Anybody using one of these? If so, what do you think?
We have one. We use it 90% as a 1 second total station. We have scanned a few things with it but it is too slow for really large scans. We've used it to get data at the bottom of some pits, the underside of bridges, and for pile volumes (you can comp this in the field!). It's useful when you need it. The imaging part is pretty cool, we take pics of a lot of stuff now including a panorama at each setup for bigger projects. You can also use the camera to take reflector-less shots remotely which we use pretty often when far away from the gun. The camera is also useful to make sure you are on your backsight or foresight when using it as a robot.
As a total station is is pretty great...with the new motors it can turn angles ridiculously fast. Batter life is great...day and a half in total station mode, full day using it as mixed.
Downsides...this thing is heavy...really heavy, similar to my 20 year old Sokkia. We have found the TriMax tripods to work the best with it. The image transfer to the CS15 collector can be a bit slow at times. The Viva software is great...but it takes some getting used to...it works completely different than TDS or Carlson. My field guys like it but it took a while to grow on them. It is nowhere near as powerful from a CAD standpoint though. It can collect a huge amount of data that can be linked directly in to CAD and GIS software through GeoOffice.
Tom
Get a Trimble VX 🙂
> Get a Trimble VX 🙂
It's not even close, there is no comparison between a Trimble VX and an MS50. It's like an Uzi vs a musket. They're not even in the same league.
The MS50 takes 1000 shots a second...the VX does 15max with an average of 5 per second.
Tom
Your description of use is accurate as far as our experience. We have owned it about 6 weeks and are continuing to use it on various applications.
Fastest, quietest, most efficient with batteries, and lots of potential to add value on engineering support projects is what we are focused on.
The ability to photo as vast as the options are, and to scan, whether coarse for topo or high resolution, it can scan. We did scan a water tank (12 hours- 15,000,000 points at .04x.02 at 80 feet as scan settings. A couple of scans were .01x.01 where the concrete had cracked or separated.) Not as fast as a scanner - AND no registration of point clouds.
Not a scanner first, then a robot, it is a robot first, that has the ability to capture point cloud data.
We are working on using it today on two tracts that are not accessible (No permission for access) yet topographic data is needed for a new sewer line.
We have made a few contour maps of fields and it works more efficient than anything for topo. Challenge we are working through is dealing with the street data and other concrete objects. High resolution scanning is time consuming, and we are seeking the point of diminishing returns. For now, I see scanning all projects with a coarse scan of 1 foot x 1 foot or greater, as this point cloud data is another "check" for topo data collected from RTK or prism. Mixing break line work with point cloud data is the point we are presently. Based on the newness and uniqueness of the product, it appears that the users will develop the best uses based on trial and error. Reminds me when the EDM came out, and we chained all lines just like always until there was a high level of comfort from the head surveyor. We are in that state with the scanning portion at this time.
I see the MS50 as the first of many hybrid type tools for us to measure and collect data. Not so much as "the" boundary tool, yet as fast and easy as it is to get multiple direct and reverse readings, if/when the satellites are not working, this is for sure the best field tool I have used, ever.
Please share your success and failures as the next best thing to experience, is "others experiences."
The worst thing about the tool is the operator. It has been me, and the lessons learned that I feel are valid to share with Tom and others is to put the controller away when you are imaging or measuring for photographic or scanning. It can all be controlled with the CS15 OR it can all be controlled with the robot menu that is on-board. When scanning or taking photos, we put the CS15 in the sleep mode, and use the on-board tools.
Last of all - the range of the radio that communicates with the robot from the CS15 is remarkable. 3000 feet and no communication issues. We Like a the new Leica. Ry
