Lab 6: Introduction to Total Stations

Objective:
To introduce and familiarize students with measuring distance and angles with a total station.

Equipment needed:
1. Total Station
2. Tripod
3. Prism and Pole
4. Plumb bob and Gammon Reel
5. Field Book

Total stations are very expensive and can be damaged by forcing or dropping the
equipment. Please be extremely careful with this expensive equipment and make sure it
does not get wet.

Familiarize yourself with the instrument:

1. The TA will demonstrate how to use each of the total stations in the field. Note that tangent
locks do not need to be rotated more than of a turn to lock or unlock the circle. If you
over-tighten the tangent locks when locking the circle, this will strip the lock assembly.
Do not unlock the lower circle assembly, as this instrument does not function like a
theodolite. Take the time to learn which screws adjust which orientations.
2. Take the instrument out of the box and insert the battery into the slot on the side of the
instrument.
3. Put the instrument back in the box, lock the latches, and head for the North Lawn.

1
Field Procedure Checklist

Use this checklist to remember the point-to-point procedure.

Setup and level the instrument over the point.

Backsight the previous point with a plumb bob or prism.
Calculate and enter the azimuth to the backsight in the instrument.
Foresight the next point and shoot the horizontal distance.
Record the azimuth and distance to the foresight.
Traverse to the next point.

2
Field Procedure
1. Set up the instrument over HAINES in a similar fashion to setting up the theodolite.
Make sure you are directly over the station and the instrument is level.

2. Turn the instrument on and index it.

3. Turn the instrument and backsight to station ECKL. Be sure to lock the motion of the
instrument. A proper alignment will look like this but without the target board:

Target board

4. Calculate and enter the appropriate backsight azimuth. This step aligns the total
station so that the angle indicated on the total station corresponds to the azimuth.
There is a different method to do this depending on which total station you are using.
Your TA will demonstrate to your group what to do. PAY ATTENTION to how it is
done.

5. With the rodperson holding the pole in the center of the foresight point, turn the angle
to your first foresight point, which is one of your parcel corners. Note that the
horizontal angle on the total station will indicate the azimuth of the foresight. Allow
the rodperson to plumb the pole, and then sight the center of the prism.

6. Shoot the distance to the foresight. Note that we are recording the horizontal
distance. Again, the methods differ so PAY ATTENTION when your TA shows you
how to do it.

7. Record the azimuth and distance to the foresight.

8. Traverse to the next point (which will be your previous foresight). Repeat the
procedure beginning at Step 1.

9. Complete the traverse by recording the closing point, which should be the first parcel
corner you collected from HAINES.

10. Calculate the closure of your parcel as learned in class. You should have a
loop precision of better than 1/7,500.