OB = 1
BA is a straight line perpendicular to OB
OA = L
Straight lines are drawn at the points where the perpendicular segments intersect the linear segments, down to the line BA and perpendicular to it. These lines (red) can be thought of as segments of vertical distance.
If these segments are added up, the sum is defined as the vertical distance, or h-length, of the line BA relative to O. If the segments are increased ad infinitum then the h-length is defined by the equation below.
vertical distance [h-length] = ln (L)
in the diagram:
AB = 1.959592
AO = 2.2
h-length of AB, relative to O, is:
h-length = ln(2.2)
h-length = .788457