Module One

Basic Principle 0f Surveying

Land Surveying is the first step of starting a new civil engineering project, is a very
important branch of civil engineering. To understand the techniques of surveying
a student must carefully study the basics of it. To start learning surveying one
must start with the definition of surveying and its importance.

What is Land Surveying?

Land survey could be defined as part of measuring as area on the earth and
represent it to some suitable scale of paper. These pieces of papers are called
maps or plan depending on the scale to which they are drawn.

Importance of Land Surveying

The knowledge of land surveying is advantageous in many phases of
engineering. Surveying is of vital importance in any civil engineering project.
Some of the basic importance of Surveying is discussed below.

 The first necessity in surveying is to prepare a plan and a section of an

area to be covered by the project. From these prepared maps and
sections, the best possible alignment, amount of earthwork and other
necessary details depending upon the nature of the project can be
calculated.
 The planning and design of all Civil Engineering projects such as railways,
highways, tunneling, irrigation, dams, reservoirs, waterworks, sewerage
works, airfields, ports, massive buildings, etc. are based upon surveying
measurements.
 During execution of the project of any magnitude is constructed along
the lines and points established by surveying.
 The measurement of land and the fixation of its boundaries cannot be
done without surveying.
 The economic feasibility of the engineering feasibility of a project cannot
be properly ascertained without undertaking a survey work.
 The execution of hydrographic and oceanographic charting and
mapping requires.
 Surveying is used to prepare a topographic map of a land surface of the
earth.

Who is a surveyor?
A surveyor is a person that carryout surveys, especially one whose occupation is
surveying land. That is determining the size, shape, or boundaries of pieces of
land

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Some the work of surveyor includes:
1. Determine height and distance (Leveling)
2. Setting out building, sewers, drains and road way
3. Determines and volumes of regular and irregular figures
4. Prepare a finish detailed drawing

These operations involve the application of practical mathematician

knowledgeable in geometry and trigonometry and possess a fair ability for
drawing and painting.

Types of Land Surveying

Land Surveying can mainly be classified into 2 groups-

 Plane Surveying
 Geodetic or Trigonometrical Surveying

Plane Surveying
Plane surveying deals with small areas on the surface of the earth assuming the
surface of the land to be plane. So curvature of the earth is neglected. Plane
surveying can further be subdivided in the following ways:
Chain Surveying

 Area to be surveyed is divided into a number of triangles

 The length of the sides are measured and the interior details recorded
 Whole are then plotted on a drawing sheet to a suitable scale to produce
the map

Traverse Surveying

 The plot of the plan is enclosed by a series of straight lines making angles
with each other.
 The length of the lines and angles are measured and plotted with details
on a drawing paper to a suitable scale to produce the map

Plane Table Surveying

 The observations and plotting are done simultaneously

 An art paper or sheet is fixed on a calibrated plane table
 The field observations are taken and recorded side by side on the paper
and eventually the map is prepared.

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Ordinary Leveling

 The elevations of different points on the earth surface are determined.

 Provides all the elevation data needed for construction activities

Geodetic Surveying
Geodetic surveying deals with vast areas, so curvature has to be considered.
Geodetic surveying can be subdivided in the following ways:
Triangulation

 A network of well-defined triangles is formed on the plot of land to be

surveyed.
 One of the lines is considered as the baseline, all other lines and angles
are then measured accordingly.

Reciprocal Leveling

 Used in leveling across streams, gullies, and other obstructions to eliminate

instrumental errors
 Level readings are taken from two setups at two different points
 The difference in levels between two sites with obstructions is determined
through this survey

Tacheometry or Stadia Surveying

 A telescopic sight instrument is used to measure distances

 It incorporates a theodolite controlled by an operator and a level staff
held by another surveyor at a distance.
 Both vertical and horizontal distances are computed through stadia (the
two horizontal markings on a theodolite) readings

Photographic surveying

 Maps are prepared from photographs taken from suitable camera

stations; the stations can be even airplanes.
 The output is a map, a drawing or a 3D model of some real-world scene or
object.

Uses of Land Surveying

Some of the numerous functions of land surveying are given below.

 Topographical maps showing hills, rivers, towns, villages, forests etc. are
prepared by land surveying.

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  For planning and estimating new engineering projects like water supply
and irrigation schemes, mines, railroads, bridges, transmission lines,
buildings etc. surveying is required.
 Cadastral Map showing the boundaries a field houses and other
properties are prepared by surveying.
 Engineering map showing the position of engineering works like roads,
railways, buildings, dams, canals etc. are prepared through surveying.
 To set out a work and transfer details from map to ground knowledge of
surveying is used.

The Metric System of Measurement

The metric system has been standardize and the system international (SI) set out
the basic and drive units which have been agreed internationally.

The following units are most important to a surveyor.

Quantity Recommended SI unit Other unit which may be

used
Length Kilometer (Km) Centimeter (cm)
Metre (m)
Millimetre (mm)
Area Square metre (m2) Square centimeter (cm2)
Square millimetre (mm2) Hectare (10,000 m2) (ha)
Volume Cubic metre (m3) Cubic centimeter (cm3)
Cubic millimetre(mm3)
Mass Kilgramme (Kg)
Gramme (g)
Milligramme (mg)
Capacity Cubic metre (m3) Litre (l)
Cubic millimetre(mm3) Millitre (ml)

It is necessary to see exactly how mass volume and capacity are related. The
table below Show the basic relationship from which others may be deduced.

Volume Mass Capacity

1 cubic metre 1000 litres 1000 litres
1 cubic decimetre 1 kilogram 1 litre
1 cubic centimetre 1 gramme 1 millilre

Notes: Linear measurement should be written in three decimal places to avoid

confusion, unless required otherwise.
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Angular measurement

In many countries of the world, angles are measure in degree, which is a

sexagesimal unit. Degrees are subdivided into minute and seconds, in exactly
the same manner as time.

Thus there sixty minute in one degree and sixty second in one minute.

Examples :
1. Find the sum of the following measurements:
a. 1 metre and 560 millimetres
b. 15 metres and 31 centimetres
c. 25 metres and 9 centimetres and 8 millimetres

Answer:
a. 1.000 + 0.560 = 1.560 m
b. 15.000 + 0.310 = 15.310 m
c. 25.000 + 0.090 + 0.008 = 25.098 m

2. Calculate the area (in hectares) of rectangle plot of ground measuring 85

m long by 160m wide

Answer:
85.000 x 160.000 = 13600.000 m2 ÷ 10000 = 1.360 ha.

3. Find the values of:

a. 56o 35’ 20’’ - 15o 19’ 45’’
b. 14o 35’ 52’’ - 12o 39’ 23’’

Answer:
a. 56o 35’ 20’’ - 15o 19’ 45’’ = 45o 15’ 35’’
c. 14o 35’ 52’’ - 12o 39’ 23’’ = 26o 74’ 75’’ = 27o 15’
15’’

Surveying Mathematics

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The following formulae are given because of their general usefulness in everyday
situations. Fundamental trigonometrically Ratios
In the figure, angle B is a right angle. Sides a, b, and c lies opposite the angles A,
B, and C

1. Sin A = a/b 4. Cosec A = b/a = 1/Sin A

2. Cos A = c/b 5. Sec A = b/c = 1/Cos A

3. Tan A = a/c 6. Cot A = c/a = 1/Tan A

The following formulae are given because of their general usefulness in everyday
situations. Fundamental trigonometrically Ratios

The following formulae are applied in both acute and obtuse triangles

7. Sin Rule: a/Sin A = b/Sin B = c/Sin C = 2R (R = radius of circumscribing

circle)

8. Cosine Rule: a2 = b2 + c2 - 2ab CosA

9. Area Rule: Area of triangle ABC = ½ ab SinC

10. Tangent half angle formulae: Tan (A-B)/2 = (a-b)/(a+b) x Cot c/2

11. The ‘ S ’ formulae: Area of triangle ABC = (𝑠)(𝑠 − 𝑎)(𝑠 − 𝑏)(𝑐 − 𝑐)

Or CosA/2 = (𝑠)(𝑠 − 𝑎)/(𝑏𝑐)

Where s = (a + b + c) / 2
Example 4
In a simple triangulation scheme several triangle have been linked to produce
the following figure. The base line AB has been measured by tapes of the various
triangles by a theodolite. Calculate the distance DE across the river.

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Solution:
In triangle ABC:
AC/Sin 83o = AB/Sin 32 (By sine rule)
AC = ABSin 83/Sin 32
= 150.2 Sin 83/Sin 32 = 389.581 m

In Triangle ACE
CE/Sin 57o = AC/Sin 62 (By Sine Rule)
CE = AC Sin 57/Sin 62
= 389.581 Sin 57/Sin 62 = 358.163

In triangle DEC:
DE/Sin 49o = CE/Sin 63 (By sine rule)
DE = CESin 49/Sin 63
= 358.163 Sin 49/Sin 63 = 281.327 m

Example 5
A triangle plot of ground has been surveyed by measuring line AB = 231 m and
the altitude 164.0 m. Calculate the area of the plot in hectares.

Area ABC = ½ base x altitude

= 115.5 x 164 = 18942 m2
= 1.894 hectares
Example 6
Calculate the largest angle of the triangle whose sides on a plot of ground are:
AB = 210 m, AC = 110 m and BC = 205 m

Solution:
The largest angle will be ACB since it is opposite the longest side.
By Cosine Rule:
Cos C = (a2 + b2 – c2) / 2ab
= (2052 + 1102 - 2102) / 2 x 205 x 110
= 77o 09’ 00’’

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 Module Two
Plan Scales

The outcome of land survey is usually the production of a scaled drawing (plan
or maps). The scale of a map depends upon the purpose for which the map is
required. A scale of a map is the ration between any distance on the map and
the actual distance on the ground.

If 10 mm on a plan represent a ground distance on 10 km, the scale would be

very small and there would be very little detail shown (a page in an Atlas). If
however, the same 10 mm represent only a distance of 1 m on the ground the
scale would be large and even small detail could be shown.

Method of showing scale

The scale of a plan or map can be shown in three ways:

1. I may simple be expressed in words

For example, 1 cm represent 1 m. By definition of scale, this simple mean
that 1 cm on the plan represents 1 m on the ground.

2. By drawn scale
A line is drawn on the plan and divided into convenient intervals such that
distances on the map can be easily obtained from it. If the scale 1 cm
represent 1 m is used, the scale in the figure would be used

The figure is an example of an open divided scale in which the primary

divisions (1.0 m) are shown on the right of the zero. The zero is positioned
one unit from the left of the scale and this unit is subdivided into
secondary divisions. An alternative method of showing a scale is to fill the
divisions, thus making a filled line scale, an example is show below

3. By a representative fraction
In this method of showing scale, a fraction is used in which the numerator
represents the number of units on map or plan (always 1) and the
denominator represents the number of the same units on the ground. With
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 a scale on 1/100, shown as 1:100, since there are 100 cm in 1.0 m. A
representative fraction (RF) is an international way of showing scale.

Example 1:
If 1 cm on a map represent 10 m on the ground. What will be the RF scale?

= = 1:1000

Example 2:
Calculate the scale of a plan where 1 mm represents o.5 m on the ground.

Scale = =
.

= = = 1:500

Example 3:
If the RF on map is 1:120, how many units on the ground do 2 maps units
represent?

RF = 1:120
i.e. 1 unit = 120 units
Therefore 2 units = 2 x 120 = 240 units

Example 4:
If the RF on map is 1:1200, how far apart would two points be on the map if their
actual ground distance is 360 m?

RF = 1:1200
(i.e. 1 m on the map equal 1200 m on ground. x
m on the map equal 360 m on ground or)
=

Therefore x = 360/1200 = 0.3 m = 300 mm

Conversion of Areas by Representative Fractions

The area of a parcel of land in a survey work drawn on a scaled plan is

measured by an instrument called a planimetre. The planimetre measures area
in square centimeter (cm2) and the actual ground area have to be calculated.

If the RF scale on a plan is very large, say 1:4, one unit on the plan will represent
four units on the ground. A square on 1 unit on the plan will represent a ground
area on 4 units x 4 units. From these facts emerges a simple formula:

Plan scale = 1:4

Plan Area = 1x1 = 12 = 1 sq. unit
Ground Area = 4x4 = 42 = 4 sq. units
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 =

Plan Area =

= Ground Area x

= Ground Area x ( ) 2 or (1:4)2

Hence the formula;

Plan Area = Ground Area x (RF) 2

Example 5:
The scale of a plan is 1:4. If a square on the plan measures 3 by 3 units, what is
the corresponding area?
RF = 1:4
Plan Area = 3x3 = 9 sq. units
Using the formula
Plan Area = Ground Area x (RF) 2

9 = GA x ( )2

9 x 16 = GA = 144 sq. units

Example 6:
An area was measured on a plan by a rule as 250 mm x 175 mm. Calculate the
ground area in square metre if the scale is; (i) 1:2000 and (ii) 1:500

Solution;
i. Plan area = (250 x 175) mm2

= m2

RF = 1:2000 (i.e. 1 mm on plan equal 2000 mm on ground)

(RF) 2 = 2 =

Using the formula;

Plan Area = Ground Area x (RF)2

= Ground Area x

Ground Area = x 4000000 = 175000 m2

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 RF = 1:500
Plan Area = Ground Area x (RF)2

Ground Area = x 500 x 500 = 10937.5 m2

Example 7:
A plot of land was surveyed and found to have an area of 2000 m2. If it is plotted
on a plan, scale 1:500, what will be the plan area in mm2 ?

RF = 1:500 (i.e. 1 mm on plan equal 500 mm on ground)

Ground Area = (2000 x 1000 x 1000) mm2

Plan Area = Ground Area x (RF)2

= Ground Area x 2

= 2000 x 1000 x 1000 x = 8000 mm2

Example 8:
A plot of land is in the form of a rectangle in which the length is twice the breath.
When surveyed, it was found to have an area of 16722.54 m2. Calculate the
length of the sides as on a plan whose scale is 10560

Solution
Plan Area = Ground Area x (RF)2

= 16722.54 x 2 (m2)

= 16722.54 x 1000 x 1000 x (mm2)

= 149.96 mm2

Let the dimensions be 2x by x

Then Area = 2x2
Therefore 2x2 = 149.96 mm2
x 2 = 75.00 mm2
x = 8.66 mm

Therefore plot measurement is 8.66 mm x 17.32 mm

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