps of at least some respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein A) comprises dynamically displaying the plurality of electronic locate marks in the display field of the display device during the marking operation. 15. The method of claim 13, wherein A) comprises dynamically displaying the plurality of electronic locate marks in the display field of the display device after completion of the marking operation so as to provide a time-sequenced animation that recreates the marking operation. 16. The method of claim 11, wherein prior to A), the method comprises: B) accessing an electronic record of the marking operation generated by the marking device, the electronic record comprising the plurality of actuation data sets. 17. The method of claim 16, wherein B) comprises receiving the electronic record from the marking device. 18. The method of claim 16, wherein B) comprises accessing the electronic record from an archive of previously-completed marking operations. 19. The method of claim 16, wherein A) comprises simultaneously displaying in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks based at least in part on the electronic record accessed in B). 20. The method of claim 16, further comprising: C) displaying in the display field of the display device textual, numeric, and/or graphic elements, in addition to the plurality of electronic locate marks, based on information in the electronic record accessed in B). 21. The method of claim 11, wherein: the plurality of actuation data sets include facility information indicating at least one aspect of the at least one underground facility marked during the marking operation; andA) comprises displaying in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks such that at least one characteristic of at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based at least in part on the facility information. 22. The method of claim 21, wherein the at least one aspect of the at least one underground facility indicated in the facility information includes one or more of a type of the at least one underground facility, a material used for the at least one underground facility, and a size of the at least one underground facility. 23. The method of claim 22, wherein the at least one characteristic of at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks that is based at least in part on the facility information includes one or more of a color, a line-type, a line-style, a symbol, or a graphic icon used for the at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks. 24. The method of claim 11, wherein: the plurality of actuation data sets include type information indicating a type of the at least one underground facility marked during the marking operation; andA) comprises displaying in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks such that a color of at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based at least in part on the type information. 25. The method of claim 24, wherein: the type information includes a first facility type and at least one second facility type different from the first facility type; andA) comprises displaying in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks such that a first color of at least a first one of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based on the type information indicating the first facility type, and at least one second color, different from the first color, of at least a second one of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based on the type information indicating the at least one second facility type. 26. The method of claim 24, wherein the type information includes color information associated with a marking material dispensed by the marking device so as to form the plurality of physical locate marks, and wherein the color of the at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based on the color information. 27. The method of claim 6, wherein: prior to A), the method comprises: B) determining geographic extents of the plurality of physical locate marks based on the at least two pieces of geographic information in respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets; andC) deriving a transformation to map the geographic extents determined in B) to the display field of the display device, andwherein A) comprises applying the transformation derived in C) to the at least two pieces of geographic information in at least some respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets so as to display the at least one electronic locate mark in the display field of the display device. 28. The method of claim 27, wherein B) comprises: B1) determining a centroid of the plurality of physical locate marks based on the at least two pieces of geographic information in the respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets;B2) determining one piece of geographic information in the plurality of actuation data sets having a greatest distance from the centroid determined in B1); andB3) defining the geographic extents as an extents area circle having a radius equal to or greater than the greatest distance determined in B2). 29. The method of claim 27, wherein B) comprises: B1) determining a centroid of the plurality of physical locate marks based on the at least two pieces of geographic information in the respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets;B2) assigning the centroid as the origin of a reference coordinate system;B3) determining two pieces of geographic information in the plurality of actuation data sets in opposing quadrants of the reference coordinate system and having a greatest distance from the centroid determined in B1); andB4) defining the geographic extents as an extents area rectangle based on the two pieces of geographic information determined in B3). 30. The method of claim 27, wherein B) comprises estimating the geographic extents of the plurality of physical locate marks. 31. The method of claim 27, wherein C) comprises adding a buffer area around the geographic extents before deriving the transformation. 32. The method of claim 27, wherein: the at least two pieces of geographic information in each actuation data set include first geo-location data corresponding to a start of an actuation and at least one second geo-location data following the start of and during the actuation; andA) comprises applying the transformation derived in C) to the first geo-location data and the at least one second geo-location data so as to render the at least one electronic locate mark in the display field of the display device. 33. The method of claim 27, wherein: the at least two pieces of geographic information in each actuation data set include first geo-location data corresponding to a start of an actuation and at least one second geo-location data following the start of and during the actuation; andA) comprises applying the transformation derived in C) to the first geo-location data and the at least one second geo-location data so as to render the at least one electronic locate mark in the display field as a first electronic locate mark corresponding to the first geo-location data and at least one second electronic locate mark corresponding to the at least one second geo-location data. 34. The method of claim 1, further comprising: B) displaying in the display field of the display device a grid to provide a reference for the at least one electronic locate mark. 35. The method of claim 1, further comprising: B) displaying in the display field of the display device a digital image representative of at least a portion of an area of the ground, pavement, or other surface in which the marking operation is performed. 36. The method of claim 35, wherein A) and B) are performed substantially simultaneously such that the at least one electronic locate mark appears in an appropriate relative position overlaid on the digital image. 37. The method of claim 35, wherein the digital image includes an aerial image of the area. 38. The method of claim 35, wherein the digital image includes a map of the area. 39. The method of claim 38, wherein the digital image includes a facilities map of the area. 40. The method of claim 35, wherein the digital image includes a land survey of the area. 41. The method of claim 35, wherein the digital image includes a photograph of the area. 42. The method of claim 35, wherein the digital image includes at least one dig area indicator indicating a dig area in which the marking operation is performed. 43. A method for providing an electronic rendering on a display device of a marking operation to mark on ground, pavement, or other surface a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility, the method comprising: A) accessing an electronic record of the marking operation generated by a marking device, the electronic record comprising a plurality of actuation data sets, each actuation data set associated with a corresponding locate mark created by an actuation of the marking device, wherein each actuation data set comprises at least two pieces of geographic information for the corresponding locate mark;B) displaying, on the display device, a digital image representative of at least a portion of an area of the ground, pavement, or other surface on which the locate mark is created; andC) for at least some actuation data sets of the electronic record, displaying on the display device at least one electronic locate mark overlaid on the displayed digital image so as to provide the electronic rendering of the marking operation, based at least in part on the at least two pieces of geographic information for the corresponding locate mark and on the displayed digital image. 44. An apparatus for providing on a display device an electronic rendering of 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: a memory to store processor-executable instructions; anda processor coupled to the memory and the display device, wherein upon execution of the processor-executable instructions, the processor: A) displays in a display field of the display device at least one electronic locate mark based at least in part on at least one actuation data set stored in the memory and representing at least one physical locate mark created by an actuation of a marking device used for the marking operation, wherein the at least one actuation data set comprises at least two pieces of geographic information for the at least one physical locate mark. 45. The apparatus of claim 44, in combination with the display device. 46. The combination of claim 45, wherein the display device, the memory, and the processor are components of the marking device. 47. An apparatus for providing on a display device an electronic rendering of 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: a memory to store processor-executable instructions; anda processor coupled to the memory and the display device, wherein upon execution of the processor-executable instructions, the processor: A) displays in a display field of the display device at least one electronic locate mark based at least in part on at least one actuation data set stored in the memory and representing at least one physical locate mark created by an actuation of a marking device used for the marking operation, wherein the at least one actuation data set comprises at least two pieces of geographic information for the at least one physical locate mark, wherein: the at least two pieces of geographic information for the at least one physical locate mark include at least two geo-location data event entries in the at least one actuation data set, each geo-location data event entry comprising a longitude coordinate and a latitude coordinate; andthe processor displays in the display field the at least one electronic locate mark based at least in part on the longitude coordinate and the latitude coordinate of each of the at least two geo-location data event entries. 48. The apparatus of claim 44, wherein the processor displays the at least one electronic locate mark in the display field of the display device during the marking operation. 49. An apparatus for providing on a display device an electronic rendering of 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: a memory to store processor-executable instructions; anda processor coupled to the memory and the display device, wherein upon execution of the processor-executable instructions, the processor: A) displays in a display field of the display device at least one electronic locate mark based at least in part on at least one actuation data set stored in the memory and representing at least one physical locate mark created by an actuation of a marking device used for the marking operation, wherein the at least one actuation data set comprises at least two pieces of geographic information for the at least one physical locate mark, wherein:the at least one physical locate mark includes a plurality of physical locate marks;the at least one actuation data set includes a plurality of actuation data sets;each actuation data set of the plurality of actuation data sets is associated with a different physical locate mark of the plurality of physical locate marks, and includes the at least two pieces of geographic information for the different physical locate mark; andthe processor displays in the display field of the display device the at least one electronic locate mark based at least in part on the plurality of actuation data sets. 50. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein prior to A), the processor: B) filters, averages and/or interpolates the at least two pieces of geographic information in at least some respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets. 51. The apparatus of claim 50, wherein the at least one electronic locate mark includes a single electronic locate mark based on at least two actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets. 52. The apparatus of claim 50, wherein: the at least one underground facility includes a first underground facility of a first type;the plurality of actuation data sets and the plurality of physical locate marks correspond to the first underground facility of the first type; andthe at least one electronic locate mark includes a single electronic locate mark based on all of the plurality of actuation data sets corresponding to the first underground facility of the first type. 53. The apparatus of claim 52, wherein the single electronic locate mark includes an essentially continuous solid line displayed in the display field of the display device. 54. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the at least one electronic locate mark includes a plurality of electronic locate marks. 55. The apparatus of claim 54, wherein each electronic locate mark of the plurality of electronic locate marks represents a different one of the plurality of physical locate marks. 56. The apparatus of claim 54, wherein: each actuation data set includes at least two geo-location data event entries constituting the at least two pieces of geographic information, the at least two geo-location data event entries having respective unique geo-location data time stamps; andthe processor dynamically displays in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks based at least in part on the unique geo-location data time stamps of at least some respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets. 57. The apparatus of claim 56, wherein the processor dynamically displays the plurality of electronic locate marks in the display field of the display device during the marking operation. 58. The apparatus of claim 56, wherein the processor dynamically displays the plurality of electronic locate marks in the display field of the display device after completion of the marking operation so as to provide a time-sequenced animation that recreates the marking operation. 59. The apparatus of claim 54, wherein prior to A), the processor: B) accesses an electronic record of the marking operation generated by the marking device, the electronic record comprising the plurality of actuation data sets. 60. The apparatus of claim 59, wherein the apparatus receives the electronic record from the marking device. 61. The apparatus of claim 59, wherein the apparatus accesses the electronic record from an archive of previously-completed marking operations. 62. The apparatus of claim 59, wherein the processor simultaneously displays in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks based at least in part on the electronic record accessed in B). 63. The apparatus of claim 59, wherein the processor: C) displays in the display field of the display device textual, numeric, and/or graphic elements, in addition to the plurality of electronic locate marks, based on information in the electronic record accessed in B). 64. The apparatus of claim 54, wherein: the plurality of actuation data sets include facility information indicating at least one aspect of the at least one underground facility marked during the marking operation; andthe processor displays in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks such that at least one characteristic of at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based at least in part on the facility information. 65. The apparatus of claim 64, wherein the at least one aspect of the at least one underground facility indicated in the facility information includes one or more of a type of the at least one underground facility, a material used for the at least one underground facility, and a size of the at least one underground facility. 66. The apparatus of claim 65, wherein the at least one characteristic of at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks that is based at least in part on the facility information includes one or more of a color, a line-type, a line-style, a symbol, or a graphic icon used for the at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks. 67. The apparatus of claim 54, wherein: the plurality of actuation data sets include type information indicating a type of the at least one underground facility marked during the marking operation; andthe processor displays in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks such that a color of at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based at least in part on the type information. 68. The apparatus of claim 67, wherein: the type information includes a first facility type and at least one second facility type different from the first facility type; andthe processor displays in the display field of the display device the plurality of electronic locate marks such that a first color of at least a first one of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based on the type information indicating the first facility type, and at least one second color, different from the first color, of at least a second one of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based on the type information indicating the at least one second facility type. 69. The apparatus of claim 67, wherein the type information includes color information associated with a marking material dispensed by the marking device so as to form the plurality of physical locate marks, and wherein the color of the at least some of the plurality of electronic locate marks is based on the color information. 70. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein: prior to A), the processor: B) determines geographic extents of the plurality of physical locate marks based on the at least two pieces of geographic information in respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets; andC) derives a transformation to map the geographic extents determined in B) to the display field of the display device, andwherein the processor applies the transformation derived in C) to the at least two pieces of geographic information in at least some respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets so as to display the at least one electronic locate mark in the display field of the display device. 71. The apparatus of claim 70, wherein in B), the processor: B1) determines a centroid of the plurality of physical locate marks based on the at least two pieces of geographic information in the respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets;B2) determines one piece of geographic information in the plurality of actuation data sets having a greatest distance from the centroid determined in B1); andB3) defines the geographic extents as an extents area circle having a radius equal to or greater than the greatest distance determined in B2). 72. The apparatus of claim 70, wherein in B), the processor: B1) determines a centroid of the plurality of physical locate marks based on the at least two pieces of geographic information in the respective actuation data sets of the plurality of actuation data sets;B2) assigns the centroid as the origin of a reference coordinate system;B3) determines two pieces of geographic information in the plurality of actuation data sets in opposing quadrants of the reference coordinate system and having a greatest distance from the centroid determined in B1); andB4) defines the geographic extents as an extents area rectangle based on the two pieces of geographic information determined in B3). 73. The apparatus of claim 70, wherein in B), the processor estimates the geographic extents of the plurality of physical locate marks. 74. The apparatus of claim 70, wherein in C), the processor adds a buffer area around the geographic extents before deriving the transformation. 75. The apparatus of claim 70, wherein: the at least two pieces of geographic information in each actuation data set include first geo-location data corresponding to a start of an actuation and at least one second geo-location data following the start of and during the actuation; andthe processor applies the transformation derived in C) to the first geo-location data and the at least one second geo-location data so as to render the at least one electronic locate mark in the display field of the display device. 76. The apparatus of claim 70, wherein: the at least two pieces of geographic information in each actuation data set include first geo-location data corresponding to a start of an actuation and at least one second geo-location data following the start of and during the actuation; andthe processor applies the transformation derived in C) to the first geo-location data and the at least one second geo-location data so as to render the at least one electronic locate mark in the display field as a first electronic locate mark corresponding to the first geo-location data and at least one second electronic locate mark corresponding to the at least one second geo-location data. 77. The apparatus of claim 44, wherein the processor displays in the display field of the display device a grid to provide a reference for the at least one electronic locate mark. 78. The apparatus of claim 44, wherein the processor displays in the display field of the display device a digital image representative of at least a portion of an area of the ground, pavement, or other surface in which the marking operation is performed. 79. The apparatus of claim 78, wherein the processor substantially simultaneously displays the at least one electronic locate mark and the digital image such that the at least one electronic locate mark appears in an appropriate relative position overlaid on the digital image. 80. The apparatus of claim 78, wherein the digital image includes an aerial image of the area. 81. The apparatus of claim 78, wherein the digital image includes a map of the area. 82. The apparatus of claim 81, wherein the digital image includes a facilities map of the area. 83. The apparatus of claim 78, wherein the digital image includes a land survey of the area. 84. The apparatus of claim 78, wherein the digital image includes a photograph of the area. 85. The apparatus of claim 78, wherein the digital image includes at least one dig area indicator indicating a dig area in which the marking operation is performed. 86. At least one computer-readable storage medium encoded with instructions that, when executed by a processor in a computer, perform a method for providing on a display device an electronic rendering of a marking operation to mark on ground, pavement, or other surface a presence or an absence of at least one underground facility, the method comprising: A) displaying in a display field of the display device at least one electronic locate mark based at least in part on at least one actuation data set representing at least one physical locate mark created by an actuation of a marking device used for the marking operation, wherein the at least one actuation data set comprises at least two pieces of geographic information for the at least one physical locate mark.