LEVELING IN SURVEYING

Leveling is a branch of surveying in civil engineering to

measure levels of different points with respect to a fixed point
such as elevation of a building, height of one point from
ground etc… It is widely used in cartography to measure
geodetic height, and in construction to measure height
differences of construction artifacts.
Introduction
1. Introduction  
Leveling is defined as the branch of surveying that is essentially used for
determining the relative height of the different points on, above and below the
surface of the ground.

The basic principle of leveling is to determine the horizontal line of sight with
respect to which the vertical distances of the points below or above this line of sight
are determined.
OBJECTIVES OF LEVELING:

1. To determine the elevation of the given points with respect to the

given/assumed reference line or datum.

2. To establish the points at a provided elevation or at various

elevations with respect to a given or assumed datum.
 
APPLICATION OF LEVELING IN SURVEYING:
1. Leveling is necessary for the estimation and planning of various civil engineering
works such as roads, bridges, canals etc. It is also necessary for the route or
alignment survey of roads, bridges etc.

2. It is used to calculate the quantities of cut and fill as well as for balancing the
earthworks.

3. Leveling is an important aspect of the pipeline survey as it is used to ensure a

suitable slope of the land that will allow a smooth flow of the liquid inside the pipe.

4. It is also vital for the preparation of contour maps.

5. It is necessary for the preparation of topographic maps.

 Instruments used in levelling in surveying
1. Levels
A level is basically a telescope attached to
an accurate leveling device, set upon a
tripod so that it can rotate horizontally
through 360°. The following figure shows
the level and its components.

The dumpy level is an optical surveying leveling instrument 

consisting a telescope tube firmly secured in two collars fixed by
adjusting screws to the stage by the vertical spindle. The
telescope of dumpy level can rotate only in a horizontal plane.
Relative elevation of different points of a surveying land is
determined with dumpy level.
2. Tripod

The tripod consists of three legs and a

head where the level instrument is
mounted.

The tripod could be of aluminum or

wood material. When leveling the
level instrument, the tripod head must
be set approximately level beforehand
by adjusting the tripod legs.
3. Leveling staff

The one of the main instrument used in levelling is

levelling staff. The leveling staff is a box section of
aluminum or wood, which will extend to 3 or 5 m in
height by telescoping, hinging or addition of sections.

One face has a graduated

scale attached for reading
with the cross-hairs of
the level telescope.
Basic Terminologies

• Vertical datum - Any level surface to which elevations are referenced. This is the surface that is
arbitrarily assigned an elevation of zero.

• Elevation - The distance measured along a vertical line from a vertical datum to a point or object.
Elev. TP = HI – FS

• Mean sea level (MSL) - The average height for the surface of the seas

• Benchmark (BM) - A relatively permanent object, natural or artificial, having a marked point whose
elevation above or below a reference datum is known or assumed.

• Leveling - The process of finding elevations of points or their differences in elevation.

• Backsight (BS) - a backsight (plus sight) is a reading taken on a rod held on a point of known or
assumed elevation. It is a measure of the vertical distance from the established line of sight to the point
sighted, and is always the first rod reading taken after the instrument has been set up and
leveled.

• Foresight (FS) - a reading taken on a rod held on a point whose elevation is to be determined is called a
foresight (minus sight). It is represented as a vertical distance from the line of sight of the instrument to
the point observed.

• Turning Point (TP) - a turning point is an intervening point between two bench marks upon which
point foresight and backsight rod readings are taken to enable a leveling operation to continue from a
new instrument position.

• Height of Instrument (HI) - the height of instrument or height of collimation is the elevation of the line
of sight of an instrument above or below a selected reference datum. It is determined by adding the rod
reading on the backsight to the elevation of the point on which the sight is taken.
HI = Elev. BM + BS
Types of Leveling in Surveying

• Direct leveling
• Trigonometric leveling
• Barometric leveling
• Stadia leveling
Direct Leveling
It is the most commonly used method of leveling. In this method,
measurements are observed directly from leveling instrument.
Based on the observation points and instrument positions direct leveling
is divided into different types as follows:
• Simple leveling
• Differential leveling
• Fly leveling
• Profile leveling
• Precise leveling
• Reciprocal leveling
Simple Leveling
It is a simple and basic form of leveling in which the leveling instrument is placed
between the points which elevation is to be find. Leveling rods are placed at that points
and sighted them through leveling instrument. It is performed only when the points are
nearer to each other without any obstacles.
Differential Leveling

Differential leveling is performed when the distance between two

points is more. In this process, number of inter stations are located and
instrument is shifted to each station and observed the elevation of inter
station points. Finally difference between original two points is
determined.

Differential leveling is a very simple process based on the

measurement of vertical distances from a horizontal line. Elevations are
transferred from one point to another through the process of using a
leveling instrument to read a rod held vertically on, first, a point of
known elevation and, then, on the point of unknown elevation. Simple
addition and subtraction are used to calculate the unknown elevations.
Fly Leveling

Fly levelling is the process in which only the backside and foresight
readings are taken and there are not any intermediate sight readings are
taken in this type of levelling.
The purpose of the fly levelling is to connect the benchmark to the
starting point of any project and it is used to establish the benchmarks.
The process of Fly levelling is used when the worksite is away from the
benchmark. In this case, the surveyor starts the work with the back sight
reading on the benchmark by setting up the instrument at a suitable
point.
Profile levelling

Profile levelling is the process of determining the elevation of the points at

short measured intervals along a fixed line such as the centre line of a
railway, highway, canal or sewer.

The fixed-line may be a single straight line or it make consists of a

succession of the straight lines. It is also known as longitudinal sectioning.
Precise Leveling

Precise leveling is similar to differential leveling but in this case higher

precise is wanted. To achieve high precise, serious observation procedure is
performed. The accuracy of 1 mm per 1 km is achieved.
Reciprocal Leveling

When it is not possible to locate the

leveling instrument in between the
inter visible points, reciprocal leveling
is performed.

This case appears in case of ponds or

rivers etc. in case of reciprocal
leveling, instrument is set nearer to 1st
station and sighted towards 2nd station.
Trigonometric Leveling

The process of leveling in which the elevation of point or the

difference between points is measured from the observed horizontal
distances and vertical angles in the field is called trigonometric
leveling.

In this method, trigonometric relations are used to find the elevation

of a point from angle and horizontal distance so, it is called as
trigonometric leveling. It is also called as indirect leveling.
Barometric Leveling

Barometer is an instrument used to

measure atmosphere at any altitude.

In this method of leveling,

atmospheric pressure at two different
points is observed,
based on which the vertical difference
between two points
is determined.

It is a rough estimation and used

rarely.
Stadia Leveling

It is a modified form of trigonometric

leveling in which Tacheometer principle
is used to determine the elevation of
point.

In this case the line of sight is inclined

from the horizontal. It is more accurate
and suitable for surveying in hilly
terrains.
What Is A Two Peg Test?

A two peg test checks whether your dumpy level is capable of showing
a true horizontal reading. This is vital to ensure your measurements are
accurate and reliable. 

The two peg test tells you the measurement that your level is out over
the distance you test over. If the two peg test is showing an un
acceptable error, then you must withdraw the equipment and get it
serviced by an appropriate company. 
How To Do A Two Peg Test?

Step 1: Measure out a 60-metre line on a relatively flat piece

of ground. Mark the ends of the line with a timber stake (or
nail, or spray mark) and securely hammer them into the
ground, so they are nice and solid.

Step 2: Set up your dumpy level halfway between each of the

pegs (30 metres along the line). Once you have done this,
ensure your dumpy level is levelled using the precision
levelling thumb screws.

Step 3: Once levelled, using another person, place your staff

on point A, and record the height of the peg as accurately as
possible. Write this figure down, labelling it as “P1 – PEG A”.

Step 4: Next, do the same at point B and record the height as

“P1 – PEG B”.
Step 5: Now, move your dumpy level to
approximately 3 m away from point A, set up and
level the instrument.

Step 6: Record the height of point A and Point B

again and write these figures down.
Call them “P2 – PEG A” and “P2 – PEG B”.
Calculating Two Peg Test Results
Now you have your 4 recorded points, you can begin the simple process of working out your survey errors. I have
added some example data below to show you the process:
P1 – PEG A = 1.540 m
P1 – PEG B = 1.789 m
P2 – PEG A = 1.682 m
P2 – PEG B = 1.955 m
First off, start by subtracting P1 – PEG B by P1 – PEG A 
1.789 – 1.540 = 0.249

Then do the same thing for P2 – PEG A & P2 – PEG B

1.955 – 1.682 = 0.273

In this example, you can see the differences in heights between the 2 positions were 0.249 m and 0.273 m. The
difference between these 2 numbers is:
0.273 – 0.249 = 0.024 m (24 mm)
Because you are seeing an error of 24 mm and not 0 mm, it is indicating that your dumpy level is out of level and
could potentially require a service.
In a perfect world both these numbers would be exactly the same which would indicate no issues. It is up to you
to clarify what errors you are happy with.
If you are getting high errors, consider undertaking the two peg test a few times and seeing the differences in
results.
TP = HI – FS HI = Elev. BM + BS
TP = HI – FS HI = Elev. BM + BS ELEV= BM + ∑BS- ∑FS
Example Problem 1: Complete the differential level notes shown below.
Level Notes from BM1 to BM4
Example Problem 2: From the given data of a differential leveling as shown in the tabulation:

a. Find the difference in elevation of station 7 and station 5.

b. Find the difference in elevation of station 7 and station 3.
c. Find the elevation of station 3.