Dr Harvey Mitchell

As part of the development of an automated close-range photogrammetric measurement system, a small but valuable refinement has been made to the algorithm which is used to automatically "place the floating mark on the ground". The change requires a more extensive computer program, but it enhances precision, and speed in certain cases.

University degree courses can have a significant effect on the lives of those who complete them, and graduates, as well as the community at large, are entitled to substantiation that the courses fulfil expectations. However, education is a multi-faceted matter, course material is extensive, and course design is complex. This paper makes a short contribution to justifying the structure and content of the course in Surveying at The University of Newcastle. The course content is predicated on the graduate become a professional measurement specialist, who must be able to participate in measurement-related projects from their beginning to their completion. The paper concentrates on course matters, and particularly notes attributes which are seen to be specially characteristic of the Newcastle course; it makes brief mention of other staff, student and resource matters which are pertinent to the effectiveness of the offered course. © Taylor & Francis Group LLC.

Undergraduate surveying degrees at Australian universities are increasingly being offered in combination with degrees in related disciplines. This paper provides a factual report on the current availability of such courses and provides some discussion of the rationale for their implementation and their perceived merit. © Taylor & Francis Group LLC.

This paper describes the use of photogrammetric for the measurement of objects only a few millimetres in size by using a 35 mm camera in conjunction with a stereoscopic microscope. It is intended not only to point out the attractiveness of the camera-microscope combination in very close-range measurements, but also to illustrate the successful development of a simple observing and computing routine despite the initial lack of any data about the camera-microscope system. The approach, which utilises a stereocomparator and a few elementary equations, demonstrates the advantage gained in close-range photogrammetric by the calibration of a number of parameters. The technique was successful in measuring depths on objects to precisions of 0.01 mm. © 1989 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

35mm photography of denture teeth and resin replicas through a convergent-axes microscope was used in an assessment of wear in dental restoration materials. The difficulty was to isolate and evaluate the significant photogrammetric parameters, but thereafter, the required depths could be calculated to accuracies of 0.01 mm r.m.s. using stereocomparator observations and quite simple formulae. The technique is applicable to biomedical laboratories which have access to an appropriate microscope if photogrammetric observations can be undertaken. © 1989, SPIE.

Problems which can be encountered when using the Global Positioning System to determine differences in height are outlined, with emphasis on relevant characteristics of the Australian surveying environment. Approaches which can be used, if needed, to cope with the difficulties of GPS heighting are mentioned, along with moves to further examine the situation in Australia. Warnings given on this subject in other publications are repeated in this paper which focuses on the problem to provide an introduction to subsequent, more detailed papers. © 1988 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

The effect of radial lens distortion on close-range stereophotogrammetry is discussed. An overview is presented with a mathematical derivation, followed by a detailed analysis showing the amounts of x-parallax across a stereomodel which are introduced by the distortion and which remain uncompensated during a relative orientation. The discussion concentrates on the use of small non-metric cameras and the results are analysed to indicate the magnitude of errors which can be introduced to stereoscopic photogrammetry from this source. -Authors

Although world-wide research into close-range photogrammetry is quite extensive, there is little evidence of the commercial use of photogrammetry in Australia, other than for topographic mapping. A consideration of the possible role of photogrammetry in the consulting surveyor¿s practice in the foreseeable future is given in this paper. Recent developments in non-topographic photogrammetry, the structure of the Australian surveying industry and the existence of research in Australia is recognised in the discussion. © 1986 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

A FORTRAN program which obtains a least-squares solution for combined observation and condition equations for the purposes of adjusting observations. It calculates the unknown parameters, their variances and covariances from data representing the equations which model any adjustment problem. It may be used either in the adjustment of observations or in studies directed at optimizing observations schemes. The combined equation method is utilized in a second program which can be used in conjunction with the first to determine co-ordinate transformation parameters. The application of the adjustment program to traverse adjustment is also explained. -from Author