Surveying instruments

Surveying instruments

Instruments used in surveying operations to measure vertical angles, horizontal angles, and distance. Such devices were originally mechanical only, but technological advances led to mechanical-optical devices, optical-electronic devices, and finally, electronic-only devices.

Four types of levels are available: optical, automatic, electronic, and laser. An optical level is used to project a line of sight that is at a 90° angle to the direction of gravity. Both dumpy and tilting types use a precision leveling vial to orient to gravity. The dumpy type was used primarily in the United States, while the tilting type was of European origin and used in the remainder of the world. Automatic levels use a pendulum device, in place of the precision vial, for relating to gravity. The pendulum mechanism is called a compensator. The pendulum has a prism or mirror, as part of the telescope, which is precisely positioned by gravity. The electronic level has a compensator similar to that on an automatic level, but the graduated leveling staff is not observed and read by the operator. The operator has only to point the instrument at a bar-code-type staff, which then can be read by the level itself. The laser levels actually employ three different types of light sources: tube laser, infrared diode, and laser diode. The instrument uses a rotating head to project the laser beam in a level 360° plane. See Level measurement

The primary purpose of a transit is to measure horizontal and vertical angles. Circles, one vertical and one horizontal, are used for these measurements. The circles are made of metal or glass and have precision graduations engraved or etched on the surface. A vernier is commonly used to improve the accuracy of the circle reading. The theodolite serves the same purpose as the transit, and they have many similar features. The major differences are that the measuring circles are constructed only of glass and are observed through magnifying optics to increase the accuracy of angular readings. The electronic theodolite uses electronic reading circles in place of the optically read ones.

The U.S. Department of Defense installed a satellite system known as the Global Positioning System for navigation and for establishing the position of planes, ships, vehicles, and so forth. This system uses special receivers and sophisticated software to calculate the longitude and latitude of the receiver. It was discovered early in the program that the distance between two nonmoving receivers could be determined very accurately and that the distance between receivers could be many miles apart. This technology has become the standard for highly accurate control surveys, but it is not in general use because of the expense of the precision receivers, the time required for each setup, and the sophistication of the process. See Surveying