Level
Rods:
Leveling rods are commonly made of three types of material; wood, typically
hard maple, fiberglass or aluminum. Aluminum can swell or contract in hot or
cold weather, wood can expand or contract in humid or wet conditions and can
give inaccurate readings.
Rods should be
held by the edges and without touching the numbers. Touching the numbers may
wear down the face of the rod, giving inaccurate readings. The bottom of the rod
should never be dragged on the ground or through water, grass or mud and its
metal base should never be allowed to strike rocks, pavement or other hard
objects; which will gradually wear away the metal base and will cause leveling
errors due to the change in length of the rod itself.
Direct
Reading Rods
Direct reading rods are rods that are read directly through the telescope of the
person using the instrument. Another name for these rods is self-reading rods.
Philadelphia
Level Rod
A philadelphia level rod consists of two sliding sections graduated in hundredths of a
foot and joined by brass sleeves. Two sections make it easier to transport. Can
be used as a short rod for readings of 7' or less, to a long rod for heights up
to 13'. It has a rear section that slides on the front section. When a high rod
is needed, the rod must be fully extended, otherwise a serious mistake will
result in the reading. Graduations on the front faces of the two sections read
continuously from 0–13'. A Philadelphia rod can be read accurately with a level
at distances up to 250'.
San
Francisco Level Rod
A san francisco level rod is similar to the Philly rod; the San Francisco rod has three
separate sections that slide past each other to extend or compress its length,
and is generally used on control, land and other surveys.
Direct
Elevation Rod or a “Lenker
Rod”
A Direct Elevation Rod or a “Lenker Rod” has numbers in reverse order on an endless graduated strip
that revolves around the rod on rollers. Figures run down the rod and can be
brought to a desired reading—for example the elevation of a point or benchmark.
Rod readings are preset for the backsight, and then, due to the reverse order
of numbers, foresight readings give elevations directly without calculating backsights
and foresights.
Target
Rod
A target is added
to the rod that allows the person holding the rod to independently check the
readings taken by the person using the instrument by adding a target, making
what is commonly referred to as “target rod.”
Tripods
A sturdy tripod
in good condition is essential for obtaining accurate measurements. The legs of
the tripod are adjustable and are made of wood, fiberglass or aluminium and are
adjustable for use with many different pieces of surveying equipment. Tripods
made of wood or aluminum can influence readings in certain weather conditions, fiberglass
can be heavy to carry when surveying over various terrains and distances.
Tripods come with two different styles of heads: flat or dome. Dome heads allow
for more adjustment, flat head tripods have less play, but are sometimes easier
to fit. Tripods come in two different thread sizes: 3" x 8 and 5⁄8" x
11. 5⁄8" x 11 is standard for newer equipment. Adapters are available to
adapt older 3" x 8 tripod threads to 5⁄8" x 11.
Hand
Level
A hand
Level is used for taping and rough determination
of elevations. It consists of a metal sighting tube with a bubble tube mounted
on it. The bubble is located on the top of the instrument and its image is
reflected by means of a 45° mirror or prism inside the tube so that the user can
see the bubble at the same time as the terrain. If the bubble is centered between
the horizontal lines in the tube while sighting, the line of sight is
horizontal.
Abney
Level
An abney level functions as a hand level and also permits rough
measurements of vertical angles and slopes.
Automatic
Levels
Automatic levels are commonly used in today’s surveying or construction
applications because of their ease of us and quick set-up. They incorporate a
self-leveling feature; the user rough levels the instrument using a three-screw
leveling head and centers a bull’s eye bubble. After the bubble is manually centered,
an automatic compensator takes over, levels the line of sight, and keeps it
level so that level horizontal measurements can be taken.
Electronic
or Laser
Levels
Electronic or laser levels transmit
beams of either visible laser or invisible infrared light. These levels are
used for establishing a known reference elevation or a point where construction
measurements can be taken. Electronic or laser levels fall into two general
classes: single-beam lasers and rotating-beam
lasers. A single beam laser projects a string
line that can be projected in a vertical, horizontal or inclined direction. A
rotating beam laser provides a plane of reference over open areas. The laser
beam is selfleveling and will not come on until the instrument is level. If it
is bumped out of position, the beam shuts off and will not come back on until
it is level again. Laser levels are precise up to 1000'. Common uses include
grading and excavating, masonry work, setting concrete forms, marking elevation,
septic work and checking the depth of trenches.
Laser
Detector
A laser detector is necessary because not all laser levels incorporate a
visible laser; and, lasers are not typically visible to the human eye in bright
sunlight. The detector can either be a small hand-held or rod-mounted unit that
may be moved up and down the level rod, alerting the user when it is level.
Double
Pentagonal Prism
A double pentagonal prism is hand-held instrument that determines right angles by the
use of a triangular-shaped prism.
Measuring
Wheels
Measuring wheels can roughly
measure distance by rolling a wheel along the line in question and counting the
number of revolutions. An attached odometer does the counting and from the circumference
of the wheel converts the number of revolutions to a distance. Measuring wheels
typically provide precision to 1⁄200 when the ground is smooth, such as along a
highway, but results are poorer when the surface is irregular.
Tapes
or “Chains”
Tapes or
“Chains” measure distance by
using steel tape typically 0–3⁄8" wide. Those graduated in feet come in
100, 200, 300 and 500' length. Metric tapes/chains have standard lengths of 30,
60, 100 and 150 meters. All tapes can be wound on a reel (sold separately) or
done up in loops. Tapes/chains are typically handled with tension handles or clamp
handles in order to apply tension and to prevent damage to the tape and the
surveyor’s hands. Tapes/chains used for surveying applications are required to
be calibrated on an annual basis to ensure accuracy.
Taping
or Chaining
Pins
Taping or
Chaining Pins
are used to mark tape lengths. Most
chaining/taping pins are made of number 12 steel wire, sharply pointed at one
end and have a round loop at the other end. They are painted with alternate red
and white bands. A steel ring with 11 pins is standard.
Range
Poles
Range poles are used in taping applications for sighting points, marking
ground points and for lining up surveyors in order to keep them working in the
right direction. They are from 6–10'L and are painted with alternate bands of red
and white to make them more easily seen. Each band is 1'L and the rods can be
used for rough measurements Poles can be wood, fiberglass or metal.
Plumb
Bobs
Plumb bobs are typically made of brass (to limit interference
with compass readings) and weigh from 6–18 oz., with a fine point. The point on
all plumb bobs are standard, to make replacement easy. At least 6' of good
quality string or cord, free of knots, is necessary. Bobs are used to get a “plumb”
(straight) vertical line to a definite point, typically a tack in a wooden
stake or ground. Bigger/heavier plumb bobs should be used for higher or greater
heights.
Gammon
Reel
A gammon reel is the device used to connect to plumb bob and provide easy
up-and-down adjustment of the plumb bob and instant rewinding of the plumb bob
string. The gammon reel can also be used as a target when taping.
Transits/Theodolites
Transits/theodolites are fundamentally the same. Their most important application
is measuring horizontal and vertical angles, but they can also be used to
obtain horizontal distances and determine elevations. Transits/theodolites can
be used for surveying applications when used with a calibrated taping chain or
an electronic distance measurer.
Electronic
Distance Measurers (EDMs)
Electronic distance measurers
accurately measure distance by measuring the time it takes a laser to travel from
the EDM to a prism and back. Before the introduction of EDMs, taping or
chaining was used to make accurate distance measurements.
Total
Station
A total station is the most accurate surveying device because it incorporates
an electronic or digital theodolite, an electronic distance measuring (EDM)
device and a microprocessor in the same unit. Total stations can automatically measure
horizontal and vertical angles as well as slope distances from a single setup.
From this data they can instantaneously compute horizontal and vertical
distance components, elevations and coordinates, and display the results on an
LCD. They can also store the data either on board or in external date collectors.
From the total station, data can be downloaded easily to a personal computer.
Global
Positioning Systems (GPS)
Global positioning systems incorporate
distance, direction and difference in height between survey points. A GPS
satellite surveying system simply using an electronic distance measurer that
does not need direct line of sight between survey points. Instead, a GPS
receiver needs to have a direct line of sight to a sufficient number of
satellites.
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