A total station is an optical instrument used in modern surveying. It is a combination of an electronic theodolite (transit)) an electronic distance measuring device (EDM) and software running on an external computer.
With a total station one may determine angles and distances from the instrument to points to be surveyed. With the aid of trigonometry, the angles and distances may be used to calculate the coordinates of actual positions (X, Y, and Z or northing, easting and elevation) of surveyed points, or the position of the instrument from known points, in absolute terms. The data may be downloaded from the theodolite to a computer and application software will generate a map of the surveyed area. Some total stations also have a GPS interface.
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See also
External link
Leica total station
Last updated: 10-15-2005 05:58:32
