I am in need of something that will help me measure building elevation heights. Do GPS devices offer this feature, or is there something better than a tape measure out there? I know nothing about these things, so if anyone has any suggestions on manufacturers, modles, prices, places to research or any other suggestions I'd be very grateful!
P.S. See the "archinect crushes" thread if you're wondering about me returning the favor...
check out calculated industries...they have laser measuring stuff that might work or they might have something else...are you going up on top of the building?
why not just get puddles to jump off and time how long it takes to hit the ground?
your good with math, you prob can use some formula that I forgot a long time ago to figure it out...
...and it will puddles out of the office
The elevation capabilities of most GPS units works on barometric pressure, so although it might get you within a few hundred feet, it wouldn't be worth much for site measurements.
Personal use GPS devices (I own a Garmin Gecko 201) are only about as acurate as +/- 15 feet. This is also dependent on the amount of satellites you are connected to. In some cases, the place where you are located may not get good signal and the accuracy is much less +/- 50 feet, for instance. You may want to check out laser assisted measuring devices. One I know of is called a Total Station and I've seen it used to measure road intersections for accident reconstruction with an accuracy of +/- 1" to 5" depending on the make & model of the instrument used. It basically makes a point cloud and will transfer directly into AutoCAD, etc. Good Luck.
even really nice expensive GPS' are still off by a good few feet (+/-5 or so). so that's really not your best option to measure building heights or floor-to-floors.
laser measuring might work but it's expensive an will give you a hypotenuse of a triangle you'll have to calculate anyway... you can make a simple device to do everything you need to do with a 30/60/90 drafting triangle, string, and a weight of some sort.
tape the end of the string to the 30 degree angle corner securely so that it's as close to the very tip as possible. then tie a weight to the other end of the string so that the string will always level perpendicular to the ground.
now go stand outside the building a few feet away and put the 60 degree end just under your eye and point the 30 degree end directly to the top of the parapet or eave. start walking backwards until the string and the long leg of the triangle (not the hypoteneuse) align. mark where you stand. measure distance to building and do appropriate trig function to find the height.
I always wanted to invest in one of them fancy laser range-finders but found that even at the current rate that I break tmeasuring tapes, it would take me about 28yrs for that investment to pay for itself. They suck & they are inelegant as hell, but I'd have to choose the cheapest tape you can get because the expensive ones still can't take the Mystery-challenge.
Why don't you just 'estimate' the dimension, everybody does it!
thanks for all of the advice! i guess the gps thing isn't a great tool for this app. i need to be as accurate as i can...it's a life-safety, fire code issue. we do have a laser range meter in the office, but i'm not sure that it will work either. i may be measuring distances with SERIOUSLY obstructed views...not worth the hassle. i suppose it's back to sifting through archaic, institutional drawings.
Aug 1, 05 11:54 am ·
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GPS Devices?
I am in need of something that will help me measure building elevation heights. Do GPS devices offer this feature, or is there something better than a tape measure out there? I know nothing about these things, so if anyone has any suggestions on manufacturers, modles, prices, places to research or any other suggestions I'd be very grateful!
P.S. See the "archinect crushes" thread if you're wondering about me returning the favor...
what's GPS?
Gross Penile Stretching device
try an abney level they work well
check out calculated industries...they have laser measuring stuff that might work or they might have something else...are you going up on top of the building?
why not just get puddles to jump off and time how long it takes to hit the ground?
your good with math, you prob can use some formula that I forgot a long time ago to figure it out...
...and it will puddles out of the office
The elevation capabilities of most GPS units works on barometric pressure, so although it might get you within a few hundred feet, it wouldn't be worth much for site measurements.
Personal use GPS devices (I own a Garmin Gecko 201) are only about as acurate as +/- 15 feet. This is also dependent on the amount of satellites you are connected to. In some cases, the place where you are located may not get good signal and the accuracy is much less +/- 50 feet, for instance. You may want to check out laser assisted measuring devices. One I know of is called a Total Station and I've seen it used to measure road intersections for accident reconstruction with an accuracy of +/- 1" to 5" depending on the make & model of the instrument used. It basically makes a point cloud and will transfer directly into AutoCAD, etc. Good Luck.
ditto on steve's post re precision.
even really nice expensive GPS' are still off by a good few feet (+/-5 or so). so that's really not your best option to measure building heights or floor-to-floors.
laser measuring might work but it's expensive an will give you a hypotenuse of a triangle you'll have to calculate anyway... you can make a simple device to do everything you need to do with a 30/60/90 drafting triangle, string, and a weight of some sort.
tape the end of the string to the 30 degree angle corner securely so that it's as close to the very tip as possible. then tie a weight to the other end of the string so that the string will always level perpendicular to the ground.
now go stand outside the building a few feet away and put the 60 degree end just under your eye and point the 30 degree end directly to the top of the parapet or eave. start walking backwards until the string and the long leg of the triangle (not the hypoteneuse) align. mark where you stand. measure distance to building and do appropriate trig function to find the height.
I always wanted to invest in one of them fancy laser range-finders but found that even at the current rate that I break tmeasuring tapes, it would take me about 28yrs for that investment to pay for itself. They suck & they are inelegant as hell, but I'd have to choose the cheapest tape you can get because the expensive ones still can't take the Mystery-challenge.
Why don't you just 'estimate' the dimension, everybody does it!
I would wait for systems that use technologies based on Galileo, the new European satellite cluster launching in 2006.
There is pin point (5cm) accuracy promised with Galileo as opposed to the second rate service the US military choose to offer us at the moment.
concur with the gps assessments.
just count number of floors, and assume 3'-7 1/2" per floor. should give you a very accurate estimate.
This thing kicks ass. I have one and I could not be without it.
http://www.hilti.com/holcom/modules/prcat/prca_product.jsp?OID=17842&CATE_OID=-12508
thanks for all of the advice! i guess the gps thing isn't a great tool for this app. i need to be as accurate as i can...it's a life-safety, fire code issue. we do have a laser range meter in the office, but i'm not sure that it will work either. i may be measuring distances with SERIOUSLY obstructed views...not worth the hassle. i suppose it's back to sifting through archaic, institutional drawings.
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