Smart total stations in land surveying

Glenford V. D’Souza Senior-General Manager and Spokesperson, LYNX: Lawrence & Mayo, India

Making decisions based on geography is basic to human thinking. Primary decisions such as our style of living, daily commute or the infrastructural planning of a city is totally co-dependent on our geographic and architectural limitations.

Today, everything has the word ‘smart’ associated with it. Be it smartphones, cars, homes, applications. It’s all watered down to make every item and process ‘smart’ and technologyfriendly. The concept of ‘Smart Cities’ continues to evolve as the human population keeps migrating to urban areas, leading to existing infrastructure undergoing radical changes.

Previously, surveying, mapping and record-keeping systems were sufficient for the needs of that time. However, these historical data points were nearly impossible to place into a single database simply because of one factor: geo-referencing. Thanks to the population explosion, sturdy and reliable infrastructure are the need of the hour.

Surveyors play a major role in the development, installation and maintenance of these cities. They assist citizens and engineers to understand the geographical situation and thus make informed decisions. Technology integrated with land surveying has been instrumental in making it all possible.

With modern times, we have seen the introduction of many new and innovative instruments for land surveying, the demand for secure measurements have been a key element for driving the expansion of ‘Smart Total Stations’ market.

There has been a clear shift in the land surveying process, with the introduction of various instruments for the same. Demand for fast and accurate measurements has been a key element for driving the expansion of the ‘Smart Total Stations’ market. It is clear that in an infrastructure-driven economy, Smart Total Stations are bringing about a transformation in this field.

The Global “Total Station Instrument Market” report 2020 highlights key points of the industry which include market dynamics and the growth of the Total Station Instrument industry in upcoming years, a market valued at millions in 2018 and it is estimated to grow further by the end of 2025.

Total Stations combine electronic distance measurement and the angle measuring capabilities of theodolites in one unit. These instruments are used to measure horizontal positions in relation to established control networks. The technological modernization and operational benefits offered by Total Stations make it the foremost preferred; they add ease and accuracy to the surveying process. Total Station surveys are a widely used method to survey topography. With applications ranging from traditional land surveying, landform evolution monitoring, to land use monitoring. In geosciences and biological sciences, Total Stations are now becoming standard tools in monitoring geomorphic change detection of rivers, streams, beaches and more.

Conflicts have been eliminated due to advanced development. As a civilization, we have evolved in the past two decades and made more effective use of our land resources for better infrastructure and green spaces. The smart-cities, metro-cities, roadways, railways and any other form of architecture that we witness today is a testament of accurate and efficient land surveying powered by the Total Smart Stations.

These Smart Total Stations consist of high-precision, intuitive software coupled with lenses for the accurate measurement of land. The salient features of these smart stations are a significant leap in the use of technology in modern land surveys when compared to its previous versions. Therefore, it brings us to the conclusion that ‘Smart Total Stations’ indeed offer no gross errors, providing accuracy in better infrastructure planning.

The technology sector will continue to push the limits of computing speed, physical size and data capacity looking for the “next big thing.” The surveying profession has enjoyed many of the fruits of that success, so one has to simply imagine that many more advances will soon arrive to add value to the horizon of Smart Total Stations.