Surveying pole

• US 10,119,818 B2
• Filed: 12/17/2016
• Issued: 11/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Leica Geosystems AG (Hexagon AB)
• Original Assignee: Leica Geosystems AG (Hexagon AB)
• Inventors: Maar, Hannes, Bernhard, Heinz, Lais, Josef, Benz, Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): Fulton, Christopher W
• Application Number:
  US15/382,645
• Publication Number:
  US 20170176185A1
• Time in Patent Office: 689 Days
• Field of Search: 33296, 33294
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 11/0608 Height gauges
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 15/002 Active optical surveying means optical plumbing G01C15/105
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 15/06 Surveyors' staffs; Movable markers

Abstract

Some embodiments of the invention relate to a surveying pole comprising at least two pole sections being telescopically insertable into each other so that a height adjustment of the pole is provided, a pointing tip at the lower end of the pole for setting the pole on a terrain point, a receptacle at an upper end of the pole for mounting a position giving means, a height measuring system for indicating the distance of the position giving means relative to the terrain point.

Claims

1. A surveying pole comprising:

at least two pole sections being telescopically insertable into each other so that a height adjustment of the pole is provided,

a pointing tip at a lower end of the pole for setting the pole on a terrain point,

a receptacle at an upper end of the pole for mounting a position giving means,

a height measuring system for indicating the distance of the position giving means relative to the terrain point,

wherein;

the height measuring system comprises an electronic distance measuring unit, in the following called EDM unit, and a target, the EDM unit and the target being placed inside of the pole in such a way that the EDM unit being adapted to emit a light beam towards the target and to detect the light backscattered by the target, the light beam following a path inside of the pole,

the EDM unit and the target further being mounted to the at least two pole sections so that a correlation between the height adjustment of the pole and the separation of the EDM unit and the target is provided, and

an evaluation unit for deriving the height of the position giving means based on the detected light of the EDM unit.

2. The surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein:

the EDM unit being placed at an upper or lower end of the upper pole section and emitting the light in the visible range downwards, and

the target being placed at a lower or upper end of the lower pole section or inside the pointing tip, wherein the pointing tip with the target mounted therein being detachable,

the height of the position giving means being derived based on the detected light backscattered by the target, or, in case of the pointing tip being detached, backscattered at the ground.

3. The surveying pole according to claim 2, wherein:

the pointing tip with the target mounted therein being detached and replaced by an extension tube comprising a pointing tip and a target mounted therein, the height of the position giving means being derived based on the detected light backscattered by the target contained in the pointing tip of the extension tube.

4. The surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein:

the EDM unit being placed at a lower or upper end of the lower pole section or inside the pointing tip, emitting the light upwards, and

the target being placed at the upper or lower end of the upper pole section.

5. The surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein:

the EDM unit being embedded in one single housing, and the emission and the sensing of light by the EDM unit being pre-calibrated for stand-alone distance measurements.

6. The surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein:

the EDM unit operating according to a phase measurement principle and/or by means of a pulse time-of-flight determination, wherein emitting and sensing of light being based on a bi-axial or a coaxial concept.

7. The surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein:

the EDM unit operating according to a triangulation method.

8. The surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein:

the EDM unit comprising a standard operation mode and an additional operation mode optimized for short range measurements based on a triangulation method.

9. The surveying pole according to claim 1 further comprising:

an electric power supply means being attached to the pole or placed inside the pole, wherein the electric power supply means is exchangeable and/or rechargeable.

10. The surveying pole according to claim 1, further comprising:

wireless communication means for transmitting and receiving information between the pole and a receiving device, the receiving device being a handheld controller of a geodetic instrument.

11. The surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein the position giving means comprises a reflector cooperating with a geodetic instrument.

12. The surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein the position giving means comprises a GNSS antenna.

13. The surveying pole according to claim 1, further comprising a controller unit for:

controlling, feeding, and reading the wireless communication means,

storing the height information gathered by a tilt detection unit, and/or position information, and

making said information retrievable.

14. The surveying pole according to claim 13, wherein the controller unit comprises a display unit for providing output of said information.

15. The surveying pole according to claim 1, further comprising a motorization for the pole sections, whose control is supported by the EDM unit.

16. The surveying pole according to claim 1, further comprising a motorization for the pole sections, whose control is supported by the controller unit, the controller unit having a user interface for entering a desired height of the pole.

17. The surveying pole according to claim 1, further comprising means for automatically detecting a height adjustment of the pole and as a result initiating a new height measurement by the EDM unit, wherein the new height information being automatically transmitted to a receiving device, the receiving device being a handheld controller of a geodetic instrument.

18. The surveying pole according to claim 1, further comprising:

a monitoring operation mode for automatically detecting a height change of the pole and, in case of detecting a height change larger than a given threshold, issuing a warning signal to the user, and/or initiating a new height measurement by the EDM unit, wherein the new height information being automatically transmitted to a receiving device, the receiving device being a handheld controller of a geodetic instrument.

19. The surveying pole according to claim 18, wherein automatically detecting a height change of the pole is performed by periodic automatic height measurements by the EDM unit.