• Inactive for Year: 2025/26

• Module Leader(s): Dr Henny Mills

• Owning School: Engineering
• Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus

Semesters

Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.

Aims

To provide an understanding of how digital survey data is gathered in the field and subsequently analysed and processed using wholly digital techniques to provide accurate plans and models.

To introduce and develop current practice in digital surveying and contemporary geomatics techniques.

To examine the range of specialist equipment available for digital survey.

To give experience in organisation and in working as a member of a team on a substantial exercise and to demonstrate the problems in handling, on a day-to-day basis, large quantity of digital data.

The module builds upon the field survey techniques introduced at Stage 1 in module CEG1703 - Surveying.

This module builds on the basic surveying theory and practice taught in module CEG1703. It moves theory forward through introduction to electronic surveying equipment, algorithms and data flowlines. Aspects of professional practice and project management are introduced. Theory and practice are combined through the module long project that builds into a portfolio of assessed materials.

To advance knowledge and skills in digital data acquisition which are applied for Surveying and Mapping to show which forms of digital data can be obtained but how different accuracies and detail of data can be obtained.

Outline Of Syllabus

Lectures:
Review of Plane Surveying; Introduction to the digital data flowline; Modern control establishment techniques;
Total Stations: design, operation, error correction, on-board processing;
Digital Field Survey Data Capture: hardware/software, data logging and transfer; Sequencing of information capture: control and detail, onward transfer;
Digital Terrain Modelling: definitions, data collection techniques, types, creation and usage; Surface Modelling: volume computations, sections, grid based, triangular based methods, triangulation techniques;
Triangulation Techniques: radial sweep, Delaunay triangulation;
Current developments in Survey instrumentation;
Automated survey instruments – Robotic total stations;
Monitoring techniques – GPS, total station, precise levelling; and applications Surveying underground;
Inertial measurements. Indoor surveying methods

Project:
Through undertaking a survey of a current building and its environs to the accuracy, level of detail acceptable to a professional geospatial engineer, students will increase their theoretical understanding and practise of modern digital survey methodologies. The survey results will be required in more than one digital format in both 2D and (to a limited extent) 3D. Throughout the project, there will be opportunities to compare and contrast different techniques as addressed in the lectures. Students will work in teams undertaking the exercise throughout the Semester. The teams will be responsible for all planning and scheduling etc. There will be a regular series of 'drop-ins'. There will be an expectation for regular reports both written and oral.

Teaching Methods

Teaching Activities

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

Lectures introduce theory and concepts which are then practised through a group fieldwork project and computer based classes using specialist software and tailored datasets.

During the small group teaching activities the students are asked to give presentations on their project work. Each group will present their work and share their experiences and problems with other groups. This allows the students to learn from the other groups, but also compare their work to other student work and allow them to practise presentation skills.

Assessment Methods

The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners

Other Assessment

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

The stated learning outcomes are assessed in the following manner:

1) The coursework assessments set real tasks in digital surveying through a student centred group project and a series of student led learning experiences including presentations, computer practicals and reports. The assessment tests (i) understanding of theory in relation to application to practice; (ii) initiative in selecting and using appropriate methods and techniques; and (iii) competence in specialist software and computational techniques (iv) problem solving skills.

2) An understanding of key concepts of volumetrics and surface modelling is assessed though an individual practical and subsequent report. Individual practical assessments allows for greater differentiation of student ability than group assessment employed in the project.

Reading Lists

• CEG2723's Reading List

Timetable

• Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
• CEG2723's Timetable