Creating Terrains

You can create a terrain by importing an external file containing a cloud of points or a mesh—referred to as a terrain file—in a terrain-oriented 3D part (terrain object). The file can then be processed by meshing the cloud of points. Likewise, it is possible to create a terrain from contour lines (polylines) without importing any external file. This section describes the latter two creation methods.

This task shows you how to:

Before you begin: Start a Terrain Preparation session. From the Compass, click Terrain Preparation.
See Also
Importing a Terrain File (Cloud)

Create a Terrain Object

Prior to importing a cloud of points and creating a 3D representation of a terrain's surface by meshing a cloud of points or creating a terrain by using contours, you must create a terrain envelope—referred to as a terrain object.

When starting Terrain Preparation, a terrain object is created along with a 3D shape by default. Follow the procedure below if you need to add a terrain object.

  1. In the top bar, select Add > Content in the list (or press CTRL+N).
    The New Content panel appears.
  2. Select Terrain under the Building & Civil Spatial Structure section.
    The Terrain creation dialog box appears.
  3. Select large range in the Design range area.
  4. Open the 3D Part tab.
  5. Select create 3D part check box.
  6. Click OK.
    The Terrain object is created.

Create a Terrain from a Mesh

You can create a 3D representation of a terrain's surface by meshing a cloud of points. By default, the 2D mesher is used.

  1. From the Create section of the action bar, click Create Terrain .
  2. Select one of the following reference planes:
    • The main plane or
    • A robot-specified plane or
    • The default plane.
  3. Click Apply to compute the terrain mesh.
  4. Optional: Select the Neighborhood check box and adjust the value accordingly.
    The mesh is refined accordingly.
  5. Click OK.
    The dialog box closes.
    Note: Alternatively, you can use the Create Terrain to regenerate an existing mesh after an import operation for example.

Create a Terrain from Contour Lines

You can create a 3D representation of a terrain's surface by using contour lines, modeled as polylines.

  1. From the Create section of the action bar, click Create Terrain From Contour Lines .
  2. Select the contour lines to be used.
    The polyline box highlights the selection.
  3. Click to hide or display the selected contour lines.
  4. Click Apply to compute the terrain mesh.
  5. Click OK to create the terrain mesh from contour lines.