DIFFERENTMETHODSOFSURVEYING

M.Seedat,S.Thusi,M.Zaca,L.Mnembe,N.NdabaSurveyandLandInformationDept.(June2012)

Introduction
Mostpeoplehaveanunderstandingthatsurveyingisonlyrestrictedtofieldworkonconstructionsites. Thetruthofthematteristhattherearesixdifferenttypesofsurveyingthatasurveyorcanchoosefrom inordertoundertakeaparticularjob,namely: GeodeticSurveys CadastralSurveys EngineeringSurveys AerialSurveys MiningSurveys HydrographicSurveys Inthisarticlewewilldiscussthesedifferenttypes.Toalargedegree,theextentofurbanizationand relativeworthofthelanddeterminethemethodofsurveyingmostappropriate.Theequipmentused varieswiththeneedandnatureofsurvey.

GeodeticSurveys
GeodeticSurveyingisbasicallycontrolsurveyingonalargescale,thismeansthatitiscontrolsurvey overlongdistanceswheremeasurementsaretakenandtheearthscurvatureandatmospheric pressuresdeductionsareconsideredandapplied.ThewordgeodesyisfromaGreekwordgeodasia meaningdividingandthestudyoftheearthsshapeandsize. Inmostcasesthistypeofsurveyiscarriedoutwhenestablishingcontrolnetworkoflargemagnitude, i.e.thenetworkoftrigonometricalsurveybeaconsofthecountry.Ifyoucanimaginethedauntingtask ofmeasuringtheseinSouthAfrica,withallthemountains,valleysandrivers,thisiswhythecurvatureof earthcalculationsareofvastimportanceingeodeticsurveying.

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Asweallknow,theearthssurfaceisround,howeverhighlyirregularandnotsuitableasa computationalsurfacebecauseofthemountains,valleys,riversandthesurfaceofthesea,itisbecause ofthisreasonthatthemoresuitablesurfaceswereassumedforcomputationalpurposes,namelythe GeoidandanEllipsoid. Belowaretheillustrationsthatshowtherelationshipbetweentheearthssurface,thegeoidandan ellipsoid.

Thegeoidisdefinedasthemore smoothedrepresentationofthe earthandisdescribedasthe surfacethatwouldbeassumedby theundisturbedsurfaceofthesea, continuedunderneaththe continentsbymeansofsmall frictionlesschannelswhilethe ellipsoidisasmoothmathematical surfacethatbestfitstheshapeof thegeoidandisthenextlevelof approximationoftheactualshape oftheearth.

Itisofutmostimportancetotakenoteoftheseissueswhenundertakinggeodeticsurveyasitinvolves thecurvatureoftheearthandtheatmosphericconditionsandtoproducethe3dimensionalcontrol pointsofgoodquality,i.e.horizontalvaluesofY&XandheightatMSL.

CadastralSurveys
ThenameCadastreisaLatinbasetermwhichreferstoaregistryoflands.CadastralSurveyingis surveyingoflandsoastodetermineanddefinelandownershipandboundaries. Mostpeopledonottakeseriouslytheissueofsurveyingtheirpropertiesbeforetheydeveloporerecta fence/wall,untiltheyhavefoundoutthattheyhavespentsomuchmoneyonthosedevelopmentsetc. onsomeoneelsespropertyorland. Page2of11

 Cadastralsurveydealswithmeasurementsofland,subdivisionsandsectionaltittles.Thiskindofsurvey canonlybecarriedoutbyaProfessionalLandSurveyorregisteredwiththeSouthAfricanCouncilfor ProfessionalandTechnicalSurveyors(PLATO)asitisstatedontheLandSurveyAct(No.8of1997). CADASTRALSURVEYSINSOUTHAFRICANCONTEXT TherearecurrentlynineSurveyorGeneralsoffices,eachofwhichregulatesCadastralSurveysinthe Provincesforwhichitresponsible.Theseofficesaredealingwiththesafekeepingofsurveyrecords, examinationsandapprovalofcadastralsurveys,generalplansanddraftsectionalplansforregistration purpose. NearbyalltheseSurveyorsGeneralofficesthereareDeedsOfficeswhichdealwiththeregistrationof propertiesorland. SurveyorGeneralsofficehaveaplansafewheretheykeepallcadastralsurveysthathavebeen submittedtothembydifferentLandSurveyors.Theserecordsareusedforbeaconrelocationsandall othercadastralsurveystoensurethatthereisnopossibilityofpropertiesoverlappingastoavoid conflictingclaimstoownership. InSouthAfrica,onlyProfessionalLandSurveyorsregisteredwiththeSouthAfricanCouncilfor ProfessionalandTechnicalSurveyors(PLATO)arelegallyentitledtoundertakethiswork. HowCadastralSurveysareperformed Surveymethods Therearenoprescribedmethodsthatareusedincadastralsurvey,eachsurveyisdifferentfromthe otheranditalldependsontheareaandinformationthatlandsurveyorshave.Theonlyrequirementis thatallcadastralsurveymustbeadequatelyandcarefullychecked.Thecontrolmustbebasedonthe NationalControlNetwork. Allsurveyinstrumentscanbeusedforcadastralsurveyaslongastheyareaccurate.WhenusingtheGPS orphotogrammetrictechniques,alandsurveyorneedstofollowspecialrequirementsthatarelaid down. Theaccuraciestowhichsurveysmustbecarriedoutareprescribedandtherearethreeclassesof surveys: Page3of11 ClassAsurveysforthedeterminationofthepositionofreferencemarksinurbansurveys ClassBsurveysinurbanandminingtitlesinrespectofpreciousstones ClassCothersurveys,includingfarmsurveysandsurveysforminingtitlesinrespectofbase minerals.

BeaconsandBoundaries Apropertybeaconisanaturalorartificialfeaturewhichmarkstheboundarycornerofapieceof land/property.Aboundaryisanimaginarylinebetweenthebeacons. Thetypesofbeaconsthatcanbeusedareprescribedbytheregulations,butitisusuallyanironpegof specifieddimension,cornerofapermanentbuilding,wellconstructedcornerpostoradrilledholein rock/concrete.Allbeaconsusedneedtobedescribedonthegeneralplanordiagram. Atypicalgeneralplan

ConsolidationandSubdivisionalsurveys Aconsolidationiswhereanownerofadjacentproperties/landwantstocombineittoformonebig property/land.Asubdivisionistheoppositeofaconsolidation;hereanownerofadjacent properties/landwantstocuthis/herproperty/landintosmallpiecesofparcels. ThiskindofsurveycanonlybedonebyaregisteredProfessionalLandSurveyorandtheLandSurveyor needtosendallthenecessaryinformationtotheSurveyorGeneralOfficeforregistrationandapproval.

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EngineeringSurveys
Thistypeofsurveyisassociatedwiththeengineeringdesign(topographic,layoutandasbuilt)often requiringgeodeticcomputationsbeyondnormalcivilengineeringpractice.Itisrequiredinplanningand executionofnearlyeveryformofconstruction.Theequipmentcommonlyusedforthisaretheodolites, GNSS(GPS)andlevellinginstruments. TopographicorDetailSurveys Thepurposeoftopographicsurveyistogathersurveydataaboutthenaturalandmanmadefeaturesof thelandaswellasitselevations.Mapsarethenpreparedfromthisinformation.Theworkusually consistsofthefollowing: Establishinghorizontalandverticalcontrolthatwillserveasreferencepointsforthesurvey.Themost accuratemethodofestablishingtheverticalcontrolisbylevelling. Collectingenoughhorizontalandelevationofgroundpointstoprovideenoughdataforplottingwhen themapisprepared.Forexample,whensurveyingforupgradingataxirank,thefeaturestobelocated willbe:existingsidewalks,curbs,trees,island,etc.Andalsoforaroadintersectionfeatureslike:kerbs, roadmarking(white/yellowlines),islandswillbelocated. thePositionandshapeofnaturalandmanmadefeaturesthatmayberequiredforthesurvey. Calculatingdistances,anglesandelevations.

SettingOut Thisisdonetoconstructastructureaccuratelyaccordingtoadesign.Themostcommonprocedureisto establishagridinrelationtothedesign.Then,particularpointsarecorrectlystakedoutphysicallyon siteeitheronexactpositionorataparticularoffsetasagreedamongstpartiesinvolved Page5of11

AsBuiltSurveys Thistypeofsurveyiscarriedoutduringorimmediatelyafteraconstructionprojectforrecord, completionevaluationandpaymentpurposes.Anasbuiltsurveyshowsthelocationorpositionof featuresthathavebeenconstructedandthataresubjecttocompletionevaluation.Asbuiltsurveysare usuallycomparedtothedesigninformation.Theyshowthedifferencebetweentheconstructedorbuilt informationandthedesign. AreasandVolumes Onanengineeringsitethemeasurementofareasismoreoftenonlyastepinthedeterminationof volumesalthoughoccasionsdoarisewhenareasareonlyrequiredforexample; DesignandCosting:Forcapacityofthewall,volumeofmaterialwithingivenlimits,orvolume requiredtofillanemptyspace.Allofthesearedeterminedbydoingasurveyandcertaincalculations. TheSurveyDepartmenthasundertakensomeof theasbuilt,settingoutandfieldcheckson numeroussitesintheEthekwiniMunicipalitythe largestbeingtheconstructionoftheQueenNandi Drivefromphase1tothepresentphaseof construction.Wecontinuetocarryoutdetail surveysforvariousprojectsforalldepartmentsin themunicipality.

AerialSurveys
Aerialsurveyisamethodofcollectinginformationconductedfromanairborneplatform.Thisis collectedbyusingaerialphotography,LiDARorlaserscanning.Itisoftenrecognizedsimilarlyas aerophotogrammetry,partofphotogrammetrywherethecameraismountedonanaircraft.Aerial surveyisdifferenttosatelliteimagerybecauseofitsbetterresolution,qualityandatmospheric conditions. Photogrammetryisthepracticeofdeterminingthegeometricpropertiesofobjectsfromphotographic images.Thisinvolvesestimatingthethreedimensionalcoordinatesofpointsonanobject.Theseare determinedbymeasurementsmadeintwoormorephotographicimagestakenfromdifferent positions.Commonpointsareidentifiedoneachimage.Alineofsight(orray)canbeconstructedfrom thecameralocationtothepointontheobject.Itistheintersectionoftheserays(triangulation)that determinesthethreedimensionallocationofthepoint.

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 Inthesimplestexample,thedistancebetweentwopointsthatlieonaplaneparalleltothe photographicimageplanecanbedeterminedbymeasuringtheirdistanceontheimage,ifthescaleof theimageisknown.Theimagesareobtainedbymountingacameraonanaircraftwhichpoints verticallydowntowardstheground.Multipleoverlappingphotosofthegroundaretakenastheaircraft fliesalongaflightpath.Thesephotosareprocessedinastereoplotter(aninstrumentthatletsan operatorseetwophotosatonceinstereoview).Generallythehigheryouflythelesspointsyouhave persquaremeterandyourpixelresolutionworsens. Photogrammetryismoreaccurateinthexandydirectionwhilerangedataisgenerallymoreaccuratein thezdirection.TherangedatacanbesuppliedbytechniqueslikeLiDARandlaserscanners. AirborneLiDARisahighlycosteffectivemeansofcollectingdetailedtopographicsurveyinformation, andofferssignificantadvantagesovertraditionalformsoftopographicalsurveyintermsofspeed, access,resolution,accuracyandcanopypenetration,foravarietyofapplications. LiDARLightDetectionandRangingisamethodofdetectingdistantobjectsanddeterminingtheir positionorothercharacteristicsbyanalysisofpulsedlaserlightreflectingfromtheirsurfaces.Basicallya laserpulseisreflectedfromarotatingmirrorinsidealaserscanner.Bymeasuringthetimedelay betweenwhenthelaserpulseisemitted,andwhenitreturnstothescanner,thedistancebetweenthe scannerandtheobjectcanbepreciselydetermined.Thescannercanalsoaccuratelymeasureangles. Whenallofthedistance,angularandpositionalinformationisprocessedthescannercanproduce highlyaccurate3dimensionaldataset,whichissometimesreferredtoapointcloud.Photoscanclearly definetheedgesofbuildingswhenthepointcloudfootprintcannot.Thereforeoftentheorthorectified imagesaredrapedontopoftheLiDARgridthuscreatinga3dimensionalvisualsurvey.

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Aerialsurveysareusedfor: Archaeology Agriculture Landsurveys Mining Reconnaissance Fisherysurveys Monitoringvegetationandground cover Largescaleplanningforland development

A3DvisualizationcanbecreatedbygeoreferencingtheaerialphotosandLiDARdatainthesame referenceframe.Thelaserscannersareeithermountedontoairplanesorhelicopters,thelatterbeing morepopularastheyaremoremaneuverableandcanbeflownatloweraltitudes.Typicalprogress ratesforlinearinfrastructureroutes,suchaselectricitytransmissionlinesorhighways,are80100km perday. Thisimageshowsatypical scanofapylonsurvey(note thecablesbetweenpylonsare scannedaswell) Thecostofaerialsurveying hasreduceddramaticallyover thepastdecadeandwill continuetodoso.

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MiningSurveys
Miningsurveyisaspecialistareaofsurveyinginvolvingthemeasurement,representationand managementofdataassociatedwithminingoperationswhichcouldbetheundergroundandopencut mineworkings.Thesemeasurementsenablenewmineworkstoavoidolderandpossiblyfloodedones, allowconnectionstobemadebetweendifferentundergroundpassagesandalsotoestablishthe boundariesofminingclaimsandterritories.

Minesurveyorsareresponsibleforpreparingandupdatingtheentiresurfaceandundergroundplansof aminetoaccountfornewbuildingsandotherstructuresandtokeeprecordsofminingoperations. Theyplanthedirectionandextentofallundergroundworkingsandusedadvancedsurveying techniquesandinstrumentstogivethesedirectionsunderground. Minesurveyorsworkundergroundmostmorningsoftheweekgivingdirectionlinesfortheminersto followortakingsamplesofthereefandduringtheafternoonstheydocalculationsintheiroffices.

Themethodsandtheinstrumentsusedforopencastandunderground minesurveyingaresimilartothoseusedfornormalsurveysthe differenceisonlywheretheworkingpointsarefixedontheunderground mine,whichisontheceilingoftherocksinthetunnels.

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HydrographicSurveys
Hydrographicsurveyisthescienceofmeasurementanddescriptionofthephysicalfeaturesofthe navigableportionoftheearthssurface(seas)andadjoiningcoastalareas,withspecialreferenceto theiruseforthepurposeofnavigation.Hydrographicsurveyssupportavarietyofactivities:nautical charting,portandharbourmaintenance(dredging),coastalengineering(beacherosionand replenishmentstudies),coastalzonemanagementandoffshoreresourcedevelopment. InsuitableshallowwaterareasLIDAR(LightDetectionandRanging)maybeusedwhichisanoptical remotesensingtechnologythatcanmeasurethedistancetoandotherpropertiesofatargetby illuminatingthetargetwithlightoftenusingpulsesfromalaser.Thisequipmentcanbeinstalledon inflatablecraft,smallcraft,AUVs(AutonomousUnderwaterVehicles),UUVs(UnmannedUnderwater Vehicles)orlargeshipsandcanincludesidescan,singlebeamandmultibeamequipment. Thedatathatiscollectedduringthehydrographicsurveyismassiveandithastoundergopost processing,thinnedoutandcorrectedforerrors.Theseerrorsthatneedtobecorrectedaretheerrors duetobadsounding,theeffectsoftides,waves,waterlevelsandtemperaturedifferences.Usually whenundertakingthissurvey,thesurveyorwouldhaveadditionaldatacollectionequipmenttorecord thedataforcorrectingthesoundings.Thefinalproductisusuallychartswhicharecreatedbya combinationofspecialtychartingsoftwareorCADpackagesusuallyAutoCAD.

ShipscanningtheoceanfloorSonarimageofawreckontheoceanfloor Page10of11

Conclusion
TheSurveyandLandInformationDepartmentintheEthekwiniMunicipalityutilizesallthesesurvey methodswiththeexceptionofaerial,miningandhydrologysurveying.Theseifrequiredareoutsourced tocompaniesthatspecializeandhavetheequipment(airplanes,boatsetc.)toundertakesuchsurveys. HoweverwedoassistinestablishinggroundcontrolpointsandairmarksforthePhotogrammetry Departmentandourdepartmenthasalsoonlyrecentlybegunusinglaserscanninghoweverthisisona limitedandsmallscale(embankmentsandsmallstructures). Afterhavingdiscussedthedifferenttypesofsurveyingavailableandtheirapplicationsonecandecide whichmethodisthemostsuitabletomeetourclientsneeds.Wehopethatthisarticlehasenlightened andclearedupthemindsofthosethatwerenotawarethatthereareothermethodsofsurveyingand theirapplications.

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