Sub Surface

Use this procedure to model the base surface of a new sub-surface layer. The base surface is the surface underneath the layer you are actually modeling:

1. Click Sub Surface.

Find it here:

The Sub Surface tool is loaded.

2. Select a template (optional).

3. Give the task a suitable name.

4. Select a location in the process tree, or write a new location. If a summary task was selected before you clicked the tool, it will pick up this location. If not, the default will be the root task.

Method

5. click Settings to change settings, in addition to the ones found in the ribbon.

Examples of tool settings are:

Select surface geometry type: TIN (default) or GRID
For each geometry type, select detailed parameters that control the creation of the geometry
Select automatic or manual preview

Elevation Input

6. Select Elevation input, either features in general from the model or use a specific surface to follow. Depending on your data there is basically three alternative ways to proceed:

A - You have many features in the model that directly describes the shape of the sub-surface, e.g. good coverage of borehole data or points interpreted by a geotechnician. Think about them as surface fix points:

Click Features to load the Dynamic Query Tool, to select these features. The number of features selected will be shown in parentheses.

B - You have no features in the model directly describing the surface shape, only knowledge about an average depth from the ground surface to the sub-surface, e.g., for a topsoil layer:

Do not use the Features option. Click Surface to Follow to load the Dynamic Query Tool, and select the ground surface feature that you will follow. Set the vertical offset value, e.g. to -0,50 if the thickness of the topsoil layer is 0,5 meters.

C - You have only a few features directly describing the shape of the sub-surface:

You now may combine methods A and B by first adding the few features (original points) as elevation input and selecting a surface to follow (not possible to give a vertical offset now). First, a copy of the Surface to follow will be created and it will be cut by the boundary of the original points added. The depth of the original points will be calculated and these depth values will be triangulated. The copy of the surface will be adjusted by subtracting the depth value.

Set Boundary

7. Set a boundary. Click Outer Boundary to select a feature that suits the outer boundary of the surface. If no outer boundary is selected, the tool will make the best-fit calculation of the outer boundary, based on the elevation input.

8. Holes. Click Holes to select features that describe a hole in the sub-surface. A hole can also be used to cut out areas for the new design.

Layer Material

9. In Layer material, select a suitable material type for the layer above the surface you are now modeling.

10. Click Preview to see the result graphically, given the current settings. The feature(s) created will be presented in available windows.

11. Click Finish to calculate the surface and add the new task and feature(s) to the model, or click Cancel to clean up any preview and exit the tool.

Target Features

The feature type created from this tool is always SubsurfaceSoilLayer.

Next topic: Move Vertically