2D stationing — A stationing mode that uses X and Y only, projecting the layout onto a level plane and eliminating Z-height variations between scanned points. Available with Radio 2 only. (See December 2025 Release Notes: 2D Stationing and Updated Field-Ready Layout List.)

Admin / Editor / Viewer — Portal user roles. Admins can create and manage users; Editors cannot. Roles control who can view, edit, and publish files. (See Dusty Portal: User Roles and Project Sharing.)

Anchor point / anchoring — Forcing the layout to zero error at one specific control point so it exactly satisfies that point or aligning the layout to two control points. Doing so shifts and rotates everything to please the anchor and concentrates error everywhere else, so it's used sparingly and only when authorized. (See What Is Flexible Control? Stationing Tools for Imperfect Jobsites.)

Area Elevation — A Floor Elevation mode that fills a region you draw with a grid of readings to build a heatmap of the area. The companion mode to Point Elevation; you can use both on the same layout.

AT500 / AT930 / AT930-NRT — The three supported laser tracker models. The AT500 and AT930-NRT use Radio 2; the AT930 uses Radio 1. The AT500 has integrated hot-swap batteries and can also run on AC power; the AT930 and AT930-NRT run on AC power only. (See Laser Tracker Comparison: AT500, AT930, and AT930-NRT.)

Autodesk Point Layout (APL) — Third-party Autodesk software that creates and manages layout points in the model

Basic Obstacle Detection Mode — An alternate camera setting that stops false obstacles in dark or reflective conditions. (See Why is my robot detecting obstacles that aren't there?.)

Best-fit — How Dusty aligns your layout to the slab. The FieldPrinter references your recorded control points and best-fits the digital file to the real-world jobsite at 1:1 scale. The quality of your control sets the ceiling on layout accuracy.

Best-fit analysis — The math behind best-fit. The app rotates and shifts (never scales) the tracker's coordinate system onto the CAD coordinate system to minimize gaps between recorded points and CAD points. Those leftover gaps are the Station Errors you see in the app.

Calibration test pattern (calibration star) — A diagnostic pattern the FieldPrinter prints to verify it's calibrated and printing cleanly. Handy for confirming print quality before a run or after cleaning cartridges.

Cartridge — The replaceable ink cartridge in the FieldPrinter. Cartridge yield depends on line thickness and job conditions. Re-cap cartridges when you're done to reduce nozzle drying; clean clogged nozzles with the alcohol wipes in the accessories pouch. (See FieldPrinter 2 Print Speed, Production Rate, and Ink Cartridge Coverage.)

Clear coat spray — An optional topcoat for high-traffic or rain-exposed lines to make them last longer. Trade-off: it reduces erasability and can make the ink effectively permanent, so test first.

Cliff detection — A robot safety behavior that guards against driving off a slab edge or into a stair opening or other drop-off.

Compounding error (error propagation) — Small control errors get magnified the farther you print from your control points. A 1/32" error at the CPs stays tight inside the area they enclose but grows over distance outside it. This is why you print only within the area bounded by your control points, and record extra points to enclose the whole job. (See Troubleshooting Control Points for a Reliable Control Network.)

Control network — The full set of control points used for a station, taken together. A strong, well-spread control network is what keeps layout accurate; a weak one shows up as high error values.

Control point (CP) — Also called a surveyed point, datum point, or just control. A fixed reference mark on the jobsite with known X, Y, Z coordinates (surveyors call these Easting, Northing, Z). Control points tie your digital layout file to the real building so the FieldPrinter prints every line in the correct position and at true scale. (See What Are Control Points and Why Dusty Needs Them.)

Control point count — Dusty recommends 3 or more control points per station, with a minimum of 3 non-collinear points (they cannot all fall on a single straight line). In practice, recording 6–8 or more well-spread points is strongly recommended — it protects you if one point is blocked or off, and keeps accuracy consistent between stations. (See How to Select Control Points for Better Stationing Accuracy.)

Control point CSV — The CSV file surveyors deliver with control point coordinates, uploaded to the Portal. Minimum four columns: a point-name column plus X, Y, and Z. A description column is optional. Coordinates default to feet on upload (override to inches or meters if needed); values must be plain numbers (no commas, no "N/A"). (See Importing and Managing Control Points (CSV).)

Control Point Target — The tool used with the Blue Ring Reflector to place the reflector precisely on a surveyed control point on the floor before recording it. The point surface should be at least ~3" in diameter so the target rests stably. (See How to Use the Control Point Target to Place the Reflector on a Control Point.)

Coordinate system / origin — The shared reference frame (for example, origin at 0,0,0) that all trades should work from so layouts align across the project. (See Coordinates, Software, and Control: A Simplified Guide for Dusty File Prep.)

Crosshair — The fine cross mark used to physically mark a control point on the floor. The finer the crosshair, the more precisely the reflector target seats — and the more consistent your accuracy. Thick or sloppy cross marks are hard to seat on repeatably and hurt restationing.

Datum — The reference origin that all of a project's coordinates are measured from. Control points are physical markers tied back to the datum.

Distance error — A pairwise check comparing the distance between two control points as measured in the field (by the tracker) against the distance between those same two points in the digital file. It isolates whether two points are simply the right distance apart, which is the fastest way to spot a single mis-surveyed or mis-labeled point. (See Overview of Distance Error and Understanding Station Information: Reading Distance Errors and Station Errors to Remove Bad Control Points.)

Drift nest — A magnetic reflector nest ("puck") that sticks to almost any surface, commonly a wall or column, to hold the reflector in a repeatable spot. Used for wall/column (vertical) control and to check whether the tracker has drifted during a session.

Dusty Academy — Dusty's online training hub — guided courses, written guides, checklists, and practice tests that take your team from first setup to certified operation. (See What Is Dusty Academy? Training Courses and How to Get Access.)

Dusty App — The iPad app the operator uses in the field to station the tracker, manage control points, select what to print, and run the robot.

.dusty file — Dusty's published layout file format, created when you publish a project in the Portal for the field. Contains the print geometry and the control-point IDs.

Dusty Portal — The web-based hub where your team manages projects, files, and user access across office and field work. You prepare and publish layout and control files here. (See What Is the Dusty Portal?.)

Edge nest — A reflector nest used to locate the edge of a frame or component.

FieldPrinter 2 (FP2) — Dusty's layout printing robot. It drives across the slab and prints your layout directly on the floor from your digital file, using a laser tracker to stay in position.

Flexible Control — The name for a growing set of Dusty stationing tools built to meet the jobsite as it actually exists — letting you set, weight, and align control without a round-trip to the VDC team. (See What Is Flexible Control? Stationing Tools for Imperfect Jobsites.) Includes:

Floor Elevation — A feature that turns the FieldPrinter 2 into a slab-measurement tool. The robot collects elevation data, which syncs to the Portal as a heatmap and downloadable reports for checking flatness and levelness. (See Floor Elevation (Beta).)

Heatmap — The color-coded view of measured slab elevation in the Portal's Elevation tab.

Horizontal control points — Control points on the floor (the standard case).

Hot-swap — Swapping a depleted battery for a charged one without powering the robot down, so you keep working without a full restart. Both the FieldPrinter 2 and the AT500 tracker support hot-swapping (the AT500 one battery at a time). (See AT500 Laser Tracker Battery Guide: Hot-Swapping, Runtime, and Power.)

Joystick controller — The physical handheld controller used to drive the FieldPrinter manually around the site (e.g., positioning it, moving around obstacles).

Laser tracker — The instrument that tracks the robot's exact position in real time by locking onto the reflector. Dusty supports three Leica trackers: the AT500, the AT930, and the AT930-NRT. All three do the same core jobs — layout printing, measurement point recording, and Floor Elevation — and all three use the same mount. (See Laser Tracker Comparison: AT500, AT930, and AT930-NRT.)

Layout file — The prepared design file that becomes what the FieldPrinter prints on the floor. Prepared in inches at 1:1 scale.

Lightfastness — How long printed ink lasts before fading, especially in direct sunlight. (See What Is the Best Ink to Use for Different Environmental Conditions and Flooring Types.)

Manual control point — A control point created in the field from a printed line intersection or trusted trade point, used only when surveyed control isn't available and the reference is known to be accurate. (See How to Create Manual Control Points from Printed Intersecting Lines.)

Milwaukee M18 battery — The battery platform that powers FieldPrinter 2 and Radio 2. The system supports genuine M18 batteries from 2Ah to 8Ah. Use only name-brand Milwaukee M18 batteries — off-brand batteries are not supported. (See FieldPrinter 2 Battery Guide: Compatible Batteries, Runtime, and Charging.)

Mixed point file — A single CSV containing both trade points and control points. (See Importing and Managing Control Points (CSV).)

Northing / Easting (N / E / Z) — The surveyor's names for coordinates. Easting = X, Northing = Y, Z = elevation.

Obstacle — An area you mark in the app for the robot to drive around while navigating and printing — used to protect columns, openings, staged materials, or areas that aren't ready. (See Creating Line, Square, & Circle Obstacles on the Tablet.)

Obstacle detection — The robot's camera-based system that stops it for obstacles in its path.

Offset (offset line) — A parallel copy of a layout line at a distance you set, printed as a measurable reference. Useful where the robot can't physically reach the exact location (tight corridor, close to a wall) or when a trade needs an "X inches offset" line to measure from. (See How to Create an Offset From a Layout Line on the Tablet.)

Outlier — A single elevation reading far enough from the rest that it's almost certainly noise (a bad measurement, not real slab condition). (See What Is an Outlier in the Elevation Tab? (Floor Elevation Beta).)

Plan coordinates — The layout drawing's own local coordinate system, usually with an origin set near 0,0,0 at or beside the building. This is the space the Dusty file prints in. If your control points arrive in site coordinates instead, they must be brought into plan coordinates before you publish. (See Coordinates, Software, and Control: A Simplified Guide for Dusty File Prep.)

Point Elevation — A Floor Elevation mode where you give Dusty a list of specific locations (measurement points) and the FieldPrinter drives to each one and records an exact elevation reading. (See What Is Point Elevation? (Floor Elevation Beta).)

Print head — The printing mechanism on the robot. The FieldPrinter has a left and a right print head. (See How to Manually Select a Print Head to Print Near Edges and Obstacles.)

Print lane — The 1"-wide path a single ink cartridge covers in one pass. The FieldPrinter prints every line that fits within a single 1" lane in one pass.

Print merging — When multiple nearby lines fall within one 1" print lane, the FieldPrinter prints them together in a single pass automatically. (See Print Merging: How the FieldPrinter Prints Multiple Lines in One Pass.)

Print Position — The iPad setting that controls which print head the robot uses and where within its range it prints: Automatic, Left, Right, Far Left, or Far Right. Select Far Left or Far Right for maximum reach when printing near a slab edge.

Task queue — The list of what the robot will print or measure.

Print stall — The assembly on the FieldPrinter that holds the ink cartridges and print heads. You slide it aside to load or swap cartridges.

Production rate — How fast the FieldPrinter prints / how much it can lay out in a period. (See FieldPrinter 2 Print Speed, Production Rate, and Ink Cartridge Coverage.)

Publish / publishing — The step in the Portal that makes a prepared file (layout or control points) available on the iPad. If a file is uploaded but not published, the operator won't see it in the app. (See How to Publish a File for Control Points.)

QR code layer — A specifically named layer in your DWG that tells Dusty to print QR codes. (See How to Prepare Your File to Print QR Codes with the Dusty FieldPrinter.)

Radio 1 / Radio 2 — The radio box that connects the tracker to the FieldPrinter system. Radio 2 supports 2D stationing and is powered by a Milwaukee M18 battery; Radio 1 does not support 2D stationing and uses a dedicated power cable. (See Radio 1 vs. Radio 2: Capabilities and Feature Support.)

Red ring / red zone — A static ring in the Dusty App marking the maximum reach of the laser around the tracker. Near or beyond the ring the tracker can struggle to hold its lock on the reflector.

Reference visibility — A layer set to show on the tablet for alignment and context but not print — commonly used for grids, existing conditions, or coordination geometry. (See Setting a Layer to Reference Visibility on the Tablet.)

Reflector — The precision optical target the laser tracker locks onto to calculate the robot's position. Because the tracker measures the position of the reflector (not the mark on the floor), correct reflector placement and seating directly affect accuracy. (See Ensuring the Reflector is Properly Seated on the FieldPrinter.)

Reflector mount — The part on the FieldPrinter that the reflector seats into. The reflector must be fully and properly seated in the mount for accurate tracking; a tilted or partially seated reflector can shift position readings and hurt stationing accuracy. (See Ensuring the Reflector is Properly Seated on the FieldPrinter.)

Reflector nest — A precision-machined holder that seats the reflector accurately on a specific type of surface or feature. The right nest for the surface is what keeps the reflector repeatably in the same spot. Types include the Control Point Target, pin nest, edge nest, and drift nest.

Restationing — Setting up the tracker at a new location and re-establishing position by recording control points again — needed whenever an obstacle blocks part of the print area or you move to a new zone.

RTS (Robotic Total Station) — A surveying instrument, often just called a "gun." Common for setting control the traditional way; typically accurate to about 1/16".

Scan Shape — An app tool for capturing an irregular obstacle by walking the reflector to each corner, so odd shapes are recorded accurately instead of approximated. (See How to Capture Irregular or Non-Standard Obstacles Onsite.)

Shadow printing — Printing in an area that doesn't have direct line-of-sight to the tracker.

Site coordinates — The jobsite's real-world survey coordinate system, tied to the site datum and typically carrying large Easting/Northing values. Surveyors often deliver control points in this system. (See Coordinates, Software, and Control: A Simplified Guide for Dusty File Prep.)

SMR (Spherically Mounted Retroreflector) — The technical name for the reflector. Also called a CCR (Corner Cube Reflector). It's a precision sphere containing three mirrors set at 90° to each other, so any laser beam that enters is bounced straight back to the tracker.

Solvent-based ink — Dusty's more durable ink option, suited to tougher conditions, low temperatures, slightly moist concrete, and more surface types (metal, PVC, glass). Recommended operating range roughly 25–95°F. Solvent ink is flammable — handle and store per its safety data sheet, and never store in a hot enclosed space (gang box, vehicle). (See What Is the Best Ink to Use for Different Environmental Conditions and Flooring Types.)

Station error — The per-control-point error the Dusty App reports for each recorded point after it runs the best-fit. It's the residual — how far that point lands from its CAD position once the whole control network has been aligned. Because it's measured against the combined best-fit of all points, one bad point can inflate the station error of the others; read it alongside distance errors to decide which point to actually remove. (See Understanding Station Information: Reading Distance Errors and Station Errors to Remove Bad Control Points.)

SVG / Print Images (Beta) — A beta feature that prints monochrome SVG graphics — logos, wayfinding marks, annotations — directly from the iPad at a set location. (See SVG Image Printing (Beta) Guidelines and Best Practices.)

Tolerance — The acceptable error for a job. Tolerance is set by your project, not a fixed number in the app.

Tracker drift — When the tracker's position shifts slightly during a print (from a bump, the tripod settling, or vibration), throwing off accuracy. First sign is usually the yellow ring shrinking with no obvious cause. (See How to Use the Verification Reflector to Detect Laser Tracker Movement.)

Trade point — A point already printed on the slab that another trade relies on. A trusted trade point can be used to create a manual control point when no surveyed control is available. In a Portal CSV, points are auto-classified as control vs. trade by reading the point name/description (contains "cp" or "cont" → control; otherwise trade). (See Creating a Manual Control Point From a Printed Trade Point.)

Tripod — The stand the laser tracker sits on. The same tripod works with all three tracker models. A stable tripod on a stable surface is the foundation of accurate stationing. Keep total height from base to top under 4' 6" to limit vibration. (See Alternatives to the Tripod: Mounting the Laser Tracker with a Column Clamp or Wall Mount.)

Verification reflector — A fixed reference target the tracker "checks in" with periodically while printing. It's an early warning that the tracker has moved, been bumped, or drifted — so you catch a problem before it ruins a print. Place it on a flat surface within 10-50 ft of the tracker, secure it with tape where no one will kick it, and record it in the Dusty App. (See How to Set Up and Use the Verification Reflector.)

VDC — Virtual Design and Construction: the office-side team that prepares your design files for the field.

Vertical control points — Surveyed reference points placed on walls or columns instead of the floor, for jobsites where floor control isn't practical (common in data centers, distribution centers, and manufacturing plants). Because the tracker measures to the center of the reflector sphere, the surveyed coordinates must be offset by that amount in the correct direction — done either by editing the CSV or shifting the points in CAD. Dusty offers a 3D-printed vertical control target with the 1‑1/4" offset built in. (See How to Use Vertical Control Points.)

Water-based ink — One of Dusty's two ink types. Ideal for dry environments; not for below-freezing temps or moist surfaces. Recommended operating range roughly 30–90°F. (See What Is the Best Ink to Use for Different Environmental Conditions and Flooring Types.)

Wind guard — A replaceable shield on the FieldPrinter that protects the print area from wind so ink lands cleanly. (See Ink Blowing Away or Fading in High Wind Conditions.)

WIPS (Wireless Intrusion Prevention System) — A network security system at some facilities that blocks the FieldPrinter's self-hosted WiFi, so the iPad can't connect or drops immediately. Workaround: run both the robot and iPad off a phone hotspot, or ask site IT to whitelist the robot's WiFi. (See Connecting the FieldPrinter Using a Phone Hotspot in Restricted Wi‑Fi Environments.)

Yellow ring — The dynamic accuracy ring shown in the Dusty App, driven by the verification reflector. It shows the area around the tracker where layout position is currently confirmed reliable. It shrinks when the tracker is bumped, settles, vibrates, or drifts — a shrinking or fluctuating yellow ring is your cue to stop, re-check the verification reflector, and restation if needed.