Setting and editing point cloud properties

Point cloud properties can be modified from the layer’s property sheet.

Note: You can apply a point cloud layer’s properties (e.g., point size, point color, intensity blend) to another point cloud by copying and pasting the layer’s styles. See "Copying and Pasting Layer Styles" in this chapter for information.

Note: If you want to undo/redo any edit action, on the top of the layer’s property sheet, click Undo / Redo . Changes can be undone or redone, even after the property sheet is closed, and then reopened.

Object Parameter	Activity
Style
Point Size	Size, in pixels, of each of the point cloud’s points. If you want to base the point size on attribute fields, click the Field by Attribute button . See "Basing Numeric Style Properties on Attribute Fields" in the "Feature Layers" chapter for more information.
Point Color	Color of the point cloud points. This can be set to any of the following: § [RGB] – To color each point of the point cloud according to the CPT’s RGB values. § [Intensity] – To color each point of the point cloud according to the CPT’s intensity values. § A set color value for all the points. To select a color, click Edit and select a color. § Attribute field – To base each point of the point cloud’s color on a specific attribute field’s value, click the Field by Attribute button . See "Basing Color Properties on Attribute Fields" in the "Feature Layers" chapter for more information.
Point Visibility	Determines if the point cloud’s points are visible. To set the visibility of points based on their attribute values, click the Field by Attribute button . In the Field by Attribute dialog that opens, select the attribute on which to base visibility. Then for each attribute value, type the value and the corresponding visibility setting.
Intensity Blend	Determines how much the point cloud’s intensity value is factored in colorizing the point cloud, where 0% colorizes the point cloud model by point color only, and 100% colorizes by intensity only.
Oversampling	The point cloud’s Level of Detail (LOD). When set to Normal, TerraExplorer determines the optimal quality to performance balance based on the current view. The "High" and "Best" settings will load more points but are also more resource-intensive.
Flatten Underlying Terrain	Determines if the terrain under the model is leveled to the model’s elevation value. This option is enabled only if the Altitude Method property in the point cloud property sheet is set to Absolute.
Hide Underlying Terrain	Hides the terrain texture under the point cloud model (the terrain appears as a black image).
Model
File Name	Type or browse a path to a .cpt file to load as the point cloud model.
General
Tree Name	Type the description or name of the point cloud model. This text appears in the Project Tree as the name of the object.
Message	The message associated with the object. The number displayed is the number of the message. To create a new message, or update an existing message, open the Create Message dialog by clicking in this field and selecting Edit. See "Using the Create Message Dialog" in the "Working with Objects" chapter for more information.
Tooltip	Type a tooltip text to appear when the mouse cursor is placed over the point cloud model in the 3D Window.
Ground Object	Determines if the object is calculated as part of the terrain’s elevation.
Position
Altitude Method	Sets the altitude method to be used by the point cloud model: § Select Relative to Terrain to place the point cloud model’s pivot point at a specified altitude above the ground. § Select Absolute to place the point cloud model’s pivot point at a specified altitude above the terrain database vertical datum base ellipsoid.
Altitude	Enter the altitude, as defined in Altitude Method, for the point cloud model’s pivot point.
X	Enter the X-coordinate for the point cloud model’s pivot point.
Y	Enter the Y-coordinate for the point cloud model’s pivot point.
MGRS	The coordinates of the point cloud model’s center point in Military Grid Reference System (MGRS) coordinates. This field is only available if Show MGRS Coordinates was selected in the Options dialog. See "View" in the "Using TerraExplorer Options" chapter for more information.
Yaw	Determines the direction angle of the point cloud model along the vertical axis relative to north.
Pitch	Determines the tilt angle of the point cloud model along its lateral axis relative to the horizon.
Roll	Determines the roll angle of the point cloud model along its longitudinal (front-to-back) axis.
Scale	Determines the dimensions, of the point cloud model. The actual size of the model in the 3D World is the size of the model in its internal coordinate system times the Scale value, (i.e., if the model has a width of 5 units and the scale is set to 10, the width of the object in the 3D World is 50 meters.)
Default Location	Brings you to the default location of the object. This option is active only if an object was assigned a default location during its configuration stage.
Reproject Elevation	Select the check box to reproject the layer’s elevation values to the terrain’s coordinate system. This option only applies when Altitude Method is set to Absolute or when the layer has a defined location and remains in its default position. Geocentric layers are always reprojected.
Layer Coord Sys
Geometry
Data Slice	Click on the Data Slice button to open the Data Slice Control dialog.
Visibility
Max. Visibility Distance	Sets the distance from the camera above which the point cloud model disappears.
Min. Visibility Distance	Sets the minimal distance from the camera below which the point cloud model disappears.
Viewing Distance	Determines the viewing distance of the camera from the point cloud model. This distance is used as a stop mark for any "Fly-to" or "View Object" operation. It is also used when selecting to edit the object from the Project Tree. When this value is set to the default of -1, TerraExplorer calculates and sets the ideal viewing distance for the model.
Activation Action	Select the action to perform when selecting the point cloud model from the Project Tree.
Timespan
Start Time	Click Edit and select the date and time when the point cloud model should first become visible.
End Time	Click Edit and select the date and time when the point cloud model should stop being visible.

Copying and pasting layer styles

Point cloud layers are easily styled by copying and pasting styles from one point cloud to another. When the Copy/Paste layer style functions are performed, all layer properties are copied and pasted except for Name and the properties listed in the Model and Position sections of the point cloud property sheet.

Note: Layer styles cannot be pasted if the source of the layer being copied was deleted.

To copy and paste a point cloud’s styles:

1. In the Project Tree, right-click the point cloud whose style you want to copy, and select Copy Layer Style.

2. In the Project Tree, right-click the point cloud to which you want to apply the copied layer style, and select Paste Layer Style. If you want to paste the style to multiple point cloud layers, use CTRL-click or SHIFT-click to multi-select the layers, and then select Paste Layer Style.

Using the data slice control

After creating a point cloud model, you can designate which section(s) of it to include using the Data Slice Control. This control enables you to define either exclusion or inclusion bounding boxes.

§ Inclusion box – Only points inside the box are displayed.

§ Exclusion box - Only points outside the box are displayed.

When the point cloud model is selected for editing, a yellow frame and a red frame surround it. The yellow frame represents the total area of the point cloud model. The red frame represents the area that will be displayed. When you use the sliders on the Data Slice Control, the red frame is updated to show the selected area.

Point Cloud - Data Slice Control Settings

To define a bounding exclusion or inclusion box:

1. In the point cloud property sheet, in the Data Slice field, click Set. The Point Cloud – Data Slice Control is displayed.

2. For the X-Direction, Y-Direction, and Altitude controls, adjust the Start and End sliders to designate the limits of the bounding box. The values displayed are the distance in meters from the center point of the point cloud model.

3. Enter the rotation of the bounding box on the horizontal plane by adjusting the Rotation slider or typing the rotation value in the text box. The rotation value is converted to an equivalent value between -180º and 180º.

4. If you want the bounding box to function as an exclusion box, select the Exclusion Box check box.

5. If you want to create multiple bounding boxes, select Add New Box, and repeat steps 2-4.

Note: You can use multiple Exclusion boxes but only one Inclusion box.

6. If you want to remove a box, select the required box in the Box dropdown list , and select Remove Box.

7. If you want to remove all boxes, select Remove All Boxes.

8. Click OK.