Polygon Boundaries
Use the Boundaries option to create a boundary around a layer of point and/or line data.
Note: To create a boundary around a triangulation, see Model > Triangle Edit > Dump.
Instructions
On the Design menu, point to Polygon Edit, and then click Boundaries to display the following panel.
Boundary Method
Convex boundary
The Convex boundary completely encloses the input points with an additional constraint that all interior angles are less than 180 degrees.
Concave boundary
The Concave boundary completely encloses the input points and may contain concave corners to more closely follow the input.
Smoothness
Smoothness is a number between 1 and 100 which corresponds to how smooth the boundary is. A perfectly smooth boundary is the concave boundary with the least amount of segments and fewest turns. A less smooth boundary will consist of more segments and more concave turns - it will more closely follow the input points.
Use projection plane
Select this option to work in a plane other than plan view. Select the Plane method from the drop-down list to define a plane with the selected method. See below for explanations of the available plane methods.
Level
A flat plane at the given elevation.
Elevation
The elevation can be defined two ways:
-
Type the elevation into the textbox.
-
Click the Define button and then digitise the elevation on the screen.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Easting
A vertical plane at the given easting.
Easting
The easting can be defined two ways:
-
Type the easting into the textbox.
-
Click the Define button and then digitise the easting on the screen.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Northing
A vertical plane at the given northing.
Northing
The northing can be defined two ways:
-
Type the northing into the textbox.
-
Click the Define button and then digitise the northing on the screen.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Line Segment
A plane defined along a selected line segment at the given angle (dip).
Dip
Enter the dip angle.
Define
Click this button to select a line segment of an existing object.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Two Points
Similar to the Line Segment option, except the segment is defined by interactively defining two points.
Dip
Enter the dip angle.
Define
Click this button to digitise the two points.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Three Points
A plane defined by interactively defining three points.
Define
Click this button to digitise the plane, defined by three points.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Strike and Dip
A plane defined by the strike and dip.
Strike
Enter the strike angle.
Dip
Enter the dip angle.
X, Y, Z
These fields show the coordinates of the origin of the plane. The origin can be defined by clicking the Define button and digitising it on screen or by entering the coordinates directly into the textboxes.
Define
Click this button to digitise the origin of the plane.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Best Fit
A plane determined to be the best fit, in a least squares sense, to a selected point cloud.
Define
Click this button to select the point cloud.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Interactive
A plane defined interactively within Vulcan.
Bearing / Plunge
Enter the bearing and plunge angles, or click the Interactive button to select the bearing and plunge interactively.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Current View
The current view in Vulcan.
Interactive
The interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Explicit
A plane defined by the equation of the plane.
The equation of the plane is ax + by + cz + d = 0.
a, b, c, d
Click the Interactive button to digitise the bearing and plunge, or enter the values for the equation directly into the textboxes.
Interactive
The Interactive button can be used to display the current plane definition or change it by dragging the handles around.
Output
Layer name
Select a layer in which to store the results from the drop-down list. You may create a new layer by entering a new layer name in the space provided.
Description (Optional)
Enter a description of the layer.
