Booking & Calculations

 Staff readings: level book / booking form

 Processed readings -> RL’s

 Use hand-held calculator / notebook with
spreadsheets
 Rise & fall method:
 Compute all rises & falls

 Start at known BM
 RL of next station:
 add rise to previous RL, or
 subtract fall from previous RL
Example 2.1. Rise & fall method (different #’s from book):
2.518 3.729

4.153 0.556

4.212 0.718

B
CP2
CP1 Fig. 2.12

BM Table 2.2
Station BS FS Rise Fall RL Remarks
BM 4.212 23.918
CP1 4.153 0.718 3.494 27.412
CP2 2.518 0.556 3.597 31.009
B 3.729 1.211 29.798
Total = 10.883 5.003 7.091 1.211 29.798
minus 5.003 1.211 23.918
= 5.880 5.880 5.880
From (2.3), (2.4) & (2.5),

 BS   FS
all all

= Total rise – total fall = Last RL – first RL

i. check equalities in last row, Table 2.2.
ii. discrepancy -> arithmetic mistake(s)
(unrelated to accuracy of
measurements).
 Example 2.2

0.595
3.132 2.587 1.522 2.234 1.985 1.334

TBM 2.002
58.331m B
above MSL A C
D
BS IS FS Remarks
0.595 TBM 58.331 m
2.587 3.132 A (CP)
spreadsheet method:
1.565 A-I1 IF & MAX.
1.911 A-I2
0.376 A-I3
2.234 1.522 B (CP)
3.771 B-I1
1.334 1.985 C (CP)
0.601 C-I1
Table 2.3
2.002 D (BM 56.460 m)
 Table 2.4
Station BS IS FS h Rise Fall RL
TBM 0.595 58.331
A 2.587 3.132 -2.537 2.537 55.794
A-I1 1.565 1.022 1.022 56.816
A-I2 1.911 -0.346 0.346 56.47
A-I3 0.376 1.535 1.535 58.005
B 2.234 1.522 -1.146 1.146 56.859
B-I1 3.771 -1.537 1.537 55.322
C 1.334 1.985 1.786 1.786 57.108
C-I1 0.601 0.733 0.733 57.841
D 2.002 -1.401 1.401 56.440
 6.75 8.641 5.076 6.967

S Last RL
- FS = -1.891 – First RL = -1.891

Rise
- Fall = -1.891

 BS   FS
all all
= Total rise – total fall = Last RL – first RL, no arithmetic mistake.
 Closure Error (misclosure)

 Close on starting (or other) BM

 Checks accuracy & detect blunders.
 Misclosure (at closing BM):
 = measured  correct RL of BM (2.9)

If acceptable: apply correction -> closing BM

has correct RL
 Max. acceptable misclosure (in mm):
E =  CK1/2
 K = total distance of leveling route (km)
 C : 2 mm (precise leveling work) to 12 mm
(ordinary engineering leveling)
 Empirical; justified by statistical theory;
Bannister et al. (1998).
 Construction leveling: short distances;
many (n) instrument stations.
 Use alternative criterion for E :
E =  Dn1/2 (2.10)
 D: 5 mm & 8 mm commonly adopted.
LS Adjustment of Leveling Network

Unknowns: x, y, z i.e. RL of X, Y, Z
X
Line Observed h Plan Dist L
(m) (m)

2 1 5.101 45
1 5
2 2.342 30
3 -1.253 35
4 -6.134 30
BM A 6 BM B
Y 5 -0.685 25
at at
207.500 m
6 -3.006 20
200.000 m
7 1.707 20
4 7
3

Z
Fig. 2.15 (Arrowheads in direction of leveling)
 Common practice: observations weighted
inversely proportional to (plan) sight distances
L:
1
wi = Li
(2.11)
i = 1, 2, …, 7.

 Determine “best” x, y, z
Note: Single loops A-X-Y-Z-A, B-Z-Y-X-B, etc.:

-> different solutions due to random errors.

 Utilize all available data & weights: least
squares analysis.

 7 observed elevation differences: vector

[x – 200.000, 207.500 – x, z – 207.500,
200.000 – z, y – x, y – 207.500, z – y]T
As matrix product:

 x  200   1 0 0   200 
 207.5  x   1 0 0   207.5 
     
 z  207.5   0 0 1   x   207.5
      
 200  z    0 0  1  y    200  (2.12)
 y  x   1 1 0   z   0 
     
 y  207.5  0 1 0  207.5
 z  y   0 1 1   0 
     
Separate unknowns from constants  re-write leveling
information
Ax + k1 ~ k2
where
A = coefficient matrix (0 & 1’s),
k1 = benchmark values,
k2 = [5.101, 2.342, -1.253, -6.134, -0.685, -3.006, 1.707]T.

Problem in “Ax ~ k” form:

k = k2 – k1,
Weight matrix W = Diag [1/45,1/30,1/35,1/30,1/25,1/20,1/20]
Solution from Ch. 1: Eqn. (1.6)

• Numerical matrix computations involved

Spreadsheet approach:

• fast, easy to learn, portable

• instant results
• automatic recalc. if #s change (common in
surveying: updating of control coordinates,
discovery of mistakes, etc.)
Table 2.6:
LS Adjustment on a spreadsheet

See the spreadsheet posted on:

http://teaching.ust.hk/~civl102/notes2000/Eg2-4.xls

Conclusion:
MPV for RL’s of stations X, Y, Z are
205.148 m, 204.480 m & 206.186 m,
respectively.
Contour lines:
• best method to show height variations on plan
• line joining equal altitudes
• elevations: indicated on plan
• “tidemarks left by a flood” fell at a discrete contour
interval.
X Y
D E A C
40
30

20
10
0
30 m 60 m

60
40
A
20 C
D E
B
0

Section along XY

Fig. 2.16
Fig. 2.16: plan & section of island
• 0 m contour line: “tidemark left by the sea”
• Ascending at 10 m contour intervals:
imaginary horizontal planes passing
through island
• 10, 20, 30 & 40 m contours at their points
of contact with island.
Gradient of ground between A & C:

AB 10
Gradient along AC =  = 1 in 6
BC 60

Similarly,
10
Gradient along DE = = 1 in 3
30

• contours more closely packed: steeper slopes

• contour line: continuous & closed on itself, although
the plan may not have sufficient room to show
• Height of any point: unique. 2 contour lines cannot
cross or meet, except cliff / overhang.
Contouring: laborious. One direct method:
1. Sight BM (30.500m HKPD), BS = 0.500 m -> height of
instrument (HI) = 31.000m.
2. Staff reading = 1.000 m -> staff bottom at 30-m
3. Staff travels throughout site. All points with 1.000 m
readings: pegged for subsequent determination of E, N ->
30-m contour.
4. Similarly, staff reading = 2.000 m -> point on 29-m
contour. And so on.
5. Tedious & uneconomical for large area
6. Suitable in construction projects requiring excavation to a
specific single contour line.
 Trigonometric Leveling (“heighting”):
(Differential leveling: impractical for large elevations e.g. tall
building)
P

Tall Building
vertical line

h
 Z

B’

V

horizontal line
B A (instrument center)

Fig. 2.17
• rough estimate of h, e.g. residential: h  (number of
stories  3 m).

• horizontal distance AB from instrument to building:

taped directly, or:

• EDM at A & reflector at B’ above or below B,

• measure slope distance AB’ & zenith angle,

• compute AB & B’B.

• vertical distance BG (or prism height B’G) to base of

building: by staff / tape.
• Raise telescope to sight building top, measure
v precisely.
 Note: most theodolites give zenith angle z,
vertical angle = v = 90 – z.

Height of building: PG = AB tan v + BG

(BG = B’G – B’B if EDM used).

Modern Instruments

Total stations: Remote Elevation Measurement (REM)

mode expedites trigonometric leveling:
 Sight point B’ (Fig. 2.17) once; distance &
zenith angle measured & stored.
 Raises / lower telescope -> height of sighted
point calculated & displayed.
Reflector placed at B’ (prism on top of held pole)
Difficulties:
Pedestrians blocking prism near ground level:
 Reflectorless total station: laser beam reflected
back from suitable building surfaces (e.g. white
walls), no prism. Fig. 2.18(b): can sight any
convenient point B’ along PG (see Fig. 2.17) w/o
prism
Limitations: laser maximum range (typically ~ 100
m) & type of building’s surface (absorbing/ dark
surfaces may not work).
Sighting top of tall building  steep vertical angles 
telescope points almost straight up  reading eyepiece
difficult :
 Diagonal eyepiece: “extension” of eyepiece & allows
comfortable viewing from the side: Fig. 2.18(a).

(a) Diagonal Eyepiece (b) Reflectorless Total Station

Fig. 2.18
Digital levels (DL):
 capable of electronic image processing.
 staffs: bar codes on one side, conventional
graduations on the other

1. Observer directs telescope onto staff’s bar-coded side

& focuses on it.
2. Press a button: DL reads bar codes & determines
staff reading. Result displayed on a panel.
 Eliminate booking errors & expedite leveling work
 Can be used in conventional way also.
Typical standard error for DL: < 1 mm @ sighting distance = 100 m

Observation range: typical upper limit ~ 100 m, lower limit ~ 2 m.

(a) Digital Level (b) Bar-coded side of a staff

Fig. 2.19