Pathloss 4.0 - Terrain Data Module

Terrain Data Module

A terrain profile is a prerequisite to access most design modules in the program. This consists of a table of distance and elevations between the two sites. Terrain profiles are created in this module using any of the following methods:

manual entry of distances and elevations from topographic maps

direct entry of distance - elevation data from topographic maps using a digitizing tablet

conversion of distance - elevation data in text files from other sources

distance-elevation data is read from a terrain database

The design has been optimized for manual data entry and editing. Single structures (trees, buildings or water towers) or ranges of structures can be added to the profile.

Special Features

Grid coordinate systems

Site coordinates can be entered as latitude and longitudes or in any of the grid coordinate formats listed below. Entry in either latitude-longitude format or grid format will automatically be converted to the other format.

UTM (Universal Transverse Mercator)	Swiss national grid
South African Gauss conformal	New Zealand grid
UK Ordinance grid	Irish grid
Gauss Kruger (soon)

Transformation between Datums

Site coordinates can be transformed from one datum to another (e.g. NAD-27 to NAD-83). The program includes definitions for 120 different datums.

Terrain Profile Modifications

Terrain profiles taken from topographic maps usually show flat top hills and valleys. These can be automatically enhanced by a specified percentage of the contour interval.
The profile can be stretched or shrunk to match the distance calculated from the coordinates.
Redundant points can be stripped from a terrain profile

Survey Angles

Vertical angles from either site to any point on the profile can be calculated considering the instrument height and the value of K for light. The measured angle can be entered to shown the correction required to the elevation at the selected point.

Last Update: 08/05/99