What is that camera looking equipment workers on street look through all the time?

Question

I've seen these workers on the street always looking through this equipment in what seems to be an oversized camera. It's random everywhere...usually surround themself in cones and always looking through it somewhere...only problem is i don't know what it's for or what they're doing exactly.

it's always on a tall tripod....looks like an old school camera (like early 1900s), and they seem to be measuring something.

anyone know what i'm talking about?

Answer 1

It's survey equipment - to find positions of land for building, according to blueprints. Or building highways, etc.

http://www.cansel.ca/

http://www.topcon.com.hk/tpcn_survey.htm

Answer 2

They are road surveyors.  They are checking on the condition of the road surface, the slant on the road etc.

Answer 3

It's used by surveyors mainly in running lines. A lot of times they are used in shooting property lines for someone who wants to build a house, or run a fence line, they want to make sure they are on their property line.

They aren't used so much for horizontal measurements as they are for vertical measurements.

Although most of the answers you received are correct, each has a good knowledge base on how they work.

Answer 4

This is a good question.  The equipment they are looking through is called a total station or level.  These are pieces of surveying equipment.  They allow the worker to check elevations across the study or construction site.  Usually you will see another man standing some distance off holding a pole (or grade rod).  The piece of equipment measure the differences in angles from the total station to a set point on the pole.  This allows the worker to tell if the pole is higher or lower than the place where the total station is set.  The equipment can even tell down to less than an inch of difference.  There are new pieces of equipment that actually use satellites.  There is actually some out now that you put in place and leave it alone.  It will scan the ground like a fax machine scans a piece of paper.

I hope this helps.  There is a lot more information on this, but that would take up too much space.

Answer 5

A theodolite is an instrument for measuring both horizontal and vertical angles, as used in triangulation networks. It is a key tool in surveying and engineering work.

Answer 6

It's surveying equipment, used to tell distance and elevation change. It's called a theodolite and it's an instrument for measuring both horizontal and vertical angles, as used in triangulation networks

Answer 7

I think it is meant to check the elevation of the ground relative to a far off point (at which they are looking all the time).  It is simply a little scope whose height off the ground has been measured and is strictly preserved.  Can't remember their name, though.

Answer 8

It's for taking surveys.

Answer 9

It's called a theodolite. They are used for measuring angles and calculating spatial layout.

Answer 10

survey equiptment