MEASUREMENT OF DISTANCE

HORIZONTAL DISTANCE MEASUREMENT

 DISTANCE BY TAPING
Taping operations could either be of the following:

1) Taping to determine an unknown length or

2) Taping for the purpose of laying out a required or specific length.
DISTANCE BY TAPING

The most common method of measuring

horizontal distances is with the use of tape.
Taping consists of stretching a calibrated
tape between two points and reading the
distance indicated in the tape.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Measuring Tapes

Measuring tapes are made in a variety of

lengths, materials, and weights.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Types of Measuring Tapes

1. Linen Tape is also known as “Cloth” Tape.

A varnished strip made of mostly woven
linen . It is lightweight and easy to handle.
These tapes may shrink when exposed to
water and also elongates when pulled.
Hence, these tapes are not suitable for
accurate measurements.
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Types of Measuring Tapes

2. Steel Tape is made of a ribbon of steel or

stainless steel. Meters, decimeter, centimeters
and millimeters (as well as inches and feet) are
graduated on then steel strip. Steel tapes are
not flexible and are suitable for measuring
leveled surfaces only. They may corrode easily
when exposed to moisture.
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Types of Measuring Tapes

3. Synthetic Tapes are made of Fiberglass..

Also called as Fiberglass tapes coated with
PVC. It does not shrink or stretch with
changes in temperature and humidity.
However it is light weight and flexible and.
may stretch when subjected to tension..
Hence, these tapes are not suitable for
MEASURING TAPE measurements.
accurate surveying
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Types of Measuring Tapes

4. Invar Tapes are made of an alloy of nickel

(35%) and steel (65%). It has very low
coefficient of thermal expansion, hence,
less affected by temperature changes. It is
used for high precision surveying
measurements.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Types of Measuring Tapes

5. Lovar Tape
6. Builder’s Tape
7. Phosphor-Bronze Tape
8. Nylon-coated Steel Tape
9.Wires

Etc.
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING
Taping Accessories
1. Chaining Pins
• also known as surveyor’s arrows or taping
pins.
• stuck in the ground to mark the ends of a
measured tape lengths or partial tape lengths.
• made of heavy wire (30 cm long) and painted
with alternate red and white bands.
• sets of 11 pins carried on a steel ring are
standard.
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Taping Accessories
2. Hand Level and Clinometer
•a 15 cm long device which consists of a
metal sighting tube with a level bubble
•used to keep the tape ends at equal
elevations when measuring over rough
terrain, in approximately determining
difference in elevation of points, and in other
field operation where it is required to
MEASURING TAPE
produce a level sight
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Taping Accessories
3.Tension Handle
• also known as a spring scale
• used at one end of a tape for ensuring
the application of the desired known
tension on the tape during measurement
• used in precision taping

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Taping Accessories
4. Pocket Thermometer
• permits reading data for making
temperature corrections.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Taping Accessories
5. Range Pole
• also known as flags or lining rods
• used as temporary signals to indicate
the location of points or direction of
lines, and to mark alignment.
• usual length: 2.0 or 3.0 meters
• marked with alternate red and white
sections 30 cm or 50 cm long
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Taping Accessories
6. Plumb Bob
• used for projecting the tape ends to the
ground when the tape must be
suspended above the measured line
• weights 0.25 kg and attached to 1.5 m
long string or cord which is free of
knots

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Taping Accessories
7. Clamping Handles
• applies tension with a quick grip on any
part of a steel tape without causing
damage to the tape or hands of the
tapeman

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Taping Accessories
8.Wooden Stake or Hub
• made of 5 cm x 5 cm x 30 cm wood to
mark points, corners, or stations in the
ground

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Taping Accessories
9. Leather Thongs
• attached to a ring located near the zero-
meter mark of the tape to provide a
comfortable grip on the tape when
measuring

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

COMPOSITION OF A TAPING PARTY

1. Head Tapeman

The person responsible for the accuracy and the speed of

all linear measurements with the tape. He determines and
directs the marking of points or stations and is the
person who carries the zero end of the tape ahead.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

COMPOSITION OF A TAPING PARTY

2. Recorder

keeps a record of all measurements, sketches and

observations taken during the measurement. He also
checks by pacing all measurements made by the tapemen
for possible errors, mistakes, and blunders.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

COMPOSITION OF A TAPING PARTY

3. Flagman

the person whose duty is to hold the range pole at selected

points.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

COMPOSITION OF A TAPING PARTY

4. Rear Tapeman

the person whose duty is to assist the head tapeman during

taping operation. He is the one who holds the end of the
tape or any intermediate meter mark of the tape during
the measurement.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

THE TAPING PROCEDURE

1. Aligning the Tape
• Mark both ends of the line to be measured using range poles
that will serve as a guide for the alignment of the tape.
Intermediate points will be marked using chaining pins.
• The head tapeman takes the zero mark on the tape and heads
out towards the other end of the line.
A B
MEASURING TAPE horizontal distance, d
DISTANCE BY TAPING

THE TAPING PROCEDURE

1. Aligning the Tape
• The rear tapeman on the starting point unrolls the tape and
sees to it that there are no twists on the tape.
• Align the tape using hand signals.

A B
MEASURING TAPE horizontal distance, d
DISTANCE BY TAPING

THE TAPING PROCEDURE

2. Stretching the Tape
• With the rear tapeman holding the tape steady, the head tapeman
pulls the tape. Use the tension handle as a guide in determining
the force of pull applied on the tape.
• Use the leather thong and the clamping handle to pull the tape
comfortably.
A B
horizontal distance, d
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

THE TAPING PROCEDURE

2. Stretching the Tape
Note: Tapes are correct in length if the tape is stretched at a
standard pull (standard tension). If the tape is stretched below the
standard pull the tape is said to be “too short”, otherwise, it is
“too long”.

A B
horizontal distance, d
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING
THE TAPING PROCEDURE
3. Plumbing
• When the ground has obstructions and irregularities, the tape
should be held above the ground in a horizontal position.
• The ends of the tape is marked with the plumb line to point of
consideration.
• The tape is leveled to a horizontal position using a hand held level.

A B
MEASURING TAPE horizontal distance, d
DISTANCE BY TAPING

THE TAPING PROCEDURE

4. Marking Full Tape Lengths
• When a full tape length is measured, the rear tapeman holds the
tape opposite the pin set on the ground. The head tapeman exerts
the standard pull on the tape and notes the zero end of the tape
using a chaining pin.

A D
Full tape length=50m B Full tape length=50m C 40m

MEASURING TAPE horizontal distance, d=140m

DISTANCE BY TAPING

THE TAPING PROCEDURE

4. Marking Full Tape Lengths
• The rear tapeman retrieves the pins and replace it with Stakes and
the tapemen moves forward. The procedure is repeated until the
other point is reached. It may require sometimes to measure a
fraction of the length of the tape.

A D
Full tape length=50m B Full tape length=50m C 40m

MEASURING TAPE horizontal distance, d=140m

DISTANCE BY TAPING

THE TAPING PROCEDURE

5. Checking the Measurement
• A check is usually done by re-measuring the line from the end
point back to the starting point. The two results should agree to
the slightest error possible.
• From time to time, the each measurement to the full length of the
tape is checked using pacing to detect possible mistakes in taping
measurement.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

BREAKING TAPE
It is standard practice to hold the
tape horizontally above ground and
to plumb at one or both ends when
taping on sloping or uneven terrain
surfaces. “Breaking Tape” is the
procedure which requires the
measurement of shorter or fraction
of distances which are accumulated
to total of Full Tape Length.
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

BREAKING TAPE (Example)

30 meters
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

SLOPE TAPING
Taped measurement is sometimes done along a sloping ground of uniform
inclination, rather than breaking the tape every few meters. This method
is fairly quick, easy, and accurate than horizontal measurements.

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

SLOPE TAPING
Clinometer
Angle of Declination

Angle of Inclination

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

SLOPE TAPING
Pythagorean: With known α:
𝑠 2 = 𝑑 2 + ℎ2 𝑑
cos 𝛼 = Angle of Declination
𝒅 = 𝒔𝟐 − 𝒉𝟐 𝑠
𝒅 = 𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒔 𝜶

Angle of Inclination

MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Example Problem1 Given:

A measurement is made along
a line that is inclined by a =15°25’
vertical angle 15°25’ as d= ?
measured using a clinometer.
The slope measurement was Solution:
756.52m What is the 𝑑 = 𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼
corresponding horizontal 𝑑 = 756.52 𝑐𝑜𝑠 15° 25′
distance? 𝒅 = 𝟕𝟐𝟗. 𝟑𝟎 𝒎
MEASURING TAPE
DISTANCE BY TAPING

Example Problem 2 Given:

A horizontal distance of
=13°06’
325.75m is to be established
along a line that slopes at a d= 325.75
Solution: 𝑑
vertical angle of 13° 06’. What 𝑑 = 𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛼 >> 𝑠=
slope distance should be laid cos 𝛼
out? 325.75
𝑠=
cos 13° 06′
MEASURING TAPE 𝒔 = 𝟑𝟑𝟒. 𝟒𝟓 𝒎
 DISTANCE BY TAPING
Example Problem 3
A line XYZ is measured on the slope in two segments. The first segment XY
measures 824.45m and the second segment YZ measures 1244.38m. If the
difference in elevation between points X and Y is 4.25m and that between Y
and Z is 6.47m, determine the horizontal length of the measured line

Given:

MEASURING TAPE
 DISTANCE BY TAPING
Given:

Solution: 𝑑= 𝑠 2 − ℎ2

𝑑1 = 𝑠1 2 − ℎ1 2 = 824.45 2 − 4.25 2 = 𝟖𝟐𝟒. 𝟒𝟒𝒎 (horizontal length of XY)

𝑑2 = 𝑠2 2 − ℎ2 2 = 1244.38 2 − 6.47 2 = 𝟏𝟐𝟒𝟒. 𝟑𝟔𝒎 (horizontal length of YZ)

𝑫 = 𝒅𝟏 + 𝒅𝟐 =TAPE
MEASURING 𝟖𝟐𝟒. 𝟒𝟒 + 𝟏𝟐𝟒𝟒. 𝟑𝟔 = 𝟐𝟎𝟔𝟖. 𝟖𝟎 𝒎 (horizontal length of XYZ)