Import

images/download/attachments/191399101/CmdImport.svg

This command imports data in the current document.

Requirements

No selection is required to launch the command.

  1. Drag and drop your files in the Drop files here area.

  2. Or click the button Add files to choose the files to import.

  3. All the selected files are displayed so that you can delete them if needed.

  4. According to the chosen file format, a second dialog box appears on the right of the first one. It allows you to customize the import. For most of the import formats, you can also choose the unit to use for the import.

  5. Validate with the Import button.

Notes

Import of clouds

  • Number of points to import:
    For most of the file formats containing clouds, you can reduce the number of points in each cloud during import.
    The default value is 6 million points. The maximum value depends on your hardware configuration. For instance, a 64 bit mode computer with 8GB RAM can process about 200 millions of points.
    The reduction process removes the points according to a constant density: points are removed where the density is high and where there is not a lot of change in the surface. Display is resized to show all the imported points (with a default maximum of 1 million of points, see the Cloud settings page).
    Manipulating very large clouds can lead to memory saturation or computation problems. To guaranty a smooth experience and ensure stability during any processing, a default reduction to 1 billion points is applied on each imported cloud.

  • Scanning direction:
    For some formats, the software can load the scanning direction (direction from which each point is scanned). Some formats store the scanning direction, but this is not the case for all of them.
    The scanning direction is mainly useful for thin parts, for instance, it is used in the following commands:

    • Cloud display in a special representation mode named Smooth with back in reversed color: the scanning direction allows to distinguish the back and the front of the cloud (only for representation purpose - in a similar way to the mesh display)

    • In the Best Fit Registration command, clouds for which scanning direction is known can be attracted by nominal data (CAD or mesh) with a valid orientation. This is mostly important for thin parts scanned from only one side (but with a nominal data containing the thickness)

    • In the Refine Mesh commands, clouds for which scanning direction is known can better adjust the mesh position in the middle of the noise thickness by detecting the different scanning layers. This is mostly useful for thin parts scanned from both sides

    • In the Separate Visible Points command, the scanning direction can be used to remove the points which were scanned in bad conditions (tangentially to the part)

Import of meshes

For most of the file formats containing meshes, if the file contains several meshes you can choose to group them all in a compound.

Import of polylines

If more than one polyline is imported the software creates a set with all the polylines that you can explode if you need to retrieve all of the individual polylines.

Technical information

List of available formats:

File format

Information

.3dr

  • All 3dr contents.

.asc (Cloud)
.csv
.txt
.xyz
.yxz

  • Reads point clouds or points from an ASCII file

  • Normally the configuration (contents of each column and delimiters) is detected automatically. But you may want to ignore some columns or correct a wrong detection

  • A preview of the file will be shown (Only 100 first lines) and you will be able to choose how to read it:

    1. Content: You can define the content of each column of the ASCII file by selecting a predefined configuration in the list. For each configuration you can tell if the first column corresponds to the point's name. You can also quickly change the meaning of each column individually by clicking on column's headers and choosing the right definition on the menu. If the file contains names, you can indicate a text qualifier that will be removed (exemple: if names are written "My Point 1" in file, enter " as text qualifier to have the point named My Point 1 and not "My Point 1").

    2. Delimiter: Define in this part the delimiter used to separate each column

.pts
.ptx
.sdb

  • Reads point clouds from a pts or ptx file

  • These formats are mostly used by Leica Geosystems. Scanning directions can be loaded from ptx and sdb format only (refer to Import of clouds \ Scanning direction section above for considerations about scanning direction)

.e57

  • Reads point clouds (including classification, timestamp and gridded information if available) from an e57 file. Note the reduction is performed per track/setup.

  • The import is also improved by an automatic detection of the data type according to the content of the file. The automatic detection works like below :

    • if data contain spherical coordinates or gridded information → static data

    • else, if data have no scanning position →mobile data

    • else, if data have normals or timestamps →mobile data

    • else, we use the type given by user (static data, mobile data, Unknown / Mixed data)

  • If we detect static data, the imported clouds will have scanning positions.

  • This format cannot store the scanning directions, however the e57 loads the stored normals and uses them as scanning directions. (refer to Import of clouds \ Scanning direction section above for considerations about scanning direction).

  • Reads images from an e57 file. You can choose to convert CubeFaces to panoramic images at import. Image masks will be generated while importing. Perspective and spherical images will be grouped in a set of images (see Image management).

.3pi

  • Reads point clouds from a 3pi file

  • This format is mostly used by ShapeGrabber. This format is ascii with 5 values: xyzin

    • xyz is the 3D coordinate of the point

    • i. The fourth number "i" is the intensity of light reflected by the model. This value will be low for dark surfaces and high for bright surfaces. Typical values will be between 1200 and 14000

    • n is the point number inside its profile. This value is ignored

  • When this type of cloud is entered, the software automatically sets the inspection representation mode and you can modify this representation mode. You can also modify the inspection color mapping with Edit Colors

  • You can manage 3pi files with transformation by checking the option

.nsd

  • Reads (x, y, z, intensity, R, G, B) points in a file with the native 3DR binary format

  • The scanning direction can be loaded from this format (refer to Import of clouds \ Scanning direction section above for considerations about scanning direction)

  • Cloud classification data can be loaded from this format

.raw

  • Reads (x, y, z) points in a file with the ASCII format

  • X, Y and Z coordinates are one after the other with or without line feed or return

.ac

  • Reads point clouds from a Steinbichler or TScan file

  • The scanning direction can be loaded from this format (refer to Import of clouds \ Scanning direction section above for considerations about scanning direction)

.fls
.fws

  • Reads point clouds from a Faro file

  • Scanning direction can be loaded from these formats (refer to Import of clouds \ Scanning direction section above for considerations about scanning direction)

.las
.laz

  • Reads point clouds from a las or laz file

  • This is a binary format for LIDAR data

  • Cloud classification data can be loaded from these formats

.zfs

  • Reads point clouds from Zoller and Fröhlich ZFS uncompressed scan data

.asc
ESRI files

  • Reads point clouds from an ASCII ESRI file (raster grid)

  • This file must begin with header information such as the number of columns and rows, the coordinates of the origin of the raster, and the cell size. The data component of the ASCII raster follows this header information and cell values have to be delimited by spaces

.rdbx

  • Reads point clouds from a Riegl file

.psl

  • Reads point clouds from a Polyworks file

  • Scanning direction can be loaded from this format (refer to Import of clouds \ Scanning direction section above for considerations about scanning direction)

.lgs

.lgsx

  • Imports data from a LGSx file:

    • either as a Cloudworx cloud and limit objects,

    • or as a standard cloud, trajectories and images (cubefaces can directly be converted to spherical images; with LGSx coming from mobile scans, images can be imported every x meters along the trajectories). Perspective and spherical images will be grouped in a set of images (see Image management).

  • Compatible with:

    • password protected files

    • intensity

    • RGB colors

    • classification

    • setup positions

    • scanning directions

    • timestamps

See Import LGSx for more information about this import.

.stl

  • Reads meshes from a stl file

  • Rapid prototyping file

  • The application automatically recognizes whether the file is an Ascii or binary STL file

.msd
.pbi

  • Reads meshes from a msd/pbi file

  • This is a 3DR native binary polyhedron file

  • Keeps inspection values (not the color gradient)

.off

  • Reads meshes from an Object File Format

.poly

  • Reads meshes from an Ascii polyhedron file containing the topology

.ply

  • Reads meshes or clouds from a PLY Binary or ASCII file

.obj

  • Reads meshes from a OBJ file

  • These files give the possibility to import colored/textured meshes

.glb

.gltf

  • Reads meshes from a GLB or GLTF file

  • These files give the possibility to import textured meshes (colors and inspections are not imported).

.msh

  • Reads meshes from an ASCII Leica format

.asc
Polyline

  • Reads polylines from an ASCII format file

  • Each line of this file must have 2 or 3 numbers representing the coordinates (For example: X Y or X Y Z). To enter several contours or polylines inside the same file you must separate the list of points with a blank line or letters like 'D' and 'E' (for Departure and End).

Example (note that first polyline is closed because the first point is repeated at the end): D280.905524 -311.389365 0.000000350.905524 -241.389365 0.000000350.905524 238.610635 0.000000280.905524 -311.389365 0.000000
E
D
290.905524 78.610635 0.000000
290.332831 76.287026 0.000000
288.745856 74.495706 0.000000
E

.mli

  • Reads polylines from a MLI binary file

.dxf
.dwg

  • Reads CAD objects from dxf/dwg file format from Autodesk

  • Most of the objects in the dxf file will be imported

.xml

  • Reads objects from a LandXml file (exported from a Leica MS60 for example)

  • In these files, the following objects can be imported:

    • Cg Points (Coordinate geometry point)

    • Surfaces (including boundaries, breaklines, contours and data points)

    • Scans (clouds referenced in the xml file)

    • Alignments

    • Plan Features

    • Images. Note that image masks will be generated while importing.

  • You can choose what to import by checking the options

.igs
.iges

.stp
.step

  • Reads objects from an IGES file or STEP files

.ifc
.ifczip

  • Reads objects from an IFC file (IFC 2x3)

See Import BIM Project for more information about this import.

.rvt

  • Reads objects from a Revit file (from 2015)

  • Currently, the Project Base Point, Survey Point and Internal Origin aren't read.
    All data are imported considering the Project Base Point to be the origin of the WCS.

See Import BIM Project for more information about this import.

.p4d

  • Reads an image from a Pix4D Project file

  • The image and the .txt and .cam files have to be in a sub-directory of the one containing the .p4d file

.out

  • Reads images from a Bundler Project file

  • The images have to be in a sub-directory of the one containing the .out file

.jpg
.jpeg
.bmp
.png
.tif

  • Reads an image from an image file

  • If there is no side files (in the same folder), the image type will be unknown unless it is an ortho-image with embedded world file.

  • If there is an INCAM file, the image will be set to perspective type with known internal parameters.

  • If there is an EXCAM file, the image will be set to perspective type with known external parameters.

  • If there is a JGW, BPW, PGW or TFW file, the image will be set to ortho-image type with known external parameters.