8 Total Station Manufacturers in 2023
This section provides an overview for total stations as well as their applications and principles. Also, please take a look at the list of 8 total station manufacturers and their company rankings.
Table of Contents
What Is a Total Station?
The total station is a surveying instrument that can measure both distance and angle at the same time.
The main features of a total station are that the optical axis of the telescope and the optical axis of the lightwave rangefinder are designed to be coaxial and that the measurement data can be immediately output to an external device.
In recent years, total stations with built-in programs have become the mainstream.
Uses of Total Stations
Total stations are used for a wide range of applications in the surveying, construction, and civil engineering fields, including observation, staking, contouring, reference point surveying, applied surveying, coordinate surveying, construction leveling, fixed point surveying, displacement measurement, and position control.
Today, a wide variety of total stations are available in various grades and models.
Principle of Total Stations
Total stations measures three main elements: obliquity, vertical angle, and horizontal angle, as well as air temperature and air pressure, and makes calculations to compensate for observation errors due to weather conditions.
The vertical angle is the angle in the vertical direction from the axis of the total stations to the target, with 0° at the top.
Oblique distance is the distance from the axis of the total stations to the target.
Oblique distance alone does not give an accurate distance from the point where the total stations are located to the target.
If the oblique distance is used for mapping, the measured distance will be affected by the terrain where there is a difference in elevation and the height at which the total stations are installed.
Based on the above, the horizontal distance must be derived.
The horizontal distance can be obtained by using the formula of trigonometric functions with the vertical angle and the oblique distance.
Since all we know is the angle θ at -90° to the vertical angle and the oblique distance, we have
cosθ = horizontal distance / oblique distance
The total station's axis and oblique distance can be calculated in the same way.
Similarly, the difference in height between the axis of the total stations and the target can also be obtained by
sinθ = height difference / oblique distance
tanθ = height difference / horizontal distance
tanθ = height difference / horizontal distance
In general models, these calculations, including the angle and distance, can be easily measured by anyone with a single button operation after the target (prism) is sighted through the lens, and the angle and distance can be simultaneously displayed on the main unit.
The actual surveying operation can be performed by two people by using a pin pole prism or a single element prism target.
The latest models can also perform coordinate surveying and pile positioning with the unit's memory function.
There are two types of total stations: prismatic and non-prismatic.
Prismatic total stations require expensive prisms, but have the advantage of a wider measurement range and higher accuracy than non-prismatic total stations.
This is because prisms for surveying reflect light parallel to the incident light at any angle of incidence.
List of 8 Total Station Manufacturers
*Including some distributors, etc.
Sort by Features
- Default
- Company Size: largest first
- Year Founded: oldest first
- Year Founded: earliest first
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BAP Equipment Limited
Total Station
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Trimble, Inc.
Total Stations
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Stonex
Total Stations
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Topcon Positioning Systems, Inc.
Total Stations
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Leica Geosystems AG
Manual Total Stations
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Seiler Instrument Company Mfg. Co., Inc.
Robotic Total Stations
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BuildingPoint Midwest & Gulf Coast
Robotic Total Stations
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Allenbuild Instruments LLC
Robotic Total Station
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Total Station Manufacturer Ranking
*Including some distributors, etc.Ranking as of March 2023 Globally
Derivation Method| Rank | Company | Click Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BAP Equipment Limited | 33.3% |
| 2 | Stonex | 33.3% |
| 3 | Seiler Instrument Company Mfg. Co., Inc. | 33.3% |
Derivation Method
The ranking is calculated based on the click share within the total station page as of March 2023. Click share is defined as the total number of clicks for all companies during the period divided by the number of clicks for each company.Number of Employees
Newly Established Company
Company with a History
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