A surveying target sphere for use in a three-dimensional measurement has a spherical surface having a constant radius from a center and includes a north pole, a south pole, and a central axis passing through the center of the surveying target sphere and linking the north pole and the south pole, and a level is mounted at the north pole.

A stand-alone module for localizing a surveying device installed with a stand above a ground mark. The module has at least one housing attached between the stand and the surveying device, a measuring camera unit, which is arranged and designed in such a way that when the module is mounted on a stand the ground mark can be detected in the field of view of the measuring camera unit, a power supply, an inclination sensor and a communication unit.

A combination tool includes a surveyor's rod having a tubular body and a hammer that is slidable within the tubular body using an external handle. The tubular body defines an opening to insert a nail to be hammered into a surface below the tubular body. A nail-loading device may be affixed adjacent to the tubular body. The nail-loading device has a tube for receiving a nail and a lever arm that can be pivoted away from the tube to receive a nail and then pivoted back to its resting position to force the nail into the tubular body through the opening in the tubular body. A hammer-stop may be affixed to the tubular body to form a physical stop to the downward movement of the hammer. A handle lock may be employed along with a rod-tip point.

A combination tool includes a surveyor's rod having a tubular body and a hammer that is slidable within the tubular body using an external handle. The tubular body defines an opening to insert a nail to be hammered into a surface below the tubular body. A nail-loading device may be affixed adjacent to the tubular body. The nail-loading device has a tube for receiving a nail and a lever arm that can be pivoted away from the tube to receive a nail and then pivoted back to its resting position to force the nail into the tubular body through the opening in the tubular body. A hammer-stop may be affixed to the tubular body to form a physical stop to the downward movement of the hammer. A handle lock may be employed along with a rod-tip point.

A survey system configured to perform a calibration that eliminates, or at least significantly reduces, mechanical misalignment issues with the receiver or top unit (e.g., a GNSS receiver or the like), the mounting hardware, and the survey pole of the survey system. The survey system may include a data collector mounted upon the pole, and a calibration module (i.e., calibrating software and/or firmware) may be run or provided on the data collector or other component of the survey system (e.g., on the top unit). The calibration module processes data collected (including data from its inertial measurement unit (IMU)) by the top unit during calibration operations (or simply calibration) to determine a mounting angle and a correction factor (or corrections for attitude) based on this mounting angle, and the correction factor is communicated to the top unit for use in later data collection to improve accuracy of the survey system.

There is provided an apparatus, a system, and a method for locating and marking a position on a surface during surveying. The apparatus is for use with a rotorcraft or flying machine and a positioning device, and comprises a gimbal securable to the rotorcraft or flying machine, a prism fixed to the gimbal for reflecting signals from the positioning device, the prism having a center of mass, a laser secured to the gimbal and directed away from the center of mass of the prism towards the surface, and a controller for communication with the positioning device, the controller operatively coupled to the laser to operate the laser.

A system and method for determining a position and orientation (e.g., pose) of a rigid body. The rigid body may be a position enabled projector, a surveying rod, a power tool, a drill robot, etc., in a given space. The position of the rigid body is specified by a set of three coordinates and the orientation is specified by a set of three angles. As such, based on these six values, the position and orientation of the rigid body can be determined.

A system and method for determining a position and orientation (e.g., pose) of a rigid body. The rigid body may be a position enabled projector, a surveying rod, a power tool, a drill robot, etc., in a given space. The position of the rigid body is specified by a set of three coordinates and the orientation is specified by a set of three angles. As such, based on these six values, the position and orientation of the rigid body can be determined.

A surveying target sphere for use in a three-dimensional measurement has a spherical surface having a constant radius from a center and includes a north pole, a south pole, and a central axis passing through the center of the surveying target sphere and linking the north pole and the south pole, and a level is mounted at the north pole.

Provided is a laser scanner including an electronic level unit and a scanner unit. The electronic level unit includes a telescope and a level housing and is configured to measure a height of and a distance to a leveling staff. The scanner unit includes a distance measuring unit for performing distance measurement with distance-measuring light, a turning mirror for rotating and irradiating the distance-measuring light in a vertical direction, a vertical rotation driving unit for rotating the turning mirror, and a horizontal rotation driving unit for integrally rotating the electronic level unit and the scanner unit in a horizontal direction. The scanner unit is configured to acquire an instrument height by irradiating a ground surface with the distance-measuring light while acquiring point cloud data by scanning the distance-measuring light in a measurement range. The turning mirror has a rotation axis arranged parallel to a collimation optical axis of the telescope.