Astrolabe

 Originally designed for determining the altitude of stars.

Telescope

Transit

Semi circumferentor
 Used to measure and lay off angles, and establish lines of sight by employing peep
sights.

Plane Table
 Used in field mapping

Dioptra
 Used in leveling and for measuring horizontal & vertical angles.

Roman Groma
 Used as an instrument for aligning or sighting points.

Libella
 The instrument had a A-frame with a plumb line suspended from its apex and was used
to determine the horizontal.

Vernier
 Short auxiliary scale placed alongside the graduated scale of an instrument, by means of
which fractional parts of the smallest or least division of the main scale can be
determined precisely without having to interpolate.

Diopter
 Used for levelling, laying off right angles, and for measuring horizontal and vertical
angles.

Compass
 Used for determining the direction of lines and in calculating angles between lines.

Gunter’s Chain
 Used for taping distances.

Chorobates
 Designed for leveling work

Merchet
 Used for measuring time and meridian.
Distance by Pacing
 Counting the number of steps or paces in a required distance

Distance by Taping
 The use of graduated tape is probably the most common method. Taping consists of
stretching a calibrated tape between two points and reading the distance indicated on
the tape.

Distance by Tachymetry
 It is based on the optical geometry of the instruments employed and is an indirect
method of measurement.

Stadia Method
 Provides a rapid means of determining horizontal distances.

Subtense Bar Method

 Used for quick and accurate measurement of horizontal distances.

Distance by Graphical & Mathematical Method

 Unknown distances may be determined through their relationship with known distances
geometrically.

Distance by Mechanical Device

 These devices are only applicable for low precision surveys or where quick
measurements are desired.

Distance by Photography
 Refers to the measurement of images on a photograph.

TAPING ACCESSORIES

1. Range Pole. Also known as flags or lining rods, are used as temporary signals to
indicate the location of points or the direction of lines, and to mark alignments
2. Tape Clamping Handles. With its scissor-type handle, tape clamps are used to apply
tension with a quick grip on any part of a steel tape.
3. Chaining Pins. Sometimes called surveyor’s arrows or taping pins.
4. Tension handle. Also preferred to as a spring scale, is used at one end of a tape for
ensuring the application of the correct amount of pull on the tape during measurement.
5. Tape Thermometer. In precision taping, thermometers are used to determine the
temperature of the air & the approximate temperature of the tape during measurement.
6. Plum Bob. Are used for projecting the tape ends to the ground when the tape must be
suspended above the measured line.
7. Wooden Stakes or Hub. These temporary markers are required in staking out a
building or structure, lining the center line of a proposed road, and in staking out any line
or grade.
 8. Leader Thongs. Is attached to a ring located near the zero-meter mark of the tape to
provide a comfortable grip on the tape when measuring.
9. Hand Level and Clinometer. The hand level and clinometer is usually a 15-cm long
device which consists of a metal sighting tube with a level bubble.
10. Tape Repair Kit. Should be taken along when an extensive taping operation is to be
performed at remote areas.
11. Crayons. Marking crayons used in surveying are actually Lumber Crayons.

PROCEDURE OF TAPING

1. Aligning the Tape. When a line is to be measured, both ends must first be marked.
2. Stretching the Tape. With the 30-m mark held at the initial point and the head tape man
aligned, the rear tape man calls out “all right” or ‘OK’.
3. Plumbing. When the ground is covered with obstacles, weeds, low brush, and
irregularities in the ground surface, it will be difficult or impossible to lay the tape on the
ground during measurement.
4. Marking Full Tape Lengths. When a full tape length is measured the rear tape man
holds his end of the tape opposite the pin earlier set on the ground.
5. Tallying Taped Measurements. At the initial point, the rear tape man holds one pin and
the head tape man begins with ten pins carried on his steel ring.
6. Measuring Fractional Length. When the last segment of the line is to be measured,
this will often be a measurement which will consist of a fractional tape length.

BREAKING TAPE
 It is a standard practice to hold the tape horizontally above ground and to plumb at one
or both ends when taping on sloping or uneven terrain surfaces. This requires the
measurement of shorter distances which are accumulated to total a full tape length.

CORRECTIONS OF TAPING
1. When a line is measured with a tape that is “too long”, the corrections are applied to the
observed length by adding.
2. When a specified or required length is to be laid out with a tape that is “too long”, the
corrections are subtracted from the known length to determine the corrected length to be
laid out.
3. When measuring or laying out lengths with a tape that is “too short”, the corrections are
applied opposite to those stated in the first two rules.