6/18/2010

ANCIENT
SURVEYING
INSTRUMENTS
GE 10 : General Surveying

Astrolabe

- One of the best known

surveying instruments invented
during ancient
- Created by Hipparchus
- Developed by Ptolemy
- Using a metal circle with
pointed hinge at the center, a
cross staff, and an adjustable
wooden rod placed at right
angles, this instrument was
designed to measure the
altitude of stars

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Telescope

Said to be invented by
Lippershey, and made
famous by Galileo, it was
only after the introduction
of cross hairs by Jean
Picard, which is used for
fixing the line of sight did
the telescope become an
integral part in many
surveying instruments

Semi-Circumferentor

Early surveying
instrument for
measuring and
laying off angles,
and for establishing
lines of sight

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Plane Table & Alidade

Plane Table
- One of the oldest types of surveying
instruments used in field mapping
- Consists of a board leveled on a
tripod, which is set-up so that the board
is able to rotate in any desired direction
Alidade
- An instrument used on the plane table
for taking sights and drawing lines when
locating points on the map
- Combines a straight edge with a
sighting device normally a telescope

Dioptra

- Believed to be perfected
by Heron of Alexandria,
which he described in his
book (named Dioptra)
- Used for leveling and in
measuring horizontal and
vertical angles

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Roman Groma

- Consists of plumb lines

suspended on the ends of
two intersecting arms fixed
perpendicularly and pivoted
upon a vertical shaft
- Used by the Romans to
establish straight lines
perpendicular to each other

Libella

- Believed to have
been used by the
Egyptians and the
Assyrians in
determining the
horizontal or level
line

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Chorobates

- Used in establishing the

horizontal for leveling work
- Consists of horizontal
straight-edge supported on
both ends and is filled up with
water
- Believed to have been used in
leveling the Roman aqueducts
- Enabled levels to be found
between two points, and hence
a series of levels when
planning and surveying the
path for an aqueduct

DDiopter
iopter

 Greek’s most famous

surveying instrument,
which is used in leveling
 Also used in measuring
and laying-out both
horizontal and vertical
angles

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Vernier

- Short auxiliary scale

that was invented by
Pierre Vernier
- Aids in precisely
determining fractional
parts of the main scale
without the use of
interpolation

Merchet

- Device first used by the

Chaldeans and the
Egyptians for measuring
long distances and
determining time and
meridian
- Consists of a slotted
palm leaf for sighting and
a bracket with a
suspended plumb bob

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Modern Surveying Instruments

The introduction of modern surveying

equipment has revolutionized the
practice of surveying by enhancing the
precision of measured values, lowering
necessary time frame of survey
projects, and increasing the use and
application of surveying.