Trimble ST30 Smart Target
Layout Without Leveling the Rod
Not every layout point is easy to reach with a perfectly vertical rod. Whether you’re working tight against a wall, around installed equipment, or underneath an obstruction, the ST30’s optical tilt compensation lets you take accurate measurements while the rod is tilted. The ST30 automatically accounts for the rod’s orientation to determine the point at the rod tip, so you can spend less time carefully leveling the rod and more time moving through layout.
How ST30 Tilt Compensation Works
An Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) inside the ST30 continuously monitors the target’s orientation and movement.
When you take a measurement, the robotic total station measures the ST30 prism while the ST30 provides information about the rod’s orientation. The system uses both to determine the actual position of the rod tip, even when the rod isn’t plumb.
The ST30 can perform tilt-compensated optical measurements at virtually any rod angle, including with the rod inverted. Accuracy improves as the rod is held closer to vertical and will vary depending on the measurement geometry.
Tilt information is also recorded with each measurement, providing additional data for quality assurance and quality control.
What Does This Look Like in the Field?
As a project progresses, points become harder to reach: walls go up, equipment gets installed, ductwork and piping get in the way, and access gets tighter. With the ST30, you can tilt the rod to reach points that would be difficult or impossible to occupy with a traditional vertical rod.
That can make it easier to measure:
Tight against walls, around installed equipment, beneath overhead obstructions, around ductwork and piping, near edges, and other difficult-to-access points. Tilt compensation can also reduce the need to create COGO offsets simply because you can’t physically occupy a point with a vertical rod.
Built For One Person Robotic Layout
For contractors already using robotic total stations for one-person layout, tilt compensation removes another manual step from the process.
Instead of: Reach the point → level the rod → stabilize → measure
It becomes: Reach the point → measure → move on
That may seem like a small change, but when you’re laying out hundreds of points, eliminating a repetitive step can add up quickly.
Why it matters
Job sites change constantly, and your layout equipment needs to work with the conditions you regularly encounter in the field. Optical tilt compensation gives more flexibility to reach the point you need without spending unnecessary time trying to get the rod perfectly vertical.
See Tilt Compensation In Action
-
Tilt, measure, move on
Take accurate measurements with the rod tilted
-
Reach more points
Easily measure in tight or hard to reach locations
-
Keep layout moving
Spend less time leveling and get more time back
FAQ
The ST30 is designed to maintain precise optical measurements while the rod is tilted. Trimble specifies optical TIP performance at H: TS + 2.5 mm + 0.3 mm/° tilt and V: TS + 1 mm + 0.1 mm/° tilt.
The ST30 can take tilt-compensated measurements at virtually any rod angle, allowing you to measure on the ground, overhead, right side up or even upside down.
Not for tilt-compensated measurements. The ST30 uses IMU-powered tilt compensation to account for the rod's position, allowing you to measure difficult or inaccessible points without first leveling the rod.
Yes. The ST30 is designed for robotic layout workflows and combines tilt compensation with active tracking, Target ID and GeoLock to help crews maintain efficient layout workflows in the field.