This guide may be used for initial configuration, connection and basic operation of the Leica Nova and Viva Total Station within SA. For more details on instrument operation and configuration, please contact Leica Geosystems directly.
In order to gain full total station integration with SA additional licenses must be purchased from Leica Geosystems and loaded on the instrument.
Required licenses for most applications:
GeoCOM Robotic. Which enables remote pointing and robotic control of the total station from SA.
Optional licenses include:
GeoCOM Imaging. Which enables image capture and display within SA.
GeoCOM Video. Which enables live video display within SA.
Scanning. Which enables the MS60’s scanning functionality
Configuring the Instrument for Optimal Use with SA
Navigate to Users > System Settings > Regional Settings.
Check that the Hz angle display is set to North anti-clockwise and the V angle display is set to Zenith angle.
This will ensure that the angles displayed on the instrument match those of the recorded points in SA.
To use the live remote video function available on this instrument, you will also need to install the VLC media player application in addition to SA. The tested VLC install can be downloaded from our webpage Here.
SA can connect and operate the instrument using different connection methods:
Bluetooth Connection. Bluetooth connections are very convenient and relatively simple to setup but are slow. For this reason they do not support Video or Scanning operations.
Cable Connections. Cable connections are the most reliable connection method and come in two types
COM Port Connections. These cables establish a serial connection that, much like Bluetooth does not support Video or Scanning.
TCP/IP . Cable connection are the fasts and most reliable connection possible for you instrument.
Wifi Connections. Offer the speed and full control of a cable TCP/IP connection in addition to added flexibility but can introduce more reliability issues.
Select Instrument > Add and choose your Leica Total Station from the Add Instrument to SA dialog.
The instrument model you add defines the instrument plant in your job file. Add additional instrument models each time you perform an instrument move. You can also use the right-click open Jump Instrument to New Location option for this purpose.
There are now two separate ways to run a Leica Total Station in SA. You can use our classic Theodolite Manager or our newer Leica Total Station Interface which is recommended for single instrument operations and current instruments.
SpatialAnalyzer offers two separate connection options for most modern total stations:
Is our original interface. Its simpler and offers a selection of controls for theodolite users.
This interface is designed to simplify the connection and measurement process for a robotic total station applications. Its built on the controls for a laser tracker and will be familiar for laser tracker users. The Total Stations interface only supports Leica total stations that use GeoCOM communication protocol.
A comparison video between the two interface can be found here: https://youtu.be/uDBnefiGRMM
Both interfaces offer an option to be run using the Instrument Toolbar.