INTRODUCTION

TO SURVEYING
Surveying is the art of determining the positions
of points on or near the earth’s surface by means
of measurements in the three elements of space;
namely, distance, direction, and elevation.

-Rayner and Schmidt

Surveying is the art of measuring horizontal and
vertical distances between objects, of measuring
angles between lines, of determining the direction
of lines, and of establishing points by
predetermined angular and linear measurements.

-David, Foote, Anderson, and Mikhail

Surveys are divided into two general
classifications.
▪Plane Surveying
▪Geodetic Surveying
 GEODETIC SURVEYING
PLANE SURVEYING

▪ Earth’s surface is a considered ▪ Earth’s surface is a considered

as a plane surface. as a curved surface.
▪ The curvature of the earth is ▪ The curvature of the earth is
ignored. taken into account.
▪ The line joining any two ▪ The line joining any two
stations is considered a straight stations is considered a curved
line. line.
▪ Lower degree of accuracy. ▪ Higher degree of accuracy.
▪ Involves smaller area less than ▪ Involves larger area more than
about 250 sq.km. about 250 sq.km.
TYPES OF SURVEYS
1. Cadastral Surveys are
usually closed surveys which
are undertaken in urban
and rural locations for the
purpose of determining and
defining property lines and
boundaries, corners and
areas.
TYPES OF SURVEYS
2. City Surveys are surveys
of the areas in and near a
city for the purpose of
planning expansions or
improvements, locating
property lines, fixing
reference monuments,
determining the physical
features of the land, and
preparing maps
TYPES OF SURVEYS
3. Construction Surveys
are surveys are surveys
which are undertaken at a
construction site to provide
data regarding grades,
reference lines, dimensions,
ground configuration, and
the location and elevation of
structures.
TYPES OF SURVEYS
4. Forestry Surveys are
executed in connection with
forest management and
mensuration, and the
production and
conservation of forest lands.
TYPES OF SURVEYS
5. Hydrographic Surveys
refer to surveying streams,
lakes, reservoirs, harbors,
oceans, and other bodies of
water.
TYPES OF SURVEYS
6. Industrial Surveys refer
to the use of surveying
techniques in ship building,
construction and assembly
of aircraft, and other
industries where very
accurate dimensional
layouts are required.
TYPES OF SURVEYS
7. Mine Surveys are surveys
which are performed to
determine the position of all
underground excavations
and surface mine structures,
to fix surface boundaries of
mining claims, and to
calculate excavated
volumes.
TYPES OF SURVEYS
8. Photogrammetric
Surveys are surveys which
makes use of photographs
taken with specially
designed cameras either
from airplanes or ground
stations.
TYPES OF SURVEYS
9. Route Surveys involves
the determination of
alignment, grades,
earthwork quantities,
location of natural and
artificial objects in
connection with the
planning, design and
construction of linear
projects.
TYPES OF SURVEYS
10. Topographic Surveys
are those surveys made for
determining the shape of
the ground, and the location
and elevation of natural and
artificial features upon it.
SURVEYING MEASUREMENTS
A measurement is the process of determining the
extent, size or dimensions of a particular quantity in
comparison to a given standard.

In surveying, measurements are usually concentrated

on angles, elevations, times, lines, areas, and volumes.
SURVEYING MEASUREMENTS
1. Direct Measurements – comparison of the measured
quantity with a standard measuring unit or units
employed for measuring a quantity of that kind.
2. Indirect Measurements – the observed value is
determined by its relationship to some other known
values.
SURVEYING FIELD NOTES
TYPES OF NOTES

1. Sketches
2.Tabulations
3.Explanatory notes
4.Computations
5.Combination of the above
INFORMATION FOUND IN FIELD
NOTEBOOKS
1. Title of the Field Work
or Name of Project
2. Time of Day and Date
3. Weather Conditions
4. Names of Group
Members and their
Designations
5. List of Equipment
THE FIELD SURVEY PARTY
1. Chief of Party 8. Rear Tapeman
2. Assistant Chief of 9. Flagman
Party 10.Rodman
3. Instrumentman 11. Pacer
4. Technician 12.Axeman/Lineman
5. Computer 13.Aidman
6. Recorder 14.Utilitymen
7. Head Tapeman
An ERROR is defined as the difference
between the true value and the measured
value of a quantity.

MISTAKES are inaccuracies in

measurements which occur because some
aspect of a surveying operation is
performed with carelessness.
SOURCES OF ERRORS

1. Instrumental errors
2.Natural errors
3.Personal errors
ACCURACY indicates how close a
given measurement is to the true
value of a quantity measured.

PRECISION refers to the degree of

refinement and consistency with
which any physical measurement is
made.
THEORY OF PROBABILITY
The theory of probability is based upon the
following assumptions relative to the occurrences of
errors:
❑Small errors occur more often than large ones
and that they are more probable
❑Large errors happen infrequently and are
therefore less probable; for normally distributed
errors, unusually large ones may be mistakes
rather than accidental errors
THEORY OF PROBABILITY
The theory of probability is based upon the
following assumptions relative to the occurrences of
errors:
❑Positive and negative errors of the same size
happen with equal frequency; that is they are
equally probable.
❑The mean of an infinite number of observations
is the most probable value.
MOST PROBABLE VALUE
𝚺𝑿 𝑿𝟏 + 𝑿𝟐 +𝑿𝟑 +. . . . . +𝑿𝒏
𝒎𝒑𝒗 = =
𝒏 𝒏
Where:
mpv is the most probable value of the quantity
measured
ΣX is the sum of the individual measurements
n is the total number of observations
MOST PROBABLE VALUE
In a case of related measurements taken
under identical conditions where the sum should
equal a mathematically exact quantity, the most
probable values are the observed values
corrected by an equal part of the error.
SAMPLE PROBLEMS
1. A surveying instructor sent out six groups of students to
measure a distance between two points marked on the
ground. The students came up with the following six
different values: 250.25, 250.15, 249.90, 250.50, 251.04,
and 251.22 meters. Assuming these values are equally
reliable and that variations result from accidental errors,
determine the most probable value of the distance
measured.
2. The angles about a point Q have the following
observed values : 130°15’20”, 142°37’30”, and
87°07’40”. Determine the most probable value of
each angle.
3. The observed interior angles of a triangle are
A=35°14’37”, B=96°30’09”, and C=48°15’05”.
Determine the discrepancy for the given observation
and the most probable value for each angle.
4. Measurements of three horizontal angles about a
point P are : APB=12°31’50”, BPC=37°29’20”, and
CPD=47°36’30”. If the measurement of the single
angle APD is 97°37’00”, determine the most
probable value of the angles.