GE10 Lecture 3

Surveying Fieldwork and Instrumentation

Engr. Jeark A. Principe
Department of Geodetic Engineering (DGE)
Training Center for Applied Geodesy and Photogrammetry (TCAGP)
1
 Objectives
• identify essential information that must be
included in a field notebook
• name different personnel in a survey party
and specify their roles
• gain knowledge on the proper care and
handling of surveying instruments
• orient students with the Engineer’s Transit—
its parts, operations and proper care
2
 Outline
I. Survey Field Notes
A. Characteristics of a good field note
B. The field notebook
C. Types of notes
D. Information Found in a Field notebook
II. Field Survey Party
III. Care and Handling of Instruments
IV. The Engineer’s Transit
A. Positioning the Tripod
B. Mounting the Transit
C. Attaching the plumb bob
D. Parts of the Transit
E. Leveling the Plate level bubble
F. Reading Transit Verniers
G. Care of the Transit
3
Characteristics of a good field note
The field notebook
Types of notes
Information Found in a Field Notebook
SURVEY FIELD NOTES
4
 Surveying Field Notes
• Constitute the only reliable and permanent
record of actual work done in the field
• Reliability must be ensured
• Forms part of the official survey record
• Kept for future reference
5
 Surveying Field Notes
Characteristics of a Good Field Note
• Must be complete, legible, concise,
comprehensive and logically arranged
• Should be intelligible to others
• Must reflect actual observations
• Must be neatly done as this can be used in a
court proceeding
6
 Surveying Field Notes
The Field Notebook
Should be:
– of good quality rag paper
– with stiff board or leather cover
– of pocket size
7
 Surveying Field Notes
Types of Notes
1. Sketches
– Drawn freehand and of liberal size
– Rarely true to scale
– May use conventional survey symbols
2. Tabulations
– Used for numerical values
– Advantages:

Prevents mistakes

Allows easy checking
8
 Surveying Field Notes
Types of Notes
3. Explanatory Notes
– Written description of fieldwork
– Placed at strategic positions:

Right-hand page of the field notebook

Where they do not interfere with other data

Close as possible to that which they explain
9
 Surveying Field Notes
Types of Notes
4. Computations
– Most are made algebraically by simple
arithmetical steps and trigonometric
functions
– Graphical solutions using accurately scaled
drawings are also used
5. Combinations
– Most extensive surveys use the mentioned
four types
– Depends on the surveyor’s judgment
10
 Surveying Field Notes
Information Found in a Field Notebook
1. Fieldwork Title
– Official name of the survey to be done; State
nature or purpose; Should also include location
2. Date and Time
3. Weather Conditions
– Relative temperature; rainy, cloudy or fine; wind
velocity, fog
4. Group Members and Designations
5. Equipments/Accessories Used
– Include brand and serial/instrument number
11
Chief of Party
Assistant Chief of Party
Instrument Man
Technician
Computer
Recorder
Head Tapeman
Rear Tapeman
Flagman
Rodman
Pacer
Axeman/Lineman
Aidman
Utility Men
FIELD SURVEY PARTY
12
 Field Survey Party
1. Chief of Party
– Responsible for

overall direction, supervision and operational
control of the survey party

Logistics and technical requirements

Consultation with the client or immediate superior

Survey reports and records

Prepares cost estimates and disbursements
– May be called upon as an expert witness in
courts
13
 Field Survey Party
2. Assistant Chief of Party
– Assists the chief
– Responsible for

Ground reconnaisance

Employment of equipments

Preparation of reports and plans to be submitted to
the chief
14
 Field Survey Party
3. Instrument Man
– Duties:

Set up, level and operate instruments

Checks that instruments are in good working
condition and in proper adjustments

Assists technician in operating electronic
equipments

Limited supervision over personnel doing manual
tasks
15
 Field Survey Party
4. Technician
– Responsible for :

the use and operation of electronic instruments

Establishment of two-way communication link by radio
for long survey lines or distant stations
5. Computer
– Performs survey data computations and checks
– Responsible for the use of calculators and other
electronic computing equipments
– Assists in computerized surveying systems or
equipments
16
 Field Survey Party
6. Recorder
– Duties:

Keep a record of field notes, schedule of work,
employed personnel

Clerical jobs related to surveying in the office

Undertakes limited cartographic jobs
7. Head Tapeman
– Responsible for:

Accuracy and speed of taping operations

Directs marking of stations and clearing the LOS

Checks tape for errors in standard length
17
 Field Survey Party
8. Rear Tapeman
– Assists the head tapeman during taping work
and in other related work
9. Flagman
– Duties:

Holds flagpole or range poles at pts directed by the
instrument man

Helps the tapeman and axeman
18
 Field Survey Party
10.Rodman
– Holds the stadia or leveling rods
11.Pacer
– Check measurements by the tapeman
– May also be a rodman
12.Axeman/Lineman
– Clears any obstruction to the LOS
– Ensures the safety of the whole survey party
– May also carry firearms
19
 Field Survey Party
13. Aidman
– Renders first aid treatments
– May become an assistant instrument man
14. Utility Men
– Render other forms of assistance as directed by the
chief
– Can be designated as the driver
– Prepares lodging, serve meals, and ensure the
security of the whole survey party
– Responsible for handling and transporting
instruments , accessories and supplies
– Assists also in the laying of concreter monuments,
markers and signals
20
CARE AND HANDLING OF
INSTRUMENTS
21
 Care and Handling of Instruments
1. Handle with care
2. Fasten securely to the tripod
3. Carry on your shoulder:
– tripod legs forward
– Avoid if passing thru doorways or beneath low-
hanging branches
carry under the arm, head of
the instrument in front
4. Clamp-screws should be clamped very lightly
when:
– Being carried or handled
– Putting it back to its case
22
 Care and Handling of Instruments
5. Protect the instrument from impact and vibration.
6. Never leave the instrument alone.
7. Tripod legs should not be set too close together but
should be firmly planted.
8. Don’t touch the instrument when observation is
being made.
9. Never rub the coated lenses of a telescope with the
fingers or with a rough cloth. Use camel’s hair brush.
10. Inform the officer-in-charge to the instrument for any
damage, no matter how small it may be.
23
Positioning the Tripod
Mounting the Transit
Attaching the plumb bob
Parts of the Transit
Leveling the Plate level bubble
Reading Transit Verniers
Care of the Transit
THE ENGINEER’S TRANSIT
24
 Engineer’s Transit

Credited to Roemer, a Danish Astronomer, who in
1690 used the instrument to observe the passage
(transit) of stars across the celestial meridian

Essentially a telescope and two large protractors

1 protractor mounted in the horizontal plane and
the other in a vertical plane

An instrument of precision
25
 Setting Up The Transit
POSITIONING THE TRIPOD
1. On fairly level ground:

tripod is set up near and over the selected point with
the legs well spread apart to ensure stability

see to it that the tripod head is nearly stable
2. On hillsides or along a slope:

1 of its legs should extend uphill and the 2 downhill

each tripod leg is then moved as required to make
the tripod head nearly level
3. Set the tripod in a convenient height
(no need to stretch or stoop)
26
 Setting Up The Transit
MOUNTING THE TRANSIT
1. Remove the transit from its carrying case by grasping it
with both hands at the leveling head assembly or at
the upright standards
2. With one hand, screw the leveling head of the transit
firmly onto the tripod head while holding the standards
at the other hand
3. The transit should fit snugly and bear firmly.
4. Remove the objective cap and replace with the sunshade
27
 Setting Up The Transit
ATTACHING THE PLUMB BOB

Plumb bob and a string is attached to the transit by
suspending it from the hook and chain that hangs at the bottom
of the leveling head.

Raise or lower the plumb bob using the sliding loop-knot

Lower down the plumb bob within about 0.5 cm above the
ground point

Bring the plumb bob close to the center of the point by moving
or pressing 1 or 2 tripod legs more firmly into the ground
28
 Main Parts of the Transit
1. Upper Plate (or Alidade)
2. Lower Plate
3. Leveling Head Assembly
29
Main Parts of the Engineer’s Transit
30
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate

Consists of the entire top of the transit

Entire assembly rotates about a vertical axis

Contains:
 standards
supports the telescope and level
tube
 vertical circle and vernier
 compass box
 circular cover plate and plate level vials
 upper clamp
 tangent screw
 needle lifter 31
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
a)TELESCOPE

Used for:
1. Fixing the direction of LOS
2. Viewing the objects
3. Magnification in the FOV

Can be rotated about its horizontal axis
Direct position => level vial is above the telescope
Reversed position => level vial is below the telescope
32
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
b) STANDARDS

Integral parts of the upper plate

Used to:
1. Hold into position the horizontal axle level
2. Elevate or depress the telescope by rotating on an axis
perpendicular to the LOS
33
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
c) COMPASS BOX

Used to:
1. Establish magnetic meridian
2. To allow rough checks on measured angles

Magnetic needle can be lifted from its pivot by the
needle lifter
34
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
d) PLATE LEVEL VIALS

Positioned at right angles to each other

Used to:
Establish the upper and lower plates in a horizontal
plane
35
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
e) VERTICAL CIRCLE

Attached to the telescope and rotates with it

Used to:
measure vertical angles
36
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
f) PLATE VERNIERS

Two opposite verniers (A & B)

A vernier
adjacent to the eyepiece where it is easily used

B vernier
180o from A vernier
37
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
g) OPTICAL PLUMMET

Small telescope thru the vertical center of the transit

Enables the instrument to be centered over a given
point quickly and precisely by means of an optical
system
38
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
h) TELESCOPE CLAMP

Tightened to hold the telescope horizontal or at
any desired inclination

Located near the horizontal axle of the transit
39
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
i) TELESCOPE TANGENT SCREW

a.k.a. vertical circle tangent screw

Enables the telescope to be rotated in small
movements about the horizontal axis when the
telescope clamp is tightened

Useful when setting the cross hairs precisely on a
distant point sighted
40
 Engineer’s Transit
I. Upper Plate
j) UPPER CLAMP

A locking device

When tightened, it causes the upper and lower plates
to lock together

Most have round heads and usually turn in the
direction tangent to the motion they control
41
 Engineer’s Transit
II. Lower Plate

Or horizontal circle

Where horizontal angles are measured

Graduated on its upper face and divided around its
circumference into 360o and further subdivisions

Can be held stationary while the upper plate is
rotated or can be rotated independently

As one unit, can be rotated also with the upper plate

The underside is attached to a vertical and tapering
spindle called the outer spindle
42
 Engineer’s Transit
II. Lower Plate
a)LOWER CLAMP

Attached to the horizontal circle

Does not rotate with the horizontal circle

Used to control the rotation of the horizontal circle

Stops any motion between the leveling head and the
lower plate
43
 Engineer’s Transit
II. Lower Plate
b) LOWER TANGENT SCREW

Used to make precise settings after the lower clamp is
tightened

It moves the lower plate to a desired exact position
using a small range of movement
44
 Engineer’s Transit
III. Leveling Head Assembly

Lower part of the transit

Allows the transit to be leveled and centered over
a point

Consists of:
 bottom horizontal foot plate
 3 leveling screws
 plumb bob chain
 a device that permits small lateral movements of
the transit
45
 CLASS EXERCISE
Observe what will be the effect of the different
combinations of tightening and loosening of
lower and upper clamps:
CLAMP CONDITIONS
UPPER CLAMP loosened loosened tightened tightened
LOWER loosened tightened loosened tightened
CLAMP
New Preserved
A horizontal Fixed
Effects
horizontal reading;
angle can be position; no
Angle can target can
set movement
be read be sighted
46
 Engineer’s Transit
III. Leveling Head Assembly
a) LEVELING SCREWS

Used for leveling the instrument by the plate levels

Operate in pairs and always turned in opposite
directions

Screws are loosened when desired to shift transit
laterally with respect to the foot plate
47
 Engineer’s Transit
III. Leveling Head Assembly
b) PLUMB BOB CHAIN

Chain with a hook:
 Suspended from the bottom part of the leveling
head assembly
 Hangs between the tripod legs

Used for attaching a string an a plumb bob so that
the instrument may be set exactly over the selected
point on the ground

Plumb bob string always hang vertical due to gravity
48
 Setting Up The Transit
FINAL CENTERING
• See to it that the wing nuts of the tripod is tightened
• Shift the leveling head of the transit along the foot
plate to exactly center the plumb bob
• Use the optical plummet if available for accurate
centering:

look at the optical plummet

shift the instrument until the reticle is precisely
centered on the ground point
49
 LEVELING THE PLATE LEVEL BUBBLE
• The bubble is centered by rotating screws 1 and 2 in
opposite directions

the rotations (see figure) will cause the bubble to
move from left to right
50
LEVELING THE PLATE LEVEL BUBBLE
51
 LEVELING THE PLATE LEVEL BUBBLE
• Next, rotate the instrument so that the one end of
the bubble tube is aligned with the remaining
screw
• Center the bubble in this position by rotating this
remaining screw
• The rotation indicated in the figure will cause the
bubble to move away from level screw 3
52
LEVELING THE PLATE LEVEL BUBBLE
53
 LEVELING THE PLATE LEVEL BUBBLE
• Return to the original position and check centering of
the bubble
• Rotate through 180o so that end A of the bubble tube
is on line with level screw 1
• Repeat the previous steps so that all bubble tubes are
leveled in every direction.
54
 READING
TRANSIT VERNIERS
55
 VERNIER
A short auxiliary scale placed alongside the graduated scale
of an instrument by means of which fractional parts of the
least division of the main scale can be measured precisely
56
 PRINCIPLE OF THE VERNIER
LEAST COUNT

Fineness of reading of the vernier and main scale

Determined by dividing the length of the smallest
division on the main scale by the total number of
vernier divisions.
s LC
Least Count
LC = s
value of the smallest division on the
main scale
n n
# of divisions on the vernier
57
 READING TRANSIT VERNIERS
EXAMPLE: Least Count
s = 30 min
n = 30
LC = 30 min/30
LC = 1 min
58
 READING TRANSIT VERNIERS
• A horizontal or vertical angle is read by finding the graduation
on the vernier scale w/c coincides with a graduation on the main
(circle) scale used
• In case of double vernier, there will always be 2 coincident
line

1 for a CW angle & the other for a CCW angle
• The index mark of the vernier will show the number of degrees
or fractional part of a degree (usually in multiples of 30, 20, 15 or
10 min) passed over on the main scale
• Addt’l fractional parts of a degree (to be added to the main
scale rdg) are to be determined from the coincident graduation on
the vernier 59
 Reading Horizontal Angles using a Vernier
inner outer
circle circle
reading reading
LC = s/n = 30 min/30 = 1 min
Inner Circle Reading (CW)
= 1840 (main scale) + 18’ (vernier) = 1840 18’
Outer Circle Reading (CCW)
= 175030’ (main scale) + 12’ (vernier) = 175042’
Solution Check: Inner Circle Reading + Outer Circle Reading = 360000’ 60
 CARE OF THE TRANSIT
1. Store the transit in its carrying case when not in use
2. Remove the transit from the tripod and carry it in its box when
transporting in a vehicle or over a long walking distance
3. If it becomes went or damp, dry it off with absorbent cloth or
preferably in sunlight
4. The objective lens should not be wiped as it is easily scratched

clean it by rubbing gently with a piece of soft cloth
moistened in alcohol or with a piece of lens paper

finish off with a camel’s hair brush
61
 CARE OF THE TRANSIT
5. Protect the instrument at all times from any shock or sudden
jolt

never allow the instrument to fall or drop
6. Hold the transit in the arms with the tripod sticking out to the
side or behind NOT on the shoulder

do this when:
• carrying it inside a building
• There is danger of striking the instrument against any
obstructions
62
 CARE OF THE TRANSIT
7. The transit should be lifted from the carrying case by grasping
the standards and NOT by the telescope
8. Tripod legs should be spread apart to make it stable
9. Tripod shoes should be sunk firmly to the ground
10. It should never be left unattended because it may be upset by
passing vehicles, stray animals, playing children, wind or
maybe stolen
11. Avoid setting the transit on concrete slabs, boulders, and steel
plates
63
 CARE OF THE TRANSIT
12. Graduated circles and verniers should not be touched with the
fingers. This will tarnish their surfaces.
13. Tarnished surfaces should be cleaned by applying a thin film of
oil which is left for a few hours and then wiped off with a soft
clean rag.
14. Tighten clamps in a definite and firm manner, not too severe
15. A waterproof cover for the transit should always be brought
along in case of rains, showers and thunderstorms.
64