Future of total station

Nevertheless, it is necessary to expect their further perfection.

Important component Total Station is the module of the controller built in or external. As the controller we understand not only computer/calculator, but also the board/keyboard in tacheometer management.

Tacheometer’ functionality depends on
• its productivity,
• memory size,
• type of the screen,
• presence and number of the built in programs.

The majority of tacheometer models have the built in controller operated by the keyboard. The keyboard can be digital or alphanumeric. Some models of Total Station have keyboards from both sides. The number of keys of the keyboard on the average lies within the limits of from 10 up to 30, depending on tacheometer opportunities.

The keyboard with the minimal number of keys, each of which is multipurpose, is very inconvenient and inefficient. At the same time the some Total Station have full PC-compatible keyboards. Some external controllers have DOS-compatible processors. The collected information are wrote down on cards or on the built in microcircuit; in a range of the information from 1 up to 1050 thousand points. The built in programs also can be written down on external cards or the built in microcircuits. External controllers, as a rule, represent serially released manual computers equipped by the special software.

In models of series Geodimeter the controller represents the demountable keyboard; therefore it can be carry as a special kind. Till now this is the unique model in the tacheometer’ world with the demountable keyboard. It possesses doubtless advantages as it is not simply the keyboard, and the controller has internal memory and internal programs. "Uploading" of the information collected in a floor, does not demand delivery camera in office enough one keyboard. The memory size, as well as presence of those or other built in programs, is determined by the user. It is convenient at work of several executors with one tacheometer at everyone the keyboard - the controller. At work in the robotized mode it is not required the additional controller/board of management on a mark with a reflector.

Recently as controllers are widely applied pen computer or touch screen computer. In a basis of creation of such computers the idea of disposal of the keyboard and return to use of the handle or a pencil, but already without traditional field magazine lays. With their help it is possible not only to operate work Total Station and-or the geodetic satellite receiver, but also to process on a place and to see graphic display of results survey on the screen of pen-computers.

The graphic controller which has appeared in 1998 is the representative of new generation of such systems. Unlike set of other graphic controllers which are based on standard pen-computers, serially released by computer firms, it can be established on Total Station instead of the demountable keyboard or on the satellite geodetic receiver. Characteristics, program opportunities and stability to external climatic conditions (from-20 up to +50) quite allow naming the water-resistant case, a range of working temperatures Total Station. For swapping data there is an infra-red port. It carries out functions of management tacheometer and-or the satellite geodetic receiver, thus provides sharing results of shootings of both kinds. The software solves the majority of CAD-problems directly in a field, allow conducting three-dimensional base of survey-making data that enables to build digital model of a relief and to display it in the form of horizontals, to build cuts, sections, structures, to solve tasks of coordinate geometry and many other things.

Exchange with a personal computer, export/import of files provides efficiency of marking works under in advance prepared projects. It is obvious, that graphic systems of real time of type will receive the further development and become an integral part of field survey-making systems. It is possible to assume also, that Total Station with a mechanical drive in the future will be completely replaced tacheometer with the servo-driver.
The servo-driver not only provides convenience of work (servomotors cope the numerous frictional screws, traditional directing and fixing screws are absent), but also raises productivity not less than on 30 %.

If coordinates of points are kept in memory, it is necessary to enter only number of the necessary point and the device is automatically directed at it. At repeated angular measurements on some reflectors, it is necessary to set the order and number of measurements only. As the servo-driver excludes the most part of tiresome work with directing and fixing screws, the probability of mistakes of prompting considerably decreases.

Total Station has four-high-speed servomotors. Their presence provides fast and exact prompting on a reflector, allows to be switched quickly and effectively in various operating modes: search of a reflector, tracking in the simple and robotized modes. The system of automatic prompting and tracking tacheometer with servo-drivers raises productivity of works more than on 50 %. This kind tacheometer has the system including the module of tracking, placed in the module of a telescope, and active reflector RMT. The active reflector (some kinds are issued) necessarily includes an active radiator-diode which radiation is fixed by the module, and does not suppose prompting on other reflectors or reflecting surfaces, glasses and so forth.