Digital Cathetometer

*Eberbach's E5163.00 Cathetometer is a direct replacement for the E5160.00, the E5163.00 is an upgraded model. Imaging System and Light Kit accessories are sold separately.

A cathetometer is an instrument for measuring distances between two points with great accuracy in cases where a scale cannot be placed very close to the points whose distance apart is desired.

Eberbach’s E5163.00 Cathetometer is used for the easy and accurate measurement of vertical and horizontal distances or displacements, especially where close observation is difficult or dangerous. These units are indispensable where ordinary methods would introduce errors of parallax. Units measure either vertically or horizontally.

Eberbach’s E5163.00 Cathetometer consists essentially of a column with an accurate digital scale and an optical system capable of being moved up and down or horizontally on the rigid column.

The optical system consists of a short-focus telescope with a drawtube, an eyepiece with a reticle rotatable through 360 degrees, and a built-in image erecting system, making the unit convenient for reading thermometers, other scales, or printed matter.  The telescope is 8" long while closed and opens up to 10 1/2". The draw tube can be clamped firmly to prevent shifting between readings while making focusing easy at any distance between 30 cm and infinity. The magnification of the telescope is varying from 20X at 30cm to 8X at infinity while the field is 13mm in diameter at 30 cm and 118 mm at 200 cm.

The telescope is mounted on a custom clamp which is mounted onto a column slide and travels the main column by way of a smoothly operating rack-and-pinion system. The telescope swings through a 90-degree plane about the axis of the main column while being supported by the support which can be adjusted laterally for a distance of 3/4" and fixed at any position about its vertical axis. The digital slide system has a resolution of 0.01 mm with an accuracy of +/- (0.02 + 0.00005 x L (mm) and can travel 21.75inch (55.24cm) and it is powered by a silver oxide battery.  Optionally Eberbach offers a telescope-mounted digital imaging system, part# E5163.A.001 which can capture photos taken through the telescope and save them to a computer.

To use the E5163.00 Cathetometer, the position of the telescope can be read by means of the digital scale mounted to the column. In measuring the distance between two points, the instrument must first be leveled. Next, the reticle in the eyepiece of the telescope is brought into coincidence with the image of one point and the position of the telescope noted; the reticle is then brought into coincidence with the image of the other point and the new position of the telescope noted. The difference between these readings is the distance required.

Among the uses of a cathetometer is reading the levels of a liquid in a capillary tube, such as in measurements of surface tension. A cathetometer also can be used for following the changes in liquid level in a dilatometer due to, for example, a chemical reaction therein.  They are also used to calibrate the scales on instruments such as mercury barometers, and to read instruments such as liquid column thermometers and manometers.

E5163.00 Technical Data Package (PDF)

Specifications