When working on design projects, having access to terrain elevation data in text format can be highly useful for analysis, calculations, and integration with external software like GIS platforms.
This tutorial will guide you on how to export terrain elevation points into CSV, TXT, or XLSX files using Plex-Earth and the DATAEXTRACTION command of AutoCAD.
Step 1. Insert Elevation Points
There are two cases applicable: one is to directly insert points by selecting them as the Surface Type, and the other is to insert points from dynamic terrain models for advanced modeling.
Step 1a. Insert Points Directly
If you do not have elevation points, you can click here to see how to import a terrain model and select Points directly in Step 2a.
The same option is also available when creating a terrain model from GeoTIFF files.
Step 1b. Insert Points from Dynamic Terrain Model (Advanced Modeling)
Alternatively, if you create a dynamic terrain model for advanced modelling and want to insert it as points, go to Insert → As Points in the Terrain Editor palette, and this will add a block containing AutoCAD point objects representing the terrain’s elevation grid.
The same case applies to any dynamic terrain models created from existing terrain objects using the Create Terrain from Objects, Create from Mesh, and Create Terrain from File (CSV, TXT) commands.
Then, use the EXPLODE command to break it down into individual point objects to allow CAD to recognize the points individually for data extraction.
We now have individual points and each one of them has its geometric properties in x, y, z.
Step 2. Extract the Data with DATAEXTRACTION
Now, you can use AutoCAD's built-in DATAEXTRACTION tool to export point coordinates.
Type DATAEXTRACTION in the command line and press Enter.
Choose Create a New Data Extraction, and save the .dxe file.
Select the drawing or objects containing the exploded points.
Filter by object type (Point).
And select the following properties:
Position X
Position Y
Position Z
Choose an output format:
CSV (*.csv)
TXT (*.txt)
XLSX (*.xls) (if using AutoCAD with Excel integration)
In this example, we exported our terrain data in .txt format, and now they are ready for external use.
Conclusion
You have now found out how you can turn your Plex-Earth terrain models into data files. Whether you’re preparing reports or integrating with other platforms, we can make your life easier with just a few clicks.
We hope that you have found this tutorial about Export Terrain as CSV, TXT, or XLSX file, helpful. Feel free to contact us at support@plexscape.com for any questions you may still have.
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