what is a goniometer
A goniometer is an instrument that either measures an angle or allows an object to be rotated to a precise angular position. The term goniometry is derived from two Greek words, gÅnia, meaning angle, and metron, meaning measure.rior to the invention of the theodolite, the goniometer was used in surveying. The application of triangulation to geodesy was described in the second (1533) edition of Cosmograficus liber by Petri Appiani as a 16-page appendix by Frisius entitled Libellus de locorum describendorum ratione.