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Tacheometry: The Method Used To Obtain Distance and Height Difference

The document describes tacheometry, a method for obtaining distance and height differences using a theodolite. It discusses three techniques: the stadia system, subtense bar, and electronic tacheometry. The stadia system uses hairs on a theodolite to measure the height intercepted by a staff at a known distance to calculate the distance. Modern electronic tacheometry uses a total station, which combines an EDM and theodolite to electronically measure distances and angles for surveying.

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Mike mike
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297 views

Tacheometry: The Method Used To Obtain Distance and Height Difference

The document describes tacheometry, a method for obtaining distance and height differences using a theodolite. It discusses three techniques: the stadia system, subtense bar, and electronic tacheometry. The stadia system uses hairs on a theodolite to measure the height intercepted by a staff at a known distance to calculate the distance. Modern electronic tacheometry uses a total station, which combines an EDM and theodolite to electronically measure distances and angles for surveying.

Uploaded by

Mike mike
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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10.

Tacheometry
The method used to obtain distance and height
difference.
It uses three techniques:
1. Stadia system
2. Subtense bar technique.
3. Electronic Tacheometry
Stadia system
This consists of a theodolite whose diaphragm is
provided with two additional hairs one above and the
other one below and these two cross hairs are
equidistant from the horizontal cross hair and they
subtend an angle at the centre of the instrument.
Upper Hair

Middle Hair

Lower Hair

If graduated staff, is held vertically, in the line of sight,


cross hairs will be seen to subtend a certain height
which increases in proportion to the distance of the
staff from the instrument (theodolite).
If we know the proportion between the intersected
distance on the staff and the distance of staff from the
instrument, we can easily deduce or calculate the later
from the former.
Theory of Stadia System
Determine distances indirectly using triangle geometry.
Case One: staff being vertical and line of sight being
horizontal.

C d

c f

A
I
b
b
i S
a I F
a
B

A,B = staff intercepts


a, b = stadia hairs
S = Staff interval or intercept
F = principal focus of objective lens
f = focal length
i = stadia hair spacing (instrument)
c = distance from instrument centre to objective lens
centre
d = distance from focal point to the staff
C = Stadia constant
….. c and I are fixed distances of the instrument, do not
change.
From similar triangles: Triangles - bIaIF and BAF
d
f
= si
fs
Therefore: d = i = Ks
.
Therefore:
D = Ks + C

Where K is multiplying factor, S is stadia interval and C


is the stadia constant. D being the distance from
instrument centre to the staff.
Measurements of Tacheometric Constants
The values are usually given by the manufacturers but
this is not always the case. It is sometimes necessary to
determine them especially for old or unfamiliar
instrument. The simplest way, both for external and
internal focusing instruments, is to regard the basic
formula as being a linear equation of the form:
D = Ks + C
a. On a fairly level site chain out a line 100 to 120m
long, setting pegs at 25 to 30 metres intervals.

b. Set at up at one end and determine two distances


using tacheometer or theodolite, one short and
one long. Hence K and C may be determined.

i.e. D1 (known) = Ks1 (known) + C


  D2 (known) = Ks2 (known) + C
Distanc
Readings Intervals
e
  Uppe Centr Lowe Uppe Lowe Total
r e r r r
Stadi Stadi
a a
0.30
30.000 1.433 1.283 1.133 0.150 0.150
0
0.22
55.000 1.710 1.435 1.160 0.275 0.275
0
0.90
90.000 2.352 1.902 1.452 0.450 0.450
0

D =Ks + C
30.00 = 0.300 * K + C
90.00 = 0.900 * K + C
Therefore K = 100 & C = 0
Any combination of equations gives the same result,
showing that the telescope is anallatic over this range,
to all intents and purposes.
Theodolite Tacheometry
The theory discussed so far, in The Stadia System and
Measurement of Tacheometric Constants all applies to
the situation where the staff is held vertically and the
line of sight of the telescope is horizontal. It is very
rare/seldom, however, that this situation occurs in
practice.
Generally a theodolite is sighted to a level staff held
vertically (by use of a staff bubble), which gives rise to
the situation below.
Since the staff is not at right angles to the line of sight
of the instrument, the intercept cut on the staff by the
stadia hairs will be too large. Let the actual distance
between upper and lower stadia be s and the required
projection of it at right angles to IQ be s1
D = Ks1 + C, but s1 = s cos q
In practice, the slope distance D is not often required.
What we really want is S, the horizontal distance and V
the vertical distance between the trunnion axis of the
telescope and the point of the staff cut by the middle
hair.
Now S= D cos q
  = Ks cos2 q + C cos q
Also V= D sin q
  = Ks cos q sin q + C sin q
 
= ½( Ks sin2q)+ C sin q
 
So now the horizontal distance S = Ks cos 2q + C cos q,
and the vertical component is given by V = Ks cos q sin
q + C sin q. In practice these can be reduced to:
S = 100 s cos2q and
V = 100 s cos q sin q
The assumption being that C is 0 for the above
equations to be true.
The difference in height between the two points is
given by:
DH =HI + V – CL
NB: CL is the middle staff reading
The Relative Level (R.L.) of the point is given by
RL = RLA + HI + 100 s cos q sin q - CL
The use of these formulae gives the three dimensional
location of the point. It is quite easy to determine the
coordinates of the point if the bearing is measured as
well as the staff intercepts and vertical angle, which of
course is the standard field procedure.
Field Tacheometry
Tacheometric surveys are usually performed to
measure the three dimensional location of points on
the landscape so as to produce contour and detail
plans for further work, or to produce coordinates for
area and volume calculations. Observations are usually
performed from known survey stations, often
established by traversing. A sample of the field booking
sheet is shown below:

Station: At A Date: 30/2/90 Party: CO,MS,KR Reference: Job 12/90

Instrument: T2/19 H.I.:1.49 R.l 23.45 Temp: 35°C Press: 1012mbar


Top Centre Lower Horizontal Vertical Description
2.457 2.895 3.333 24° 27' 30" 272° 45' 00" Tree 2: 4,8,0.3
1.873 2.145 2.416 48° 34' 20" 270° 23' 00" Fence Corner
          . . . and so on

In this example, the vertical angles have been observed


by theodolite and therefore have to be converted to an
elevation angle for use in the formulae as they stand,
or the formulae can be modified to accept zenith
angles. The first set of readings will be reduced as an
example.
s = 2.457 - 3.333 = 0.876 q = +2° 45' 00"
S = 100 s cos2 q = 100 (0.875) cos2 (2° 45')
  = 87.40 m (87.4)
RL = RLA + HI + 100 s cos q sin q - CL
  = 23.45 + 1.49 + 100(0.876) cos(2° 45') sin (2° 45') - 2.985
  = 26.153m (26.15)
One of the most common outputs from a tacheometric
survey is a plan of survey showing the features and
contours.
The only other variable necessary to compute the
coordinates of the point on which the staff was placed
is of course a bearing.This is computed from the
horizontal circle reading and a known or adopted
reference bearing, similar to the procedure adopted
when traversing.
Electronic Tacheometry
Use of a total station
The stadia procedure is used less and less often these
days, more commonly geomatic engineers use a
combination theodolite-EDM known in jargon as a total
station. Often these instruments are connected to a
field computer which stores readings and facilitates the
processing of the data electronically.
This instrumentation has facilitated the development
of this method of detail and contour surveying into a
very slick operation. It is now possible to produce plans
of large areas that previously would have taken weeks,
in a matter of days.
The mathematics behind this operation is very simple,
it is in effect the same as the stadia formulae with the
term for the distance replaced by the measured slope
distance.

S = D cos (q)
RL = RLA + HI + D sin (q) - HT

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