Color by distance

Menu: View / Color by Elevation

The Color by Distance tool assigns colors to points based on their distance from a given plane, allowing for easy visualization of variations in spatial positioning. Users can define distance ranges, select or create reference planes, customize color palettes, and generate detailed reports.

Setting Distance Ranges

• Min. Distance & Max. Distance – Define the minimum and maximum distances used for comparison with the selected plane.

• Cut Lower & Cut Upper – Remove points outside the specified limits.

  • If unchecked, points beyond the range will appear in the boundary colors of the selected palette.

• By Interval – Automatically determines min/max distances using equidistant intervals.

Customizing Colors

• Users can manually adjust the color range.

• Color palettes can be saved and loaded using:

  • “Load Color Table”

  • “Save Color Table”

2. Defining the Reference Plane

The Plane Definition section allows users to select or create the plane used for colorization:

• Use Existing Plane – Select a previously defined plane from the dropdown list.

• Detect Plane – Automatically detects a plane by selecting a point in the point cloud.

  • Plane detection is based on radius and tolerance settings.

• Create Plane – Manually define a plane within the tool:

  • By 2 Points – Selects two points to create a vertical plane.

  • By 3 Points – Selects three points to create a custom plane passing through those points.

3. Generating a PDF Report

Users can generate a detailed PDF report containing:

• Title and subtitle (customizable via the “...” button).

• Histogram of point distribution by distance.

• Screenshot of the main viewer.

Computing the Histogram

• Click “Compute Histogram” to analyze point distribution within the defined range.

• Important: The histogram includes all active points. To focus on a specific area, use:

  • “Cut Lower” and “Cut Upper” to restrict distance range.

  • Fence or Clipping Box to isolate a specific region.

4. Adding Annotations

Annotations can be added to the report for better documentation.

Steps to Add Annotations

1. Click “Pick Point” and select an area in the main screen.

2. Click again to place the label in the desired location.

3. Repeat to add multiple annotations, then click “Stop Picking” when done.

Customizing Annotations

• Modify annotation size and precision in Settings > View > Measurements.

• Delete an annotation by clicking “Delete”, then selecting the annotation to remove.

• Export annotations in multiple formats:

  • .TXT, .DXF, ESRI, MapInfo, GeoJSON, KML.

⚠ Note: Annotations are erased when the Color by Distance window is closed.

5. Additional Viewing Tools

• Set Perpendicular View – Aligns the view perpendicular to the selected plane.

• Finalizing the Report – Once the histogram, annotations, and settings are ready, click “Create Report” to generate the PDF.

💡 Tip: For best results, hide unwanted classes and scans or define a Fence before generating the report.