
The roads are then created as a DTM surface automatically with points and breaklines. In Terramodel this is accomplished by creating the centerline alignment, vertical profiles and assigning shape templates for transition areas. It is necessary to create the roads based upon the street improvement plans. The callout grades on the rough grading plans are usually not sufficient for this task. It will be necessary to calc the horizontal offset from top to toe based upon the difference in grade and slope ratio required. The pads must be created with points and breaklines in order to be incorporated into the DTM surface. Using this information along with the pad grades, begin building the pads by off setting from the lot lines. The rough grade plans will provide a typical section with information on bench from property line to top / toe of slope. The building pads in a typical subdivision are controlled by the lot lines. Otherwise assemble one from the Final Map. Use an electronic mapping base if available. A thorough examination of the plans and data should be made prior to estimating time and cost of deliverables. Meet with the client to review the plans and determine DTM limits, street section requirements and detail level. The first step is to gather pertinent plan sets and electronic data. Gutt sections of roads must be calculated and converted to templates for the Roadway module to perform cross sections and create breaklines. All slopes must have highly accurate design edges. However, simply having contours in Autocad is not enough. If all design work is performed electronically using 3D coordinates the task is much simpler. Project preparation time depends on how the data is developed prior to preparation.

Terramodel modules should include all Survey and COGO functions along with Roadway and Site Design. However, grading contractors will still need someone to develop the DTM and background data for the machine control systems.ĭata prep requires a CAD workstation with Terramodel or similar software.

This will reduce revenue as large staking contracts will become a thing of the past. Survey field crew time on site will be greatly reduced. Grade checkers will also utilize the digital data.

Grading contractors will rely more upon the machine controls to provide grade information. Once the primary control is set, the operator can reference the on-board system to obtain grade information such as cut, fill and slope grade. With the advent of machine control technology, the number of stakes required for most grading projects is reduced significantly. Terramodel has the ability to convert DTM data directly from the desktop to the machine control format.
#Terramodel edit templates pro
Trimble offers both the SiteVision GPS and Blade Pro 3D machine control systems. This allows the equipment operator to see both plan and cross section views of the site. The digital terrain model or DTM is combined with background data. The system references the position of the equipment in relation to the site base station by GPS or laser total station.ĭata preparation is required to translate grading plans so they can be referenced by the machine controls. The control system utilizes an on-board computer to store a digital terrain model of the area to graded. Machine controls are devices attached to heavy equipment (ie: graders, scrapers and dozers) to assist the equipment operator in adjusting the blade to achieve maximum productivity.
