THEORY AND MEASUREMENT OF ERRORS

SURVEYING MEASUREMENTS

• In surveying, measurements usually concentrated on;

• Angle
• Elevations
• Times
• Lines
• Area
• Volumes

“Best surveyor is not the one who makes the most accurate and precise measurements, but the
one who is able to choose and applied required or appropriate degree of precision.”
SURVEYING MEASUREMENT

• Direct Measurements – is a comparison between measured

quantity with the measuring units.
• Example:
• Applying a wire or a tape to a line
• Determining horizontal and vertical angle with a transit
• Fitting a protractor between two intersecting lines to measure angle.
SURVEYING MEASUREMENT

• Indirect Measurement – when it is not possible to apply a measuring

instrument directly to a quantity to be measured.
• Example:
• Total distance of a line obtained by a summation of a series directly measured
short segments.
• Stadia and subtense method
UNIT OF MEASUREMENT

• Prefixes added to basic names.

• Prefixes added to basic names.
• Mega = 1 000 000
• 1 km = 1000 m
• Kilo = 1 000 • 1 m = 1 000 mm
• Hecto = 100 • 1 mm = 1 000 um
• Deca = 10 • 1 um = 1 000 mu
• Deci = 0.1 • 1 m = 10 decimeters
• 1 dm = 10 cm
• Centi = 0.01
• 1 cm = 10mm
• Milli = 0. 001
• Micro = 0. 000 001
• Nano = 0. 000 000
001
SIGNIFICANT FIGURES

(1) All nonzero digits are significant:

• 1.234 g has 4 significant figures,
• 1.2 g has 2 significant figures.

(2) Zeroes between nonzero digits are significant:

• 1002 kg has 4 significant figures,
• 3.07 mL has 3 significant figure

(3) Zeroes to the left of the first nonzero digits are not significant; such zeroes merely indicate the
position of the decimal point:
• 0.001o C has only 1 significant figure,
• 0.012 g has 2 significant figures.
SIGNIFICANT FIGURES

(4) Zeroes to the right of a decimal point in a number are significant:

• 0.023 mL has 2 significant figures,
• 0.200 g has 3 significant figures.

(5) When a number ends in zeroes that are not to the right of a decimal point, the zeroes are not
necessarily significant:
• 5.06 × 104 calories (3 significant figures)
• 5.060 × 104 calories (4 significant figures), or
• 5.0600 × 104 calories (5 significant figures).
ROUNDING OFF NUMBERS

• It is the process of dropping one or more of the final digit so that the
values contains only the significant figure required.

Procedure of Rounding Off Numbers

1. Digit is less than 5. When the digit to be dropped is less than 5, the number is
written without the digit.

2. Digit is equal to 5. When the digit to be dropped is exactly 5, the nearest even
number is used for preceding digit.

3. Digit is greater than 5. When the digit to be dropped is greater than 5, the
number is written with the preceding digit increased by one.
ERRORS AND MISTAKES
 It is defined as the difference between the
true value and the measured value of a
quantity.
 It is the deviation of an observation or
calculation from the true value and is often
beyond control of the one performing the
operation.
ERROR
 These are inaccuracies in measurements
which occur because some aspect of
surveying operation is performed By the
surveyor with carelessness, inattention, poor
judgement and improper execution.
MISTAKE
TYPES OF ERROR

 Type of error which will always have the same sign and magnitude as

Systematic Error long as field conditions remain constant and unchanged.

 Will repeat itself in other measurements, still maintaining the same sign
and thus will accumulate. And for this reason, it is also called
cumulative error.

 These errors are purely accidental in nature.

 The occurrence of such errors are matters of chance as they are

Accidental Error likely to be positive or negative.

 There is no absolute way of determining or eliminating these kind
of them since the error is not likely to be the same for a second
observation.
 SOURCES OF ERROR
Instrumental, Natural and Personal

Instrumental Errors
 These errors are due to the imperfections of the instruments used.
• Measuring using a steel tape of incorrect length.
• Using levelling rod with painted graduation not properly spaced.

Natural Errors
•These errors are caused by variations in the phenomena of nature such as changes in magnetic declination, temperature,
humidity, wind, refraction, gravity and curvature of the earth.

Personal Errors
 Theses errors arise principally from limitations of the senses of sight, touch and hearing of the human observer which
are likely to be inaccurate.
ACCURACY AND PRECISION

 It indicates how close a given measurement  It is portrayed by the closeness to one

is to the absolute or true value of the another of a set of repeated measurements
quantity measured. of a quantity.

ACCURACY PRECISION
ACCURACY
AND
PRECISION
ACCURACY
AND
PRECISION
THEORY OF PROBABILITY

 It is defined as the number of times something will probably occur over the
range of possible occurrences.

1. Small errors occur more often that large ones and that they are more probable.
2. Large errors are less probable and in normally distributed errors, these errors
are may be mistakes than errors.
3. Positive and negative errors of the same size happen with equal frequency;
that is, they are equally probable.
4. The mean of an infinite number of observation is the most probable value.
MOST PROBABLE VALUE

 It is the arithmetic mean or the average.

 It refers to a quantity which based on available data has more chances of
being correct than has any other.

FORMULA

MPV  Ẍ X/n  (X1X2 X3.... Xn)/ n

Where:
n = number of obersvations
SAMPLE PROBLEM 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, 251.04, 250.50, 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.

ANSWER: 250.51
SAMPLE PROBLEM 2

 The angles at point Q have the following observed values. 1300 15’ 20”, 1420
37’ 30”, and 870 07’ 40”. Determine the most probable value of each angle.

ANSWER:
130⁰15’10”
142⁰37’20”
87⁰07’30”
SAMPLE PROBLEM 3

 The observed interior angles of a triangle are A = 350 14’ 37”, B= 960 30’ 09”,
and C= 480 15’ 05”. Determine the discrepancy for the given observation and
the most probable value of each angle.

ANSWER:
35 14’ 40”
0

96 30’ 12”
0

48 15’ 08”
0
ACTIVITY NUMBER 1

 Measurement of three horizontal angles about point P are: APB= 120 31’
50”, BPC= 370 29’ 20”, and CPD= 470 36’ 30”. If the measurement of the
single angle APD is 970 37’ 00”, determine the most probable values of the
angles.
RESIDUAL

 It is sometimes referred to as the deviation and defined as the difference

between any measured value of a quantity and its most probable value.

FORMULA

v  x  x̄
PROBABLE ERROR

 It is a quantity which, when added to and subtracted from the most probable
value, defines a range within which there is a 50 percent chance that the
true value of the measured quantity lies inside ( or outside ) the limits thus
set.
FORMULA
Where:
PEs = probable error of any single measurement
PEm = probable error of the mean
= summation of squares of the residuals
n = number of observation
RELATIVE (ERROR) PRECISION

 It is the ratio of the probable error (PE) to the measure quantity value
(MPV) , and it is used to define the degree of refinement obtained.

FORMULA

RP = PE / MPV
WEIGHTED OBSERVATION

1. The weight is directly proportional to the number of observation.

FORMULA

Weighted Mean = ∑P / ∑W
SAMPLE PROBLEM

Four measurements of a distance were recorded as 284.18, 284.19, 284.22, and

284.20 meters and given weights of 1, 3, 2, and 4 respectively. Determine the
weighted mean.

Answers: 284.20 m
SAMPLE PROBLEM

Lines of levels to establish the elevation of a point are run over four different routes. The observed
elevations of the point with probable errors are given below. Determine the most probable value of
the elevation of the point.
Line Observed Probable (E2) W = 1/(E2) Relative P = X(RW)
elevation error (E) Weight
(X) (RW)
1 219.832 +0.006
2 219.930 +0.012
3 219.701 +0.018
4 220.021 +0.024

Answers: 219.847 m
INTERRELATIONSHIP OF ERRORS

 In some cases, it is required to determine how the final result is affected

when a computation involves quantities or value that are subjected to
accidental errors.

 Summation of Errors
 Product od Errors
INTERRELATIONSHIP OF ERRORS

SUMMATION OF ERRORS

It is applied when several measured quantities are added and each of which is
affected by accidental error, the probable error of the sum is given by this formula.

Where:
PEs = probable error of sum
PE1, PE2, etc = probable error of each measurement
INTERRELATIONSHIP OF ERRORS

PRODUCT OF ERRORS

It is applied when several measured quantities are multiplied and each of which is
affected by accidental error, the probable error of the sum is given by this formula.

Where:
PEp = probable error of the product
PE1, PE2, etc = probable error corresponding to each quantity measured
Q1, Q2 – measured quantities
PROBLEM

The following values were determined in a series of tape measurements of a

line : 1000.58, 1000.40, 1000.38, 1000.48, 1000.40, and 1000.46 meters.

Determine the following:

a. most probable value of the measured length.

b. probable error of a single measurement and
probable error of the mean.
c. final expression for the most probable length.