Minute of the École d'Arpentage
Mission of the Department of Geomatics Sciences
Surveying Curriculum 1909-1910
Current Geomatics Curriculums: sciences géomatiques, génie géomatique
International Association related to Geomatics
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Extract of the inventory of the scientific collections at Laval University
Display descriptions
MAGNETIC COMPASS
A magnetic compass allowed the determination of the azimuth with respect to the magnetic north.
METRIC SURVEYING CHAIN
This XIXth century Swiss (metric) surveying chain is 2 decametres long (20 m). Gunter’s chain, used in Canada, was 66 feet long.
On loan from Dr. Jean-Jacques Chevallier.
STEEL SURVEYING TAPE
A steel surveying tape was used to measure (horizontal) distance before the introduction of the EDM and total station.
PLANE TABLE (K&E)
A plane table consisted of a drawing board mounted on a tripod and an alidade to measure horizontal angles. This allowed us to draw, in the field, the surveying plan directly on a sheet of drawing paper fastened to the board.
ENGINEER’S TRANSIT
A transit allowed the measurement of horizontal and vertical angles for land surveying. This transit was built by E.R. Watts & Son of London in the 1920s.
ENGINEER’S LEVEL
An engineer’s level allowed the measurement of height differences using levelling staffs. This engineer’s level was built by T. Cook & Sons of London in the 1920s.
HELIOTROPE
A heliotrope allowed to redirect (to flash) sunlight to a distant station. It was used as a signal for long distance (conventional) geodetic surveys.
THEODOLITE WILD T2 AND MINI-THEODOLITE
These theodolites were built by the Wild company. The T2 was mainly used to establish 2nd order conventional geodetic networks until the 1980s. The mini-theodolite was a reconnaissance surveying tool.
THEODOLITE WILD T3
This theodolite was built by the Wild company. The T3 was mainly used to establish 1st order conventional geodetic networks until the 1980s.
THEODOLITE WILD T4
This theodolite was built by the Wild company. The T4 was mainly used, up until the 1970s, to establish astronomical latitude and longitude of geodetic points by observing the stars.
CHRONOGRAPH
A chronograph was used to measure and record, on paper tape, time intervals precise at 1/100 of a second. This FAVAG chronograph, synchronised with time signal received from a shortwave radio, was used along with a T4 theodolite.
TIME SIGNALS RECEIVER (SHORTWAVE RADIO)
This type of shortwave radio (Witmer, Zürich) allowed the reception of time signals to support astronomical observations.
CELESTIAL SPHERE
A celestial sphere shows the sky’s stars. It provides star coordinates (right ascension and declination).
GEODIMETER AGA MODEL 6
The GEODIMETER is a lightwave EDM invented by the Swedish physicist E. Bergstrand in 1949. The model 6 was introduced in 1964.
TELLUROMETER MRA-2
The Tellurometer is a radiowave EDM invented by the South-African physicist T.L. Wadley in 1956. This type of EDM was used until the 1970s. Employed in pairs, the radiowaves were also used as a communication link between the 2 operators.
AUTORANGER-A K&E
This type of Infra-red EDM was built by the American company Keuffel & Esser. It was used for topographic surveys during the 1970s.
DOPPLER RECEIVER
This JMR-1 Doppler receiver allowed the establishment of geodetic networks using Doppler frequency observations from Transit satellites. Doppler receivers were widely used to densify geodetic networks in Northern Quebec and Canada during the 1970s.
GPS RECEIVER AND ANTENNA
This Ashtech LD-XII receiver was a 2nd generation civil GPS receiver available as of 1990. Along with its geodetic dual-frequency antenna, it allowed the reception of code, phase and Doppler observations.
HANDHELD GPS RECEIVER
The Magellan NAV 1000, introduced in 1988, was the first handheld GPS receiver available. The Magellan ProMark X (photo) was an improved version.
SEXTANT (Norie & Wilson, London)
A sextant, mainly used on ships, allowed the measurement of (vertical and horizontal) angles. These measurements were then used to determine the ship’s coordinates at sea.
MARINE CHRONOMETER (Ulysse Nardin, Le Locle, Suisse)
A marine chronometer allowed the precise determination of longitudes aboard rolling ships at sea. The longitude determination was only as precise as the time keeping precision of the marine chronometer.
SOUNDING LEAD
A sounding lead was used to measure the water depth in shallow water manually.
Donation of the Canadian Hydrographic Service (Région du Québec).
TIDE GAUGE (A. Ott, Kempten, Germany)
A (mechanical) tide gauge allowed the measurements of the variation of water levels. A floater installed in a stilling well goes up and down with the tide while a pen traces on a rotating paper roll the water level variation.
Donation of the Canadian Hydrographic Service (Région du Québec).
ECHO SOUNDER (Raytheon, Survey Fathometer)
An echo sounder allowed the measurement of water depth using acoustic waves.
Donation of the Canadian Hydrographic Service (Région du Québec).
MECHANICAL CALCULATOR (Original Odhner, Goteborg, Sweden)
This mechanical calculator was built in the 1930s. It allowed the addition, subtraction, multiplication and division of numbers.
On loan from Mrs Annick Jaton.
CURTA CALCULATOR
This Curta calculator was built in Liechtenstein during the 1960s. It allowed the multiplication and division of numbers. It has been replaced by electronic calculators such as the HP-25 (photo).
On loan from the Service de la Géodésie du Québec.
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