Facts About Digital Protractors & Electronic Protractors

By Carey Bourdier


We've all probably used a basic protractor in a geometry class, and these are handy tools to use if you want to measure an angle. There are quite a few other types of protractors out there and many are far more sophisticated than those we used in grammar school or high school. Electronic protractors, also called digital protractors or perhaps a digital angle gauge make measuring angles a snap. Some of these digital devices resemble the typical bevel protractor but some just look like a box with a digital readout.

The electronic protractor is handy because it calculates angle measurements easily and exactly, and it even works in two different ways. One mode, the horizontal mode, can be used to simple calculate the measurement of one single horizontal angle. This quickly will provide you with the measurement in its digital readout.

With the relative measurement mode one can take measurements of two surfaces. You place the protractor on the first angled surface and take the readings, place zero to clear the reading and place the protractor on the second angled surface. The reading will show the difference between the first angle and the second.

If you were wondering what types of workers or professional would use an electronic protractor, the answer is there are many applications. For instance, land surveyors often will use a digital protractor or inclinometer to measure the slope of land. Civil engineers building skyscrapers, bridges and roads also will use the digital protractor for similar purposes. Foresters might use this device to learn more about the heights of trees in our nation's forests.

Additionally, electronic protractors can be used to measure drilling angles when drilling a well. You might also use this device to measure the rate and depth of a landslide or to monitor changes in a volcano. Astronomers can use a digital protractor to measure the angle of crux stars, while a doctor might measure the range of body part motion using this device. Even soldiers might use an electronic protractor to adjust angles for gun training and sniping.

Electronic protractors are truly an essential tool for all sorts of professions. Without the digital protractor, work would be much harder for everyone from geophysicists to structural engineers to carpenters and much more. If you need precise measuring of angles for just about any purpose, using an electronic protractor is always a good idea.




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