Lesson Note On Civil 3D Building a Surface

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Building a Surface
To build a surface
  1. Create
    a new surface if needed. For more information, 
  1. Add
    surface data to the surface folders if you haven’t already.
  1. From
    the Terrain menu, choose Terrain Model Explorer.
  1. Right-click
    on the surface folder, for example to display the shortcut menu.
  1. Click
    Build to display the Build Surface dialog box.
  1. Click
    the Surface tab if it is not already active.
  1. In
    the Description box, you can type a description for the surface. The
    surface description can be up to 255 characters.
  1. Select
    one or more of the following options to control how the surface is built:
  • Log
    Errors to file
    : Select this check box to create a
    <surface name>.err file in the following folder:
c:Land
Projects <Version Number><project name>dtm<surface name>
This log
file records the time it takes to build the surface, and records each step that
the Build Surface command performs, such as adding point files or point groups
to the surface.
  • Build
    Watershed
    : Select this check box to build a watershed
    at the same time the surface is built. If you select this option, then be
    sure to click the Watershed tab and set up the watershed options.
  • Compute
    Extended Statistics
    : Select this check box to generate extended
    surface statistics. These statistics are displayed when you click the
    surface name, for example in the Terrain Model Explorer.
  1. Select
    any of the following surface data options to control how surface data is
    processed:
  • Use
    point file data
    : Select this check box to build the surface
    using the data in the surface’s folder. If you clear this check box,
    then the surface is built without the point file data.
  • Use
    point group data
    : Select this check box to build the surface
    using the data in the surface’s folder. If you clear this check box,
    then the surface is built without the point group data.
  • Use
    DEM File data
    : Select this check box to build the surface
    using the DEM file data in the surface’s folder. If you clear this check box, the
    surface is built without the DEM file data.
NOTE
Building a surface using DEM files that contain large numbers of points can use
significant system resources, especially if the “Build Watershed”
check box is selected.
  • Use
    breakline data
    : Select this check box to build the surface
    using the data in the surface’s folder. If you clear this check box,
    then the surface is built without the breakline data.
  • Convert
    proximity breaklines to standard
    : Select this check box to
    convert proximity breaklines to standard breaklines when the surface is
    built. Proximity breaklines obtain their exact point location and
    elevation by snapping to the nearest point on the surface. If you convert
    proximity breaklines to standard breaklines when building the surface, the
    breaklines are saved with fixed locations and elevations. Therefore, if
    any of the surface point data that the proximity breaklines were snapping
    to is subsequently changed, the breaklines are not updated with these
    changes.
When a
proximity breakline is converted to a standard breakline, one or more standard
breaklines are added to the breakline file in the Terrain Model Explorer, each
with the description of the breakline from which it was converted.
Clear
this check box if you want to preserve proximity breaklines when building the
surface.
  • Use
    contour data
    : Select this check box to build the surface
    using the data in the surface’s folder. If you clear this check box,
    then the surface is built without the contour data.
  • Minimize
    flat triangles resulting from contour data
    : When building a surface,
    select this check box to check each contour in the surface for any
    triangles that have three points at the same elevation. The program
    attempts to remove any such triangle by flipping faces. 
  • Apply
    boundaries
    : Select this check box to build the surface
    using the data in the surface’s folder. If you clear this check box,
    then the surface is built without the boundary data.
  • Apply
    Edit History
    : Select this check box to apply the Edit
    History to the surface after it is built. The Edit History records all the
    surface editing that you have performed. For example, if you built a
    surface and edited it, but need to build it again, you do not have to make
    all the edits that you made previously. Just select the Apply Edit History
    check box and the edits repeat automatically.
  • Don’t
    add data with elevation less than
    : Select this check box to
    exclude any surface data that has an elevation less than the elevation you
    type in the box.
  • Don’t
    add data with elevation greater than
    : Select this check box to
    exclude any surface data that has an elevation greater than the elevation
    you type in the box.
  1. If
    you selected the Build Watershed check box, then click the Watershed tab.
  1. In
    the Minimum Depression Depth box, type the minimum depth at which a
    depression in the surface is to be considered a watershed. This setting
    prevents minor depression depths from being defined as watershed subareas.
  1. In
    the Minimum Depression Area box, type the minimum area at which a
    depression in the surface is to be considered a watershed. This setting
    prevents minor depression areas from being defined as watershed subareas.
  1. Select
    or clear the Must Exceed Both Minimum Area And Minimum Depth check box:
  • Select
    this check box to create watershed subareas of only those depressions that
    exceed both the minimum area and the minimum depth.
  • Clear
    this check box to create watershed subareas of those depressions that
    exceed either the minimum area or the minimum depth.
  1. Click
    OK to build the surface.
A message
dialog box is displayed, informing you that the program has finished building
the surface.
  1. Click
    OK.

  1. If
    you want to view and edit the surface triangulation, then Import 3D Lines
    into the drawing. 
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