Taped distances

Use the Taped distances function to quickly add points that define right-angled structures, such as a building or building foundations. When tying in to a known point, the misclose value is displayed and can be adjusted.

There are two methods to define a structure:

  • When using the Two points method, enter or measure two known points to establish the location of the first side.

  • When using the One point method, enter or measure one known point and then tap the screen to set the approximate orientation of the first side.

Subsequent points are created at a 90° angle to or parallel to the first side. Lines are created automatically and stored in the job as points are created.

To tie in to a known point:

  • When using the Two points method, you can close back to the start, or you can tie in to a third known point.

  • When using the One point method, you must tie in to a second known point.

When you enter the measured distance to a known point, a misclosure value is calculated and a red dashed line displays how the sides will move when you adjust. You can then choose to tap Adjust to distribute the error across the measured sides, or you can tap Add to tie in to the known point without adjusting the sides. Whether you tap Adjust or Add, the sides are stored and cannot be edited.

To use taped distances the job must use a fully defined coordinate system or use Scale factor only. Taped distances cannot be used in a No projection/no datum job.

After tying in to a known point, you can select the method to start taped distances again and continue adding sides until you return to the start.

To measure a structure using Taped distances

  1. Tap and select Cogo / Taped distances.
  2. Select the method:

    • Use the method Two points if you have two points defining the ends of one side.

    • Use the method One point if you have only one point to start from.

  3. Define the first side:
    • To define the first side using Two points:
      1. Select or measure the Start point and End point.
      2. Enter the elevation. To select the elevation from the Start point or End point, tap next to the Elevation field.
      3. Tap Accept.
    • To define the first side using One point:
      1. Select or measure the Start point.
      2. Enter the elevation. To select the elevation from the Start point, tap next to the Elevation field.
      3. Tap in the map to set the initial orientation of the first side.
      4. Tap Accept.
  4. To define the next side:

    1. To set the orientation for the next point, tap in the map approximately 90° to the left or to the right of the red dashed line in the direction you want the side to follow.

      The dashed red line shows the current orientation for the next side.

    2. To set the length of the next side, do one of the following:

      • In the Length field, enter the distance to the next point using the orientation defined in the map.

      • If you are using a laser rangefinder, tap and select Laser. Measure the distance with the laser. The measured distance appears in the Length field.

      To change the orientation of the line, you can enter + or - in front of the value in the Length field:

      • To change the orientation by +90° (clockwise), enter +.

      • To change the orientation by -90° (counter-clockwise), enter -.

    3. Tap Add.

  5. To define subsequent sides of the structure, repeat step 4 above for each subsequent side.

     

    • If you think you have made a mistake at any time, for example if the shape of the structure does not look right in the map, tap Edit. See To edit the sides of the structure before storage below.

    • You can tap Store at any time to store the measurements you have entered without closing or adjusting the structure.

  6. To tie in to a known point or to close the structure:

    • To tie in to another known point, so that you can add more points and sides to the structure if needed, select the point or enter the point name. The software shows the Length (computed) to the known point. Enter the Length (measured) to the known point.

    • To close the structure back to the start, tap Close. The software joins the current point back to the start.

      This option is only available if you started from Two points.

    Once you have tapped Close, or you have tied in to the additional known point and entered the measured distance to that point, the software shows the Misclose values. The dashed red line on the map shows how the misclose error will be distributed across the sides of the structure if you tap Adjust in the next step.

  7. Choose whether to adjust the measured distances when tying in to a known point:

    • If the Misclose value is too high, tap Edit and remeasure the sides of the structure. See To edit the sides of the structure before storage below.

    • If the Misclose value is reasonable and you want to distribute the misclose error across the structure, tap Adjust. The adjustment is applied and stored.

      • When using the One point method, all measurements are rotated and scaled to fit between the start and end points.

      • When using the Two points method, the original length between the two known points is fixed, and any Along and Across error is proportionally distributed in the Along and Across directions.

      • In both adjustments the 90° internal angles are retained.

      • A Taped distance point record is stored with the measured length, and an Adjusted taped distance record is stored with the adjusted coordinates.

        The adjusted point records have the same name as the original points and have a higher search class which means the lines are drawn between the adjusted taped distance points.

    • If you do not want to apply the adjustment, tap Add to add the known point to the structure using the existing point name.

  8. To add more points and sides to the structure you can start again from two points or one point. Alternatively, tap Esc to close the Taped distances screen.

To edit the sides of the structure before storage

At any point before storage you can edit the measurement values you have entered. This is useful if you think you have made a mistake, for example either shape doesn't look right in the map or the Misclose value seems too high.

  1. Tap Edit to view the list of each side entered.

  2. Tap in the list to select the side, or use the arrow keys to highlight the side in the list and then press Enter.

  3. Enter the new Length value as required.
  4. To change the line direction, tap inside the Length value and then tap in the map, or enter + or - in front of the value in the Length field. You can also tap in the map to change the line direction.
  5. Tap Accept. The software returns to the Edit list.

  6. Select another value to edit or tap Esc to close the Edit list.