Class Descriptions
Analysis of Errors in Surveying Measurements (4 to 24 hours)
The nature and types of errors are a significant aspect in planning, executing, and analyzing fieldwork. This versatile course covers the following aspects, from start to finish of survey projects:
- Mistakes and avoidance
- Adjustment of errors
- Weighting
- Standard deviation, confidence intervals, standard deviation of the mean
- Most probable values
- Evaluating performance levels of surveying systems
- Applying results of evaluations to survey practice
Topics can include: nomenclature; hands-on demonstrations using instrumentation of the students, with discussion on practical application of the results; angle-distance equivalents; discussions of traverse and other adjustments and the assumptions made; significant digits when calculating and reporting distances, directions and areas; trigonometric leveling; traversing with GPS.
Did You Know There's No Difference Between “Grid” and “Ground”?
(or, It All Depends on How You Define Difference) (half day)
Surveyors do more and more work on some kind of a grid, the most common being an arbitrarily defined “tangent plane” system. When combining GPS with terrestrial measurements such as those from total stations, the magic of software in the field office computers is brought in to solve the “issues. ” But what are these issues? What is being solved? What does the surveyor need to keep in mind? State plane coordinates or other officially designated projections are often used when making such combinations of measurements. This is just one of many reasons for using an official plane coordinate system.
But perhaps because of a lack of understanding of the mathematics involved, contractors, engineers, architects, and sometimes even surveyors themselves get into a world of trouble because things apparently don't fit. This happens for a variety of reasons. Some are due to the fact that courses are published as grid distances, and bearings and coordinates are published as grid values as well. These problems are the easiest to explain and resolve. The harder problems occur due to lack of good communication between surveyors and the other stakeholders, or lack of understanding on the part of the surveyor as to what is actually happening to GPS and total station measurements as they are “converted” and combined.
This course begins with a basic explanation of how projections work, followed by a easy–to–understand primer on geodetic concepts. The latter is an essential part of learning how to deal with grid–to–ground issues. Then various strategies for communicating the issues and how stakeholders work with the published surveying information will be covered. All of these strategies apply equally to communicating and computing within a surveying organization or between surveying organizations.
Bring a calculator to this course to perform simple calculations to verify the equations presented. The material is much more likely to be understood and remembered this way.
By the end of this session participants will:
- Clearly understand the mathematical processes that occur with a measurement to convert between ground, the ellipsoid (geodetic) and the grid
- Not be confused by the concept of the mapping angle
- Be clear about which mathematical processes are not to be used when converting from grid to ground and vice versa
- Have a collection of strategies to explain projections to your own staff, colleagues, and stakeholders such as engineers and contractors
Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) including Satellite Based Augmentation Systems (SBAS) (half day)
The global navigation system (GPS) has been with us for several decades. But in reality we are at the dawn of the third generation of GPS, often referred to as GPS III. In addition, the Russian GLONASS system has been around long enough, and problems with lack of sufficient satellites, that most of the large manufacturers of GPS receivers for professional applications have added GLONASS satellite tracking capability. The European Union is also planning a GNSS called Galileo. Their first test satellite has been put into orbit and second one is expected soon. In addition, satellite based augmentation systems (SBAS) are proliferating. Some are government sponsored such as WAAS in the U.S. and EGNOS in Europe. Others are privately offered.
In this course we will cover the changing landscape of GNSS. The future capabilities of GPS III, GLONASS and Galileo will be discussed together with a summary of the best experts' predictions of how it will affect position for surveying and mapping applications. SBAS is a further improvement to the positioning capabilities of using the GNSS. We will compare how these work, their limitations and advantages. The latest projected schedules for implementing all of these systems will also be presented.
Session participants will:
- Understand the new capabilities to be implemented with GPS III
- Learn the differences and advantages of adding GLONASS to their GPS capabilities
- Appreciate the timeline and services that will be offered by Galileo and how it might affect one's abilities to do surveying and mapping positioning
- Understand better how SBAS can help a surveyor (and when it cannot) and what the equipment, costs and schedules are for implementing these systems
Instrumentation (4 to 16 hours)
This flexible course covers the basics of how total stations, EDMs (including reflectorless), electronic theodolites and GPS work. If desired, material can also include digital levels, optical theodolites, automatic levels as well as steel tapes, open frame transits, dumpy and tilting levels.
Topics can include: nomenclature; anatomy; variations; automatic functions; accessories (i.e. prisms, antennas, tripods, tribrachs, poles); testing; adjustment (where possible by users); practical tips for optimizing use of the instruments.
A hands-on testing and adjustment session can be included if requested. In conjunction with an instrument repair house (which the course presenter will arrange), the program can also include discussion of the design, maintenance and repairability of instrumentation.
Four contact hours can cover brief details of total stations and GPS. Eight hours can cover in-depth details of total station and GPS use, including brief coverage of accessories. Twelve hours can include either hands-on testing and adjustment of total stations or include discussion of other instrumentation used by surveyors.
Re-engineering Surveyors and Surveying Businesses (half day)
Surveyors often ponder their status as professionals – are they or aren't they? They often also consider their relationship to other professionals. This happens on several fronts. A couple of them are to compare their relative stature to that of other professionals. Another is the dynamics of business relationships with other professionals such as architects, engineers, lawyers, etc. – is it peer to peer or something else?
The program will begin by examining what surveyors do currently and how it affects their self-perception and perceptions by others. We will discuss how these perceptions are created and what we might do to alter them as individuals, as a group, and as businesses. But to alter them, we must know what we want as our (true) image. The discussion will therefore move to what benefits we offer, how to make these less abstract to clients and other professionals, as well as what benefits we might be able to add in the future.
The program will end with a discussion of how we might change, i.e. re-engineer, the way we represent ourselves as individuals, as well as our businesses and associations and the benefits we may be able to derive. Since passivity by individuals and groups is the best way to sidetrack any new initiatives, methods by which we will actively manage them will also be discussed. This program encourages active involvement in the discussion by the session participants.
By the end of this session participants will:
- Understand the status quo of relationships between surveyors and others and how it affects image
- Learn from your peers and the facilitator how you might manage an “image&$45;improvement” program
- Realize that change is inevitable, and thus in making any changes we must consider how the environment in which we operate can change over time
- Appreciate how it requires active and group involvement in image management to create genuine improvements in members of the profession so that image changes are long-lasting and meaningful
Spiral Curves in Modern Surveying (half day)
Very often, surveyors practice “black box” surveying when having to deal with spiral curves in their work. These curves may show up as the geometry in a property line (usually as part of a route designed with spirals) or when performing construction, engineering, or layout surveys. While most of the modern programs in data collectors and office surveying suites do a good job of supporting the surveyor's work, there may be a nagging doubt, simply because the practitioner doesn't actually understand what these geometric shapes are and what mathematics supports them.
This course begins with the basics and covers the descriptive geometry, mathematics (including hand calculations), and quirks involved in using spirals. For example, it will be shown that it is impossible to have to “parallel” spirals in the same manner that we have to parallel (i.e. concentric) circular curves. We will identify differences between spirals and circular curves, and cover strategies for layout, intersections and area calculations.
This is an ideal course for practitioners and technicians who want a good understanding of the theory and mathematical concepts of an area of surveying that remains a mystery to most.
Bring a calculator to this course to perform simple calculations to verify the equations presented. The material is much more likely to be understood and remembered this way.
By the end of this session participants will:
- Understand basic spiral geometry
- Understand several (in some case approximate) mathematical approaches to computing spiral components
- Have a strategy for dealing with unusual spiral situations such as parallel lines
- Develop skills at assessing whether the “canned” spiral programs they use are generating the correct answers
Surveying: The Profession (half day)
Surveying has had a long history as a profession. But due to technology advances in the last half century, and especially the last couple of decades, the methodologies of measurements are constantly changing. Technology that is available to the everyday user such as Google Earth and GPS are changing the ways people think about spatially related information and how to use it. We can only expect changes to the way society thinks and works to further accelerate with novel ideas for coupling technology. This has a direct impact on the practice of surveying. However, because of the relatively slow changes in the history of surveying, there is a “speed of response” problem inbred into surveying practitioners that has been overcome by few of today's surveyors.
This session discusses the historical roots of how surveyors have worked, thought and delivered products to their clients. Then we will cover the technological progress that has occurred as well as what is likely to occur. The progress (changes) that have already occurred will be covered to illustrate how future changes might occur. This progress includes surveying technology as well as general technologies which may be adopted into surveying someday, and others that simply affect the way that clients and potential clients change in their expectations of what surveyors should be able to do. Surveyors will have a choice: respond to changing needs or not. This session will cover the changes in thinking about the profession and how businesses are organized to meet those new and changing needs. The purpose of this course is to help them understand that change itself is not bad; but whether one embraces the change will determine how successful their careers and businesses will be.
By the end of this session participants will be able to:
- Appreciate the historical perspective of surveying
- Understand how technology in the surveyor's workplace has changed the work surveyors do and what and how they deliver their products
- Learn how technology can drive seemingly remote changes in society's attitudes, but which suddenly become significant to the way a surveyor practices his or her profession
- Develop strategies for yourself and your business to anticipate and prepare for change
Surveying with Total Stations (or How to Use Total Stations Optimally) (half day or full day)
We are most efficient and effective when we understand the capabilities and care of the tools we employ. This course covers basics of how total stations work, reflectorless and conventional EDM, robotics, accessories such as prisms, tripods, prism poles and tribrachs, and operating tips.
Topics include: must-do operating tips to ensure optimum performance; trigonometric leveling; assuring quality measurements; managing personnel to insure optimum results; calibrating and testing; how to transfer accuracy specs to results one can expect.
Surveying with GPS (or How to Use GPS Optimally (half day)
The improvement of GPS equipment and availability of signals has made this a tool that more surveyors are relying upon in planning their work. This course addresses the background of the technology and appropriate implementation in survey projects. Topics covered include:
- Basics of how GPS system has been designed for navigation
- How the code phase solution is derived
- How differential positioning using code phase is done
- How carrier phase solutions are derived
- How the surveying GPS software derives solutions and how a surveyor should use those results evaluating results for adequacy
- Understanding errors
- Practical operating tips.
Course material can also include: types of receivers; types of antennas, multipath, other errors that are exclusive to GPS; traversing with GPS; good operating practice with GPS; projections and datums; the altitude vs. elevation problem; how and when to use surveying GPS for elevation measurement.
The Education – Experience Controversy (How Should Surveyors Learn?) (half day)
There are many topics that surveyors discuss pertaining to their profession. One that is often discussed in boardrooms, academia, registration boards, living rooms and bars continues to be whether (or how) the profession is being served by making college education mandatory for surveying licensure. Very often the discussion focuses on a particular state's laws and regulations. Sometimes it is a particular degree program.
In this presentation, we cover the history of the licensing process, the many ways that licensing of surveyors can be accomplished across the U.S., and the parallels between the licensing process for surveyors and other occupations. Surveyors may be surprised to learn that surveying of all the licensed occupations (this includes so-called professionals such as engineers, architects and lawyers as well as others such as morticians, massage therapists and manicurists), has the lowest (if any) requirements for formal education. We will discuss the extent of the surveying body of knowledge, the history of changes in the syllabus of the land surveyors' examinations, and, most importantly, the laws and regulations pertaining to the experience that surveyors must have and what it must include.
Comparisons will be made with licensing processes used in other countries such as Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. The adequacy of the learning derived from experience will be analyzed and participants will be able to make their own determinations of what the ideal licensing process might be. Some follow-up suggestions will be given to help surveying professionals figure out what they can do as individuals and groups to improve the quality of learning that our land surveyor candidates go through, regardless of the licensing path they have chosen in their state. This program will encourage active involvement of the session participants in the discussion.
By the end of this session participants will:
- Understand the licensing processes used in the U.S. and in selected countries
- Learn about the processes used in the U.S. for other licensed occupations – technical and otherwise
- Analyze the learning components acquired by formal education as well as experience
- Learn how you, as a professional, might actively do to improve the process of learning that our land surveyor candidates must go through during their licensing process
