Introduction to Surveying 2019

INTRODUCTION
SURVEYING:
It is the art of determining or establishing the relative positions of points on, above or
below the surface of the earth by means of direct or indirect measurements of distance,
direction and elevation.
Surveying can be divided into two classes:
(1) Plane Surveying: It is the type of surveying in which the mean surface of the earth is
considered as plane and the spherical shape is neglected. All triangles formed by
survey lines are considered as plane triangles. The level line is considered as straight
and all plumb lines are considered parallel
(2) Geodetic Surveying: It is the type of surveying in which the shape of the earth is taken
into account. All lines lying on the surface are curved lines and the triangles are
spherical triangles. It, therefore, involves spherical trigonometry. All geodetic surveys
include work of larger magnitude and high degree of precision.

CLASSIFICATION OF SURVEYING:
Surveys may be classified under headings which define the uses or purpose of the
resulting maps.
(1) Classification based upon the nature of the field Survey:
a. Land Surveying:
(i) Topographical Surveys: This consists of horizontal and Vertical location of
certain points by linear and angular measurements and is made to determine
the natural features of a country such as rivers, streams, lakes, hills e.t.c and
artificial features as roads, railways, canals, towns and villages
(ii) Cadastral Surveys: These are made incident to the fixing of property lines,
calculation of land area, or the transfer of land property from one owner to
another.
(iii) City Surveying: They are made in connection with the construction of streets,
water supply systems, sewers and other works
b. Marine or Hydrographic Survey: It deals with bodies of water for purpose of
navigation, water supply, harbour works or for the determination of mean sea level.
The work consists in measurement of discharge of streams, making topographic
survey of shores and banks, taking and locating soundings to determine the depth of
water and observing the fluctuations of the ocean tide
c. Astronomical Survey: It offers the surveyor means of determining the absolute
location of any point or the absolute location and direction of any line on the surface
of the earth. This consists in observations to the heavenly bodies such as the Sun or
any fixed star.
(2) Classification based on the object of Survey:
a. Engineering Survey: This is undertaken for the determination of quantities or to afford
sufficient data for the designing of engineering works such as roads and reservoirs, or
those connected with sewage disposal or water supply.
b. Military Survey: This is used for determining points of strategic importance
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c. Mine Survey: This is used for the exploring mineral wealth

d. Geological Survey: This is used for determining different strata in the Earth’s Crust
e. Archaeological Survey: This is used for unearthing relics of antiquity

(3) Classification based on Instruments used:

An alternative classification may be based upon the Instruments or methods
employed, the chief types being:
a. Chain survey
b. Theodolite survey
c. Traverse survey
d. Triangulation survey
e. Tachometric survey
f. Plane table survey
g. Photogrammetric survey, and
h. Aerial survey
PRINCIPLES OF SURVEYING:
The fundamental principles upon which the various methods of surveying are based
are of very simple nature and can be stated as below
(1) Working from whole to part:
The ruling principle of surveying, whether plane or geodetic, is to work from
whole to part. It is very essential to establish first a system of control points and to
fix them with higher precision. Minor control points can then be established by
less precise methods and the details can then be located using these minor control
points by running minor traverses e.t.c. The idea of working in this way is to
prevent the accumulation of errors and to control and localize minor errors which,
otherwise, would expand to greater magnitudes if the reverse process is followed,
thus making the work uncontrollable at the end
(2) Always choose the method of survey that is most suitable for the purpose
(3) Always make Provisions of Adequate checks
(4) Always record Field Data Carefully.
TRIANGULATION AND TRILATERATION:
The method of surveying called Triangulation is based on the trigonometric proposition
that if one side and three angles of a triangle are known, the remaining sides can be
computed. Furthermore, if the direction of one side is known, the directions of the
remaining sides can be determined. A triangulation system consists of a series of joined
or overlapping triangles in which an occasional side is measured and remaining sides are
calculated from angles measured at the vertices of the triangles. The vertices of the
triangles are known as triangulation stations. The side of the triangle whose length is
predetermined, is called the base line. The lines of triangulation system form a network
that ties together all the triangulation stations (Fig. 1.1).

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 Introduction to Surveying 2019

Fig: 1.1 Triangulation Station

A Trilateration system also consists of a series of joined or overlapping triangles.
However, for trilateration the lengths of all the sides of the triangle are measured and few
directions or angles are measured to establish azimuth. Trilateration has become feasible
with the development of electronic distance measuring (EDM) equipment which has
made possible the measurement of all lengths with high order of accuracy under almost
all field conditions.
A combined triangulation and trilateration system consists of a network of triangles in
which all the angles and all the lengths are measured. Such a combined system represents
the strongest network for creating horizontal control.

DATUM:
In surveying, a datum is a reference point or surface against which position measurements
are made, and an associated model of the shape of the earth for computing positions.
Horizontal datum’s are used for describing a point on the earth's surface, in latitude and
longitude or another coordinate system. Vertical Datum’s are used for describing
Elevation of the point. Universally accepted Datum for Elevation is Mean Sea Level
(M.S.L)
GEOID:
The geoid is the shape that the surface of the oceans would take under the influence of
Earth's gravitation and rotation alone, in the absence of other influences such as winds
and tides. All points on the geoid have the same gravity potential energy (the sum of
gravitational potential energy and centrifugal potential energy). The force of gravity acts
everywhere perpendicular to the geoid, meaning that plumb lines point perpendicular and
water levels parallel to the geoid.
AZIMUTH
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Azimuth: If the bearing of a line is measured with magnetic north in clockwise direction
then that bearing is called as Azimuth of that line. The value of the Azimuth thus varies
from 0o to 360o.
LATITUDE
Latitude is an angle which ranges from 0° at the Equator to 90° (North or South) at the
poles. Lines of constant latitude, or parallels, run east–west as circles parallel to the
equator. Latitude is used together with longitude to specify the precise location of features
on the surface of the Earth.
LONGITUDE
Longitude is the angular distance, in degrees, minutes, and seconds, of a point east or
west of the Prime (Greenwich) Meridian. Lines of longitude are often referred to as
meridians
MAP PROJECTIONS
A map projection is a systematic transformation of the latitudes and longitudes of
locations on the surface of a sphere or an ellipsoid into locations on a plane (or) A Way of
showing the curved 3-Dimensional (3D) surface of the Earth on a flat 2-Dimensional
(2D) Map is called as Map Projections. Map projections are necessary for creating maps.
There are different types of map projections for different purposes. All map projections
distort the surface in some fashion. Depending on the purpose of the map, some
distortions are acceptable and others are not.
SCALES
Map scale refers to the relationship (or ratio) between distance on a map and the
corresponding distance on the ground. For example, on a 1:100000 scale map, 1cm on the
map equals 1km on the ground. This simple concept is complicated by the curvature of
the Earth's surface, which forces scale to vary across a map.
PLANS & MAPS
The main Object of the survey is to develop a Plan and a Map. The results of surveys
when drawn on a paper forms a plan or a map.
On a plan or a map only horizontal distances are shown. The plan or map is made
according to some scale chosen. “If the scale is small, the representation is called map,
while it is called plan if the scale is large.”
We can understand this by considering that the map of a country is made to a very small
scale. So that information represented should not exceed to the paper.
While the plan of the building is made large and large scale is chosen for that. Therefore
the basic difference between plan and a map is that of scale.
Only horizontal distances are shown on a plan or a map. Vertical distances are correctly
shown by means of vertical sections called sections.
SOURCES OF ERRORS
Errors may arise from three sources:

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(1) Instrumental: Error may arise due to imperfection or faulty adjustment of the
instrument with which measurement is being taken. For example, a tape may be
too long or an angle measuring instrument may be out of adjustment. Such errors
are known as Instrumental errors
(2) Personal: Error may also arise due to want of perfection of human sight in
observing and of touch in manipulating instruments. For example, an error may be
there in taking the level reading or reading an angle on the circle of a theodolite.
Such errors are known as personal errors.
(3) Natural: Error may also be due to variations in natural phenomena such as
temperature, humidity, gravity, wind, refraction and magnetic declination. For
example, a tape may be 20 meters at 20oC, but its length will change if the field
temperature is different.

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