Introduction To Vulcan v8 PDF

Maptek Vulcan
Introduction to Vulcan
Version 8
Copyright
2009 Maptek
Maptek, Vulcan, I-Site, and MineSuite are registered and unregistered trademarks of Maptek
Pty Ltd; Maptek Computacin Chile Ltda; Maptek Computacin Chile Ltda, Sucursal Per;
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marks are registered in one or more of the following countries: Australia, Brazil, Chile, Mexico,
Peru and the USA.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this manual shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted by any means - electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or
otherwise - without written permission from Maptek.
No patent liability is assumed with respect to the use of the information contained herein.
Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this manual, the publisher and
author(s) assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for
damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.
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info@maptek.com
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Trademarks
Due to the nature of the material, some hardware and software products are mentioned by
name. The companies that manufacture the products claim many of these product names as
trademarks. It is not the intention of Maptek to claim these names or trademarks as their own.
Revision History
May 15, 2009 (8.0), United States, International version, technical update
March 2009 (8.0), Australia, technical update and layout change
January, 2008 (7.5), United States, Australia, technical update and layout change
March, 2006 (7.0), United States, technical update
July, 2005 (6.0), United States/United Kingdom, technical review
January, 2004 (5.0), United Kingdom, technical review
Contents
Getting Started
Installation, Setup and Licensing ............................................................................................................ 1

Hardware/System Requirements ...................................................................................................... 1
Computer Requirements for Microsoft Windows XP/Vista ...................................................... 1
Checking your System Specifications Instructions ..................................................................... 1
Graphics Cards ................................................................................................................................. 2
Checking your Graphics Card: .................................................................................................... 2
Environment Variables ....................................................................................................................... 2
HOME .......................................................................................................................................... 3
TEMP and TMP ........................................................................................................................... 3
ENVIS_RESO ............................................................................................................................... 4
Installing Vulcan ...................................................................................................................................... 4
Corporate Standards ......................................................................................................................... 4
Creating a Corporate Standards Folder ...................................................................................... 5
Activating Corporate Standards .................................................................................................. 5
Changing the Default Specification File Location ....................................................................... 5
Service Packs .................................................................................................................................... 5
Licensing ........................................................................................................................................... 5
Floating Licence .......................................................................................................................... 7
Pack & Go (Borrow Licence) ........................................................................................................ 7
Data Structure ................................................................................................................................... 9
Design Database ......................................................................................................................... 9
Layers .......................................................................................................................................... 9
Objects ........................................................................................................................................ 9
Points ......................................................................................................................................... 10
Groups and Features ...................................................................................................................... 10
Scheme and Window Files .............................................................................................................. 10
Starting Vulcan ................................................................................................................................ 10
Dynamic Arrays ......................................................................................................................... 11
Software User Setup ....................................................................................................................... 11
Plotting Scale Units ................................................................................................................... 12
Project Details ........................................................................................................................... 13
Project Coordinate Extents ....................................................................................................... 14
User Interface
17
Vulcan Work Area ................................................................................................................................. 17

Menus, Windows and Toolbars ....................................................................................................... 17
Main Menu ................................................................................................................................. 18
Windows .................................................................................................................................... 18
Primary Window ........................................................................................................................ 19
Vulcan Explorer Window ........................................................................................................... 19
Report Window .......................................................................................................................... 19
Status Bar .................................................................................................................................. 20
Application Bar .......................................................................................................................... 20
Menu and Window Toolbars ........................................................................................................... 21
Parent and Child Toolbars ......................................................................................................... 21
Moving Toolbars ........................................................................................................................ 22
Customising Vulcan ........................................................................................................................ 23
Toolbars ..................................................................................................................................... 23
Keyboard Shortcuts ................................................................................................................... 25
Context Menus .......................................................................................................................... 25
Preferences ................................................................................................................................ 26
Colours ...................................................................................................................................... 27
Database Locks and Recovery ............................................................................................................. 28
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Introduction to Vulcan | Maptek Vulcan 8

Green Lock ...................................................................................................................................... 29
Orange Lock .................................................................................................................................... 29
Red Lock ......................................................................................................................................... 29
Using Vulcan Help ................................................................................................................................. 29
Viewing Data
31
Viewing and Animating Data ................................................................................................................. 31

Loading and Removing Data ........................................................................................................... 31
Zooming, Panning and Rotating ..................................................................................................... 32
Zooming ..................................................................................................................................... 32
Zoom To Toolbar ....................................................................................................................... 33
Panning ...................................................................................................................................... 33
Rotating ..................................................................................................................................... 34
View Ports and Overview Window .................................................................................................. 35
Perspective View ............................................................................................................................. 36
Other Views ............................................................................................................................... 38
Visibility ........................................................................................................................................... 39
PRIMARY:Visibility Toolbar ....................................................................................................... 39
Create Section View .................................................................................................................. 40
Other Section View Notes ......................................................................................................... 42
Section View Properties ............................................................................................................ 43
Creating Design Data
45
Design Menu Create Tools ................................................................................................................... 45

Snap Modes .................................................................................................................................... 47
Indicate ...................................................................................................................................... 48
Snap to Objects ......................................................................................................................... 48
Snap to Points ........................................................................................................................... 48
Snap to Grid .............................................................................................................................. 48
Digitise Tools ............................................................................................................................. 48
Key In Point Data ....................................................................................................................... 48
Bearing Input ............................................................................................................................. 50
Create Line At Given Angle ....................................................................................................... 51
Track Section of Existing Line ................................................................................................... 52
Text ....................................................................................................................................................... 53
Using Fonts ..................................................................................................................................... 53
2D Text ............................................................................................................................................ 54
3D Text ............................................................................................................................................ 56
Editing Design Data
59
Editing Tools ......................................................................................................................................... 59

Layer Edits ....................................................................................................................................... 59
Object Edits ..................................................................................................................................... 60
Point Edits ....................................................................................................................................... 67
Point Insert ...................................................................................................................................... 70
Moving Data .................................................................................................................................... 72
Drag ........................................................................................................................................... 73
CAD Introduction
77
Data Attributes ...................................................................................................................................... 77

Information ...................................................................................................................................... 77
Changing Attributes ........................................................................................................................ 77
Groups ....................................................................................................................................... 78
Features ..................................................................................................................................... 79
Setting up Features ................................................................................................................... 79
Using Features ........................................................................................................................... 82
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Contents
Data Import and Export
85
Importing DXF Files ............................................................................................................................... 85

Exporting DXF Files .............................................................................................................................. 86
Importing ASCII Data Files .................................................................................................................... 87
Exporting ASCII Files ............................................................................................................................ 90
Importing Shape Files ........................................................................................................................... 90
Exporting Shape Files ........................................................................................................................... 92
Analysing Data
93
Data Information ................................................................................................................................... 93

Analyse Toolbar ............................................................................................................................... 93
Coordinate ................................................................................................................................. 93
Distance Between Points .......................................................................................................... 93
Distance Along Line ................................................................................................................... 93
Custom Cursor .......................................................................................................................... 94
Area ........................................................................................................................................... 94
Polygon Area ............................................................................................................................. 94
Labelling
97
Analyse Tools ........................................................................................................................................ 97

Menu Options .................................................................................................................................. 97
Point Labels ............................................................................................................................... 97
Point Labels to Text ................................................................................................................... 99
Object Label .............................................................................................................................. 99
Object Label to Text ................................................................................................................ 100
Creating a Database
101
Database Overview ............................................................................................................................. 101

DSF Creation ................................................................................................................................. 101
Key Fields ................................................................................................................................ 104
Importing Data into the DSF .................................................................................................... 105
ODBC Database Creation ............................................................................................................. 110
Setting Up an ODBC Link to Microsoft Access Database ................................................... 110
AcQuire ...................................................................................................................................... 113
Viewing a Database in Isis
119
Opening the Database ........................................................................................................................ 119

Notebook/Multiple Window Views ................................................................................................ 120
Notebooks ............................................................................................................................... 120
Multiple Windows .................................................................................................................... 121
Databases
123
Drillhole Databases ............................................................................................................................. 123

Legends ......................................................................................................................................... 123
Labelling Drillholes ................................................................................................................... 126
Database Maintenance
131
Modifying/Editing Databases .............................................................................................................. 131

Editing the Database Structure ............................................................................................... 131
Editing, Inserting and Finding Values ............................................................................................ 132
Text .......................................................................................................................................... 134
Equation ................................................................................................................................... 134
Field Calculations .......................................................................................................................... 135
Database Validation ................................................................................................................. 138
Unique Collar Location ............................................................................................................ 139
Downhole Checks .................................................................................................................... 139

Along Record Checks .............................................................................................................. 139
Individual Field Checks ............................................................................................................ 139
Report ...................................................................................................................................... 139
Save and Run .......................................................................................................................... 139
Exporting Data ......................................................................................................................... 141
Using the Isis Utilities > Export > Database Option ................................................................ 141
Using the Isis Utilities > Export > Tables Option ..................................................................... 142
Updating an Existing Database ............................................................................................... 143
Drilling Utilities
145
Using Geology Tools ........................................................................................................................... 145

Database Record Definition .......................................................................................................... 145
Horizon Lists ............................................................................................................................ 145
Checking Holes ....................................................................................................................... 147
Locating Holes ......................................................................................................................... 148
Set Visibility of Located Holes ................................................................................................. 149
Extracting Located Holes to CSV/Database ........................................................................... 149
Mapfile Overview ........................................................................................................................... 150
Triangulation Modelling
153
Introduction to Triangulations ............................................................................................................. 153

Advantages of Triangulations ........................................................................................................ 153
Disadvantages of Triangulations ................................................................................................... 154
Loading Triangulations .................................................................................................................. 155
Unloading Triangulations .............................................................................................................. 155
Triangle Attributes (Properties) ...................................................................................................... 156
Triangulation Surfaces
161
Creating a Surface .............................................................................................................................. 161

Data Tab .................................................................................................................................. 162
Boundary Tab .......................................................................................................................... 162
Trending Tab ........................................................................................................................... 163
Spurs Tab ................................................................................................................................ 163
Condition Tab .......................................................................................................................... 164
Two Polygons .......................................................................................................................... 165
Grid Mesh ................................................................................................................................ 165
Relimiting Surfaces .................................................................................................................. 165
Areas and Volumes .................................................................................................................. 167
Surface Triangulation Manipulation ............................................................................................... 168
Image Registration ........................................................................................................................ 169
Triangulation Solids
173
Modelling Techniques ......................................................................................................................... 173

Triangle Solid Menu ...................................................................................................................... 173
Create ...................................................................................................................................... 173
3D Picking Context Menu ........................................................................................................ 176
3D Create Context Menu ......................................................................................................... 176
End Plates ..................................................................................................................................... 180
Tri Polygons .................................................................................................................................. 181
Primitives ....................................................................................................................................... 182
Boolean .................................................................................................................................... 186
Shelling Solids ......................................................................................................................... 188
Editing/Fixing Solids ................................................................................................................ 190
Checking Triangulations ................................................................................................................ 190
Basic Fixing Options ..................................................................................................................... 191
Close Solid .............................................................................................................................. 191
Split .......................................................................................................................................... 192
Cut ........................................................................................................................................... 193
vi
Contents
Triangle Edit > Delete Crossing Triangles ............................................................................... 194

Volume Calculations ...................................................................................................................... 195
Solid Volumes .......................................................................................................................... 195
Surface Volumes ...................................................................................................................... 195
Introduction to Grids
197
Grid Mesh Surfaces ............................................................................................................................ 197

Loading and Removing Grids ........................................................................................................ 198
Managing Grids in Envisage .......................................................................................................... 199
Creating Grids ............................................................................................................................... 199
Simple Grids from Object Data ............................................................................................... 200
Interpolated Grids .................................................................................................................... 201
Creating Grids from Triangulations ......................................................................................... 201
Editing Grids .................................................................................................................................. 202
Grid Masking ........................................................................................................................... 202
Colouring and Contouring ............................................................................................................. 204
Contouring ............................................................................................................................... 204
Colouring ................................................................................................................................. 204
Node Editing ............................................................................................................................ 205
Creating a Mapfile ................................................................................................................... 207
Exporting Grids ........................................................................................................................ 208
Introduction to Grid Calc ............................................................................................................... 209
Creating a Specification File .................................................................................................... 209
Loading Data ........................................................................................................................... 210
Displaying Data ........................................................................................................................ 210
Grid Calc Preferences ............................................................................................................. 211
Modelling Data ......................................................................................................................... 211
Grid Arithmetic ......................................................................................................................... 212
Contouring ............................................................................................................................... 213
Macros ..................................................................................................................................... 213
Data Organisation
215
.TRI Folders ......................................................................................................................................... 215

Remote Directories ........................................................................................................................ 215
Using the Remote Directories ....................................................................................................... 216
DGD Files ................................................................................................................................. 216
Triangulations and Grids ......................................................................................................... 216
User Databases and Block Models ......................................................................................... 216
Screen Files and Lava Scripts ................................................................................................. 216
Master/Working Directories
217
Multiple User Directories ..................................................................................................................... 217

Setting Up Administrative Restrictions ......................................................................................... 218
Accessing the Master Data ..................................................................................................... 218
Viewing Data from a Master Folder ......................................................................................... 219
Posting Data to a Master Folder .............................................................................................. 219
Plotting
221
Introduction to Plotting ....................................................................................................................... 221

Plot All Wizard ............................................................................................................................... 221
Using a Default Plot Template ................................................................................................. 222
Using a Plot Template ................................................................................................................... 225
WYSIWYG Plotting ........................................................................................................................ 225
Plot Utility ...................................................................................................................................... 226
Presentation
229
Screen Dumps .................................................................................................................................... 229
vii

AVI Video ....................................................................................................................................... 231
NGrain ........................................................................................................................................... 232
Design data, Triangulations, and Grids to NGRAIN ................................................................ 233
Block Models to NGRAIN ........................................................................................................ 233
Inserting and Viewing NGRAIN Models ................................................................................... 234
viii
Contents
1 Getting Started
Installation, Setup and Licensing
The install CD contains everything you need to install and run Vulcan.
During the installation, remember to note any changes you make to your system and backup
your files before you edit or replace them. You may need administrator privileges to install
software or make any modifications to your computer.
Hardware/System Requirements
For computer intensive options such as block modelling, using large triangulations or
databases, the recommended requirements are vital.
Note:
Specifications listed
may change in future
Vulcan releases.
Computer Requirements for Microsoft Windows XP/Vista

A Pentium IV 2GHz
2 GB or more RAM
2GB total disk space
Additional 10GB free disk space
A 256 MB or more OpenGL compliant 3D video card (for example nVidia Geforce 4 MX)
with an appropriate OpenGL driver
A 3-button generic mouse with wheel
Screen resolution 1280 x 1024
A CD-ROM drive
Parallel/USB port for dongle/network connection for FLEXlm floating license server
Microsoft XP Professional, Microsoft Vista 32-bit, or Microsoft Vista 64-bit operating
system
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 (or later)
Checking your System Specifications Instructions
1. Click the Start button.
2. Open the Control Panel and double-click System.
Alternatively, right-click on My Computer and select Properties.
For Microsoft Windows XP users, on System Properties click General. You will
see the basic configuration of your system including operating system version, CPU
type, processor speed and RAM capacity.
3. Click Advanced and then Settings.
For Microsoft Windows Vista users, click Change settings under Computer name,
domain, and workgroup settings and go to the Advanced tab.
4. In Performance Options, go to the Advanced tab.
Click the Change button to set the required virtual memory.
Tutorial 1.1
Change your virtual memory maximum and size to 2000.
Graphics Cards
Vulcan supports OpenGL compliant graphics cards such as nVidia Geforce, nVidia
Quadro or ATI Radeon. For best performance, ensure the graphics card drivers are up to
date.
Checking your Graphics Card:
Microsoft Windows XP Instructions:

1. Right-click on your computers desktop and click Properties.
2. Go to the Settings tab and select the Advanced button.
3. Go to the Adapter tab and view the details of your graphics card.
Microsoft Windows Vista Instructions:

1. Right-click on your computers desktop and click Personalise.
2. Select Display Settings and click the Advanced Settings button.
The graphic card installed is displayed on the Adapter tab.
Tutorial 1.2
Check the type of graphics card installed on your computer.
Environment Variables
Environment variables are values that affect the way computer processes behave. There are two
types of environment variables:
System - Is preset no matter who is logged onto the machine.
User - Is when each user has a individual set of variables. If the same variable is listed in
both areas, the user variable will be used.
Note:
You may need to
have administrator
privileges to create
or edit your
environment
variables.
Microsoft Windows XP Instructions:

2. Open the Control Panel, and then double-click System. Alternatively, right-click on My
Computer and select Properties.
3. Click the Advanced tab and then click on the Environment Variables button.
Microsoft Windows Vista Instructions:

2. Open the Control Panel and double-click System.
3. Click Advanced system settings and click the Environment Variables button.
1 Getting Started
Click to access the

System Properties
dialog box
Figure 1-1: Control dialog box System properties
Click to check your

Environment Variable
type
Figure 1-2: System Properties Advanced tab
There are four environment variables that must be set:

HOME
TEMP
TMP
ENVIS_RESO
HOME
HOME stores files such as login.csh and startup.csh and directs Vulcan to where these
can be found. This variable is automatically set during installation (if not already set on your
computer) and it is recommended that you do not change the name of this directory.
TEMP and TMP
Vulcan uses these directories to create and store temporary files. As other programs use these
folders, these environment variables may already be set on your computer. Both values should
be the same (paths with no spaces) and use C:\Temp. The values used must exist on the
computer. If not, you will need to create a new folder. If set incorrectly, an Error accessing file
list message will appear when attempting to load layers.

ENVIS_RESO
The ENVIS_RESO environment variable points to the location of the Resources folder1 for all
Vulcan system data files such as:
Plot templates - Stored in the file drafting.dgd
Symbols - Stored in the file symbols.dgd
Line styles - Stored in the file lines.dgd
Fonts - The different fonts used in Vulcan, stored in .font files
Import specifications - For importing ASCII and .csv files
The Resources folder by default is under C:\Program Files\Vulcan\etc\resources (or
where Vulcan is installed).
When a newer version of Vulcan is installed the Resources folder is replaced.
Sites with several Vulcan users will not be able to access custom templates, symbols and files
unless there is an external directory to the Vulcan tree for storing the Resources folder
(C:\Vulcan_resources). Copy all files from the etc\resources into a new folder. It is
important to set the ENVIS_RESO environment variable to read to the new folder.
If multiple accesses to Resources area is required, create a new folder on the network. For
example X:\Vulcan_resources. All computers accessing this folder must have the
ENVIS_RESO environment variable set to this folder.
Tutorial 1.3
Set your TEMP and TMP variables to a file path name (without spaces).
Installing Vulcan
For sites requiring a network licence (FLEXnet Publisher), a notification is sent with the
licencefile. Use the Install Network licence option to set up the server.
Prior to installation:
Check that you have administrator privileges.
Do not install a newer version of Vulcan over an old version. Save to a different folder.
Check that you a node-locked Vulcan licensing dongle. It is important to install the
correct dongle drivers - HASP dongle (USB) or Sentinel dongle.
You have read the End-User Licence Agreement.
Corporate Standards
For companies with multiple sites, corporate standards are used to maintain company wide
standards for Vulcan specification files. In other words, multiple copies of the same
specification file are not required. For example, files such as .gcv files (Grade Control), RES
files (Advanced Reserves) and .scd files (colours and legends) can be used several times.
Enabling company approved specification files minimises errors.
1. The Resource folder is located in the Vulcan Explorer
1 Getting Started
Corporate standards does not prevent users from accessing their personal specification files.
By default, it will direct users to the corporate standard files first and then allow them to browse
elsewhere.
Creating a Corporate Standards Folder
If a central Resources folder (mapped with a ENVIS_RESO variable) already exists, create a new
folder in the same area for the corporate standards (specification files) to be stored.
To protect company specification files from being overwritten, set the corporate standards
folder to read-only.
Activating Corporate Standards
If corporate standards is turned on during installation, a Vulcan_CORPORATE environment
variable will be created, which controls corporate standards (on or off) and where the folder is
located. The correct path to the corporate standards folder must be used. Vulcan will search for
this file the first time Envisage is opened.
If corporate standards is turned off during installation, you can use it later by creating a variable
to turn it on. More information is available under System Administration : Environment
Variables in the Vulcan Help.
Changing the Default Specification File Location
The default working directory is set to the corporate standards folder for several menu options
that can be turned off. Press the corporate standards button at the bottom of applicable dialog
boxes, however this will revert back the next time Vulcan is used. If the corporate standards
variable has not been set, this button will not appear.
Corporate Standards Enabled - Files contained within the corporate standards folder.
Home Directory Enabled - Files contained within the current working directory.
The following file types are supported by corporate standards:
.scd - Colour scheme file
.ftd - Feature file
.gcv - Grade Control configuration file
.bdf - Block definition file
.res - Advanced Reserves dialog box inputs
.tab - Advanced Reserves reporting tables
Service Packs
Vulcan service packs are released when fixes for known issues (hotfixes) and critical updates
are made.
Primary contacts at each mine site are notified when a new service pack is available for
download from www.maptek.com or ftp sites ftp.maptek.com and ftp.maptek.co.uk.
Double-click the .exe file to install.
Licensing
You must have a licence file to run Vulcan or to modify features (Geology or Survey features).
Installing Vulcan

There are two types of licences:
Node-locked Dongle with matching licence file.
Floating licence Dongle on a network used for sites with multiple users.
Store the licence file in an easy to remember location such as C:\Vulcan_licence.
To activate your licence file, click the Licence Administrator button on the Vulcan start dialog
box.
Click to start the

Licence Administrator
dialog box
Figure 1-3: Vulcan start dialog box
If you are using a node-locked licence, browse to the location of your licence file (lac) and
select Licence Type.
Different lines indicate different configurations (combinations of menu options).
To be able to use a configuration with your dongle, the line must say Nodelocked.
Shows if the
dongle is
valid and if it
is being read
properly
Click to
confirm that a
licence
configuration
can be used
successfully
Shows the configuration is being used by which user.

Figure 1-4: The Licence Administrator dialog box
1 Getting Started
Floating Licence
When you use a floating licence ensure the server name (machineries) matches the dongle
location (FLEXnet Publisher).
To display licence information click the Refresh button. The Licence Type is displayed as
floating. The Total and In use Column display the number of licences available for each
configuration and the number of licences in use.
Click Repair Dongle for recharging pre-paid dongles or if a dongle is not being read properly.
Use Borrow Licence to use (check out) a floating licence.
Tutorial 1.4
Ensure the Licence Administrator can see your licence.
Pack & Go (Borrow Licence)

By using Borrow Licence you can check a licence out from a server, disconnect a machine
from a network and use a Vulcan licence independent of a network (without a dongle).
To use this function, a floating licence with hours is required.
When a floating licence is in use (checked out), features and configurations stored on the
server will also be borrowed. When a feature is in use, information is stored on the local
machine allowing the licence to be used even when disconnected from the network.
A borrowed licence set with a time limit that protects against loss or theft of the licence.
Using a borrow licence:

You have a floating licence borrowing privileges.
A current version of FLEXnet Publisher is installed on the server.
You have set a MAPTEK_BORROW environment variable.
Verifying a floating licence:

New licences have borrow provisions set, however, to verify the licence has borrow privileges,
first check with your network administrator.
If you do not have borrowing privileges, contact Maptek and one will be provided to you at no
charge. The licence name will be similar to company_location_float.lic.
Verifying a FLEXnet Publisher:

Open the lmtools executable in the FLEXnet Publisher folder and click Help > About. The
version should be 10.1 or later.
If you can not find the FLEXnet Publisher folder, or you do not have a current version, install it
from the Vulcan Installation CD.
Installing Vulcan

Installing a FLEXnet Publisher licence:
1. Double-click the autorun.exe.
2. Select Install Vulcan and Drivers.
3. Select Install Network licence.
Setting the environment variable:

To borrow a licence you need to set the MAPTEK_BORROW environment variable.
1. On the Control Panel select System.
2. Under the Advanced tab select the Environment Variable button.
For Microsoft Windows Vista users, click Advanced system settings under Tasks in
the left panel.
3. Click New.
4. Type MAPTEK_BORROW for Variable name and 1 for Variable value.
5. Click OK.
Figure 1-5: New System Variable dialog box
Activating a Borrow Session:

To activate a borrow session your computer must be connected to the network running the
floating licence. To check your computer is connected to a network:
1. Start Vulcan then click the Licence Administrator button.
2. In the File/Server column at the top of the window type @server name.
If you do not know the server name, contact the network administrator.
Tick the Clear checked-out feature list box to borrow a licence with no features.
Remove the tick to borrow a licence with features.
File/Server column
Figure 1-6: Vulcan Licence Administrator dialog box
3. Click the Refresh button to show the features under the floating licence.
4. Click Borrow licence.
5. On the Borrow licence tab, set a date and time to return the licence.
If the time period exceeds the borrow limit, you will be notified that you are attempting to
borrow for a longer period than is allowed.
6. Click Start Borrowing.
1 Getting Started
7. Click OK.
The Licence Administrator window will display showing available features.
If the features do not appear, ensure that the server is selected and click Refresh.
8. Select a feature to borrow and click OK.
9. Start Envisage.
10. Exit Vulcan completely to finalise the borrowing setup.
You must start Vulcan while connected to the server before the licence can be borrowed.
Returning a borrowed licence:

If you exceed the time limit for a borrowed licence, the server automatically recognises that the
licence has timed out and the feature will be disabled on your computer.
1. Reconnect your computer to the network.
2. Start Vulcan and select the Licence Administrator button.
3. Click Borrow licence and select the Return Feature tab.
4. Select and the item to return and click the Return Feature button.
5. Click OK to return to the Licence Administrator window.
When you have returned a licence, you will be operating again under the floating licence on the
network.
Data Structure
The most commonly used data in Vulcan are CAD data and triangulations. CAD data (such as
lines and polygons) are stored in a database (dgd.isis) and triangulations are stored as
separate files with the extension .00t.
Design Database
Layers are not stored as individual files.
Multiple layers can be stored in a single design database file within your work area.
Design databases (also called design files) follow the following naming convention:
<project code><database name>.dgd.isis
The associated index file for a design database is named
<project code><database name>.dgd.isix
Layers
Objects are stored in layers.
Vulcan organises data into major groups (or levels) called layers.
Layers can contain one or more objects.
Objects
Sequential point entries make objects. For example:
A line (sequential group of connected points).
A polygon (closed line).
A group of unconnected points.
Installing Vulcan

Points
CAD data at the lowest level is made up of points consisting of X, Y, Z coordinates.
Groups and Features

Organise your data at object level using groups or features. For example, you can create a
group by choosing an object (within or across a layer) and setting the group property to a
common value. The advantage of using group properties is that you can work on unrelated
objects simultaneously.
Features are created by defining a feature set, which is a group of properties stored in a file.
Objects that share a feature set will share the properties defined within the feature set. The
feature file uses the naming convention <project code>< identifier>.ftd.
Scheme and Window Files

The Scheme file contains colour schemes and legends and is stored in the current working
directory. A different location can be specified using the corporate standards environment
variable. The Scheme file naming convention is <project code>.scd.
The Window file holds information about windows that are created and stored in the current
working directory. The convenience of creating your own windows may not be necessary,
however, creating windows with different properties (from the default window) can be useful.
The Window file uses the naming convention <project code>.wnd.
Vulcan provides methods to group data within and across layers, using point and object
attributes, such as the group and feature fields.
Groupings are referred to as virtual folders.
Folders and the files within them are identified though the use of icons. For example, an
image of a block indicates block model files. Directories with subdirectories, such as the
Triangulation directory may contain *.tri subdirectories, will have the subdirectories
displayed at the top of the list.
The Remote Directories preference (Tools > Preferences > Remote Directories) can
be used to specify directories other than the current working directory to be included in
the Explorer window.
Starting Vulcan
When Vulcan is started, a work area must be selected.
1. Start Vulcan.
2. Double-click on Browse.
Browse to the location of your data. Select a folder to open.
3. Click OK.
The folder will appear in the work area box. Any directories that are opened will
remain in the work area until manually deleted.
To delete a directory, right-click on the folder and select Remove from History or
Remove all to delete the entire list.
The work area history is stored in a file called .vlauchpref, which is located
under C:\Documents and Settings\User Name.
10
1 Getting Started
Click to
browse files
or folders.
Figure 1-7: Browsing for a file or folder
Tutorial 1.5
Browse to the start data folder.
On the right-hand side of the dialog box are the application buttons which include:
Envisage - 3D viewer and editor.
Isis - Database editor that interacts with Envisage.
Plot Utility - Plot files viewer.
Settings - Dynamic Array settings (also called the Dynamic Memory settings).
Dynamic Arrays
Use the Vulcan Dynamic Arrays Configuration dialog box (under Settings or in Envisage
under Tools > Dynamic Memory Settings) to modify size Envisage arrays. This is so large
objects, grids and triangulations can be manipulated in Vulcan. Restart Vulcan for any changes
to take effect.
If the Envisage Memory Availability bar decreases to a small amount, other options may not
have enough memory available to run. Leave Default values until a higher setting is required.
Software User Setup

The first time Vulcan is installed on a computer the 3D Software User Setup Wizard will be
displayed.
Installing Vulcan
11
Figure 1-8: Vulcan 3D Software User Setup Wizard - Workbench Layout
Tutorial 1.6
Select the DEFAULT_1024 layout and set the plotter scale units to Imperial.
In Vulcan there are several layouts each with a different resolution size, however, it is advisable
to select default_1024. The three different layouts are:
Default - Standard screen layout.
Classic - Resembles older versions of Vulcan.
Maxgraphic - Maximises the graphics display area.
The layout can be changed using the Tools > Layout > Import and are stored in
C:\ProgramFiles\Vulcan\etc\defaults.
Use the dropdown menu to
select the correct
layout for your
screen resolution
size.
Figure 1-9: Vulcan Workbench Layouts
Plotting Scale Units

Select Plotter Scale Units as metric or imperial.
12
1 Getting Started
To change the layout and Plotting Scale Units, delete the Vulcan.prefs files in
C:\Documents and Settings\User Name. However, deleting these files will delete the
user preferences.
Figure 1-10: Plotter Scale Units
Tutorial 1.7
Select the DEFAULT_1024 layout and set the plotter scale units to Imperial.
Project Details
A project file (.dg1) must be selected each time Envisage is started. This file contains the
project code, coordinate information for the project and the units to be used.
Figure 1-11: Setting the Vulcan project file
Installing Vulcan
13
A code added to secondary files and an abbreviation for the company name.
Maximum of four characters can be used.
Name of the .dg1

file.
Abbreviation for
the site or
project. A
maximum of four
characters can
be used.
Figure 1-12: Project details
Leave as default
Clicking Finish will

open the Design file
Figure 1-13: Project coordinate extents
Project Coordinate Extents

The following values are defined in the .dg1 file:
Coordinate extents Minimum and maximum easting, northing and RL values for the
project. This defines the size of the Primary window in Envisage.
Vertical exaggeration Exaggeration value applied to the project Z values.
Project Display grid Specifies how the rotation axes are labelled in Envisage.
Coordinate unit Required coordinate units for the project.
More information is available under Envisage : Introduction : Setting Up Envisage : Creating
a Project File in the Vulcan Help.
14
1 Getting Started
Tutorial 1.8
Create a new .dg1 file using the information provided below:
Start File Name: training.dg1
Project Prefix: THOR
Environment Prefix: KRJA
Easting: 75,500 / 79,500
Northing: 2,500 / 6,000
Level: 0 / 300
Coordinate Unit: Metre
15
2 User Interface
Vulcan Work Area
In this chapter we will look at features of the Vulcan user interface and how to customise it.
Main menu
Menu toolbars
Explorer window
Status bar
Primary window
Report window
Windows toolbar
Application bar
Figure 2-1: Vulcan user interface
Menus, Windows and Toolbars

The user interface consists of the following:
Main menu
Windows
Primary window
Toolbars menu and window
Explorer window
Report window
Status bar
Application bar
Toolbars
Vulcan Work Area
17

Main Menu
The main menu is the horizontal bar that resides below the title bar. Options displayed in the
drop-down lists vary for each Vulcan licence.
Many menu commands use keyboard shortcuts (where the first letter is underlined) that can be
used instead of your mouse. For example [ALT+F] will open the File menu.
More keyboard shortcuts can be found under Envisage 3D Editor : Introduction : Keyboard
Controls in the Vulcan Help.
Windows
There are several types of windows:
Hidden A window obscured from display. These are useful for enlarging the client
window and do not require the Vulcan Explorer window to be displayed.
Client A window positioned in the client area. [Use CTRL+Tab] to cycle through
windows docked in the client area.
Floating A window that can be positioned anywhere on or outside the work area.
Own A window that can be positioned anywhere on or outside the work area. The
difference between a floating and own window is that floating windows always stay on
the top (visible). Own windows are useful when several Vulcan applications are running at
the same time.
Docked - A docked window is positioned in a docking area.
Docked toolbar
Work area
Floating toolbar
Floating window
Figure 2-2: Vulcan windows
18
2 User Interface
Primary Window
The Primary window is the default 3D design window as defined by the coordinate extents in
your .dg1 file. By default, the Primary window is confined to the client area of the work area.
Changing the primary position:

1. Choose Window > Windows.
2. Select the window to move.
3. Select the new position of the window.
4. For more advanced options, click the Advanced>> button.
Figure 2-3: Window Properties dialog box
Vulcan Explorer Window

The Vulcan Explorer window is used to browse virtual folders for data stored in the Vulcan work
area. All files in the current working directory are divided between the folders; however, any
orphan files will be stored in the Other folder.
The Vulcan Explorer window enables files and layers to be loaded to and removed from the
Primary window.
The tabs at the bottom of the Vulcan Explorer window provide other views into the system:
Data Displays files in the Vulcan work area. Files and layers that are loaded into Vulcan
Envisage are highlighted in this view.
Resources - Displays files in the Vulcan Resources area, which is defined by the
Environment variable ENVIS_RESO. These files include drafting.dgd, symbols.dgd
and lines.dgd.
Vulcan Envisage - Displays only the files in use (loaded on-screen). Even though loaded
files and layers are highlighted in the data tab, the Vulcan Envisage tab is useful to display
a concise list of data currently in use.
Report Window
The Report window displays text information that is generated from the application in use.
When objects are analysed for statistics such as distances and coordinates, or if calculating
reserves, the results are generated in the Report window.
Close contents
Print contents
Save contents
Clear contents
Figure 2-4: Report window
Vulcan Work Area
19

There are three tabs on the Report window:
Work area Displays information on where work area preferences are stored.
Vulcan Envisage Console Displays errors or messages.
Vulcan Envisage Displays reports and lists generated when performing certain
operations, for example, a list of an objects details or block reserves reports.
Figure 2-5: Vulcan Explorer
Other tabs can sometimes appear when other applications are running, such as Grid Calc or the
Block Model Utility. The text based results can be copied and pasted into other applications.
Highlight the text, right-click and select Copy from the context menu.
Status Bar
The Status bar displays information relating to the current application:
Prompt Displays the prompts relating to the current menu option being used.
Coordinates Displays the coordinates of the mouse pointer location on-screen.
Function Displays the current options menu tag.
Design Database Displays the currently open design database.
Application Bar
The visible icons on the Application bar correspond to Vulcan Envisage, Explorer window,
Report window and Vulcan help.
Envisage
Vulcan
Explorer
Show Properties
Window
Start Vulcan
Help
Report
Window
Start
Application
Figure 2-6: Application bar
They can be closed by clicking the X at the top of each and reopened from the Window menu.
The T Shell option will open a new shell window, where commands and scripts can be
executed.
20
2 User Interface
Menu and Window Toolbars

A toolbar is a bar containing graphic buttons or other controls providing fast access to
commands.
There are two types of toolbars:
Menu toolbars are located top-left of the screen and correspond with menu commands.
Window toolbars are located at the bottom and to the right of the screen. Window
toolbars are linked to the window they are associated with, in this case the Primary
window. These options can not be found in any of the menus.
When using a command, the current option must be completed or cancelled before another
option can be selected. However, options from the window toolbars can be used in conjunction
with options from the menu toolbars. For example, if you are drawing a line, you are able to
select the window toolbar options of rotate and pan, without cancelling out of the option.
To see a list of other available toolbars right-click in a space alongside an existing toolbar. The
list will vary at different points of the work area. Another way to view toolbars is to choose Tools
> Toolbar Visibility. Note that the toolbars at the bottom of the list beginning with [PRIMARY:]
are window toolbars
.
Figure 2-7: Available toolbars
Parent and Child Toolbars

Toolbars can also be classified as parent toolbars and child toolbars. Child toolbars are hidden
within the parent toolbar. For example, on the Graphics toolbar several icons have an arrow
symbol in the bottom right hand corner. This indicates that a child toolbar exists under this icon.
Right-click on the arrow to display the child toolbar or click, hold and drag the child toolbar into
the Primary window. Once the child toolbar is closed it will be hidden under the parent toolbar.
Vulcan Work Area
21
Figure 2-8: Graphic toolbar
Child
toolbar
Figure 2-9: Child toolbar
Several icons have three points in the bottom right-hand corner. Right-click the icon to display a
properties dialog box, which provides additional options used in conjunction with the icon.
Figure 2-10: Icon properties dialog box
Moving Toolbars
Toolbars may either be docked in the window or float on the desktop.
Minimising a toolbar:
1. Click the blue arrow above the toolbars to minimise the entire row.
2. Click again to maximise the toolbars.
Floating a toolbar:
1. Position your mouse pointer over the double lines at the start of the toolbar.
2. Double-click or hold your left button on the double lines and drag the toolbar to the
desired location.
Docking a toolbar:
1. Position your mouse pointer over the title bar at the top of the toolbar window.
2. Click and hold the left mouse button.
3. Drag the toolbar to the desired docking space, a preview rectangle will appear to show
you where the toolbar is going to dock. Or double-click on the title bar on the toolbar
window and it will be docked in its last dock position.
Tutorial 2.1
Practise docking and un-docking toolbars.
22
2 User Interface
Click once to minimise and

twice to float toolbar.
Figure 2-11: Moving toolbars
Customising Vulcan
The Tools menu contains options for customising your work area. For instance, you can create
customised toolbars, allocate keyboard shortcuts, import and export user layouts. Preferences
can be set to control display options, such as colour, position of dialog boxes and appearance
of the background.
Toolbars
There are two types of toolbars used in Vulcan - menu toolbars and window toolbars. For
frequently used commands, it is ideal to customise a toolbar containing these options.
Creating a custom toolbar:

1. Choose Tools > Customise. The work area Customise dialog box will display.
2. Select [*] New Toolbar (right pane) on the Toolbars tab.
3. From the Vulcan Menus (left panel) click and drag the commands in the [*] New Toolbar
folder. The Untitled Toolbar can be expanded by clicking the + symbol. Note that there
is now also an option to add a [*] New SubMenu. Menu commands can be added to the
Untitled Toolbar as required and renamed by right-clicking on the title.
Vulcan Work Area
23
Rightclick and
select
Rename
to name
your new
toolbar.
Figure 2-12: Workbench Customise dialog box
The [*] New SubMenu and [*] New Toolbar at the bottom of the right dialog box are always
present by default, and can not be deleted.
4. Click OK to display the new toolbar as a floating toolbar. If a menu command has a
shortcut icon associated with it, then the icon will display in the toolbar in place of the
menu command name.
5. Save the new toolbar by typing the name in the Save Workbench Customisations
dialog box.
Figure 2-13: Save Workbench Customisations dialog box
6. Tick Set as Default to automatically load the toolbar next time Vulcan is started. The
.vwc file is saved in the current project folder (or other nominated directory using the
Browse button) under the naming convention <customise file name>.vwc.
7. Save the position of your custom toolbar in the work area using Tools > Layout > Save.
To make efficient use of the work area, menu command items can be shown as submenus in the
toolbar. This ensures that the menu commands display in a vertical listing, however an
additional mouse click is required to access them.
24
2 User Interface
Keyboard Shortcuts
Keyboard shortcuts allow you to quickly execute menu commands. Similar to customising
toolbars, keyboard shortcuts can be customised to execute commonly used commands.
Customising keyboard shortcuts:

1. Choose Tools > Customise and select the Hotkeys tab.
2. On the Vulcan Menus tab select a menu option.
3. Under Modifier and Key, create a keyboard shortcut, for example [SHIFT+F4].
4. Click Apply Hotkey and click OK.
Figure 2-14: Hotkey tab
Context Menus
Context menus are popup menus that display when you right-click on an object or blank space
in Vulcan.
There are separate context menu options for the following:
Line
Polygon
Triangulation
Underlay
Drillhole
Points
Vulcan Work Area
25

Use Tools > Context Menus to customise the context menu.
Figure 2-15: Context Menu Customisation dialog box
Preferences
Use Tools > Preferences to modify the appearance of the work area and set defaults.
The most commonly used preferences are:
Setting Default Rotate Mode (under Tools > Preferences > Graphics > Input).
Reverse wheel zoom direction (under Tools > Preferences > Graphics > Input).
Text Defaults (Tools > Preferences > Defaults > 2D Text and 3D Text).
Remote Directories (under Tools > Preferences > Workbench > Vulcan Explorer).
26
2 User Interface
Figure 2-16: Preferences dialog box
Colours
The Preferences dialog box under Colours allows you to modify the existing colour table or
use the colour button on the Status toolbar to edit colour tables.
Select File > Colour Table > Colours to edit the current colour palette.
Colours can be edited manually or automatically.
Figure 2-17: Colour preferences dialog box
Editing the colour table manually:

1. Select a colour from the colour table, which will display in the colour box to the right.
2. Use the sliders to change the colour. The colour in the display is updated dynamically.
3. Click Replace.
Vulcan Work Area
27

Editing the colour table automatically:
1. On the Auto tab, select a range of colours to edit. To do this, click on the first colour in
the range and then click on the second colour.
2. Select an option from the Auto Edit list.
3. Click Apply.
4. Click OK to update the current colour table.
Figure 2-18: Colours dialog box
Saving the current colour:

1. Select File > Save to save the current colour table.
Colour tables are .dgd specific, and the colour changes are saved to a .dgd.
The Colour Table can also be saved to the .scd file so a particular colour table that
all .dgd /users have has the same colour.
2. Select File > Colour Table > Save to display the Legend Name dialog box.
3. Type the colour table identifier name.
The colour table identifier can contain up to 20 alphanumeric characters.
The table is saved to the Colour scheme file (<proj>.scd) located within your current working
directory. If this file does not exist, it will be created.
Loading and using a saved colour table:

1. Click the Colour button on the Window toolbar.
2. Click the Edit Colour button.
3. Click the Load Colour Palette button.
4. Select the Colour scheme file.
5. Click Open.
6. Select the colour table.
7. Click OK.
Database Locks and Recovery

If a system failure occurs (computer crash) or if a database becomes corrupt, the design
database can easily be recovered.
Changes made to existing design data are performed on a copy of the data contained in the
work file (.wrk). The data is updated in the design database after each save.
Lost CAD data can be recovered by reloading a previous version of the work file.
28
2 User Interface
Green Lock
A green lock indicates a .dgd is open.
Orange Lock
Indicates system failure or corrupted design database.
To limit potential loss of data the database should be recovered immediately.
WARNING
If everyone on a
server crashes at the
same time, everyone
will be able to
recover their data so
long as the recovery
steps are followed by
one person at a time.
If everyone attempts
to recover at the
same time, data will
be permanently lost.
Recovering a design database after a system failure:

1. Restart Vulcan Envisage but do not remove any lock files.
If you have added a default design database to your project file (.dg1) and this was the
file that was open when you exited Envisage, a message will be displayed informing you
that the file is locked. Click OK to accept this message.
2. Locate the design database that was being used at the time of the system failure in the
Windows Explorer. An orange lock will be displayed beside the database name.
3. Right-click on the lock and select the Recover option. This creates a recover.dgd
where the potentially lost data is stored. When recovered, a message will display
informing you that the database has been recovered successfully.
4. Right-click on the database you just unlocked and select Open from the displayed
context menu. You should now see a green lock on the .dgd.
5. Select File > Load Recovered Layers to load the lost design data.
6. Select File > Save to save the design database.
Red Lock
Indicates the .dgd is currently in use by another user.
Tutorial 2.2
Ensure you have a green lock on a .dgd.
Using Vulcan Help

Vulcan Help is accessed by pressing the [F1] key or selecting Help > Vulcan Help. For menu
commands without dialog boxes, click the help icon on the standard toolbar to see the topics
associated with the command in the Help window. Under some help topics, certain words may
be underlined (hyperlinks) or highlighted in blue (ToolTips). Hyperlinks open related topics while
tooltips display extra information when the mouse hovers on the word for less than a second.
Click for more information

on this dialog box.
Figure 2-19: Help icon
Using Vulcan Help
29

Pages in the Help menu that are frequently referenced can be added as favourites by selecting
Add on the Favourites tab
Click to start the Vulcan

Help.
Figure 2-20: Menu toolbar Help icon
Tutorial 2.3
Start Vulcan Help and read about a menu option.
30
2 User Interface
3 Viewing Data
Viewing and Animating Data
Loading and Removing Data
Layers, triangulations and other files can be loaded using the menu options or the Vulcan
Explorer Window. When files are loaded, the name appears in bold.
Figure 3-1: Explorer window
Loading data can be performed several ways:

Double-click on a file.
Drag and drop a file into the Primary window.
Right-click on a file and select Load.
To load multiple files use [SHIFT] (for multiple, consecutive files) and [CTRL] (for multiple,
non-consecutive files) to select, right-click and select Load.
Click the Open button on the Standard toolbar.
Removing data can be performed several ways:

Right-click on the files in the Explorer window and select Remove.
Right-click on an object on-screen and select Remove.
You can also use the icons on the Standard toolbar for removing layers and underlays
(anything that is not stored in a layer for example, triangulations, grids and block models).
31
Remove Underlay button
Open icon
Remove Layer button

Figure 3-2: Standard toolbar
Tutorial 3.1
Practise loading and removing the TR_TQ1 layer.
Zooming, Panning and Rotating

Zooming
Zooming can be accomplished by several different methods:
Using the middle mouse wheel. For example, to zoom into the northeast corner, move
your pointer to that corner and scroll using the mouse wheel.
Using the Zoom icon. Select a zooming area by clicking once in the bottom left hand
corner of the zoom area. Clicking a second time for the upper right hand corner of the
zoom area.
Zoom icon
Figure 3-3: Graphics toolbar
Right-click to cancel out of zooming mode.

Hitting the [Z] key on your keyboard automatically makes the zooming icon active,
provided you are not in rotate mode, which will be discussed in the next section.
The [B] key and the [F] key on the keyboard may be used to cycle backwards and
forwards through the last zoomed views.
Click the cursor in Zoom Factor field box (Digitise toolbar).
Hit the [ENTER] key any number of times.
The default zoom factor is 0.8. It is possible to zoom in using this method by typing
in a number greater than 1.0. For example, a zoom factor of 2 will give 2 x
magnification.
When finished using the Zoom Factor field box, click the cursor back on the
Primary window to re-focus the cursor.
32
3 Viewing Data
Zoom Factor field

Figure 3-4: Digitise toolbar
When viewing data in a neutral situation, it is possible to zoom in or out using the middle
mouse button and the right mouse button simultaneously. A circle (overlay) will
temporarily appear on-screen; dragging the cursor towards the circle will zoom out and
moving away from the circle centre will zoom in.
When in virtual sphere rotate mode, the [S] key from the keyboard may be used to
activate zoom in/out.
If the Zoom toolbar is loaded in the work area, use either the plus or minus keys to zoom
in and out. These toolbar icons use a zooming factor of 1.25 and 0.8 respectively.
Zoom To Toolbar
The Zoom Data Extents icon will set the zoom value to allow all graphics to be displayed in the
Primary window.
If zooming to a specific object(s) is desired, highlight the object(s) and select the Zoom
Highlighted icon under the zoom data extents child toolbar. To zoom to the active layer select
the Zoom Current Layer icon under the zoom data extents fly out toolbar. Click Reset View on
the graphics toolbar to return the Primary window to plan view.
Zoom Data Extents icon
Zoom Highlighted
Zoom Current Layer
Reset View button
Figure 3-5: Zoom Data Extents menu
Panning
Panning is accomplished in a variety of ways:
Clicking on the Pan icon. Once active, use the left mouse button to click a From point
and click a To point to pan in the graphics window
.
Pan icon
Figure 3-6: Pan icon
Alternatively, for those with a 3-button mouse, the middle and left mouse buttons can be
held down simultaneously and the cursor moved to pan across the data.
Right-click to cancel out of panning mode.
Hitting the [P] key on the keyboard will activate the panning icon.
Panning can also be accomplished by zooming in and out with the middle mouse wheel
and moving the location of the cursor.
The arrow keys on the keyboard may be used to pan up, down, right and left.
33

Rotating
There are four different rotate modes that can be used by holding down the Virtual Sphere
Rotation icon on the Graphics toolbar.
Virtual Sphere Rotation
Figure 3-7: Virtual Sphere Rotation icon
Ortho Sphere Rotation - Rotates about the three principal axes (X, Y and Z) by using a
different mouse button for each axis. This mode can also rotate around vertical [V], in the
plane of the screen [W], and perpendicular to the screen [U] by using the respective keys.
Virtual Sphere Rotation - Very similar to Z-Up however, the Z axis is not fixed. Left-click
and drag the mouse to rotate.
Z-Up Rotation - The Z axis is always up. Left-click and drag the mouse to rotate. This
mode also ensures that the horizon remains horizontal when viewing topographical data.
Ortho Rotation - This is a combination of Virtual Sphere and Ortho Sphere modes. The
axes are displayed in different colours. As you move the mouse over the sphere you will
notice that the cursor changes from a hand to the Ortho Sphere Rotation icon. The hand
cursor indicates that Virtual Sphere Rotation will be used, whereas the rotate ortho cursor
indicates that ortho rotation will be used.
If the cursor is moved rapidly before the mouse is released, the graphics will continue to rotate.
Furthermore, the speed of the rotation then depends on the relative cursor speed before release
for example, the force of the throw. Left-click once to stop the rotation or press the [F] key. If
using Z-Up or Virtual Sphere, click [SHIFT+V] to display a virtual sphere on-screen.
Figure 3-8: Virtual sphere
34
3 Viewing Data
Tutorial 3.2
Try all four rotate modes and select the most comfortable option.
Tip!
The speed of rotation
is controlled by the
distance the cursor
is away from the
centre of rotation. To
decrease the rotation
speed, move the
cursor away from the
centre of rotation
and describe a wide
arc. To speed up the
rotation, move the
cursor in a tight
circle around the
centre point.
Each user can specify a default rotate mode via Tools > Preferences on the Input tab.
Input tab
Default rotate modes
Figure 3-9: Input tab
Tutorial 3.3
Set your favourite rotate mode as the default
To exit rotation mode press [ENTER] or [ESC] or simultaneously click all three mouse buttons.
Further rotations in the current session (fourth icon on the Graphics toolbar) will remember the
rotation centre until such time as another centre is specified.
View Ports and Overview Window

The Overview window is a sub-window that may be opened to view data from the Primary
window. It is generally used to simultaneously view data from two different directions. Typically,
the Overview window would be displayed to show a top down view of data while the Primary
window displays a cross-section.
The Overview window floats on top of the work area but may be resized, moved or docked.
Overview window
Figure 3-10: Overview window icon
This window also has its own toolbar for zooming, panning and rotating as well as buttons
controlling visibility, solid shading, translucency and textures of triangulations. It is also
equipped with a modified Digitise toolbar.
35
Figure 3-11: Overview window
Tutorial 3.4
Load an Overview Window and zoom in/out in the main window. Ensure you see the blue
lines change in the Overview Window as you zoom.
Perspective View
Perspective View switches to a mode where the data displays in an isometric perspective. This
is ideal for visualisation of topographic models. Perspective mode may be toggled on and off by
clicking the Perspective View icon or by pressing the [V] key.
Perspective View
Figure 3-12: Perspective View icon
Using Zoom in Perspective View mode, will behave differently from zooming in normal view.
When zooming in perspective mode, three boxes are displayed to help you visualise the
zooming process. All objects inside the smallest box will still be visible after the zoom. All
objects outside the largest box will not be visible after the zoom. Objects between these two
boxes may be visible, but it depends upon the depth of the zoom.
The middle box represents the user-defined area.
36
3 Viewing Data
Figure 3-13: Perspective View mode
Figure 3-14: Distorted data
In the above example, the data closest to the viewer appears to be distorted by the perspective.
In actuality, all tunnels are of the same cross-sectional size. Perspective View mode is a
visualisation tool only and is not recommended for normal digitising work.
Tutorial 3.5
Turn Perspective View on. Try zooming, panning, or rotating and pick out differences
between being in regular view and Perspective View.
Turn off Perspective View.
37
Figure 3-15: Regular mode and Perspective View
Tip!
When you use
Perspective View,
open an Overview
window to display a
perspective pyramid.
The apex of the
pyramid is the
viewing point and
the pyramid itself
defines the depth of
view. Data not within
the pyramid overlay
will not be visible in
the Primary window.
Other Views
The on-screen view can be changed in several ways using the View menu.
The most common tools are:
View > Change View > Set View - Enables you to select a centre of the screen (Axis
position) and specify the rotations around the X, Y, and Z axes.
View > Change View > Vertical Exaggeration - Enables you to enter a vertical
exaggeration. This exaggeration will have an effect until the Reset View icon is used, and
then will be re-set to an exaggeration of one.
Reset View
Figure 3-16: Reset View icon
View > Windows > Fit Layer - Will generate a new, temporary window for the
coordinates of a nominated layer.. This is useful if the data is located in a different
coordinate system or far away from the standard coordinate system.
38
3 Viewing Data
Visibility
Vulcan has two visibility toolbars, Visibility and PRIMARY:Visibilty. The Visibility toolbar
is located under View > Visibility and can be used with the current window. The
PRIMARY:Visibilty toolbar is associated with its parent window and can not be used with
other windows.
Figure 3-17: Visibility toolbar
Make Objects Invisible

Make Objects Visible
Make Objects Shadowed
Make Triangulations Translucent
Make Triangulations Solid
Figure 3-18: PRIMARY:Visibility toolbar
A parent
window
PRIMARY:
Visibility
Figure 3-19: Parent window
PRIMARY:Visibility Toolbar
Click the Make Objects Visible icon (or press [SHIFT+V]) to turn shadowed or invisible
objects visible.
Click the Make Objects Shadowed icon (or press [SHIFT+S]) to make visible or invisible
objects shadowed.
Click the Make Objects Shadowed icon to make all invisible objects shadowed. The
visible objects are displayed normally.
Click the Make Objects Invisible icon to make visible or shadowed objects invisible.
To make a layer in which the object resides visible, shadowed or invisible, press and hold the
[SHIFT] key while selecting the object. However, you can not snap to an object that is
shadowed or invisible. Right-click to exit all commands.
39

Click the Make Triangulations Translucent icon to make opaque triangulations translucent.
A translucent triangulation can be reverted to opaque by pressing the Make Triangulations
Solid icon. Right-click to exit.
Figure 3-20: Translucent triangulation
Create Section View

Select View > Create Section (or press the Create Section View icon on the Standard toolbar)
to limit what is viewed on-screen to a defined section and thickness. However, this option does
not unfold a section based on a multi-segment line. To unfold a section, the drilling section
options should be used in the Geology menu.
Create Section View
Figure 3-21: Create Section View icon
40
3 Viewing Data
Figure 3-22: Create Section dialog box
The Create Section dialog box is broken down into four areas:
Section Type - Defines the window and objects to slice through.
The option Create or Replace the windows primary section is used by default.
However, the view will change to display according to the specifications made in
the dialog box.
If Create a section through all objects or Create a section through a single
object are used, the view will not be realigned until the align icon from the Slice
Properties toolbar (Graphics subtoolbar) is selected. These are referred to as nonprimary sections.
Align View icon
Figure 3-23: Slice dialog box
Primary Section Shadows - Used to show the next and last sections as shadows in user
selected colours.
Clipping Planes - Sets up section thickness, step size and grid spacing.
Select Plane By - Used to define the section plane using, a line segment, 2 points, 3
points, a Guided centre line, an Easting, a Northing, or a Level. If 2 or 3 points are
used, standard snap modes can be used to define these points.
41

The coordinates of the current screen plane are displayed in the dynamic display in the status
line. Beware as these coordinates only update when the screen plane is put in focus by leftclicking on-screen. To exit section view, left-click the Toggle Sliced View icon on the Graphics
toolbar.
Toggle Sliced View
Figure 3-24: Toggle Sliced View icon
Tutorial 3.6
Create a section view with a clipping width of 25 on either side of the section.
Make your step size 50.
Select the plane by 2 points and click anywhere along the topo triangulation.
Other Section View Notes

If multiple non-primary sections have been created, all section slices will be displayed at once.
This is intentional so you are able to view block models sliced in different orientations at the
same time. In the example shown below, the dynamic block model has been sliced in both a
vertical and horizontal orientation.
Where multiple non-primary sections have been created, the clipping width of each individual
section is influenced by the others. A fail-safe way to have the current section obey the clipping
criteria (on the Slice toolbar), is to set all of the non-current sections to No Clipping.
42
3 Viewing Data
Section View Properties

Right-click the Toggle Sliced View icon from the Graphics toolbar to open the Slice toolbar.
This dialog box is used to change the slice width and or step size, and also performs several
important functions related to viewing in slice mode
Move Slicing Plane
Clip Translucent Solids
Slice Backwards
Slice Forward
Clip drop-down menu

Display slider bar
Highlight Intersections
Align View With Current Slicing Plane
Figure 3-25: Slice toolbar
Slice Forward and Slice Backwards.

Use Move Slicing Plane icon to drag the slice plane through the data dynamically (hold
down the left mouse button while dragging). This command can also be accessed using
View > Move Sections.
Align views using the Align View With Current Slicing Plane icon with the current
section plane. This is useful in cases where you have rotated out of the section view,
although it is frequently used after creating a non-primary section (because this type of
section does not automatically change the view to be in the plane of the section).
Toggle the intersection profile on/off using the Highlight Intersections icon so the
section plane intersects, for example triangulations.
Use the Display slider bar to control the visibility of the section plane grid by dragging the
pointer. The grid display is invisible when the slider control is all the way to the left (the
default position) and fully visible when the slider bar is all the way to the right.
Tip!
The colour of this
grid plane display
and optionally, the
coordinate
annotation, is set in
the Create Section
dialog box using the
Display colour
palette.
The Clip Translucent Solids icon allows the clipping of translucent triangulations. By
default, this function is On. The section plane underlay is similar in appearance to 2D
coordinate gridlines; it can, however, be displayed in non-orthogonal planes. Refer to the
example (below) where the slicing plane (red) is on an oblique section.
Figure 3-26: Slicing plane
43

Use the Clip drop-down list to change the view of the section by altering the clipping.
Typically, a slice is clipped by width in which case the data is clipped by the distance
specified in the Front and Back widths. If a slice is clipped using Forward then all the
data forward of (and on) the slice at the plane is visible. If No Clipping is selected, then
the Front and Back slice width is ignored as if the slice width had been set to an infinite
width. In the example below, Forwards clipping has been used.
Figure 3-27: Forward clipping
The section plane is displayed in red; the coordinate grid is displayed in blue as a contrast.
Polygons are displayed at the section plane where the coloured triangulations intersect the
section. The colour of these intersection profiles is set in the Tools > Preferences > Graphics >
Colours preference for label colour.
Tutorial 3.7
Move up and down through the sections and become familiar with getting in and out of
section view. These tools will be used again after drillholes are created.
44
3 Viewing Data
4 Creating Design Data

Design Menu Create Tools
Use the Design > Create tools for creating layers and objects including points, lines, polygons,
splined curves, arcs, grid arrays, arrows, text and symbols.
This menu is for the initial creation of CAD objects, not to edit them.
The Design toolbar can be turned on/off under Tools > Toolbar Visibility.
Textured
Polygon
New
Layer
Line
Spline Ellipse
Arc
Point Polygon
Rectangle
2D
Arrow
Grid
2D
Text Feature
3D
Arrow
3D
Text
Symbol
Figure 4-1: Design toolbar
Before digitising, a layer must be allocated (created) into the current design that will be
saved. After the layer is created, objects in the Vulcan Envisage 3D window can be
digitised.
Points are created by indicating their X,Y and Z location in 3D space using the mouse
cursor. Line segments can be created between these digitised points. These lines can be
connected to create polygons.
Rectangular polygons can be created using Design > Create > Rectangle. Select a
bottom left and a top right corner to define the rectangle. Curves can also be
automatically created using the spline, arc and ellipse commands.
Any CAD data that is closed, such as polygons and circles, can be filled with a pattern. To
add a pattern right-click on the object, select properties and choose a pattern.
When creating polygons, it is not necessary to digitise the closing segment as this will be
created using the shortest distance between the first and last points digitised.
When digitising, if a mistake is made use the backspace key to undo the last digitised
point. If however, right-click has been used to cancel out of the menu option, the point
edit menus should be used to move/delete the points.
Undo/redo functionality can be used to undo an entire object rather than just a point.
Tutorial 4.1
CAD Creation Points, Lines, and Polygons

1. Ensure that a design database is open (otherwise, no layers can be created or edited).
2. Select Design > Create > Layer and enter DESIGN for the name and a description.
3. Create five points anywhere on your screen using Design > Create > Point.
4. Create a line anywhere on your screen using Design > Create > Line. Create a
polygon through Design > Create > Polygon.
45

When creating a layer avoid the use of special characters such as !,@,#,$,%,^,&,or *.
The layer name is limited to 40 characters. The description is limited to 80 characters.
Underscore _ is a valid character.
Tutorial 4.2
CAD Creation - Arcs and Circles

1. Create a new layer using Design > Create > Layer.
2. In the Layer field, type DESIGN2.
3. Add a Description.
4. Click OK.
5. Select Design > Create > Arc.
Figure 4-2: Circular Arc dialog box
6. On the Circular Arc dialog box, select the Centre and Radius option (used to allow
the centre and radius of the curve to be selected in the Envisage window).
7. Choose an Arc length step size of 20. A circle or arc is defined by a series of small
line segments. The Arc length step size defines the length of these line segments.
8. Click OK.
9. In Envisage, digitise a centre point and a radius point and select Accept.
You can choose to label objects by adding arrows and text for 2D display (for labelling in plan
view) or 3D arrow and text (for labelling in multiple planes). Use Design > Create > Arrow 2D or
Design > Create > Arrow 3D to create arrows in 2D or 3D.
Symbols can also be chosen for use in the design and stored in the symbol database
symbols.dgd.sis. Vulcan contains a symbol database found in the Vulcan Explorer window
under the Resources tab. This database contains some standard symbols for oil and gas wells.
Custom (user-defined) symbols can also be created. Symbols from this database can readily be
added to a design layer using the Design > Create > Symbol option. In addition to points, lines,
polygons, and curves, the Design > Create menu can be used to create arrows, text and
symbols.
Custom Symbols are created using the menu File > Symbols > New, which are digitised using
the standard Vulcan CAD tools.
Features present an additional way to characterise an object. The object is assigned a feature
attribute. More on this functionality is discussed in a subsequent chapter.
46
Tutorial 4.3
CAD Creation - More Object Types
1. Create a new layer using Design > Create > Layer.
2. In the Layer field, type DESIGN2.
4. Click OK.
5. Select Design > Create > Arc.
6. Select both options Centre and Radius and Radius and set the diameter to 10.
7. Click OK.
8. When prompted, indicate the centre point.
9. Right-click to exit the command.
10. Select Design > Create > Rectangle.
11. Once a rectangle is created, add texture using Design > Create > Polygon Textured.
12. Right-click to exit all commands.
Figure 4-3: Triangle Primitive dialog box
13. Insert a symbol using Design > Create > Symbols.

14. When promoted indicate first alignment point.
15. Right-click to exit command.
Snap Modes
The Snap Mode buttons are located on the Digitise window toolbar.
Indicate
Snap Snap
To
To
Points Grids
Track Section of Existing Line

Bearing input
Cancel Current Operation

Toggle Dynamic
Volume, right-click
for properties
Snap To
Objects
Key In Create line at given angle

Point
Enter Zoom Factor
Data
Smart Snap, right-click for properties

47

Indicate
Indicate (or Free snap mode) requires no snapping to digitise while in this mode.
Points are created on the default Z elevation (status bar) at the X and Y point on mouse
indication. If the screen is rotated, the point (at mouse) located may not be the point you are
trying to draw. Ensure this mode is only used in plan view or in section view. If a gradient is set
(status toolbar) the first point will assume the default Z value and the remaining points will follow
the defined gradient. In all cases (rotated and plan views) hold down the [SHIFT] key to digitise
a point with the same Z level as the last edited/selected point.
The additional snap modes include Snap to Objects, Snap to Points and Snap to Grid. When
executed, you can snap to graphical entities based on the snap mode.
Snap to Objects
Use Snap to Objects to snap to any graphical object (point or line). The X,Y and Z coordinates
are interpolated from the line segment on which the object is snapped.
Snap to Points
Use Snap to Points to snap to points or intersections. When a position is indicated on-screen,
snapping occurs to the closest existing point. The X, Y and Z coordinates for the new points are
the existing point.
Before creating a point, hold the [SHIFT] key to show where Vulcan will snap to. The best way
to guarantee Vulcan snapping to the correct point is to click on a line segment, closest to the
desired point. Clicking on the actual point is not as precise as clicking along the line segment.
Snap to Grid
Snap to Grid requires that a 2D mapping grid is loaded on-screen. When executed, input is
snapped onto the closest point beneath the cursor on the grid plane.
Digitise Tools
Vulcan has three main tools to aid in the digitising process: Key In Point Data, Bearing Input
and Create Line At Given Angle. These features can be controlled by the buttons in the
Digitise toolbar (shown below).
Bearing Input
Key In Point Data
Create Line At Given Angle
Key In Point Data

Keyboard Input can be used in two different ways
Get point coordinates
Create points with coordinates
Both options have a button in the Keyboard Input dialog box shown on the following page.
48
Select this check box to

make all coordinates
relative to the last point.
Figure 4-6: Keyboard Input dialog box
Getting point functionality:

1. On the Keyboard Input dialog box click the Get Point button.
2. Click on any point on-screen.
X, Y and Z windows will be immediately populated with the point coordinates.
Creating point functionality:

1. Open a layer.
2. Select Design > Create and create an object, for instance a line, arc or rectangle.
3. Click the Create Point button to enter relative as well as absolute coordinates.
Select the All Relative check box for relative coordinates.
To mix and match values type the letter r before the coordinate entry to convert that
value into relative.
For example Z dialog box entry r100 will be interpreted as 100 units bigger than the
previous Z value; r-100 will be treated as 100 units less than the previous value.
If you use the r symbol to convert coordinates into relative ones, make sure to turn
off the All Relative option.
Tutorial 4.4
Use Key In Point Data to create the shape shown below in a new layer named
CAD_INPUTS.
49
Tip!
When a point, line or
polygon is created,
Vulcan remembers
the coordinates of
the last created or
selected point when
you use relative
values they are
calculated from the
last point entered or
selected in Vulcan.
Bearing Input
Use Bearing Input to create new points at specified angles and distance from the last designed
point in digitising when in mode (point, line and polygon).
You can create a new point using:
Distance and angle - Use to create a point at a given angle and to a specified distance.
Angle - Use to create a point at a given angle.
Distance - Use to create a point at a specified distance and direction.
.
Figure 4-7: Bearing Input dialog box
The angle can be input as a Bearing value or Inclination value.

The Bearing value can be entered in decimal degrees (dd), degrees.minutes.seconds
(dms) or gradients (grad).
Inclination value refers to the amount of deviation from the last digitised point. The
inclination value must be entered in decimal degrees.
A positive inclination value results in the point being projected above the horizon, and a
negative value produces a point below the horizon.
Tip!
Bearing values can
be converted in
Vulcan using the
toggle buttons in the
Bearing Input dialog
box.
50
Tutorial 4.5
Use Bearing Input and Keyboard Input dialog boxes to create the shape shown below (in
red) in a new layer named CAD_INPUTS.
Create Line At Given Angle

There are four methods for creating a new point with Angle Input:
At specified screen angle - Use to create a point at a given angle and to a specified line
segment. If no line is specified, the angle will be drawn at the specified azimuth.
Perpendicular to given line, on screen - Use to create a point perpendicular to the
specified line segment in the plane of viewing.
Parallel to given line, on screen - Use to create a point parallel to the specified line
segment in the plane of viewing.
Parallel to given line, in 3D - Use to create a point parallel to the specified line segment
in actual 3D space.
In each case, a digitising mode must be active.
Figure 4-8: Angle Input dialog box
Angles may be entered in percent (%), decimal degrees (dd), degrees.minutes.seconds (dms) or
in gradients. If the input point is to be at a specified screen angle, then the Angle field must be
filled out. A specific distance may be entered into the Distance field once the Enter distance
box has been checked.
The specified distance can be either positive or negative. A positive distance is defined by
looking at the point order of the reference line. Walking from point one to point two, to the right
is positive, to the left is negative.
Figure 4-9: Positive to negative
Before the Angle Input toolbar can be used a reference line must be selected. If no reference
line has been selected, a default reference line with zero azimuth will be used. To select a
reference line, click the Get Line button and select the desired line segment. Once a line
segment has been selected as a reference line, both the origin and direction of the line are
stored in memory for as long as the current session of Vulcan is open.
Options At specified screen angle, Parallel to given line on screen and Parallel to given line
in 3D will create a new point in the same direction as the reference segment. The option
Perpendicular to given line on screen will create a new point 90 degrees to the right of the
original direction of the reference segment.
51
Note:
If using the At
specified screen
angle option and a
line segment is not
specified, Vulcan
may measure the
desired angle from
the last digitised
point rather than
from north.
The Angle Input option will only work if you are in a menu option that prompts for a point
coordinate (for example, Design > Create > Point).
Tutorial 4.6
Use Bearing Input, Angle Input and Keyboard Input dialog boxes to draw the shape
shown below (in purple) in layer CAD_INPUTS.
Tutorial 4.7
1. Create a new layer named REFERENCE_POINT.
2. Digitise a point: X:77800, Y:5000, Z:200
3. Draw a polygon (as shown below).

52
Figure 4-10: Track Section of Existing Line icon
Use this option to trace portions of objects without clicking on each point in the existing
polygon for tracing contours, pit and orebody outlines. If the track section is tracing the line or
polygon the wrong way, hold down the space bar and move the mouse to trace the opposite
way. In order to use the track section option, a menu option must be active, such as drawing a
line, or polygon. In the picture below, a line is being drawn (in green) and then a contour line is
traced (in black).
Figure 4-11: Tracing with a contour line
Tutorial 4.8
1. Load layer TRACK_SECTION on-screen.
2. Create a polygon that traces around all four lines in the loaded layer.
3. Add polygon to a new layer named TRACK_SECTION_POLYGON.
Text
Using Fonts
There are two types of text in Vulcan, 2D text and 3D text. 2D text is always oriented in plan
view. 3D text however, can be in any user defined plane.
Text
53
Figure 4-12: 3D text
Text fonts are stored in Resources1 as .font files if missing, the text will not appear.
Furthermore, if the environment variables TEMP and TMP are not set up correctly, the text dropdown lists will be blank. 2D and 3D text defaults can be set in Tools > Preferences.
.
Figure 4-13: Preferences > Text dialog box
Tutorial 4.9
Select Tools > Preference and turn off text defaults for both 2D and 3D text.
2D Text
There are several different 2D fonts.
Fixed Fonts - Remains the same size on-screen. Fixed fonts are always horizontal and
legible, no matter how the screen is rotated (or zoomed) and are ideal for drillhole
labelling or on-screen labelling. Do not use for plotting as it is difficult to determine the
text size on the actual plot.
1. Resources is located under the Vulcan Explorer window.
54
Scaled Font - Resizes as the screen zooms in and out. For example, it is a particular size
at a particular scale. The text is only legible in plan view.
Basic Scaled Font - Appears on-screen and can be converted to a true type font.
Vector Fonts - Fonts supplied with Vulcan will resize as you zoom in and out. These fonts
are a particular size at a particular scale. The text is only legible in plan view.
Figure 4-14: Context menu
Creating 2D text:
1. Select Design > Create > Create Text.
2. When prompted, indicate the direction of the text.
3. Select Design > Text Edit to edit text and text attributes.
Right-click on any text and select properties for more text options.
Tutorial 4.10
1. Create a layer name practice_test layer.
2. Add three separate 2D text objects using:
A fixed font.
A scaled font.
A vector font.
3. Apply a true type font to the scaled text.
4. In the boundary layer, label the boundary polygon with your name and todays date.
Ensure the text is a reasonable size and is easy to read.
Text
55
Figure 4-15: Text example
3D Text
Unlike 2D text, all 3D text is grouped into one group. Available fonts are listed; they are similar to
the vector fonts of 2D text. 3D text is a particular size at a particular scale, and therefore
becomes larger and smaller with zooming.
Figure 4-16: 3D Text Attributes dialog box
56
Tip!
To ensure text is in
the correct plane, it
is recommended to
create a section view
in the plane you want
text to appear prior
to creating it. This
guarantees the text
is in the exact plane.
If you manually
rotate to the view
you want, it may not
be exact and the text
will end up floating
apart from where it
should be.
In Vulcan, you can use 3D text to mirror the text. Use the mirror horizontal and vertical options
to get the text to face the correct way.
1. Select Design > Create > Create 3D Text.
2. When prompted, indicate text origin and direction.
3. Select Design > Text 3D Edit to edit the text or text size.
The text can be edited using the right-click function, although text properties (such
as size and font) must be edited by using the options in the Text 3D Edit menu.
The limits for 3D text are 132 characters per line with a maximum of 60 lines.
Tutorial 4.11
1. Create 3D text in a practice_test layer using various rotations to get a feel for how
3D text works.
2. Label the warehouse in the plane of the roof.
3. Set up 2D and 3D text defaults in Tools > Preferences.
Text
57
5 Editing Design Data

Editing Tools
Vulcan data is structured into various levels in decreasing order:
Layer
Objects
Points
Edit options that correspond to a data level:
Layers: Design > Layer Edit
Objects: Design > Object Edit
Points: Design > Point Edit
Other edit options designed to work at object and point levels:
Design > Polygon Edit
Design > Line Style Edit
Design > Text Edit
Design > Feature Edit
Design > Text 3D Edit
Design > Point Insert
Design > Arrow Edit
Design > Attribute Edit
These menus have been separated from the first three menus because they apply to a specific
class of object, for example a polygon, or they perform similar tasks such as inserting points.
Layer Edits
The Design > Layer Edit menu has commands for layer editing.
Table 1: Layer Edit commands
Editing Tools
Command
Definition
Identify
Displays information on an object.
Name
Displays the layer name and description in a dialog box.
Copy
Copies information from one layer to another. You must allocate a layer
and then select the CAD data. All information in the layer will be greyed
out when selected.
Delete
Deletes layers from a list or an object in a layer on-screen.
Transfer
Transfers data from one layer to another. The destination layer can be
created on the fly or can already exist.
Unify
Unites any number of loaded objects from any layer to form one object
into a new or existing layer. The merged objects in the layer will replace
the objects that were chosen for the unification (objects will be removed
from the layers). If planning to use the independent objects later, then
create a copy of the original design data.
59

Table 1: Layer Edit commands (Continued)
Tip!
All options in Vulcan
will prompt in the
lower left hand
corner (as well as the
top of the screen) for
selections and
actions. Follow these
prompts when
figuring out a new
menu option.
Command
Definition
Make Current
Use to set the current drawing layer. The layer name selected will appear
in the layer window of the status bar. Alternatively, use the toolbar to
select the current layer to draw in.
Multi Object
Filter
Filters duplicate objects from layers. Matching objects can be recognised using any combination of point or object attributes, such as point,
or object name or point sequence. The duplicated objects can be
deleted, or all unique objects can be placed into a new layer.
Changing a layer name:

1. Load the layer.
2. Select Design > Layer Edit > Name.
3. When prompted, select an object in the layer.
4. In the Layer Name and Description dialog box enter a layer name and description.
5. Click OK.
6. You can select another object or right-click to exit the command.
7. Select File > Save to update the Explorer window.
Figure 5-1: Layer Name and Description dialog box
Tutorial 5.1
Transfer the boundary polygon from the REFERENCE_POINT layer into a layer named
BOUNDARY.
Object Edits
The Design > Object Edit option and associated tools allow you to perform edits to objects
loaded in Vulcan Envisage.
Table 2: Object Editing tools
60
Command
Definition
Identify
Displays object information such as coordinates and sequence number

of points that make up that object.
Delete
Deletes objects.
Delete By Poly
Deletes points outside and inside selected polygons. Lines of the

trimmed objects may not be flush with the selected polygon.
Table 2: Object Editing tools (Continued)
Editing Tools
Command
Definition
Clip by Poly
Deletes points outside and inside selected polygons and relimits them
to the edge of the polygon. Trimmed object lines will be flush with the
selected polygon.
Trim
Cuts and trims lines to a nominated object so that they are flush with
the object. This is similar to the AutoCAD trim function.
Drag
Interactively move selected objects.
Offset
Copies an object perpendicularly offset at a specified distance.
Split
Splits an object in a variety of ways based upon the method selected in

the dialog box (such as by point, or segment).
Intersection Split
Splits a line into two or more separate objects at the points of intersection between the original line and another line. This option will assume
that the data is in plan view. However, neither of the lines needs to have
a constant Z level. The difference between the Intersection Split option
and the Split option is that the latter only allows you to split a line into
used strings.
Paste
Takes a whole string (entire object) and inserts it into another string. For
comparison, the Join Lines option allows only two strings to be joined
end to end.
Join Point
Select points within an object to join. The joined points will form a separate object.
Join Lines
Combines two separate strings (objects) into one.
Coalesce
Combines objects into one without modifying point information of the

strings. Two contour lines, for example, that are coalescing will become
one object, but remain two separate colours.
Reverse
Reverses a point sequence (point number) of an object. Vulcan recognises the order in which objects are drawn for applying other functions.
This is particularly useful when digitising pits, dumps and fault strings.
Reverse
Advanced
Reverses a point sequence (point number) of an object while keeping

point properties such as number and W tag with the associated point
number. If point 1 was named A and point 2 was named B, using the
reverse function point 1 would now be named B and point 2 would be
A. Using Reversed Advanced point 1 would keep its name of A.
61

Command
Definition
Sort
Connect points along point number with respect to the X or Y-axis.
Figure 5-2: String after sorting along the X axis
Figure 5-3: String after sorting along the Y axis
62
Consistent
Makes point order within each selected object either consistently

clockwise or counterclockwise.
Point Name
Sets or clears point names for all points within an object.
Connection
Connects or disconnects points. Disconnected points will not have line

segments between them.
Cross Check
Inserts points at intersections/crossings of selected objects. The intersection points are drawn in a new layer, not inserted into either object.
Grid Snap
(The display grid must be turned on for this option to work.) Use to
snap each point on an object to the closest point on the grid. When
snapping text objects, the text will be moved to the closest point on the
grid plane, beneath the cursor and the angle of the text set to the closest 90 quadrant of the grid.
Filter
Filters out unnecessary points (either 2D or 3D filter) based on an input

tolerance. For example, where detail is not required, or you have automatically generated contour data, you may decide to reduce the number of points in a string, so that less disk space is used and processing
time is reduced.
Register
Changes the Z elevation of an object to correspond with Z value of a

triangulation. The object can be draped directly on top of a triangulations highest point registration.

Command
Definition
Z Value
Changes the Z elevation of an object to correspond with Z value of a

triangulation. The object can be draped directly on top of a triangulation, highest point registration.
W Tag
Changes the W tag value for all points on an object to the value entered
into the dialog box.
Grade
Changes the grade of an object by either a nominated grade or by

grading in between endpoints.
Delete End Point
Deletes the last point on the object; the last point is determined by the
point sequence. Deleting the end point of a polygon will maintain the
closed polygon but will change its shape.
Explode
Splits an object so that each individual line segment and point

becomes an individual object.
Transform
Changes the orientation of an object interactively in the X, Y and Z

directions by entering values in a dialog box.
Several examples of how the Object Edit functions work are shown below. The options are
easy to understand by following the prompts and reading the associated dialog boxes.
Registering an object:
1. Load layers TOP_PIT and topo.00t triangulation on-screen.
If you hover the cursor over the TOP_PIT layer, you will notice at the bottom of the
Vulcan screen that it has a Z elevation of zero. If the triangulation is solid shaded and you
are in plan view, you will not be able to see the layer without rotating the display or
making the triangulation transparent.
2. Select Design > Object Edit > Register.

3. When prompted select the model surface to register onto.
4. Select Object in the Select By menu.
5. When promoted to select the object to register, select the polygon in the TOP_PIT layer.
The String Registration dialog box will be displayed. 2D registration will change the Z
elevation of the polygon to drape it onto the triangulation. Interpolate will insert extra
points into the polygon to allow it to lie directly on top of the triangulation.
6. Select Retain.
Rotate the display to view the changes. The polygon should now be directly on the
triangulation.
Editing Tools
63
Changing the grade of an object:

1. Load GRADE_LINE layer and rotate the layer into full view.
2. Right-click on the object and select Label > Point Sequence.
3. We will use Design > Object Edit > Grade to apply different types of grades to each of
the upper objects in the layer.
4. Select Design > Object Edit > Grade.

5. Select Specify grade manually from the Grading Method menu.
Figure 5-4: Grading Method menu
6. When prompted to select object, choose the line on the upper left.
7. Pick point 1 as the start point and point 2 as the end point.
8. The Gradient dialog box will be displayed. Use a gradient of 20 for this exercise. We will
not apply a constant length to the grade.
9. Click OK.
10. You will be prompted to Retain or Reject the graded object. Select to Retain the grade.
You can continue selecting objects for editing. Pick the upper middle line.
12. Enter a gradient of 20 again.
13. A Confirm menu will be displayed. Select Move points following the end point, which
assigns new X, Y and Z coordinates to all points following the end point, in such a way
that the gradients following the end point are not changed.
14. Select to Retain the grade.
15. Pick the upper right line.
17. Enter a gradient of 20.
18. The Confirm menu will be displayed. Select the Do not move following points option.
64
19. Select to Retain the grade. The objects should look like those shown above.
Filtering unnecessary points:

1. Load the FILTER layer.
2. The circle in this layer has an excess amount of points. The majority of the points could
be filtered without losing the shape of the circle.
3. Select Design > Object Edit > Filter to remove points. You will be prompted to select
the type of data, pick Object and select the circle.
4. Filtering occurs when the specified perpendicular distance between a point and the
theoretical line between the points on either side of it deviate away from that line at less
than the nominated distance.
Figure 5-5: need caption
5. Apply a 2D Filter with a Minimum deviation from the line of 0.1. The filtered line will be
displayed in grey, and you will be prompted to Retain or Reject the filter.
6. Zoom in close enough to view the filtered points. If the new object is acceptable, select
Retain filter. Output from the filtering process will be displayed in the Report window.
Editing Tools
65
Note:
If you have an object
with X, Y, Z values
such as shells, select
the 3D Filter option.
This option will allow
you to specify the
deviation from the
line and will filter X,
Y, Z values, whereas
the 2D Filter will not
change the Z value.
If you are filtering
topographic lines,
this option will not
affect the Z values as
each object has only
one unique Z value.
Tutorial 5.2
Register the polygon in the BOUNDARY layer to the topo triangulation as shown below.
Tutorial 5.3
Load the 50_METER_LINES layer on-screen. Use any of the options in the Object Edit
menus to cut the lines back so that they exist only within the boundary polygon as shown in
the following figure.
66
Point Edits
The Design > Point Edit option and associated tools allow you to edit points loaded in Vulcan
Envisage. Each of these tools can also be found in the Modify toolbar and associated
subtoolbars.
Table 3: Point Edit Tools
Editing Tools
Command
Definition
Resequence
Changes the starting point of a sequence in a string.
Move
Moves a point to a new location.
Move to
Intersection
Moves a point to a position that is defined by the intersection of two

existing lines. If the two chosen lines do not intersect, then the selected
point will be moved to the point of the projected intersection.
Grid Snap
Snaps a point in an object to the nearest intersection of grid lines.
Name
Names and labels one or more points in an object.
Z Edit
Changes Z value of a point.
W Tag
Sets a fourth parameter for a specific point, with the other three parameters being X, Y and Z.
Weight Point
Values
Weights point values (X, Y and Z, and W) by the distance from a reference point, another point value in the same coordinate, or a constant
value.
Register
Registers a point or a sequence of points to a loaded grid mesh or triangulated surface.
Symbol
Edits the size and position of point symbols displayed on-screen.
Colour by
Attribute
Colours points by the X, Y and Z, and/or W coordinate values.
Remove
Attribute
Colouring
Removes the attribute colouring assigned to point values.
Delete
Removes individual points from an object.
Delete Duplicate
Removes sequential duplicate points from an object.
67

Table 3: Point Edit Tools (Continued)
Note:
When selecting
points along the line
of an object, it is
best to select along
the line near the
point, not on the
point, to ensure that
the desired point is
accurately selected.
Command
Definition
Disconnect
Removes the line between two points.
Connect
Connects a nominated point to adjacent points in the same object.

Adjacent points are those that precede or follow the nominated point in
a digitised sequence. Start and end points of a string are also considered to be adjacent.
Link
Creates new strings by linking existing strings within a user defined distance of one another. The original strings remain unchanged.
Cut
Deletes a section from a string of points.
Append
Adds extra points to either the start or end of a string.
Best Fit
Creates a line of best fit between points using the least squares
method. The string will be replaced by the line of best fit; if your points
are not connected, then the points will be replaced by the start and end
points of the best fit line.
Move By
Distance
Moves a point to a specified distance along a line. This line is the line
joining the point that you want to move and a reference point, which
does not need to exist prior to this operation.
Move By Point
Moves a point to the right angle intersection of an extrapolated line

(defined by a reference point and the point to be moved) and a line projected from a nominated point. While the screen does not have to be in
plan view when using the operation, it needs to be in plan view when
the geometry (right angle intersection) is performed.
Move By Line
Moves a point to the intersection of a line (defined by a reference point

and the point you want to move) and an existing line. While the screen
does not have to be in plan view when using the operation, it does need
to be in plan view when the geometry is performed.
Moving a point(s) to a new location:

1. Select Design > Point Edit > Move.
2. When prompted, select an object.
The object will appear highlighted once selected.
3. When prompted, select the point to move.
The selected point will be highlighted and as you move the mouse pointer around, a
rubber band line will extend from the point to your mouse pointer.
Figure 5-6: Selected point
68
4. When prompted, indicate the new point location by clicking on the desired location onscreen.
You can move more points or right-click twice to exit the command.
Figure 5-7: Moved point
All snap modes can be used when moving points. If indicate is on, then the Z elevation of the
point that is moved will change to the default Z elevation. Holding down the shift key while
moving a point in indicate mode will allow it to keep its original Z value. Options in Tool >
Preferences on the Input dialog box allow the user to change how Z elevations of points are
handled.
Changing the Z value of a point:

1. Select Design > Point Edit > Z Edit.
2. When prompted, select an object.
3. When prompted, select a point.
The Enter the following value dialog box will display.
Figure 5-8: Enter the following value dialog box
4. Enter the new elevation of the point.

5. Click OK.
The point will be moved to the new elevation.
You can move more points or right-click twice to exit the command.
.
Tutorial 5.4
1. Load the ramp layer on-screen.
2. Change the Z elevation of the first point to match the elevation of the topo
triangulation.
3. Evenly grade the ramp from the first point to the last point.
Editing Tools
69
Figure 5-9: Changing Z point
Point Insert
The Design > Point Insert option and associated tools allow you to insert points into various
types of objects (lines, polygons).
Table 4: Point Insert Tools
Command
Definition
Insert
Inserts points between two existing points.
Replace String
Selects a start point and end point of the replace and allows the user to
digitise where the new points should go, thus replacing a piece of the
string.
Plane Insert
Inserts points into an object on a nominated plane.
Insert at
Intersection
Inserts a point at the intersection of two selected objects. The point is

inserted into the first object selected.
Multi-Insert at
Intersection
Inserts points on various objects where they intersect a single separate

object.
Insert At
Distance
Inserts a point at a distance specified in the dialog box. If the point is

not an end point, select This way or Another way.
Interpolate
Inserts points into a single line segment (between any two points)
based on distance between points or number of equal parts.
Measure
Similar to interpolate with more options for defining distances.
Apply Curve
Inserts points to create a smooth curve based on nominated radius.
Intersection At
Elevation
Inserts points into selected objects at a elevation.
Intersection With
Triangulation
Inserts points into selected objects where they intersect a triangulation

(surface or solid). The triangulation does not need to be loaded onscreen but can be browsed for within the menu option.
Replacing a string:
70
1. Draw a polygon on-screen (Design > Create > Polygon).

2. Right-click twice to exit the command.
3. Select Design > Point Insert > Replace String.
4. When prompted to select an object, click on a start and end point.
If the object selected was a polygon, then you will be prompted to select the highlighted
or not highlighted portion.
Figure 5-10: Start and end points
5. Click on where the new points should go beginning at the S (start) and working toward
the F (Finish).
6. Right-click once all the points have been inserted.
You will be prompted to Interpolate or Do not interpolate. This will change the Z values
of your digitised points.
8. From the Replace String menu, select either Retain, Reject or Cancel.
Tutorial 5.5
1. Load layer TRACK_SECTION_POLYGON and EXTENSION.
2. Modify the polygon in the TRACK_SECTION_POLYGON layer to include the object in
the extension layer as shown below.
Original
Modified
3. Using various CAD tools you have learned, draw a polygon as outlined below with
reference to the boundary polygon. This will serve as the base of our warehouse.
Ensure this polygon is in layer WAREHOUSE.
Editing Tools
71
Tutorial 5.5 (Continued)
Figure 5-11: Polygon
4. Register this polygon onto the topo triangulation. Use a lowest point registration so
that the base of the polygon stays flat.
Moving Data
The Move toolbar contains various tools to change the position of objects. The toolbar can be
turned on under Tools > Toolbar Visibility, making sure the check box for Move is selected.
The Move toolbar is also a subtoolbar on the Modify toolbar.
Move subtoolbar
Figure 5-12: Move subtoolbar
The most common moving command is Translate (Design > Transformation > Translate). It is
used to specify a start point (reference point) for the movement and then the translation point
(destination). The selected objects are then moved the distance and direction between the
reference point and destination point. Since moving of the object(s) is based solely on distance
and direction of the reference point and destination point, they can be specified anywhere onscreen, not necessarily snapping to the data.
72
Tip!
Use the Input
options (keyboard,
bearing, and angle)
in the Digitise toolbar
to specify exact
coordinate locations
to move a design
object. The user can
also specify a
relative distance for
the movement.
Using Design > Transformation > Translate:

Load the CAD_INPUTS layer on-screen.
1. We are going to create a copy of the purple box in the location shown below.
Figure 5-13: CAD_INPUTS layer
2. Select Design > Transformation > Translate.

3. When prompted, indicate the translation reference point. As a reference point, use Snap
To Points mode (Digitise toolbar) and snap to the top corner of the original box.
As the destination point, use snap to point mode and click on the lower right hand corner
of the green box.
4. When prompted, indicate the destination of the point.
5. On the Translation Option menu, select Translate original, Create copy or Create
multiple copies.
6. On the Select By menu, select by object and pick the original purple polygon.
7. On the Confirm menu, select Translate and then Retain.
.
Tutorial 5.6
Create a copy of the WAREHOUSE polygon ten metres directly above it. In a rotate view, it
should look as shown below.
Figure 5-14: Duplicated polygons
Drag
Use Design > Object Edit > Drag to select the design object that needs to be moved. The
object is dragged by left-clicking and holding the mouse button as it is moved to the desired
position. When the object has been moved, the user will be required to confirm the Move, or to
generate a Copy of the object to this location.
Editing Tools
73
Tip!
You can also drag 2D
text objects and
choose to either
Move or make a
Copy of the text to
the new location.
Another useful command to move objects can be accessed by right-clicking on the loaded
design object. The context menu contains an option that is also called Move. You will see the
movement of the object on-screen and left-clicking once places the object in the desired
location.
Other commands in the Move toolbar are briefly described below:
Table 5: Move Toolbar Tools
Command
Definition
Design > Point Edit

> Move
Moves a point to a new position.
Design > Point Edit

> Move to
Intersection
Moves a point to a position that is defined by the intersection of two

existing lines.
Design > Object Edit

> Grid Snap
Snaps all points in an object onto the closest point on the grid
plane, beneath the cursor. Text objects can also be grid-snapped.
To snap objects, a grid must be displayed on-screen.

> Register
Registers an object onto a grid mesh or triangulated surface. This

means that the string follows the general shape of the surface.
Design > Point Edit

> Move by Distance
Moves a point a specified distance along a line.
Design > Point Edit

> Move by Point
Moves a point to the right angle intersection of an extrapolated line

(the line joining the reference point and the point to be moved) and a
line projected from a nominated point.
Design > Point Edit

> Move by Line
Moves a point to the intersection of a line (defined by the point to

move and a reference point) and an existing line segment.

> Z Value
Applies a nominated Z value to an object.

> Point Value
Changes the Z value of a point.
Design >
Transformation >
Matrix
Enables you to use a matrix to move an object. It can be specified

as part of this option. However, Design > Transformation > Calculate can be used to create a matrix (either 2D or 3D) from a set of
original and transformed points.
Design >
Transformation >
Rotate 2D
Rotates an object at a specified angle around the Z axis.

> Grade
Applies a gradient to a nominated string or part of a string.
Tutorial 5.7
Create a line for the top of the warehouse roof as shown below. The line should divide the
roof into two equal parts.
74
Figure 5-15: Line top of warehouse layer
Tutorial 5.8
Change the Z elevation of this roof line to be three metres higher than the upper polygon.
Figure 5-16: Warehouse roof line
Editing Tools
75
6 CAD Introduction
Data Attributes
In addition to having a hierarchy for .dgd, layers, and objects, each object has other associated
properties to classify or group information and simplify data selection with the Select By menu.
The following properties are associated with each object.
Layer Name
Value
Layer Description
Group
Object Name
Primitive
Object Description
Feature
Information
To get information on the properties listed above for any object on-screen, use the information
icon located on the Status toolbar.
Information icon
Figure 6-1: Status toolbar
The details of the object will appear in the Report window.
The layer and object names appear first on their respective lines; information in parentheses ( )
provides the layer and object descriptions.
Changing Attributes
To change attribute information use one of the following commands:
Table 1: Attribute Information
Data Attributes
Property
Menu Option (To modify property)
Layer Name
Design > Layer Edit > Name
Layer Description
Design > Layer Edit > Name
77

Table 1: Attribute Information (Continued)
Property
Menu Option (To modify property)
Object Name
Design > Attribute Edit > Name
Object Description
Design > Attribute Edit > Description
Value
Design > Attribute Edit > Value
Group
Design > Attribute Edit > Group
Primitive
Design > Attribute Edit > Primitive (various options)
Groups
Groups are created by selecting objects and setting their group property to a common value.
Objects may be selected within single or multiple layers. By taking advantage of the group
property you can work on a number of otherwise un-related objects simultaneously.
Grouping data together manually:

1. Select Design > Attribute Edit > Group.
2. Select the data to be grouped.
3. In the Enter the following dialog box, type the group name.
Figure 6-3: Enter the following dialog box
Select Design > Attribute Edit > Group by Attribute to group different objects by their
graphical attributes such as colour, line type, pattern or object value. Specify attributes by
which to display objects in the Group by Attribute dialog box.
Figure 6-4: Group By Attribute dialog box
The following selection boxes (Colour, Line Type, Pattern, and Value) allow you to specify the
selection criteria. Use the information icon to check that the grouping worked correctly.
78
6 CAD Introduction
Tutorial 6.1
1. Load the CONTOURS layer on-screen.
2. Group the contour lines into MINOR and MAJOR groups. Even level contours (100,105)
are major contours. Once the data has been grouped, hide all minor contours to show
only majors on-screen.
Features
A feature is a predetermined set of attributes, such as colour, line type or pattern. A feature
must first be set up before it can be applied to data.
Setting up Features
Feature objects are created by using the Design > Feature Edit > Create menu option. Multiple
features can be created (up to 512) and are stored in a <project prefix>.ftd file in the
current working folder.
Note:
When specifying a
feature name, the
word SYMBOL can
not be used.
Data Attributes
The attributes, which are set for a feature, can be set as follows:
Table 2: Attributes for features
Attribute
Definition
Current
Uses the current Vulcan Envisage properties.
Prompt
For when a feature is being used for values. The text entered to
describe the feature in the dialog box will appear in the prompt
when using a feature. For example, the name Surveyor Name is
the prompt for Object Name, however, the pop up dialog box will
say Surveyor Name.
Force
Automatically forces this property with the feature entered into the
dialog box.
79

The following dialog box shows the various properties that can be set for a feature.
Figure 6-5: Layer/object name for dialog box
Object Attributes To set the feature to create points, lines or polygons.

Layer Name and Description.
Object Name and Description.
Figure 6-6: Object attributes for dialog box
Object Properties Colour line type, and pattern can be pre-set.

Grouping
Primitives
80
6 CAD Introduction
Direction of strings Forces the string to be clockwise or counterclockwise even if

digitised the opposite way.
Object Value
Figure 6-7: Digitising for TEST dialog box
X, Y, Z and W values.
Point Names
Digitising Modes For digitising points on-screen.
Tutorial 6.2
Set up two features, one for toe lines and one for crest lines using the following guidelines.
Table 3: Set up guidelines
Data Attributes
Toes
Crest
Layer Name
Prompt for survey number/date
Prompt for survey number / date
Object Name
Prompt for Surveyor name
Prompt for Surveyor name
Colour
Green
Red
Group
Toe
Crest
81

Using Features
After features have been set up, they can be applied to existing data or to new objects. Features
can not be assigned to text objects or symbols. To apply a feature to existing data, select
Design > Attribute Edit > Feature.
Tutorial 6.3
Load the TOES_AND_CRESTS layer. Assign the Toe feature to the toe strings, and the Crest
feature to the crest strings.
Original
With features
If creating new data, select Design > Create > Feature. Select the feature and then digitise
points on-screen. Based on the set up in the feature, a polygon, line, or points will be drawn onscreen with properties as specified in the feature.
Tutorial 6.4
Create a new layer named SURVEY and using the features created, draw a toe and a crest
line.
Features can automatically be applied when importing data from .csv files.
In Vulcan you can change the visibility settings of feature objects. Objects that share a common
feature can be made visible, invisible or shadowed. The Primary window visibility toolbar
contains the feature visibility icons:
Visible by Feature
Shadow by Feature
Invisible by Feature
The Design Visibility icon will prompt with the Select By menu and this enables groups or layers
to sort visibility. Alternatively, the feature visibility settings can be found under View > Visibility.
Design Visibility
Figure 6-8: Visibility toolbar
82
6 CAD Introduction
Figure 6-9: Select By menu
Table 4: Select By menu

Command
Definition
Object
Selects one object at a time.
Group and Layer
Selects all objects within a specific group and layer.
Feature and Layer
Selects objects with a specific features within specified layers.
Layer
Selects all objects within a specific layer.
Group
Selects all objects within a specific group.
Feature
Selects all objects within a specific feature.
Name
Selects objects entered by name rather than picking on-screen.
Tutorial 6.5
Practise using the visibility settings using both features and groups.
Data Attributes
83
7 Data Import and Export

There are various ways of transferring data in and out of Vulcan. Direct import and export
options for other software packages such as AutoCAD, Datamine, Micromine and
Surpac are located in File > Import and File > Export.
Importing DXF Files

You can load data contained within a .dxf file into the open design database file. The data is
loaded into the working area in designated layers.
1. Select File > Save to write the data to the database.
2. Select File > Import.
3. In the Import dialog box, select AutoCAD (dwg,dxf,dxb) then select the file type.
Figure 7-1: Import DXF file types
Importing DXF Files
85

4. Click OK. The Import DXF dialog box is displayed which has tabs for Import, Transform,
Filter, Text, Arcs, Inserts, Shapes, Extrusion, and Buffering.
Figure 7-2: Import DXF dialog box
Import Type the parameters for importing a .dxf into Vulcan.

Input DXF file name The drop-down menu lists the .dxf files in the current
working directory. If the file is not in the current directory, the browse button brings
up Windows Explorer to help locate the file.
DXF layer to load The layers being imported can be selected or a wildcard * can
be used to load all the layers contained within the .dxf.
Use ICF translation tables Data contained in the .dxf will be stylised to fit the
parameters setup within the ICF tables. Colour, line type, layer name, text and
symbols can be modified. The data itself will not change, only how it is imported
into Vulcan. Setting up an ICF table is described below.
Transform X, Y and Z scale and offset.
Filter Allows filtering of the data based on geometry or Z value.
Text Controls the importing of invisible .dxf text.
Arcs Sets the angular steps for arcs and allows drawing of circles.
Inserts Inserts the .dxf blocks into Vulcan.
Shapes Applies shapes from the .dgd symbols to replace .dxf shapes.
Extrusions - Allows you to apply a thickness (extrusion distance) to .dxf planar
objects, such as arcs.
Buffering Buffers the objects as they are imported, so they can be saved as a multiple
object in the Vulcan Envisage design database. This reduces the chance of running out of
graphical segments when importing the .dxf objects.
Exporting DXF Files

To export a .dxf file, the data to export must be loaded on-screen in Vulcan.
1. Select File > Export.
2. In the Export dialog box, select AutoCAD (dwg,dxf,dxb) then select the file type.
86
Figure 7-3: Export DXF file types
3. Click OK. The Export to DXF Selection dialog box will display.
Click to add
multiple files
Files to store
output data
Press to add
files
Press to
remove files
Use to remove ALL files

Figure 7-4: Export to DXF Selection dialog box
The file name of the output file can be specified, and then the data will need to be selected off
the screen. Design data (CAD layers), grids, or triangulations can be exported.
Importing ASCII Data Files

It is common for data in ASCII format to be imported. Vulcan tools make importing ASCII files
easy and efficient, minimising future manipulation of the data. It is important to be aware of the
format of the ASCII file. Always open the file in a text editor, such as WordPad, and observe the
data and how it is stored. Often files will contain a point number in the field, X, Y and Z
correspond to fields 2, 3 and 4 respectively and any additional information in the remaining
fields.
Importing ASCII data:
87

2. In the Import dialog box, select ASCII then select the file type.
Figure 7-5: Import ASCII file types
3. Click OK. The ASCII Data Read Selection dialog box will display.
Figure 7-6: ASCII Data Read Selection dialog box
Two main types of data dispositions can be used when importing, Formatted and Character
separated. Characters separated are used for .csv files, as they are comma separated values.
When importing a number of files in the same format, the specification is saved without entering
data into the dialog box each time. For the first import, a specification file will not yet exist. At
the end of the import, there will be the option to save the specifications.
88
Figure 7-7: Character Separated ASCII Data Read dialog box
Tip!
To import .csv files
that contain point
data import into a
layer in Envisage,
use the option File >
Import > ASCII. Do
not use the option
File > Import > CSV
as this imports .csv
files into an Isis
database.
Several aspects of the ASCII files must be defined:

Field separating character Type a character separator. For a .csv file, enter a
comma.
Point Data Fields Enter the field numbers (or column numbers) for X, Y and Z fields (or
W and Name fields if they exist in the ASCII file).
Point Connection Specify whether the data should be loaded as point or strings.
The second tab, Object Records, specifies the parameters by which Vulcan connects objects
on import and specifies information for objects.
New Object Specification Connects points of the same code into the same object, by
making a new object every time this code changes. If this code is in field 5. Select
Change of field and type 5.
Object Data Fields Specify where to apply data too an object.
Object Point Data If the records contain point data, tick Object record, which also
contains the point data box. If the first point is missing from objects, or single point
objects can not be imported, it may be because this option has not been selected.
Implied decimal places Assumes that there are decimals, even if there are not, since
some software products remove them when exporting to ASCII.
Comment lines start with character(s) If there are comment lines in the ASCII file,
indicate the character that they start with, for these lines to be ignored on the import of
the file, for example, *.
89
Tip!
If the program has
not been exited, the
fields will be
populated with the
data from the last
import, even if the
newly saved
specification file is
not used.
Click Finish and Save the import specifications for use with other files of the same format.
These specifications are saved to a file named asciiread.spc under Resources. Depending
whether the ENVIS_RESO environment variable has been set, the location of the Resources tab
may vary. By default it is C:\Program Files\Vulcan_v800\etc\resources.
Tutorial 7.1
Import the roads.csv file into a layer named ROADS.
Features can be used while importing an ASCII file saving time, as the properties of the
imported data will not need to be modified after import. In addition, features are specified on the
Object Records dialog box. Type the column number that defines the feature.
Exporting ASCII Files

2. In the Export dialog box select ASCII then elect the file type: Design Strings or MINEX.
3. Click OK. The Export to ASCII dialog box will display.
Figure 7-8: Export to ASCII dialog box
This will create either a .csv file or a .asc file with the nominated columns. Features such as X,
Y and Z coordinates point name, object and name can be exported. After the dialog box is filled
out, the data to export will need to be selected from the screen.
Tutorial 7.2
Create a .csv file of the boundary polygon. Include X, Y and Z and point number in the file.
Importing Shape Files

You can import ESRI shape files storing both non-topological geometry and attribute
information.
2. In the Import dialog box select ESRI (shape,grid,tin) then select the file type
90
Figure 7-9: Import ESRI file types
3. Click OK. The Import Shape File dialog box will display.
4. Navigate to the file containing the shape file.
The shape file to be imported must have a main file (.shp), an index file, (.shx) and a
database table (.dbf). Each of these files will contain the same prefix. While these files
will reside in the same file folder, only import the shape file (.shp) that needs to be
imported.
5. Click OK.
Figure 7-10: Import Shape File dialog box
Importing Shape Files
91

Every ESRI shape file contains attribute information for the objects that can vary from the
individual object ID to large sets of data describing that object. A limited amount of shape file
attributes may be imported under the Optional character... and Optional numeric database...
fields. Use these fields to type information such as object name, group, feature, description, Z
value and W value from the database (shape files).
Exporting Shape Files

Export shapes to save objects (from the screen) as shape files. This option will create three files
(.shp, .shx, and .dbf) for each exported shape file in the Vulcan working directory.
2. In the Export dialog box select ESRI (shape,grid,tin) then select the file type.
3. Click OK. The Export Shape File dialog box will display.
To save each of the objects in shape files with their respective layer names, select Layer (Save
By menu).
92
8 Analysing Data
Data Information
Tools under the Analyse menus are used for obtaining information such as area and labels.
Analyse Toolbar
The Analyse toolbar (or Analyse > Details) is used to gather details of an object such,
coordinates of a point, distance between points, and distance along a line. More information is
found under Envisage : Toolbars : Analyse in the Vulcan Help.
Distance Along Line
Layer Range
Curvature
Coordinate
Distance Between Points
Angle
Distance
Polygon
Area
Area
Strike Full
& Dip
Centroid
List Multiple Object Headers

Legends
Find Objects
List Object Details
Remove Labels
Figure 8-1: Analyse toolbar
Coordinate
Use Coordinate to report the northing, easting and elevation of a point. A point can be an
existing point, selected using the snap to points button on the Digitise toolbar, a point on a line
picked with the snap to objects button, or a point digitised in space. The coordinates will be
displayed in the Report window.
Right-click once to exit the command.
Distance Between Points
The Distance Between Points option measures the linear distance between two designated
points, which not only is the distance reported, but also the difference in level, the bearing and
the gradient of the line between the two points. The total length reported will always be greater
than the plan length should the two points be on different levels.
Distance Along Line
The Distance Along Line option determines the total length of the line segments between the
nominated start and end points. It gives a 2D and 3D distance measured along the path of the
line segments. A quick way of determining or positioning an object at a specified location
distance and position is to use a custom cursor.
Data Information
93

Custom Cursor
To access a custom cursor, the custom cursor icon must be active (Graphics toolbar). Rightclick the icon to modify the properties.
Custom cursor icon
Figure 8-2: Custom Cursor Properties dialog box
The scaled cursor will change accordingly when zooming in or out. However, the fixed cursor
will not dynamically scale up or down but will remain the specified size.The specified size for the
cursor is from edge to edge of the cursor. For example, if Circle is checked as the Scaled
Cursor, then the specified size is the diameter of the circle.
Area
Use Area to define the section to be measured by drawing a polygon around the objects of
interest. The viewed layers must be in plan view, otherwise the user defined area will not
represent the area that is being measured. If the layers are in orthogonal view, the snap to point
or snap to object curser options can be used. Right-click to close the polygon and exit the
command. The output will be displayed in the Report window.
Polygon Area
Use Polygon Area to measure the planar areas of selected polygons and use those areas to
compute volumes. This option also includes the ability to calculate the area of doughnut
polygons (polygons within polygons). The calculated volumes and areas are shown in the
Vulcan Envisage Report window.
The polygon must already exist and be loaded on-screen.
When selected, the Object Area dialog box will display where the area and volume units can be
specified. Furthermore, the thickness can be specified if a volume is desired.
Tutorial 8.1
Find the surface area (in square metres) of asphalt needed to pave the roads located in the
ROADS layer.
94
8 Analysing Data
Table 1: Other Analyse Options

Command
Definition
Centroid
Finds coordinates of the centroid (gravitational centre point of a

two or three dimensional object) or for closed polygons and closed
solid triangulations. The output (centroid coordinates) is shown in
the Report window.
Full
Gathers detailed information on the objects. In addition, you can

select one string from an object and obtain details for that specific
string. Such information as enclosed area of an object, and grades
of the segments, can be found here.
Curvature
Used for graphical elements (lines, polygons) with a minimum of

three points. Click any point of the object (except the endpoints) to
report the radius and the centre coordinates for the circle which
goes through the selected point plus two points on either side of
the selected point.
Strike/Dip
Provides Vulcan with three points and strike with dip will be calculated for the plane containing those three points.
Possible uses:
Vulcan in the rotated view, click on the empty screen (not on
the data) and the strike/dip of the view will be shown.
Enter Snap to object mode and click three times on any
triangulation. The strike/dip of the plane made from those
three points will be reported.
List
Gathers detailed information on the object, including layer and

object name, feature, value, and colour. The coordinates of all the
object points (in the order in which they have been digitised) are
reported in the Report window.
List objects
Provides a list of all objects selected either by name, layer, feature

or group, or combination of those. Useful tool to see a list of
objects for example, in layers.
Find objects
Highlights objects on-screen (or sends a report to the Microsoft

Excel spreadsheet) based on the specified condition. For example,
if one object is named LINE_TEST then the condition LIKE
LINE_TEST will highlight this specific object. Search objects
using attributes, such as layer name, description, value, coordinate, linestyle, number of points, and point types.
Layer range
Provides information on minimum and maximum X, Y and Z per

layer or per object.
Angle/Distance
Reports the length and angle of the shortest line, which can be
used to connect two objects (their selected segments). If the
objects are not in the same plane, this option can also be used.
The box for Projecting onto a 3D plane must be active.
Tutorial 8.2
1. Find the dip of the warehouse roof.
2. Then find the number of points in the boundary polygon.
Data Information
95
9 Labelling
Analyse Tools
There are several options for labelling data on-screen located in the Analyse > Label menus.
The Analyse options are broken down into five sections:
Point Labels
Point Labels to Text
Object Labels
Object Labels to Text
Menu Options
Point Labels
Point Labels are fixed font type meaning they remain the same size on-screen regardless of the
current zoom and will always appear face on regardless of the screen orientation. The Point
Label to Text option described later in this section allows you to have multiple labels and to
control the properties of those labels.
1. Select Analyse > Label > Point Label.
2. On the Label Object Point(s) dialog box select a labelling method and attribute.
Options under the Attributes sections depend on the labelling method chosen.
Figure 9-1: Label Object Point(s) dialog box
The Point Label option only allows one set of labels to be displayed at any given time.
Table 1: Label Object Point(s) Options
Analyse Tools
Command
Definition
Name
Point names can be assigned using Name (Design > Point Edit) or
Point Name (Design > Object Edit).
Z Value
Displays the points Z (RL) value. Z values, which are assigned

through the Status toolbar when the object was initially created,
can be edited using Z Value (Design > Object Edit). The resulting
labels can contain up to six decimal places, which is derived from
the Miscellaneous section in Tools > Preferences.
97

Table 1: Label Object Point(s) Options (Continued)
Command
Definition
W Tag
Labels the points with their W tag value. W tag values, which are
assigned through the Status toolbar when the object was initially
created, can be edited using W Tag (Design > Object Edit), the W
Tag (Design > Point Edit) or Assign W Tag (Design > Attribute
Edit). The resulting labels can contain up to six decimal places,
which is derived from the Miscellaneous section in Tools > Preferences.
Points
Displays all of the points contained within the chosen object. The
point settings within the Graphics section (Tools > Preferences)
are used to control the size and appearance of the point markers.
Sequence
Used to label the points with their sequence number, for instance
the order of digitising. Knowing the order of digitising, or the location of the first and last points, may be necessary when, for example, appending objects. Choosing to display the sequence number
will require you to specify whether to label all points within the chosen object, or only the first and last points.
Data to be labelled must be selected on-screen using the Select By menu.
Figure 9-2: Points labelled with their Point Names
Figure 9-3: Points labelled with their Z value
You can label points through the Vulcan Envisage context menu. To label the points using the
context menu, right-click on an object and select the appropriate labelling method.
98
9 Labelling
Figure 9-4: Applying labels through the Vulcan Envisage context menu
Point Labels to Text

The Analyse > Label > Point Label to Text option allows you to place point labels within an
Vulcan Envisage layer, converting them into text objects and therefore making them printable.
Placing the labels into a layer will also allow you to retain the labels on-screen while displaying
other labels. The converted labels can also be saved with other design data.
Figure 9-5: Convert point data to text objects
The colour properties allow you to choose and use the colour value already assigned to the
object or specify a new colour. The Attributes option is displayed when numerical labels are
selected. When multiple label options are chosen, the Display Style properties will be available
to choose how to define different labels. Use the Font Settings tab to control the font type,
size, scale and drafting angle or to place a box around the text.
Object Label
Use Object Label to display the object labels for a chosen object. When prompted, select
Name, Value, Group, Feature, or Gradient. The position of the label can be specified as left, right
or centre. Labels will be displayed as Fixed Fonts. For example, the fonts stay the same size
on-screen regardless of the zoom factor. To change the font size use the Object Label to Text
option.
Analyse Tools
99
Figure 9-6: Label Object dialog box
To remove the object label select Analyse > Label> Remove.

Object Label to Text
Use Object Label to Text to place object labels within an Vulcan Envisage layer and convert
them into text objects (printable). The converted labels can also be saved with other design
data. Keep labels on-screen while displaying other labels by placing them into a layer (Design >
Text Edit).
Figure 9-7: Convert object data to text objects dialog box
Tutorial 9.1
1. Label the start point of the boundary polygon with X and Y coordinates.
2. Save the labels to a layer named REFERENCE_POINT_LABEL.
3. Label the gradient of the RAMP layer.
100
9 Labelling
10 Creating a Database
Database Overview
Isis and Vulcan recognise three different database styles:
Header style
ODBC style
ODBC databases make it possible for the Vulcan software to read information from a external
database such as Microsoft Access or acQuire.
Every user-defined database in Isis (and Vulcan) is comprised of two entities:
The database design
The database itself
A database design is a single file (<name>.dsf)that describes and enforces the structure of
the database. The design is used to specify how many tables the database is made up of and
the names of those tables and stores how many fields are contained within each table.
To import raw data files and create a database, there must be a design corresponding to the
data to be imported. In addition, each file imported into the database is its own table, with the
fields being the columns in each data file. The database is created when the raw data files
(typically in ASCII/CSV format) are imported within Isis (or Vulcan Envisage) using the design as
the template that controls the structure of the database.
The database files itself - <name>.isis
The database index file - <name>.isix
Each database file must have a corresponding index file to be accessed and used. Normally, the
index file is created automatically, though it can be re-created by compressing and rebuilding
the database. Creating the design, editing the database, and viewing the database are all
performed in Isis and Vulcan Envisage is used to display information graphically on-screen.
DSF Creation
To create a .dsf file, Isis must be opened. When Isis is opened the Open Database dialog box
will first display. If you do not need to open a database, click Cancel.
To open/close databases and .dsf files, select the File menu in Isis. To create a new design
select File > New Design. This file will be located in the local working directory.
DSF file names are limited to three characters in length and the general naming convention is
shown below for different types of databases.
.dhd drillhole database
.cmp composite database
.smp samples database
.tek geotech database
Database Overview
101
Tutorial 10.1
Open Isis and create a new headered .dsf named DHD. The Design properties dialog box
will display.
Figure 10-1: New Database Design dialog box
Use design properties to add a description of the .dsf, a database type (Attributes button)
and data source.
The two types of databases are Drilling and Blockout. If Drilling is selected then a Desurvey
Style must be specified, which defines how a curve is applied to curved drillholes.
The data source will automatically be filled out with Isis. In other words, this will be a standard
Vulcan database into which data will be imported through .csv files.
Other options are for connecting external databases (Microsoft Access) using an ODBC link.
Tutorial 10.2
In the Design Type dialog box, do the following:
Enter a description.
Select a Drilling type database.
Select a Tangent Desurvey Style.
Ensure the data source is Isis.
The .dsf set up will need to be similar to the data which you want to import. It is a good idea to
familiarise yourself with the current data as well as thinking about what calculated fields may be
necessary at a later point in time. Note which field is the key field. In other words, it is similar
between all of the tables.
In a drillhole database this is the HoleID/Name field.
Tutorial 10.3
Open the five .csv files provided (collar, assay, survey, geology, and structure) to get an
idea of the tables and fields to include in the design.
For each .csv file a table will be made in Isis. To insert a table into the .dsf use Table > Insert
or Table > Append commands. Insert will place a new table to the left of the current table,
whereas Append will place it to the right. The first table in the .dsf must contain the Key Field.
102
Figure 10-2: Isis user interface
Tutorial 10.4
Create five tables and name them collar, survey, assay, geo and struct, with collar being
the left most table.
Figure 10-3: Isis table setup
Each table will contain fields that correspond with data in the .csv files. For example, a collar
table generally has a HoleID field, an Easting, Northing, and an Elevation field. Certain fields
contain critical information so the Vulcan software can display them properly. These fields are
defined using Synonyms.
Each table has a drop-down list box in the Table Properties portion of the dialog box where
Synonyms can be specified. Depending on what is selected here, the individual field drop-down
list boxes will be populated accordingly.
Database Overview
103
Tip!
Not every field needs
a Synonym. In a
drillhole database,
however Synonyms
must be defined for
the collar information
(Hole ID, Easting,
Northing and
Elevation).
Synonyms must also
be defined for
downhole survey
information. The
remaining Synonyms
are optional.
Each field in the table has several columns that describe the properties.
Name of the field.
Description of the field.
Type - Data type including Text, Double for large numbers or with decimal places, single
for smaller numbers or Integer value.
Length - Maximum length of the field.
Synonyms - Setting field Synonyms is an important and necessary step since the field
names that you specify are not necessarily the field names that Vulcan recognises.
There are four data types available for use in Isis: text, integer, single and double.
Text - Alphanumeric value (for example ROCK = GRANITE).
Integer - Numeric value with no decimals (for example ROCK = 1). Because Integer
values are actually stored as Text in an Isis database, you will save space in the database
by storing a number with no decimals as a single precision variable.
Single - Numeric value < 7 significant figures (for example DEPTH = 123.567).
Double - Numeric value > 7 significant figures (for example XCOORD = 12345.6789).
Tutorial 10.5
Enter the information for the Collar table as shown below.
Enter the information for the remaining tables to correspond with the .csv files.
Key Fields
Key fields must be defined to tell the database which field is similar between each table. To
define a key field, right-click in the gray area to the left of the field name and select Primary Key.
Note that the Primary Key must be defined on the first or left-most table.
Tutorial 10.6
Define HOLEID as the Primary Key.
Once all information has been entered and a Primary Key has been defined, the .dsf will need
to be saved using File > Save.
Tutorial 10.7
Save the .dsf and exit out of Isis.
104
Importing Data into the DSF

The final stage in creating the database involves importing the data using the database design
as a template. The importing process can be performed in either Vulcan Envisage, or Isis. Both
methods will be covered in this section.
Import drilling data into Vulcan Envisage:

2. Select CSV (Drill,Sampling,Channel).
Figure 10-4: Import dialog box
3. Select Databases. Click OK.

4. Specify the data file extension and the format of the files, which is the rows with field
names and where records start.
The imported files must be stored in the current working directory.
The database name will be based upon the design name and ODI (Optional
Database Identifier), which are entered into this dialog box.
The final database name will have the following naming convention:
<project_code><ODI>.<dsn>.Isis (the database file).
Database Overview
105
Figure 10-5: CVS Load - Data Files and Database dialog box
Note:
The index file always
has the same
naming convention
as the database file,
with the exception
that the file
extension suffix ends
with the character X.
The database is comprised of the actual database file, and the database index file
(<project_code><ODI>.<dsn>.isix).
Tutorial 10.8
Complete the CVS Load - Data Files and Database dialog (File > Import, select CSV, then
Databases). Name the database thordrill.dhd.isis.
The next dialog box allows for connecting the design table name to the .csv file name.
Figure 10-6: Datafile to Record Connections dialog box
Field Connections match up database fields to columns in the .csv files. This must be done
for each table before proceeding. The first Field Connections dialog box will look slightly
different than the others.
106
Figure 10-7: Field connections
All subsequent dialog boxes will have an Index field on this table drop-down list where the key
field must be selected. For example, HoleID is similar among all tables.
Figure 10-8: Index field
Tutorial 10.9
Complete the Field Connections dialog box for each table in the design.
Figure 10-9: Specification save dialog box
If you choose Save the specifications, after supplying a suitable name, you can avoid having
to set the table and field connections each time you import .csv files into the same design. The
specification file will automatically make the connections when the specifications are selected
by nominating the Use existing specifications on the CSV Load - Data Files and Database
dialog box. The specification is saved in a file named csv_specs in the \csv_load_specs
folder of the Vulcan Resources area.
Click Finish to start the importing process. During the import process, a progress bar is
displayed showing the status of the importing. Any errors in the data file (overlapping intervals)
are reported in the Report window.
Database Overview
107
Figure 10-10: Loading data file dialog box
Any errors should always be investigated and corrected before using the database in other
parts of Vulcan. Always examine the Report window to determine if there are any errors in the
data files.
Tutorial 10.10
Finish importing the files and ensure there are no errors. If there are errors, fix the errors in
the .csv files and re-import the data.
Importing drilling data in Isis:

1. Select Utilities > Import > Tables.
2. Choose either New Database or Existing Database and click Next.
The database design and name must be specified, similarly to the Vulcan Envisage database
naming. The filename is an equivalent of the ODI and again the database will be named
<project_code><Filename (ODI)>.<dsn>.Isis.
Figure 10-12: Database Import

dialog box
Figure 10-13: New Database dialog box
108
The Import Tables dialog box is displayed in order to make the connections between the tables
and fields in the database design, and the columns in the data files. Each table shown in the
dialog box must have a corresponding data file. If a table shown in the dialog box is not linked
with an appropriate data file, then the import process will not be executed.
The fields in the data file must follow the exact sequence of the fields in the data files. If a field is
not found at the position expected by the design, then Isis will import the incorrect field
contents into the field expected by the design. Therefore, importing within Isis is only ideal if the
design and data file table and field contents, and positions, match each other exactly.
The Save icon allows you to save the import specifications created to an Isis Import Ascii
specification file. The naming convention of this file is <name>.iia. This file is stored in your
working folder, and can be used to quickly import data files using the design, without having to
manually make the data file connections at a later stage.
Folder icon
Save icon
Figure 10-14: Import Tables dialog box
The .iia file is used by clicking on the Folder icon and selecting the required .iia file from
the displayed list of files. During the import process, a progress bar is displayed showing the
status and remaining time of the import.
Figure 10-15: Import Tables progress bar
A confirmation message is displayed showing the total number of objects (drillholes) in the new
database.
Database Overview
109
Tutorial 10.11
1. Create a second database by importing through the Isis menu options.
2. Name the database thortables.dhd.isis.
ODBC Database Creation

Vulcan can link to most standard database packages via an ODBC link. This allows information
to be viewed straight from Microsoft Access, acQuire or Oracle. The initial ODBC link
setup is a standard windows option. A link must be set within the .dsf after which, data import
is not necessary, as the database is automatically created through the link.
ODBC Databases can be viewed in the Vulcan Explorer window under User Databases. When
set up, they are accessed in the same way as a standard header database.
Figure 10-16: Vulcan Explorer window
Setting Up an ODBC Link to Microsoft Access Database

To access information from a database, an ODBC connection has to be configured.
To set up an ODBC link in Windows XP:

1. Click Start and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click Administrative Tools.
3. Double-click Data Sources (ODBC).
ODBC links can be created either per user or per system.
4. On the ODBC Data Source Administrator dialog box, select the User DSN tab and
highlight MS Access Database.
5. Click the Add button. Click OK.
110
User DSN tab

Add button
Figure 10-17: ODBC Data Source Administrator dialog box
6. On the Create New Data Source dialog box, select Driver do Microsoft Access Driver
(*mdb).
Figure 10-18: Create New Data Source dialog box
7. Click Finish.
8. On the ODBC Microsoft Access Setup dialog box, add a name in the Data Source
Name field.
10. Click Select and Browse to the correct .mdb file. The maximum allowed name length of
the Data Source Name is eight characters.
Database Overview
111
Select button
Figure 10-19: ODBC Microsoft Access Setup dialog box
11. Click OK.
Tutorial 10.12
Set up a ODBC link to the thordrillholes.mdb MS Access database located in the
Introduction to Vulcan training data set.
Setting up an ODBC link in the DSF:

1. Open Isis.
2. Select File > New Design.
3. In the Design Properties click the Configure button.
4. In the Data Source Setup, select ODBC from the Source drop-down list box.
Figure 10-20: Data Source Setup dialog box
5. Point to the connection created in Administrative Tools/ Data Sources (ODBC). If a user
name and password is set up for the database it must be entered. If not, leave blank.
Once the initial ODBC source has been set up, the source for each table, and then each field
must be set up. The table source is set via the Configure button in the table properties.
The individual field sources are set by clicking on the Browse button in the source column for
each field. Depending on which ODBC Table was selected in the Table properties, the dropdown list box will be populated with fields existing on that table.
112
Figure 10-21: Source information button
Figure 10-22: Source Information dialog box
AcQuire
The acQuire interface in Vulcan creates a link to an acQuire database containing drillhole or
composite data. This link is saved as a file in the working directory with a file name <project
prefix><link name>.acq.isis. There is no need for a .dsf file in the creation of an
acQuire link. Once the link is in place the interface performs exactly like the original acQuire
dialog boxes for selecting which data to display.
Setting a link to acQuire requires an ODBC connection.
Setting up an ODBC connection in Windows XP:

1. Click Start and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click Administrative Tools.
3. Double-click Data Sources (ODBC).
4. Click the Add button to create a new driver.
5. Highlight SQL Server.
Figure 10-23: Create New Data Source dialog box
6. Click Finish.
7. Name your data source and give it a description. The server to connect to should be the
name of the computer.
Database Overview
113
Figure 10-24: Create a New Data Source to SQL Server dialog box
8. Click Next.
9. Select option Connect to SQL Server to obtain default settings for the additional
configuration options.
10. Click Next.

11. Select option Change the default database to and insert a new name.
12. Select option Attach database filename and insert the path and filename of the
database to use.
Copy and paste the path and file name of the database to avoid errors.
13. Click Next.
14. Accept the defaults and click Finish.
114
Figure 10-25: SQL Server ODBC Data Source Test dialog box
15. The ODBC Microsoft SQL Server Set up dialog box will display the settings for the
newly created link. To verify the connection click Test Data Source.
16. Verify that the TESTS COMPLETED SUCCESSFULLY! and click OK.
Tutorial 10.13
Set up a SQL link to the database provided.
Setting up an ODBC connection in Vulcan:

When the ODBC link is set up, set up the Vulcan portion of the link.
1. Open Isis.
2. Select File > acQuire.
3. Name your new acQuire database link.
4. Click OK.
5. Select from the list the SQL Server connection created earlier and click Connect.
Database Overview
115
Figure 10-26: Select data from acQuire dialog box
6. Type in a user name and password to connect to the database.
Figure 10-27: Connect to Database dialog box
The resulting dialog box is the same as that displayed by acQuire.
116
The following tutorial shows how to load drillholes using several of these acQuire dialog boxes.
Tutorial 10.14
1. From the Select Holes tab, load the Collar_BH data set under Alchemy.
2. Check the use box for the desired fields.
3. Click preview to view the selected drillholes.
4. Click the Filter button to limit the drillholes by a specific field.
Figure 10-29: acQuire table
Tutorial 10.15
1. Under the Assay tab expand the Alchemy header.
2. Select all the fields in the Assay_BH directory.
3. Click OK to accept the settings.
Database Overview
117
Use the Abbreviations dialog box to change the name of the Vulcan field the data will be
imported into. By default, the Vulcan field name is a shortened version of an acQuire field name.
Field names are limited to six characters and can not have the same name on the same table.
Tutorial 10.16
1. Verify or change the Vulcan field names and click OK.
DSR file settings are the same for acQuire as for other Isis files. The most common style is
tangent. Click OK.
Figure 10-31: Setup DSR dialog box
Creation of the link to an acQuire database is now complete and the Isis database
thorlink1.acq.isis will now function just like any other Vulcan database.
Figure 10-32: Open Geological Database dialog box
118
11 Viewing a Database in Isis

Opening the Database
Opening a Isis database:
1. Open Isis.
2. Select File > Open Database.
Databases can also be opened from the Vulcan Explorer window. When a database
is open, you can switch between Vulcan Envisage and Isis by using the toggle
buttons in the lower right hand corner of the screen.
Select File > Close or File > Quit Isis to close the database.
Figure 11-1: Open Database dialog box
Tip!
The ODBC Link
option is only used if
you work with ODBC
link databases.
The Isis Library Database option is only used if working with the older library-style databases.
Use Open as read-only to open the database in read-only mode, which will prevent any
changes being made to the database.
The Ensure project prefix option is ticked by default, and ensures the project code is
appended to the front of the database name. Selecting a HoleID from the drop-down list box
will populate the tables with the information for the particular hole.
Figure 11-2: Collar table
Tutorial 11.1
Open the headered database created in Chapter 1 in Isis. Ensure everything looks correct
and that each table has been populated with information.
119
Tip!
Double-clicking on
the name of the
database will open
it as well.
The Vulcan Explorer window comprises of several virtual folders in which various Vulcan data
files are stored. The User Database folder at the bottom of the folders tree contains all userdefined Isis databases. This folder can contain up to three subfolders (Headered, Library,
ODBC) representing the different database styles in use. The actual database files are shown as
containers within these subfolders.
The Objects subfolder contains a listing of every drillhole record in the database.
The Design subfolder lists every table in the database.
Right-click on any table or field under the Design subfolder to open the context menu. If Edit is
selected, the database will open in Isis. If you select View, the database is also opened in Isis,
but in read-only mode.
You can right-click on the actual drillhole database to open a context menu.
Notebook/Multiple Window Views

There are two ways to display the database in Isis:
Notebooks
Multiple Windows
Notebooks
Notebooks is the default view that displays databases as a single window with the various
database tables shown as tabs. Each tab is a window made up of rows and columns. The
columns correspond to the database fields, and the rows correspond to the field data entries.
In the top left corner of the window, there is a drop-down list box, in which every database
record (drillhole) is listed. The contents of the rows and columns in each table tab vary,
depending on which record (drillhole) is selected.
The contents of the tables are viewed by selecting the table tab. To view the table contents for
different database records, use the drop-down list box to select the required drillhole. A drillhole
can also be selected by blanking (deleting the contents) the drop-down list box, typing the
drillhole name exactly, and then pressing the [ENTER] key.
Tip!
Drillhole names are
case sensitive.
Drillholes named
AB1, ab1; Ab1 and
aB1 are all treated as
unique drillholes.
Avoid using spaces
or special characters
(%, $, | etc.) in
drillhole names.
Right-click on any row number in a table to open the context menu used to edit contents of the
row. Furthermore, right-clicking on any column name in a table will open a different context
window used for sorting the data.
Figure 11-3: Notebooks view
120
Multiple Windows
The multiple windows view allows several tables to be viewed in separate windows. To change
between views use Edit > Preferences and select the multiple windows view. The view will only
be applied when the database is reopened.
To close the database choose File > Close and reopen using any of the methods mentioned in
the previous section.
Figure 11-4: Preferences dialog box
Tutorial 11.2
Open the database in a multiple windows view.
Initially, a database will open in a single window. This window acts as an index table to the
database and lists the tables contained within the database. The drop-down list box in the top
left corner of the index table lists all the database records (drillholes) for the database.
Figure 11-5: Database records
Tip!
The Window menu
allows you to
rearrange the table
windows using the
Cascade, Tile
Horizontally or Tile
Vertically methods.
Double-click on a table name to open a separate window with information for the chosen table.
A window may be opened for each table. Each window can be resized or positioned as required
using the standard Microsoft Windows resizing and positioning techniques.
121
Figure 11-6: Multiple view
Tutorial 11.3
Select the view you prefer and set it as your default.
122
12 Databases
Drillhole Databases
Use the Geology menu to query Drillhole databases in Vulcan Envisage. The Drilling option
allows you to display drilling data in several ways, however, a colour legend must be created.
Legends
Note:
Data can be copied
and pasted between
columns.
Furthermore, if a row
has been pre-made
and data is entered
in the To column, it
will automatically
appear in the From
column on the next
row.
Legend options are found under Analyse > Legend Edit. Note that the legend must match the
database table and field names exactly; if incorrect the drillholes will either be loaded as the
wrong colour or they will not load at all.
When using the Analyse > Legend Edit > Legend Editor, a list of schemes will appear. The two
schemes applicable to drillholes are DRILL and SCALE.
A drill legend scheme is used for the standard colour scheme for colouring drillhole traces while
a scale legend scheme uses the drill scheme and allows you to make intervals thicker (discs).
When creating a drill scheme legend, the following options need to be considered:
Alpha/Numeric - Type of data the legend will be showing.
Record/Table - Type the name of the table exactly as it appears in the database where
the data is located.
Field Name - Type the name of the column/field exactly as it appears in the database.
To/From methods - Tells the software how to draw the intervals. Most often, the value for
To is TO and for From is FROM.
Range Mode - (only available for Numeric legends) Defines how the software handles
Greater Than/Less Than/Equal To.
For example, given the intervals shown below, using a GELT would mean greater than or equal
to 0 and less than 1 would be green, and greater than or equal to 1 and less than 2, would be
orange.
Table 1: Intervals
0
Green
Orange
Colours can be selected manually or a range of colours can be selected by right-clicking in the
Colour column and selecting Colour Range from the context menu.
Drillhole Databases
123
Figure 12-1: Colour Ranges dialog box
Tutorial 12.1
Create a drillhole legend to display the gold values in the database. Use the following
intervals listed in Table 2: (see below).
Alpha legends are case sensitive; meaning an A in the database must be an A in the legend, not
lowercase.
Table 2: Alpha legend
-99
0.5
0.5
1.5
1.5
999
Loading drillholes on-screen:

1. Select Geology > Drilling > Open Database.
Figure 12-2: Open Geological Database dialog box
124
12 Databases
Note:
The legend name
and line style
thickness must be
specified.
2. Select Geology > Drilling > Load Drillholes. The data can be loaded in a variety of ways
as shown in Figure 12-3.
Figure 12-3: Load Drillholes dialog box
Name - Loads all holes or a subset based on drillhole names (wildcards may be
used).
Section - Loads all holes within a specified distance from a pre-existing (displayed)
section line.
Polygon - Loads all drilling within the boundaries of a pre-existing (displayed)
polygon.
Selection File - Loads all drillholes matching the names contained in a Vulcan
selection file.
Extent - Loads all holes within specified minimum and maximum X, Y, and Z
coordinates.
Triangulation - Loads all drillholes that intersect a specified triangulation.
Filter - Loads subsets of drillholes by using a selection filter set up under Geology
> Drilling > Selection Filter.
Drillholes that display as all one colour indicates a problem within the legend database fields.
Tutorial 12.2
Load the drillholes using the legend created in Tutorial 6.1. Ensure that the drillholes are
curved and that they are multi-coloured.
Drillhole Databases
125
Labelling Drillholes
Add labels using Geology > Drilling > Label On or Multi Label On. Note
that the Label On option only labels a single field and the labels are
displayed in the centre of an interval. With Multi Label On, several labels
may be displayed as well as the properties (colour, size) of the labels. The
Label On option first prompts you for which drillhole to label using the
standard selection criteria. For one single drillhole, choose Object.
To label all drillholes, select Layer and then click on any drillhole. Confirm
layer DIG$DRILL, as this is the temporary layer drillholes are loaded into.
When prompted, select which field to label on the selected drillholes.
To remove labels, select Geology > Drilling > Label Off.
For more labelling options, use Geology > Drilling > Multi Label On.
Label colour and decimal places can be controlled on the dialog box, as
well as drawing a tick mark for the start and end of the intervals. Multi
Label allows multiple labels to be displayed, on both the left and right
hand side of the trace.
Use Geology > Drilling > Multi Label Properties to change the font
properties of the labels.
Tutorial 12.3
Label the gold grade values on-screen using the Label On.
Figure 12-4: Multi Label Drillholes dialog box
126
12 Databases
Tutorial 12.4
1. Remove the labels created in Tutorial 12.3
2. Using Multi Label On, label the gold values on the left and the copper values and the
drillhole ID to the right.
3. Select a font style and size that works best with your data.
To display discs around portions of drillholes, create a scale legend using Analyse > Legend
Edit > Legend Editor. The width of the discs can be manually entered or taken from a column in
the database. The Field Type (Alpha or Numeric), will populate the drop-down list box in the
next dialog box. Ensure the Field Type should match the drill legend type associated with this
scale.
Select the drill legend to link with the scale legend. Only alpha/numeric legends will be
displayed in the drop-down list box, depending on how the previous dialog box was filled out.
The disc width entered will be the diameter in feet or metres of the disc.
Drillhole Databases
127
Figure 12-5: Legend Editor
Tutorial 12.5
1. Create a scale legend associated with the Gold Drill legend which was created in
previous steps.
2. Use the disc widths in Table 3:.
Table 3: Disc Widths
From
To
Disc Width
-99
0.5
0.5
1.5
10
1.5
15
20
25
30
999
35
Tutorial 12.6
Create a legend to display the different rock types shown in Figure 12-6.
128
12 Databases
Figure 12-6: Colour Ranges dialog box
Tutorial 12.7
Create a scale legend to easily identify the TQ1 lithological unit.
To display only collar points without the drillhole trace, check the Display drillhole location only
option on the Load Drillholes dialog box (Geology > Drilling > Load Drillhole). Displaying
drillhole collars does not require a legend.
Check to display only

collar points without
drillhole trace
Figure 12-7: Load Drillholes dialog box
Tutorial 12.8
Load only the drillhole collar points and save these points to a layer named
DRILLHOLE_COLLARS.
Drillhole Databases
129
13 Database Maintenance
Modifying/Editing Databases
Editing the Database Structure
A database structure is controlled by the header information contained in the database, which in
turn is determined by the database design. You can not modify the structure of a database
without modifying the appropriate database design.
Changes to a database structure include any alterations to the original database structure, that
include adding or deleting tables and/or fields, renaming tables and/or fields, changing field
character types, lengths and decimal places, changing table and field descriptions and
changing table and field Synonyms.
Changing the database structure:

Edit the design of the database.
Edit the header of the database.
When you open a database header in Isis, the same dialog box and view as when you open a
design of a database is displayed. It is ideal to edit both the design and header of a database in
order to maintain consistency between the database and its associated design. It is
recommended to edit the design of the database and then edit the header of the database.
Tutorial 13.1
Make the changes outlined below (see Editing the design of a database).
Editing the design of a database:

1. Open Isis.
2. Select File > Open Design.
3. Select the Headered template (.dsf) option, click Browse select your file.
4. Click OK.
5. On the ASSAY table, rename the AU name field to AUG.
6. Under the Decimals column, type 3 for the AUG field.
7. Add an additional field to the ASSAY table called DOLLAR.
8. Select File > Save.
Figure 13-1: Isis Design Database
131
Tip!
When changing the
name of a field, you
will also need to
modify the legend in
order to be able to
display the drillholes
on-screen.
Editing the header of a database:

In order to edit an existing database, the header of the database must be opened.
1. Select File > Open Design.
2. Select Header of Headered template (.isis) and click Browse to select your file.
3. Click OK.
Figure 13-2: Open Database Design dialog box
Note:
Only header-style
databases have
database headers
that can be edited. If
the database is
linked using ODBC,
only the design
(.dsf) needs to be
changed.
Furthermore,
changes in the
Header of a
database must be
made to the design.
If this is not the case,
then the database
will not contain the
correct information.
Saving new changes to a database:

A warning displays that modifying the header may make the databases unintelligible.
2. Click OK.
Figure 13-3: Save Headered Database Design dialog box
Tutorial 13.2
Make the same changes to the header as you did to the design in Tutorial 13.1.
Editing, Inserting and Finding Values

In many instances it is necessary to manually edit existing field values in a column. To make
changes in a database it must be open. With the database open, select the hole to edit and type
a value in the correct cell.
Tutorial 13.3
Change the AU ASSAY value for the second sample interval of hole L11 to .5. Save your
changes.
132
Tip!
If opening a
database from the
Vulcan Windows
Explorer, select Edit
and not View in
order to make
changes. You must
have write
permissions to the
database in order to
save the changes.
Figure 13-4: ASSAY table
To insert a new hole/object into the database, again the database must be open. Select Object
> Insert from the Isis menu. A new object will be inserted into the database. Type all the
necessary information into the different tables.
Figure 13-5: COLLAR table
If only a collar location is specified with no downhole information, the drillhole will not be
displayed on-screen in Vulcan Envisage.
Tutorial 13.4
1. Insert a drillhole with the following properties into the drillhole database:
HoleID: H99
Easting: 78260
Northing: 4650
Elevation: 180
Depth: 100
2. Save the changes to the database.
Display the drillholes on-screen in Vulcan Envisage ensuring your new hole is displayed
properly.
Locating values within a database:

1. Select Edit > Find.
2. Search and locate entries in a database by categorising one of the following:
Locating specific entries.
Locating conditional entries (entries that meet conditions).
133

Text
Tip!
Alphanumeric
characters are
treated as case
sensitive. Searching
for U8 is different
from searching for
u8.
Text is used to locate specific database entries. You can search for both numeric and
alphanumeric characters.
Find What - For locating exact entries or wildcard characters.
Look in - Use the drop-down list box to select the table to search. If a specific table is
selected, an additional drop-down is displayed. Use this list to nominate the field to
search. You can also select to search every field in every table of the database. In this
case, the additional drop list is not displayed.
More>> - Advanced features for reversing the direction of the search, wrap the search to
the start of the database once it reaches the end, force exact record matching using
character case, and to use wildcards.
Figure 13-6: Find text dialog box
If an entry that meets the parameters located, that field is highlighted. To continue the search,
click Find Next again. Click Cancel to exit the Find dialog box. Use [CTRL+G] from your
keyboard to keep on searching (using the last parameters), which will continue to locate and
highlight fields if they meet the search criteria.
Equation
Equation is used to locate database entries that meet certain conditions or criteria. Both
numeric and alphanumeric characters can be used in conditional searches. You can apply one
or more conditions to a search on a single nominated table. The table is selected from the Table
drop-down list box, and the condition or conditions are typed in the Condition field.
Figure 13-7: Finding Conditions
134
Field Calculations
Occasionally you may want to create new fields by performing a calculation between existing
fields in a database. Examples include converting an imperial unit to a metric unit, or calculating
metal equivalent grades. Calculations can only be performed between fields in the same table.
In Isis, use Utilities > Field Calculation. A field must exist in the database to which the result of
the calculations can be written. If you specify a field which already contains data, then this data
will be overwritten by the results of the calculation. Include extra blank fields in a table when
your database is first created, in case you want to perform a calculation later. If a database is
already created, the database structure allows you to append additional fields as you need
them.
The Field Calculations dialog box is comprised of rows and columns, and divided into several
sections. One row generally means one equation.
Which drillhole?
Which table?
Save calculation to a
<name>.fcl file
Which conditions?
Which field for the result?
Load existing
calculation file
Which calculation?
Evaluate and
execute calculation
Figure 13-8: Field Calculation dialog box
Key patterns - Use to apply the subsequent equations to all drillholes or only selected
drillholes in the database.
Standard wildcard characters can be used:
An asterisk (*) means that all drillholes will be considered in subsequent equations.
AB* - Only drillholes starting with AB will be considered in subsequent equations.
AB? - Only drillholes AB1 through to AB9 (maximum three characters) will be
considered in subsequent equations.
AB1 - Only drillhole AB1 will be considered in subsequent equations.
Table - In the drop-down list box nominate the table in which the fields for the calculation
reside. Calculations can only be performed between fields in the same table.
Condition - Specifies field conditions in calculations. Conditions are useful when a field
does not have a legitimate value for use in the calculation (for example dividing by a field
whose value is zero). The specific set of operators that can be used in field calculation
dialog box are shown in Table 1:. Both alphanumeric (enclosed in double quotes) and
numeric characters can be used in conditions.
135

For more information, visit Isis : Utilities : Field Calculations under Database Management in
the Vulcan Help. .
Table 1: Basic Field Calculation Operators
+, -, *, /
Arithmetic operators. The + can also be used on strings.
<, >, <=, >=,

<>
==
Comparison operators, all of which work with strings. The <> are not
equals.
Equal. This is two equal signs.
%, ^
Integer modulus. For example, 7%3 returns 1.Exponent. For example,

2^3 returns 8.
Exponents are right associated, meaning, 4^2^3=4^8=65536 rather
than 4^2^3=16^3=4096.
?:
(if-else, <condition> ? <value if true> :

<value_if_false>.
For example, 4<3? Four is less than three : Four is larger than
three would return Four is larger than three.
AND
Both conditions must be true for example, EAST<78327 AND

NORTH>4730 includes all records that have both an Easting less than
78327 and a Northing greater than 4730.
OR
At least one of the conditions must be true for example, EAST>78327

OR NORTH>4730 include records that have either or both an Easting
less than 78327 and a Northing greater than 4730.
XOR
Only one of the conditions must be true for example, EAST>78327

XOR NORTH>4730 include records that have either, but not both, an
Easting less than 78327 and a Northing greater than 4730.
NOT
Everything that is not included by the condition for example, NOT

EAST>78327 include records that have an Easting less than to equal
to 78327.
LIKE
Everything that is included in this condition for example, HOLEID

LIKE 7 include records that start with a 7.
NOT LIKE
Everything that doesnt follow the pattern for example HOLEID NOT
LIKE 7 include records that do not start with a 7.
Multiple conditions can also be applied to several fields in the same table. Consider the
following extract from an ASSAY table for a fictional drillhole database:
Table 2: Fictional Drillhole Database
ROCK
PB
CU
AU
MS1
5.3
12.2
6.4
MS1
2.9
9.6
2.1
To perform a calculation where ROCK is equal to MS1, PB greater than or equal to 3.1, CU greater
than 4.5 and AU less than 6.5, then the condition would be specified as ROCK == MS1 AND
PB >= 3.1 AND CU >4.5 AND AU<6.5.
136
Using the AND operator means that all the conditions must be met before a calculation is
performed.
Field - Use to nominate fields in a table for results of the calculation to be stored.
Equation - Use to specify the resultant or calculation when the condition has been
evaluated as true. Equations can be a constant value or character, or they can be simple
or complex calculations. The calculations can be an interaction between the values or
characters in two existing separate fields, or they can be the interaction between an
existing field value, and a constant. Equations can also incorporate alphanumeric
characters.
For example, you could calculate a new field called CAT (for category), in which you set a
grade category for different ASSAY values.
Consider the following example:
Table 3: ASSAY example
VALUE
CAT
1.3
9.4
5.2
To populate the CAT field with the terms GOOD, MEDIOCRE or POOR, depending on the
contents of VALUE, the Field Calculation dialog box will need to consist of three lines,
one for each condition and calculation.
Figure 13-9: Conditions and Calculations
Applying equations:
Towards the bottom left corner of the dialog box are two options, whether used to control
several equations should be applied to the same table, or whether all equations should be
applied to the same table.
Figure 13-10: Apply all true equations option
Saving and loading field calculation files:

The Field Calculation dialog box also allows you to save a field calculation to a field calculation
file, or to load an existing field calculation file. The naming convention for a field calculation file
is <name>.fcl. The file resides in your working folder.
Executing field calculations:

Click OK to evaluate and execute the field calculation. The run-time of a field calculation
depends entirely on the complexity and number of calculations to be performed, and the size of
137

the database being queried. Once the field calculation has been completed, the results are
written to the database and can be saved using File > Save.
Figure 13-11: Field Calculations dialog box
Specifying the gold grade:

If gold grade is less than .3, the dollar column should be populated with a -500. If the gold grade
is greater than or equal to .3 the dollar column should be populated with gold grade * length of
interval * 50 * 50 * density *gold price (where 50 is the width and depth of the drillholes
influence).
Database Validation
In Isis, select Utilities > Validate to check for:
Unique Collar Locations
Downhole Checks
Along Record Checks
Individual Field Checks
The Validate option creates a specification file of data typed into the Database Validation
dialog box so you can run the same checks on multiple databases. The specification file has an
extension of.dbv and is stored in the current working directory. A specification file name and
database must be selected before continuing.
Figure 13-12: Database Validation dialog box
138
Unique Collar Location

Use Unique Collar Location to check for duplicate collars.
Select 2D check if you want to limit your search to the northing and easting coordinates only.
To specify the exact database field used for the collar location, select Override database
Synonyms to enable manual selection of the easting, northing and level information in case the
data is different from the previous selection.
Downhole Checks
Downhole Checks are divided into six different areas:
Total Depth - Checks the depth from the collar table and the Geology table are the same.
You can specify the table and the field to be checked.
Overlapping Intervals - Checks for occurrences where the top or bottom of a horizon
(from the depth record) crosses into another horizon.
Increasing and Decreasing - Checks that the nominated tables and fields increase or
decrease as specified.
Unique Values - Checks that no identical values are found within the nominated
individual tables and fields.
Sequence - Checks that all data contained within the nominated tables and fields are
listed in an order that matches a specified sequence.
Derived Value - Checks that a derived value is correct in a nominated field.
Along Record Checks
Field sum - Checks that the nominated tables and fields add up to a specified value.
Individual Field Checks
Individual Field Checks are divided into five different areas:
Minimum and Maximum Values - Checks that all values within the nominated tables
and fields fall within the specified range.
Translations - Checks that all values have translations.
Case Of - Checks all values within the nominated tables and fields match the given list.
Mandatory - Checks that there are values within the nominated tables and fields.
Expression - Checks that all values within the nominated tables and fields match an
expression. The expression can be a number, letter, space or character.
Report
Use Report to designate where the error report will reside and in what format (.csv or
standard) it will output. Select Viewing > View report in > Excel to open the error report in an
Excel window. If no errors are encountered then there will be a window stating such.
If Viewing > View report in > Text editor is selected, there will be no message if there is an
error, only a file created in the designated directory.
Save and Run
The Specifications file allows naming of the report. The report will have the extension .dbv. If no
errors were found a Validation Passed message will be displayed.
139
Tutorial 13.5
Use the Validate option to ensure the integrity of your data by following these steps:
1. In the Database Validation dialog box menu, select Unique Collar Locations.
2. Select Check for unique collar locations to ensure that you have unique easting,
northing and collar RL.
3. In the Database Validation dialog box menu, select Downhole Checks >
Overlapping Intervals.
4. Select Check for overlapping intervals to check for places where the top or bottom
of a horizon (from the depth record) crosses into another horizon.
5. In the Database Validation dialog box menu, select Individual Field Checks > Case
Of to check the geology of your database.
6. Select Report and designate a name for the report (the report generated will have the
extension of .dbv) in the Report file field.
7. In the Database Validation dialog box menu, select Report.
8. Tick View report in and choose Excel. This will start the error report if errors are
encountered.
9. In the Database Validation dialog box menu, select Save and Run and choose the
appropriate report from the Specifications file drop-down list box.
10. Click Save and then click Run.
11. Use the error report to handle discrepancies in the database.
Resolving database discrepancies:

1. Find the area that lists your drillholes.
2. Go to those drillholes by selecting them in the drop-down list box.
3. To modify the values for the drillhole click in the cell and change it. You must click out of
the modified cell prior to saving or your change will not be saved.
Deleting a drillhole from a database:

1. Select Object > Delete.
2. Select File > Save after rectifying the issues listed in the error report.
3. Run the report again to ensure all errors are cleared. The error report contains all of the
information necessary for resolving the discrepancies in your database.
Figure 13-13: Locating an error in the database
140
Exporting Data
You can export all or part of a database to an ASCII format file (or files). For example, exporting
database records (drillholes) to a new database for estimation if the core recovery field in a table
in the database meets a certain value. Isis allows you to export databases to two ASCII formats:
Database Listing format (.dbl).
Standard ASCII format (.txt, .csv).
Both options are accessed from the Utilities menu.
Using the Isis Utilities > Export > Database Option
The Utilities > Export > Database option exports a database to ASCII format. The entire
database will be exported. It is not possible to export only certain records from the database.
The resultant file name is <name>.dbl and by default is saved to the working folder.
Figure 13-14: Export Database
Export file is constructed from the existing Isis database name and can be altered if required.
The remaining options in the dialog box allow you to add a space between each field written to
the .dbl file, and to suppress decimal points in floating point numbers. The latter is required
by external programs that can not handle floating point precision in numeric fields. The .dbl file
has a specific format.
The following image outlines how the information is displayed.
141
Tip!
Exporting an Isis
database in .dbl
format is a quick
method of creating a
backup of the
database, since it
can easily be
imported back into a
database using
Utilities > Import >
Database.
Using the Isis Utilities > Export > Tables Option

Use Utilities > Export > Tables to export a database to one or more standard ASCII format
files. The number of files depends entirely on the database structure, and the export parameters
specified.
The entire database or parts can be exported as either:
Character separated value (.csv) format, in which commas or other characters are
specified as the delimiting characters.
Delimited format (formatted), in which a space or number of spaces is used to arrange
the data into columns.
Any file extension can be specified with either format. Resultant files are saved to the current
working folder, with the naming convention <name>.<extension>. Isis will always attempt to
construct a name from the database name, and the extension from the type of export format
you are using. These can be renamed at a later stage if required.
The Export Tables dialog box is divided into three sections:
Tables to export - Relates to which tables of the database you wish to export.
Export style - Relates to the ASCII format of the resulting files.
Field names - Optional, determines whether the field names of the database are also
written to the exported files.
Figure 13-15: Export Tables dialog box
Use a single table or a condition to choose the information to export. If Condition is selected,
the define button will give a Conditions dialog box.
142
Figure 13-16: Enter Record Selection Conditions dialog box
Using the Enter Record Selection Conditions dialog box:

Matching records - Exports only records from the table referenced in the dialog box. In
the above example, only a single table (the COLLAR table) would be exported, and it
would contain only those drillholes whose BHID started with the letter D.
Whole object - Exports all the tables from the database. In the above example, all four
tables (COLLAR, SURVEY, GEOL and ASSAY) would be exported, and would only
contain entries for those drillholes whose BHID started with the letter D.
The disk icon allows you to save the conditions to a specification file. The naming convention of
this file is <name>.tbe and it is stored in your working folder.
Tutorial 13.6
1. Export the LK* holes to files. This will overwrite any original .cvs files (for example
collar.csv, assay.csv).
2. Open the collar.csv file.
3. Ensure only LK holes exist.
Updating an Existing Database

An existing database may be updated with new drilling information. The new information must
be in the same format as the existing database, meaning a .csv file must exist for each table in
the database.
Updating an existing database in Vulcan Envisage:

1. Choose File > Import > CSV (Dill,Sampling,Channel).
2. Select Databases (update).
Then The CSV Update Data Files and Database dialog box is similar to importing CSV
data (see Importing Data into the DSF on page 105), except there is an option which
allows the adding of new data records found in the CSV files.
Saved specifications can be used to fill out the following dialog boxes correctly. As long
as the new .csv files are named the same way, with the same column order, the import
should work correctly.
143
Figure 13-17: CSV Load - Data Files and Database dialog box
Tutorial 13.7
1. Open the collar.csv file in Microsoft Excel. Change the name of the LK*
drillholes to TK* using the search and replace option.
2. Make similar changes in the SURVEY, ASSAY, GEO, and struct.csv files. Import
these newly named drillholes into your database using the CSV Update option.
Saved specifications are stored in the Resources area. All users can use the same specs if their
environment variable named ENVIS_RESO points to the same area.
144
14 Drilling Utilities
Using Geology Tools
The Geology > Drilling Utilities tools are used for checking drillhole intervals and locating holes
of interest on-screen.
Database Record Definition

The Database Record Definition dialog box interprets how Vulcan Envisage treats various
tables in Isis for checking and modelling.
For each table (in the database), the From and To intervals must be defined. The Sampleid
column should contain the geological Horizons/seams. This in mainly used with stratified
deposit type data sets such as coal.
The information entered into the Database Record Definitions dialog box is stored under
<prefix>.gute_spec.
Figure 14-1: Database Record Definition dialog box
Tutorial 14.1
Complete the Database Record Definition dialog box for all tables except COLLAR and
SURVEY.
Horizon Lists
Next, set up the Horizon List which will define the seams and lithology names in a database by
descending order. This can be manually created or built automatically. For the automatic
function to work, it is essential to complete the Database Record Definition dialog box
correctly.
Setting up a Horizon List:
Using Geology Tools
145

1. Select Geology > Drilling Utilities > Horizon List.
If you already know which Horizons to use, type these entries into the dialog box.
However, the automatic function is quicker and easier, and can identify erroneous entries
in the database.
2. Choose the GEO field from the Horizon Record drop-down list box.
3. Click the Build Horizon List button. Vulcan Envisage will search the database and find
all of the different entries in Isis and complete the dialog box.
Figure 14-2: Globals - Horizon and Splits Lists dialog box
Figure 14-3: Globals - Horizons List
Tip!
To create a legend
with all Horizons,
copy and paste the
Horizons into an
appropriate dialog
box in the Analyse >
Legend Edit >
Create menu.
146
Horizon List - The dialog box should now list all of the Horizons. In addition, if different
cases were used to enter data into the database (re and RE) both entries will display and
will be treated as two different seams by Vulcan. If both entries refer to the same seam,
go back into the database and correct the upper and lower case issues.
Splits List - This option starts a new dialog box in the splitting relationships of coal
seams. Seams with no splits will be listed under Child Split column; seams with splitting
should be listed with the smallest degree of splitting in the left column and work to the
right in increasing value, finishing with the parent seam listing.
Figure 14-4: Globals - Splits List
Checking Holes
At this point, it is a good idea to check the drillholes to verify that there are no overlaps or
crossing intervals.
1. Select Geology > Drilling Utilities > Check Drillholes.
2. Check each table in the database individually.
Horizons will be checked based on the Horizon List.
3. Use Highlight colour and Highlight size for marking holes that fail checking.
In an imperial data set, entering 10 for the highlight size will draw a 20 x 20 box around
the collar of the drillhole.
Information for failed holes is displayed in the Report window.
Figure 14-5: Check Drillholes dialog box
Tip!
For a standard
metals type
database, only the
report overlapping
intervals option will
be used.
Using Geology Tools
To remove highlighted marks select Geology > Drilling Utilities > Clear Located.
147

Locating Holes
Often it is necessary to locate holes on-screen that meet a set of criteria like lithology or grade.
1. Select Geology > Drilling Utilities > Create/Modify Locate.
2. Specify a locate ID to store information into the next file.
Several different locate IDs can be set and run later. These locate IDs will be added to
the <prefix>.gute_spec file.
Figure 14-6: Locate - ID dialog box
Figure 14-7: Locate - Definition dialog box
Specify a table, field, and condition to locate. For example, to find a particular geologic unit:
1. Select the Table with geology and select the Character field.
2. Enter the name of the unit. If it is a numeric variable, then it will be found in the numeric
drop-down list box and a minimum/maximum value can be specified.
There are three options toward the end of the dialog box.
Dependent - All conditions must be true for any one interval of the hole (for example
between 0-10ft, AU gt .5 and CU gt 2).
Independent - All conditions must be true at some point in any one hole (for example
between 0-10 ft, AU gt .5 and between 10-20 ft, CU gt 2).
Any Condition - Either condition can be satisfied by any part of a hole.
148
If multiple locate definitions are run, you can use only the previously located holes to continue
narrowing down the search. To do this, check the Use located option.
Tutorial 14.2
Locate the holes with the lithology where at least one gold value within the TQ1 lithology has
a gold value greater than .3.
Tip!
When searching for
character type
values, remember a8
is different than A8.
This dialog box is
case sensitive and
looks for the case in
the database.
Set Visibility of Located Holes

Located holes can be used to make them or non-located holes invisible (Geology > Drilling
Utilities > Set Visibility of Located). Located holes can be named visible/invisible as can nonlocated holes. If multiple locate IDs have been used, only use Last located invisible or All
located invisible.
Figure 14-8: Make Context Menu
Extracting Located Holes to CSV/Database

Located holes can be extracted to a database or .csv files by using Geology > Drilling
Utilities > Extract Located to DB or .csv. If extracting to a database a name will need to be
entered and if extracting to .csv files the files will be automatically named <Table
Name>.csv.
Figure 14-9: Extract drillholes to context menu
Figure 14-10: Extract Drillholes to Database dialog box
To remove located hole marks off the screen select Geology > Drilling Utilities > Clear
located. This clears only the locate square and leaves the drillhole on-screen.
Using Geology Tools
149
Tutorial 14.3
Dump the holes located in the previous tutorial into a new database named
thorhg.dhd.isis.
Mapfile Overview
Mapfiles are text files that represent drillhole data in a spatial X,Y, Z format, as opposed to the
relative depth from collar representation found in a drillhole database. They are similar to a
straight composite database. Mapfiles are typically used in stratigraphic modelling, as they can
easily record top and bottom intercepts of a seam and the quality values therein. A mapfile
consists of two parts; a header and a body.
The header defines the columns that exist in the mapfile, while the body contains the data
broken into columns. Mapfiles can vary in size and data composition. An easy way to display
them is using the Geology > Drilling > Mapfile option, where they will load to the screen much
like a simple survey file.
Figure 14-11: Geological Mapfile dialog box
Click OK once you have completed this dialog box, and on the subsequent dialog box choose
which variable from the mapfile to be loaded (typically a SR (structure roof) or SF (structure
floor) variable). The point data should load into Vulcan Envisage.
150
Figure 14-12: Point data
Using Geology Tools
151
15 Triangulation Modelling
Introduction to Triangulations
Triangulations are highly accurate mathematical representations of data in three dimensions. A
triangulation model is a series of 3D coordinate points and the linkages between them, which
form a series of triangulated planes that define a surface or enclose a volume.
Figure 15-1: Triangulated planes
Triangulations are stored as individual files and can be copied, renamed and deleted through
Vulcan Explorer. Triangulations in Vulcan are saved with the file extension .00t.
Tip!
Avoid using spaces
in triangulation
names. Vulcan will
remove any spaces
used when naming a
triangulation;
however if renamed
in Vulcan Explorer
with spaces, those
spaces are retained
and may cause
options not to work
correctly.
Two terms are used in Vulcan to categorise triangulations, surface and solid.
Surface triangulation models are 3D representations of the data. They are referred to as
open because the triangulation has a distinct edge, and does not encompass a volume.
A solid triangulation model is a closed 3D representation of the data. The closed model
has no distinct edge and must encompass a volume.
The final option for loading triangulations is Load by Location (Model > Triangle Utility).
This menu option allows for narrowing down triangulation pick lists, first wireframe a
standard wildcard listing and then by typing the selection criteria.
Triangulation models honour all of the data points from which they are created. Unless
smoothed, they do not interpolate intermediate points. If data is sparse the resulting
triangulation will be coarse, and where data is dense the resultant triangulation will be detailed.
This allows for the creation of any complex shape, including topography or digital terrain
models (DTM), fault surfaces, pit shells, and ore body models.
The versatility of the triangulation structure allows it to be used for many purposes. An
understanding of its underlying concept is important when applying it to particular geological or
mining situations.
Advantages of Triangulations
Triangulations accurately represent any surface or solid shape, which results in more accurate
volumes than possible when using the more traditional polygonal or end-area type volumetric
methods. This is true for both solids and for volumes between surfaces, such as cut-and-fill
153

volumes. Triangulations enable the modelling of a very broad range of cultural structures or
natural shapes such as:
Topography
Mine excavations
Geological surfaces
Ore bodies
Underground development
Underground stopes
Arbitrary attribute models
Groundwater levels
The 3D nature of triangulations coupled with Vulcans powerful graphical tools enable high
quality visualisation that can rapidly convey the concepts of a geological model or engineering
design. The wide range of utilities provided for modelling triangulations enables triangulation
models to be very powerful display and analysis tools.
Disadvantages of Triangulations
The complex nature of (some) triangulations requires that considerable care needs to be taken
during their construction. Work procedures should be established to streamline these
processes. Processing time is directly proportional to the number of data points being
considered.
Sometimes the triangulation algorithms create shapes that do not match the perceived shape
that should occur based upon prevailing experience and the data at hand. Some options within
Vulcan Envisage attempt to correct these problems but they do not satisfy all cases. Several
manual techniques, for example tie strings, are available to solve this. Triangulation modelling
methods may not be ideal for modelling sparse data. Large flat, triangles give a surface a coarse
154
resolution while grid modelling techniques allow the estimation of values in the gaps between
the raw data points to provide a smooth surface.
Loading Triangulations
The different options in Vulcan for loading triangulations into the Vulcan Envisage window
include:
Double-clicking on an individual triangulation name.
Multiple triangulations may be selected and loaded simultaneously if the left mouse key is
depressed while holding either the [SHIFT] or [CTRL] keys. After all desired triangulations
are selected, right-click and select Load.
Multiple triangulations may be selected and loaded simultaneously if the left mouse key is
depressed while holding either the [SHIFT] or [CTRL] keys. The entire selection may be
dragged into the Vulcan Envisage window using the left mouse key.
Select Model > Triangle Utility > Load and a triangulation from the drop-down list box.
Select Model > Triangle Utility > List or click the List Triangulations button from the
Open toolbar.
List Triangulations icon

Figure 15-2: Open toolbar
If selecting triangulations from a list, the following dialog box will appear.
Figure 15-3: Open dialog box
This dialog box is an extension of the common open dialog that you may have seen in other
programs. It allows users to build up a list of triangulations to be loaded. Selections are made
from the list of triangulations displayed on the left side of the dialog box. The arrow buttons in
the centre are used to move selected triangulations between the selection list and the
triangulation list.
Unloading Triangulations
To remove a triangulation, right-click on the triangulation itself or the file in the Vulcan Explorer
window and select Remove. The Remove by Name and Remove by Location options found
in the Triangle Utility options in the Model menu, work the same as the loading options.
155
Tutorial 15.1
Loading and unloading triangulations:

1. Open a design database.
2. In the Vulcan Explorer window, click the plus (+) symbol to expand the Triangulations
folder.
3. Double-click the topo.00t file. Use the rotation tools to view the triangulation in 3D.
4. Remove the triangulation by right-clicking on surface topography in the Vulcan
Envisage window, and select Remove.
5. Load both the pit.00t and topo.00t by selecting both files in the Explorer
window.
6. Right-click on either and choose Load.
7. Remove both triangulations at once by right-clicking on in the Vulcan Envisage
window, and then selecting Remove All.
Triangle Attributes (Properties)

When triangulations are created, the triangulation properties dialog box displays, which is where
colour and other attributes are set. The attributes of a triangulation can be changed at any time
by going to Model > Triangle Utility > Attributes or by right-clicking on the triangulation and
selecting Properties.
The triangulation properties dialog box has two tabs; Shading and Advanced. Both tabs
control the appearance of the triangulation. On the Shading tab, there are two options for solid
shading; Solid shade triangulation or Draw as wireframe.
Figure 15-4: Solid shade triangulation
156
Figure 15-5: Wireframe triangulation
There are three options for solid shaded triangulations. Selecting Draw wireframe mesh over
surface is useful for simple visualisation of complicated triangulations as this option will draw
the individual triangles that are used to build the triangulation. The option Ensure triangulation
is not striped is used to remove strange lighting effects caused when overlaying images onto
surfaces. The last option is to apply Smooth shading, which is purely a visual effect and does
not change the true surface of the triangulation. Smoothing does not affect the surface area or
volume of a triangulation.
Figure 15-6: Solid triangulation with wireframe mesh
Figure 15-7: Smooth shading with surface definition angle set to 180.
157

The Surface definition angle refers to the angle required between the triangle normals for the
surface to be considered continuous. If an angle is less than this value, then the triangles are
considered to be on different surfaces. For example, if the angle between your bench and batter
is 70, then select an angle less than 70 to ensure that the bench and batter appear as different
surfaces in the model. If you set this angle to 0, then all of the triangles are considered to be on
different surfaces.
If you set the angle to 180, then all of the triangles are considered to be on one surface, and the
colours will blend over the whole model.
When the Use load time shading check box is ticked, the lighting calculations used to shade
the triangulation are performed at load time, using the current light direction and a two-sided
lighting model. This means that the shading will not change until the triangulation is reloaded,
even if the direction of the light is changed later.
Two options are available when choosing to display the triangulation as a wireframe. The first
option, Fill triangles with pattern, allows you to specify a pattern to apply to a wireframe
mesh. The Display simple contours option is a simple way to designate a contour interval and
display contour lines for any given triangulation.
With some graphics cards this option may cause the display to load significantly faster than
allowing changes in the light direction to dynamically change the shading of the triangulation.
However, this option may make the display slightly slower.
Figure 15-8: Simple contours at 10 unit intervals.
There are two different ways to colour a triangulation. The option in the lower left hand corner of
the triangulation properties dialog box allows you to specify any RGB (Red Green Blue index)
colour and is not restricted to one of the 32 colours in the users colour index. On the right hand
side, you can select a colour from the palette. After selecting the option for the preferred
colouring option, right-click on the box below the chosen option to display a colour palette.
Figure 15-9: Colours dialog box
158
The Advanced tab on the triangulation properties dialog box provides more options for
enhancing the visual effects of triangulations. When using solid shading the triangulation can be
coloured by the X, Y and Z axis using the Axis Colouring options. You can choose to colour
triangulation by using some other surface as a reference point. This option does not work for
wireframes.
Figure 15-10: Triangulation > Advanced tab
The default colour scheme option is Spectrum, which is a simple rainbow colour scheme
stretched across the range of the triangulation along the specified axis. The Equalise range
option ensures the entire spectrum is used across the entire range of the axis. Alternative axis
colouring options are accessed using the Modify button, including Interpolate colours between
two RGB values, or using a Vulcan colour scheme (see the section on the Analyse > Legend
Edit menu for details).
Figure 15-11: Surface coloured by Z-axis with Spectrum scheme
159
Figure 15-12: Surface coloured by Interpolate between two RGB values
The Texture Mapping option allows the triangulations to be draped with a texture, for example
an image of an aerial photograph or a satellite image. An example of the use of textures is in pit
or face mapping, where a digital image of the rock face can be draped onto a pit or stope
design.
To use this feature select the Texture resource option and pick the image file from the list.
Before loading an image, it must be registered with the triangulation. Select the option Blend
texture with triangulation colour to blend the solid shaded triangulation colour with the image
file to see both lighting and texture effects.
Figure 15-13: Texture mapping with image overlaid on a topography triangulation
The last option for triangulation properties is Translucency, which is used to set a triangulation
from 0 (not translucent) to 100 (completely translucent).
Tutorial 15.2
Changing Triangulation Attributes:

1. Load the topo.00t surface triangulation.
2. Select the Attributes option under Model > Triangle Utility or simply right-click on
the topo.00t triangulation and select Properties.
3. Change the colour of the triangulation.
4. Change from solid shading to wireframe mesh.
5. Colour by the Z axis using the Spectrum colour scheme (remember the shading
settings must indicate solid shading, not wireframe mesh).
6. Change the translucency to 75%.
160
16 Triangulation Surfaces
Creating a Surface
In the previous section we learned how a surface model could be loaded and its attributes
changed to provide the best viewing criteria. We will now go back a step and look at how this
triangulation was created. Surface triangulation models may be created using any object data,
for example points, lines or polygons.
Select Model > Triangle Surface > Create. The Triangulation dialog box will display.
Figure 16-1: Triangulation dialog box
Figure 16-2: Triangulation models
Creating a Surface
161

Data Tab
The Data tab controls how the data is projected and where it is located after it is created. The
most common method for creating horizontal and sub-horizontal surface triangulation models,
is by using the Triangulate data in plan view option. For triangulations in other orientations,
use Triangulate data projected against a plane or Triangulate data projected against a
sphere.
The option Alternative elevation value will replace the Z coordinates with a W tag (creating a
model for contouring by W tag). Enabling this option will allow you to specify an offset for the W
value. Use Breaklines to set a tolerance for controlling the maximum distance a triangulation
node can be from a breakline, before the breakline modifies adjacent triangles. The breakline
tolerance stops the formation of long narrow triangles (crossing triangles) and breaking
inconsistencies.
Boundary Tab
The Boundary tab allows the use of polygons to limit the data to triangulate. If Use boundary
polygon to limit triangulation is not checked, all selected data will be used in the triangulation.
However, if using a boundary, select Triangulation of data inside boundary polygon so only
data inside the polygon is triangulated.
One of the following three options must be selected:
Use boundary polygon as part of triangulation data - Includes the data points from the
polygon. It is common to use a polygon that forms part of a data set as the bounding
polygon (for example an outermost contour).
Figure 16-3: Using a boundary polygon
Exclude boundary polygon from data - Excludes data points forming the polygon. The
polygon simply controls which data points are triangulated, for instance inside or outside.
The resultant triangulation goes to the nearest data points to the polygon.
Figure 16-4: Excluding a boundary polygon
Relimit triangulation with boundary polygon - The data points forming the polygon are
not used, but the polygon is used to clip the triangulation.
162
Figure 16-5: Relimiting triangulations
Trending Tab
The Trending tab allows you to apply overall geological trend to the surface and build it in to the
triangulation model. The trend represents a best-fit mathematical model, which estimates the
surface shape between the data points. The mathematical method used is a regression method
that gives the best fit. In the same manner a line of best fit can be determined from a scatter
diagram; you can add an extra variable (for example easting or northing) and compute a 3D
surface of best fit. The fitted surface represents the regional trend present in the data. This trend
surface will pass through the data as a surface of best fit.
Apply polynomial trending - Applies a regional variation to the surface. A trend order
that relates to the complexity of the trend surface must be specified. It is not
recommended to go above three.
Table 1: Surface Variations
Order
Surface
Plane surface
Dome or simple syncline (parabolic)
Folded surface (anticline and syncline)
Return only trend model results - Produces the trend surface as the triangulation and
does not add back the raw data. This is useful for future reproduction of the model using
the trending results.
Use bounding constraint points - Controls the trending. When trend surfaces are
normally built, the trend outside the area of the data (surface strings, points) will generally
oscillate wildly into infinity. This is usually fine as it is away from the area of interest, for
example inside the data. However sometimes it produces poor results at the edges of the
data which can corrupt the original data. Ticking this option will prevent this from
happening.
Apply ellipsoidal trending - Applies local variations to the surface by direction. Bearing,
plunge, dip, major radius, semi-major radius and minor radius need to be specified.
Spurs Tab
The Spurs tab allows you to Generate spur strings and save them to a new or existing layer.
Spurs are flat spots that can occur where the surrounding data points all have the same Z value.
In the case of contours, triangles can not always be created between adjacent contours due to
the geometry of nearby points. This can cause discrepancies with actual surfaces. Flat spots
are overcome by employing spur strings in the valleys and along the ridges of the contours.
Use Incorporate spurs in triangulation so the spurs are used as part of the data in the
triangulation. Saving the spurs to a layer allows the triangulation to be regenerated with the
same spur strings. If the layer name is left blank, the spur strings will be created as an underlay.
Do not use the spur creation options if triangulating a pit design as crest/bench definition may
Creating a Surface
163

be lost. The triangulation would not be a good reflection/interpretation of the pit design strings.
Arbitrary levels can be applied to flat spur strings (to prevent mesa or tabletop type features).
Occasionally unpredictable or undesired shapes can occur in saddles or when using the flat
spur string generation. In these cases, it may be more appropriate to use spot heights to control
the triangulation.
Condition Tab
The Condition tab allows you to perform some limitations on triangulations. The option Prevent
the formation of flat triangles where possible will distort triangles that have all vertices on the
same contour. Trim the edge triangles will restrict the size of triangles around the edge of a
triangulation based on the specified minimum angle, minimum area and maximum edge length.
Once all the specifications in the Triangulation dialog box are set, click OK. If a boundary
polygon is to be used, the first prompt will be to select the boundary polygon. If the wrong
polygon is selected, choose Pick and select the correct polygon. After the correct polygon has
been selected and confirmed, a selection criteria dialog box will appear. Use the best option to
select the data to be included as part of the triangulation.
As the data is selected, it will grey out. Once all data is selected, right-click to exit the command
and then Confirm Triangulate. When your surface triangulation has been created, a
triangulation model name dialog box will appear. You can set properties for the triangulation
now, or return to change any attribute.
When defining a name for your triangulation, remember not to uses spaces or special
characters. Vulcan will automatically add the file extension .00t.
Tutorial 16.1
1. Load layers CONTOURS and BOUND.
2. Select Model > Triangle Surface > Create.
3. Leave Data, Trending and Condition tabs set to default.
4. On the Boundary tab select Use boundary polygon to limit triangulation,
Triangulation of data inside boundary polygon and Use boundary polygon as part
of triangulation data.
5. On the Spurs tab select Generate spur strings, name the layer SPURS and add a
description, select Incorporate spurs in triangulation and Apply arbitrary levels to
flat spur strings.
6. Click OK.
7. When prompted, select the boundary polygon and confirm the correct object.
8. Use Layer in the selection criteria menu, select the CONTOURS layer and Confirm.
9. Right-click to exit command and Confirm triangulate.
10. Name the triangulation topo_contours.
12. Rotate and zoom in on the triangulation and inspect the spur strings. Remove the
triangulation to see the spur strings more clearly. You can remove the CONTOURS layer
if desired.
164
Figure 16-6: CONTOURS and BOUND layers
Two Polygons
The Two Polygons option allows the surface triangulation to be re-limited to be within a
bounding polygon (identical to the options under the Create menus) or to be created within
internal and external boundaries. The boundary polygon is used as part of the triangulation. An
example of this is to triangulate between contours, effectively creating doughnut shapes.
Grid Mesh
The Grid Mesh option is used to create a simple grid over an existing triangulated surface
between extents determined interactively by a rubber band.
Relimiting Surfaces
There are two relimiting options Relimit by Polygon and Relimit by Solid.
Relimit by Polygon creates a new triangulation from an existing triangulation surface and one
or more nominated polygons. This is useful when removing the topography within a pit crest
string. Relimit by Polygon allows you to either keep or delete, what is inside the polygon. The
Relimit by Polygon option only works in plan view. Use the Relimit option under the Model >
Triangle Utility menu for 3D relimiting. The Relimit by Solid option creates a new surface
triangulation by relimiting an existing triangulated surface against a selected solid triangulation.
Creating a Surface
165
Figure 16-7: Relimited surface
Tutorial 16.2
Relimiting Surface Triangulations:
1. Ensure no triangulations are loaded. Load layer RELIMIT and triangulation
topo.00t.
2. Select Model > Triangle Surface > Relimit by Polygon.
3. The topo.00t is automatically selected as it is the only triangulation loaded. Now
select the polygon from the RELIMIT layer. Choose Keep Inside and confirm
Relimit.
4. Name the new triangulation topo_relimit.
5. Remove RELIMIT and triangulation topo.00t and load triangulation solid_1.00t.
6. Select Model > Triangle Surface > Relimit by Solid.
7. First select the topo.00t triangulation, then select the solid_1.00t triangulation,
and choose Keep Inside. Name the resulting triangulation topo_relimit_2.
8. Remove all triangulations except topo_relimit_2.
Figure 16-8: Relimited surface triangulation
166
Areas and Volumes

Use Surface Area to display the total surface area of triangles for a selected triangulation in
square feet, square yards or square metres. The Volume option is used to calculate the volumes
between two triangulated surfaces with overlapping areas and uses the relative vertical
positions of the two surfaces.
Surface volumes are often referred to as cut and fill volumes, as the areas of overlap of the
triangulations define positive and negative volumes, depending on the order in which the
surfaces were selected. A cut value is calculated for areas where the lower triangulation has a
lower Z value, otherwise a fill volume is calculated.
Figure 16-9: Surface area
Figure 16-10: Triangle surface dialog box
The Volume option can create a report file, or the results will appear on-screen and in the
Vulcan Envisage tab of the Report window. When generating a report, the user must specify the
file extension (for example .txt, .csv, .asc). In addition, the Polygons Volume option
calculates the volume between two triangulated surfaces within a set of polygons. This option is
similar to the Volume option, except it limits the area between the two surfaces by one or more
polygons.
Tutorial 16.3
Surface Area and Volumes:

1. Ensure the only triangulation loaded is topo.00t.
2. Select Model > Triangle Surface > Surface Area.
3. On the Triangle surface dialog select Square feet.
4. Click OK. The triangulation is automatically selected if it is the only one loaded. If
other triangulations are loaded, select the topo.00t surface triangulation.
5. Load the pit.00t triangulation.
6. Select Model > Triangle Surface > Volume and then Cubic feet.
7. First select the topo triangulation, and then select the pit projection triangulation. The
cut volume is the volume of the pit below the topo and the fill is the volume above the
topo inside of the pit projection.
Creating a Surface
167
Surface Triangulation Manipulation

Several of the Model > Triangle Surface tools are used for editing existing triangulation
surfaces and solid triangulations. These edit tools modify existing triangulations, however there
is no option to save as a new triangulation. To preserve original triangulations, create a copy of
the triangulation prior to editing.
Table 2: Triangle Surface editing tools
Command
Definition
Vertex Z Edit
Modifies the Z value of an individual triangle node. Once the

desired triangulation is selected, the option will prompt for the
desired Z value. The current Z value for the node is displayed when
the Triangle Vertex Value dialog box appears.
Move Vertex
Allows you to change the location of a vertex in a triangulation.
Figure 16-11: Move Vertex
Add Vertex
Inserts a vertex into a triangulation. The triangles created by adding a point inside an existing triangulation will automatically be
added to the triangulation.This option can not be used to add new
points outside the triangulation boundary.
Delete Vertex
Removes vertices from triangulations.
Insert Triangle and

Delete Triangle
Similar to the vertex edit options, add or remove extra triangles

from existing triangulations. Using Insert Triangle, you can create
new triangles outside the boundary of the original triangulation. In
the Delete Triangle option, there are several different techniques
for choosing which triangles to delete. If deleting individual triangles, the option works best with Snap to object is active. Delete
by polygon deletes either triangles insider or outside a polygon. If
using Delete by line, all triangles that intersect with the line will be
deleted.
When using Insert Triangle, use Snap to point to ensure the vertex of the new triangle matches
with vertices of existing triangles. If vertices do not match, the resulting triangulation will fail one
or more validation checks.
168
Tutorial 16.4
Load the fix_1 triangulation. Fix the problem area shown.
Figure 16-12: fix_1 triangulation problem area
Image Registration
The Image Registration options under the Model menu allow images to be draped onto
triangulations. Most commonly these are aerial photos that are draped onto surface
triangulations, but there are many other uses for registering images to triangulations.
Under the Image Registration menu, the first option is to Create or Open an .ireg file
containing the specifications of the registration. Once an .ireg file is selected or a new .ireg
file name specified, the Image Registration Properties dialog box will appear. First an image
file must be specified. The most common file extension for images are JPEG (.jpg or .jpeg)
and tagged image file format (.tif or .tiff). Vulcan will also accept CompuServe Gif (.gif)
files and ER Mapped ECW images (.ecw).
The Use automatically generated triangulation option creates an underlay that will cover the
extent of the mapping. This option works best if only two or three control points are used. The
Use loaded triangulation is most common and allows the user to specify an existing
triangulation to overlay the image.
Creating a Surface
169
Figure 16-13: Image Registration Properties
The check box for Sharp pixel boundaries makes pixels larger instead of smoothed under
strong magnification. Options to specify colours for image window points, world window points,
and highlight points will be covered later in this section. Select specify Image width if one
control point is used. The image width specified is used for draping an image.
Once you click OK on the Image Registration Properties dialog box, a new Image
Registration window will open. It may help to tile the windows vertically (Window > Tile
Vertically).
Figure 16-14: Registered image
The next step is to add control points that match points on the image (image coordinate) to the
real world coordinates. Use Model > Image Registration > Add Point. Vulcan will first prompt
for the image coordinate, then for the real world coordinate. Right-click to exit the command.
170
Tip!
The more points
added to correlate
the image with the
triangulation, the
more accurate the
registration will be.
When selecting real
world coordinates,
use Snap to object
to ensure they are on
the triangulation.
If a point is in the wrong place, use Move Point; however it is usually easier to use Delete Point
and start again. The Clear All Points option will delete all the points. The properties of the
image registration can be changed at any time by returning to Model > Image Registration >
Properties. Once all points are added, the option must be closed by going to Model > Image
Registration > Close. This will close the window and save the .ireg file.
Tutorial 16.5
1. Load the layer IMAGE_TOPO.
2. Create a surface from this data.
3. Display the topo.pexel image (it should be in your current working folder) on this
triangulation.
Figure 16-15: Image registration
Creating a Surface
171
17 Triangulation Solids
Modelling Techniques
A solid triangulation model is a closed 3D representation of data. Therefore the model has no
distinct edges and must encompass a volume. Of several different solid modelling techniques,
the two most common are creating solid models, using Polygons and Boolean operations.
Solid triangulations are commonly used to represent geological features and structures in 3D.
They are also used for underground mine development planning.
The main purpose for building solid triangulations, besides building a 3D model, is as a
prerequisite for building block models. Block models will use the solid triangulations to flag ore
zones, boundaries or development.
Vulcan has several tools for creating solid triangulation models. They can be found in the Model
> Triangle Solid menu.
Triangle Solid Menu

Create
Use Create to build continuous solid triangulations from strings or polygons representing a
solid body, such as an ore body, dump, or stope. The option takes the perimeters or strings
selected from the Vulcan Envisage screen and builds triangulations between them.
Figure 17-1: Building triangulations
To ensure valid and accurate solids are created, ensure the following:
All strings are in the same direction (clockwise or counter-clockwise).
No duplicate points exist.
No overturns (bowties) exist.
173
Note:
Closed polygons are
not required;
however the nonclosed portion will
not be triangulated.
Select Model > Triangle Solid > Create. The Create 3D Solid dialog box will display.
Figure 17-2: Create 3D Solid dialog box
Table 1: Create 3D Solid Options

Command
Definition
Build single solid or

Break solid by strings
Creates one continuous solid unlike Break solid, which creates

separate triangulations between each string. Under Build single
solid triangulation, there is an option to append resulting triangulations to an existing triangulation.
Construct first end

plate and Construct
last end plate
Checking these options creates walls on either the first and/or last
polygon, thus creating a closed solid triangulation. Without these
options checked, the 3D solid appears as a tunnel. These should
not be checked if using Break solid by strings, unless there is no
intent to append the solids into one.
Use tie strings
Uses of existing lines to connect polygons.
Figure 17-3: Tie strings
174
Table 1: Create 3D Solid Options (Continued)

Command
Definition
Optimum triangulation
Specifies the triangulation method using a complex triangulation

algorithm, which takes into account the overall shape, the polygons and the number of points in the polygons. This constructs the
best triangles between the two shapes to represent the structure
as a solid object. User guided triangulation produces the simplest
case model and is not suitable for complex structures, unless well
defined by the tieline. It should only be used when triangulating
long, similar strings.
Use automatic section increment
Creates a triangulation from a section view rather than in 3D. A

section width and step size must be specified to correlate the distance between the polygons. Once a polygon is selected for triangulation, Vulcan will increment through the sections.
Use crossing triangulations/trifurcation

check
Should be checked to ensure the triangulation will pass validity

tests after it is completed. Vulcan will prompt when it detects a
crossing triangulation, however, even with the option turned on,
some triangulations may still fail these checks.
Prompt to close open

strings
Prompts when open strings are selected, to close selected strings.

Open strings may affect the volume of the final triangulation.
Solid shaded surface
Displays new triangulations as solid shaded surfaces and not as

wireframe meshes or translucent. It is recommended to keep this
option checked.
Show triangles on
shaded surface
Displays the actual triangulation lines as well as the solid shading.

This option only works if Solid shaded surfaces option is selected.
Building a solid triangulation:

1. Select Model > Triangle Solid > Create.
2. Specify your settings in the Create 3D Solid table.
3. Click OK.
4. When prompted, pick the first string.
5. Now pick the next string to triangulate.
6. From the Select triangulation colour palette, colour the triangulation.
Figure 17-4: Select triangulation colour
A triangulation between the first two strings will be generated.

7. Type a shell name.
8. When prompted, pick the next string to triangulate.
9. When finished, right-click to exit the command.
175

3D Picking Context Menu
The 3D Picking menu controls how to select strings for the triangulation.
Table 2: 3D Picking Context Options
Command
Definition
Complete
Uses the entire string or polygon to create the triangulation.
Polygon
Interactively creates a polygon used as the next string.
Partial
Use this option when only part of a string or polygon is to be used

and for creating splits in triangulations.
Line
Interactively creates a line, which Vulcan will use to continue the

triangulation. Lines, whether digitised interactively or beforehand,
are used to pinch-off solid triangulations.
Multiple
Specifies an object using the standard criteria selection. For example Select by layer. Vulcan will connect all the polygons in the
selected layer into a valid solid triangulation.
Point
Interactively selects a point to triangulate.
Translate
Copies and translates existing polygons.
If all polygons (for the solid triangulation) are picked, or more advanced options are required,
right-click once or select Cancel to switch to the 3D Create menu. Be careful not to right-click
too many times; as this may cancel the function and require you to begin again.
3D Create Context Menu
The 3D Create menu has the following options:
Table 3: 3D Create Options
176
Command
Definition
Save
Saves the triangulation.
Reverse
Reverses the direction of the last selected string and then re-triangulates between the last two strings, stopping strings being digitised in different directions.
Split
Stops the progression of the triangulation and allows you to select

a new start string. Caution should be used if the Construct End
Plates options are turned on, so that the last string is not in the
middle of the solid.
Undo
Removes the last section of the triangulation. Do not use any other
Undo shortcut options when in Create Solid. Use the Undo within
the Create Solid menus.
Edit
Inserts, deletes, moves or filters points or delete strings. Filtering

points removes excess points without altering the shape of the
string. This is the same Filter option as found in the Design >
Object Edit submenu.
Ties
Digitises tielines interactively when triangulating.
Delete
Deletes selected polygons.
Table 3: 3D Create Options (Continued)

Command
Definition
Continue
Returns the Create Solid option to Vulcan Envisage to allow you to

continue selecting strings to triangulate. Use the Continue option
and one right-click to return to the 3D Picking menu.
Cancel
Right-clicking in this dialog box confirms the cancellation of the

Create Solid option, and prompts you to either Save edits or Dont
Save. This is the last chance to save what has been triangulated, as
you can not go back to previous Create Solid menus. Caution
should be used with the right-click action.
Tutorial 17.1
Creating simple solid from polygons:
1. Open the layer T19_1_SIMPLE_SOLID.
2. Select Model > Triangle Solid > Create.
3. Leave as default and click OK.
4. When prompted, pick the first string.
5. When prompted, pick the next string.
6. Select a colour for your triangulation.
7. Continue selecting all subsequent polygons. Once all polygons are selected, rightclick twice and choose Save edits.
8. Name the triangulations Practice19-1a. Note that our triangulation is not a solid,
but more of a tunnel. This is because Create first and last End Plates were not
selected.
9. Click OK and close the solid.
10. Select Model > Triangle Solid > Close Solid.
11. Choose Remove Flaps.
Figure 17-5: Simple solid
177
Tutorial 17.2
Creating a splitting solid triangulation:
1. Load the PANT_LEG layer.
2. Create a solid triangulation (see below).
3. Follow the steps using the Partial, Complete and Split commands from Model >
Triangle Solid > Create.
Figure 17-6: Solid triangulation - stage 1
178

4. Select Model > Triangle Solid > Create. Beginning at the top where there is one
polygon and working down, pick your strings until you come to the last single
polygon. Vulcan will prompt you to pick the next string to triangulate.
5. Right-click twice and select Split. This will clear the memory of the last string.
6. When prompted, pick a start string to triangulate.
7. Pick half of the last individual polygon. To pick half a string, right-click once and
select Partial. Partial mode lets you pick part of a string to triangulate.
8. Click two points and then select This part or Other part.
Figure 17-9: This part selection
179

9. To pick the entire polygon, switch to Complete mode. Right-click once and select
Complete.
Figure 17-10: Selecting the entire polygon
10. Close the string.

If at any point something goes wrong, do not right-click and cancel out or you will have to
start over. There is an undo option on the second dialog box when you right-click. Use
this to undo your last step only.
11. Continue down to the end of the leg.
12. Select Split and then Partial. Return to the single polygon and select the same two
points as chosen previously.
Figure 17-11: Start and End points
13. Right-click and select Complete mode.

14. Continue down to the end of the other leg.
15. Right-click twice and select Save. Name the triangulation Pant_Leg.
End Plates
Use End Plates to close a solid triangulation by creating End Plates on a solid, or creating any
flat surface triangulation with a polygon.
180
Figure 17-12: Open solid triangulation
Figure 17-13: Closed solid triangulation
Model > Triangle Solid > End Plate
Figure 17-14: Construct end plate dialog box
Construct a new triangulation - Creates a triangulation with the End Plates.

Append a resulting triangulation - Appends End Plates to the triangulation selected by
the user. Vulcan prompts you to select the appending triangulation unless only one
triangulation is loaded on-screen, in which case that triangulation will be selected.
When prompted, select a string from the end plate, also selecting the polygons for the End
Plates. Multiple polygons can be selected to create multiple End Plates, though each polygon
must be clicked individually on-screen. Vulcan will then prompt you to save the triangulation.
Save using a new name so not to overwrite existing triangulations.
Tutorial 17.3
Use End Plates to close the Pant_Leg triangulation.
Tri Polygons
WARNING
No topological corrections are performed. For
example, if the polygons do not meet
properly or have trifurcations, then this
will be reflected in
the resulting triangulation.
The Tri Polygons option is similar to End Plate, however you can select multiple polygons
using the Select by menu. Tri Polygons is useful for imported data (.dxf files) as other software
packages sometimes represent a solid as a group of polygons. In addition, this option converts
polygon data into triangulations.
Tutorial 17.4
1. Load layer TRI_POLYGONS_TQ2.
2. Create a triangulation from this data using the Tri Polygons option.
181
Primitives
Primitives apply shape to any object, which can be then saved as an attribute of the line or as a
triangulation. Primitives are useful when repeatedly using complex 3D designs where the shape
is the same. Instead of re-designing the object each time, it can be designated as a primitive
and applied to an object. Generally, primitives are applied to centrelines. For example, when
designing a decline you could create a centreline and then apply an arc-shaped primitive.
Primitives can be saved as attributes of objects or triangulation.
Before applying primitives, preferences (Model > Preferences > Create/Edit Primitives, Save
Options tab) must be specified.
Primitives can be saved as triangulations, attributes or both. An attribute is simply a graphical
attribute saved in the layer which looks similar to a triangulation. If the Save as Triangulation
option is selected, other options such as closure, data area, and naming, can be completed.
Figure 17-15: Primitives dialog box
There are several predefined primitives of common shapes (Predefined Primitives tab) that can
be applied at any size and alignment. The alignment option determines where on the selected
object the primitive will be located. For example, if the chosen object is a centreline and Top is
ticked then the centreline will run along the top of the primitive.
182
Figure 17-16: Primitives > Predefined Primitives tab
Click the Select Objects button, choose an object and then apply a primitive shape. You can
create your own primitives of any shape and size. User defined primitives are stored in a
Primitives specification file (<proj>.pgd) in the current working folder.
Tutorial 17.5
1. Load layer RAMP.
2. Apply a primitive to this layer which has an arched back.
3. Use a size of 10 x 10. Assume the centreline runs along the floor.
Several CAD tools within the Primitives dialog box can be used to design a new shape. If these
tools are not sufficient, a Map Object button allows selection of an object from the screen in
Vulcan Envisage. The object must already be drawn in Vulcan Envisage before typing the
Primitives menu option. Any of the standard CAD tools may be used, and the shape should be
drawn in plan view.
The red point on-screen is the alignment point. When applying a primitive to a line, this point will
be aligned on the object selected.
183
Figure 17-17: Primitives > User Primitives tab
Saved primitives are stored in the .pdg file.

Always ensure the CAD data is correct and clean (for example centrelines do not overlap) and
follows correct naming conventions before creating triangulations. The user defined primitives
can be applied by using the Select Objects button, to select the data from the screen. Another
way of applying primitive shapes is to use the Original Primitives dialog box. Rectangles or
circles can be selected and sized. User defined primitives can also be applied.
A useful toolbar for working with primitives is the Primitives toolbar; select Tools > Toolbar
Visibility and tick Primitives.
Remove
Primitive
Create/Edit Primitives
Primitive Visibility
Triangulate Primitive
Toggle Primitive
Figure 17-18: Primitives toolbar
Model > Primitives > Create/Edit Primitives or Design > Attribute Edit > Create/Edit
Primitives Opens the Primitives dialog box.
Design > Attribute Edit > Primitive Visibility Hides or shows primitives. This is only
used for primitives saved as attributes and not for triangulations. Standard visibility tools
should be used for triangulations.
Design > Attribute Edit > Remove Primitive Deletes a primitive attribute. This is only
used for primitives saved as attributes, not for triangulations. Standard delete options
should be used for triangulations.
Toggle Primitives Unlike the Primitive Visibility icon, which requires you to specify
whether a nominated primitive is to be shown or hidden, the Toggle Primitive icon
reverses the visibility setting of a chosen primitive.
Model > Primitives > Triangulate Primitive If a primitive has been applied to an object
and only saved as an attribute, it can be turned into a triangulation by using this option.
184
Tutorial 17.6
Create the primitive shown below. Name it STOPE1.
Figure 17-19: Primitive
Tutorial 17.7
1. Load layer CROSS_CUT.
2. Apply primitives to duplicate the layout.
3. Name the square openings with their Group_Object names.
4. Name the stopes ST_Object name.
Figure 17-20: Duplicated layer using primitives
185
Tutorial 17.8
1. Load layer PRIMITIVE_ROAD.
2. Apply primitive to the road using a fill angle of 37 degrees and assume a road width of
10m.
Figure 17-21: A road
Tutorial 17.9
Using any triangulation method, create a solid triangulation of the warehouse building.
Figure 17-22: Warehouse building
Boolean
The Boolean option takes two triangulations, splits them into pieces and builds a third
triangulation. This is useful for creating solid triangulations of items such as pits, roads and
dumps.
Two triangulations must be loaded on-screen prior to selecting the menu options. In addition,
the triangulations must fully intersect in order for Boolean to work. For instances, if they are
touching, but not intersecting, or they have points at exactly the same points, Boolean will not
work.
Moving one of the triangulations by a small amount can fix this problem.
186
Figure 17-23: Two triangulations
Once triangulations have been selected, a bold line shows the intersection of the triangulations
(see below).
Figure 17-24: Intersecting triangulations
Figure 17-25: New pit topography with pit removed
Using the Boolean option, various triangulations could be created. The image above shows a
new pit topography with the pit taken out.
187

Once two triangulations have been selected and split, Boolean options are available.
Table 4: Boolean Options
Command
Definitions
Preview
Prompts for colour and shows the triangulation created.
Save
Saves as a new triangulation.
Reset
Resets the colours and visibility of triangulations.
Solid
Shows the selected portion as a solid triangulation.
Colour
Colour a piece of triangulation with a user specified colour.
Colour All
Colours each piece of triangulation with a different colour.
Exclude
Removes the selected piece from the triangulation. Pieces may

need to be excluded to create the desired triangulation.
Invert
Makes the visible pieces invisible. Choose the pieces to exclude

and the pieces to keep, and then select Invert.
Undo
Returns the last piece excluded back to visible.
Exit
Cancels out of the command.
Tutorial 17.10
1. Load the contours triangulation and the pit triangulation on-screen.
2. Use Boolean to create a solid triangulation of the material to be mined from the pit.
Shelling Solids
Once a solid is created, it can be cut into pieces using the Model > Triangle Solid > Shells
option. This will leave the original triangulation intact, and create new triangulations based on
parameters input to the dialog box.
Tri save directory Chooses a subfolder where created triangulations are saved.
Shell Base Name New triangulations will be labelled with this name in addition to the
shell name identifier. An underscore _ is automatically placed between the base name
and the shell name identifier.
Shell Name Identifier Part of the new triangulation name is according to the
coordinates (if shelling in the Z direction, Z elevation will be part of name), distance from a
level or sequence.
188
Parameters Defines width of shells and how many to create.

Features Crossing and closure options to help make the new triangulations valid.
Graphical Attributes Colours and shading properties of the new triangulations.
Figure 17-26: Create Shells dialog box
If Create all shells is selected on the previous dialog box, the reference plane can be anywhere
and all the shells will still be created. If only a few shells are being created, they will be created
from the reference plane. The new triangulations and the original will be displayed on-screen. If
the colours look strange, remove the original solid, as sometimes it is difficult to see the new
shells with the original still loaded.
.
Tutorial 17.11
1. Load the pit solid triangulation created in a previous tutorial.
2. Shell it into 10m benches as shown below. Name the shells PIT1_<elevation>.
Figure 17-27: Pit solid triangulation shelled into benches
189
Editing/Fixing Solids
Triangulations are the foundation on which many of the Vulcan utilities are built. Using poorly
constructed triangulations will result in errors. The process of validating and improving the
quality of solid triangulations is outlined below.
Checking Triangulations
Use Model > Triangle Solid > Check to validate the stability of triangulations.
Unless a triangulation passes all of the appropriate validity tests, any operation on that
triangulation is not guaranteed to be correct. This is particularly the case in grade estimation
where volume and grade calculations are undertaken. A triangulation that passes the validation
tests, but fails the stability tests, will still provide accurate results. However, limitations in the
precision of some algorithms may produce errors when the triangulations contain small
triangles. If a triangulation fails the stability checks and you create new triangulations from it,
they are more likely to have errors.
Check options look at the following:
Closure Tests for openings (holes). If the closure test fails, then a boundary string is
produced.
Consistency Tests for triangle edges shared between more than two triangles. If the
consistency test fails, then an inconsistent string is produced. This may occur where
internal walls have been produced after Boolean operation, appending and poor data.
Self Intersection Tests for self-crossing triangles. If the self-intersection test fails, then
the outline of every triangle that intersects another triangle will be displayed.
Figure 17-28: Check Triangulation Validity dialog box
You can save the strings produced from each test into an underlay or layer. To save a string to a
layer, a layer name must be specified. To create a new layer type the new layer name. It is a
good idea to change the colour of the layer to contrast with the colour of the triangulation being
checked, and also to apply a thick line style to make it stand out.
190
The Check Triangulation Stability dialog box is then displayed.

Small Surface Area Tests for triangles that have a small surface area. If the small
surface area test fails, then the outline of every triangle that has an area less than or equal
to the specified tolerance area, will be displayed in the chosen colour.
Small Angles Tests for triangles that contain a small internal angle. If the small angle
test fails, then the outline of every triangle that contains an internal angle, less than or
equal to the specified tolerance will be displayed.
Coincident Points Tests for coincident points. If the test fails, then points that are
within the specified tolerance are highlighted. The tolerance value is the maximum
distance between two points that are considered to be coincident.
Start with the Minimum Area and Angle values obtained from the triangle analysis (Triangle
Edit > Analyse Triangles) and increment the tolerance values until all of the problems have
been detected.
Nearly all triangulations that fail a validity check do so because of problems associated with the
raw data (design data or other triangulations). In most cases it is quicker and simpler to correct
the raw data rather than attempt to correct the resultant triangulation. Fixing the data also
prevents the problem from occurring again, when the same data is used to create a new
triangulation.
Tutorial 17.12
Check the topo triangulation and Pant_Leg triangulation to ensure they are valid.
Basic Fixing Options

Various commands for fixing triangulations are located in the Model > Triangle Solid menu.
Some of the most commonly used commands are discussed below.
Close Solid
The easiest way to fix closure problems is with Triangle Solid > Close Solid, which allows you
to automatically close all the holes in a solid. This is effective in simple situations, although if a
triangulation has multiple open areas the option may not always work correctly. The
triangulation must be loaded on-screen before selecting the menu option. Select the
triangulation and you will be prompted to retain or remove flaps (where three triangles share a
common edge or internal walls). The triangulation will then be closed and the Triangulation
Name dialog box will be displayed.
191
Figure 17-29: Removing flaps
Tutorial 17.13
Re-create the Pant_Leg solid triangulation. Use the Close Solid command to make a valid
solid triangulation.
Tip!
Always name the
newly closed
triangulation with a
new name. If there
are multiple
openings in the
triangulation, the
Closed Solid option
may give undesired
results.
Split
The Split option takes a triangulation that contains many disjointed sections and splits them.
The user can then choose, through various methods, which pieces are wanted to create a new
triangulation. The image on the following page is a perfect example of when to use the Split
command. A solid has been created through the use of Boolean and a few small pieces have
been left floating; Split will eliminate these.
Figure 17-30: Splitting triangulations
192
Once the triangulation has been selected, various options are available, similar to the options
within the Boolean command. The additional option on this dialog box is By Volume, which
allows the user to type a minimum volume. If a chunk of the triangulation has less volume than
this, it is automatically removed.
Tutorial 17.14
1. Load the split_pit.00t on-screen. Remove the outlying pieces and save.
Cut
The Cut option allows you to cut a triangulation in two by interactively digitising a cut line. This
is useful if there are small problem areas around the edges as they can be removed to fix the
triangulation. Cut can also be used to break up large triangulations into smaller pieces.
Triangulations can be cut at angles; if the dialog box below is left blank, it will automatically cut
at 90 degrees.
The cut line can then be digitised. Always exaggerate the ends of the line, as shown on the
following page, to ensure there will be a clean cut. In the incorrect line shown on the following
page, if the line were continued it would intersect the triangulation again, which can cause
errors.
Figure 17-31: Cut Triangulations dialog box
Figure 17-33: Incorrect line
Figure 17-32: Correct line
193
Tutorial 17.15
1. Load a triangulation.
2. Locate the problem area and remove it (cut).
Triangle Edit > Delete Crossing Triangles

This option will remove crossing triangles and fix the triangulation (correcting the self
intersection validity test when checking triangulations). If any triangles are removed, information
is provided on how many triangles and points were in the original triangulation, the output
triangulation, and how many triangles and points were removed. The triangulation can be saved
as a new triangulation or the input triangulation can be updated.
Note:
It is good practice to
Save as new
triangulation, as
sometimes the
Delete Crossing
Triangle function
can produce
unwanted results. By
saving as a new
triangulation, the
original triangulation
remains as a backup.
194
It may be necessary to close the solid after fixing consistency and crossing problems. Always
run a check of the resultant triangulation before moving on to volume or grade calculations.
Other options are:
Table 5: Triangle Editing Options
Menu Command
Definition
Model > Triangle Solid >

Triangle Delete
Deletes triangles from a solid or surface triangulation model.
Model > Triangle Edit >

Clip by Polygon
Clips a triangulation by either one or a series of polygons. Triangles are deleted depending on whether they are totally inside or
totally outside the selected polygon(s).

Add Vertex
Inserts a vertex into a triangulation. Triangles (facets) connecting

the new vertex to the triangulation will be added automatically.
Generally used for solid triangulations.

Delete Vertex
Removes a vertex from a triangulation, resulting in all connecting

triangles being deleted (termed a patch) and a hole being created. The hole can be filled or left open.
Model > Triangle Utility >

Relimit
Relimits a triangulated surface to inside or outside boundaries

that are represented as polygons.

Merge
Creates a new triangulation by merging two loaded triangulations. The new triangulation can be the intersection, union or difference of the two triangulations.

Multi Boolean
Uses a collection of surface triangulations to split a nominated

triangulation.
Model > Triangle Surface

> Vertex Z-Edit
Views and modifies the Z value of individual triangle nodes of a

displayed triangulation.

> Move Vertex
Changes the location of a vertex in a triangulation.

> Add Vertex
Inserts a vertex into a triangulation. The triangles created by

adding a point inside an existing triangle will automatically be
added to the triangulation. Generally used for surface triangulations.
Table 5: Triangle Editing Options (Continued)

Menu Command
Definition

> Delete Vertex
Removes a vertex from a triangulation. The triangles containing

the vertex being deleted will automatically be removed from the
triangulation. Generally used for surface triangulations.

> Insert Triangle
Adds triangles to an existing triangulation. New triangles are

defined by indicating either existing design points and/or triangulation vertex points.

> Delete Triangle
Deletes individual triangles from a displayed triangulation.
For fixing triangulations, use the following steps:

1. Check the triangulation.
2. If it fails closure, select Model > Triangle Solid > Close Solid.
3. If it fails consistency or crossing, check again and save the problem areas to a layer. Try
to identify the problems with the original data.
4. If the problem area is around an edge and is very small, use Model > Triangle Utility >
Cut to remove it.
Generally these four steps will fix most triangulations. If there are still errors try:
Model > Triangle Edit > Delete Crossing Triangles (for crossing triangles)
Model > Triangle Edit > Snap Vertices (for consistency issues)
Volume Calculations
Volumes of triangulations can be calculated in Vulcan for solid triangulations or between two
surface triangulations.
Solid Volumes
The menu option Model > Triangle Solid > Volume can also be accessed by right-clicking on a
triangulation on-screen. If multiple triangulations are highlighted on-screen, the volume option is
not available. A dialog box allows the picking of triangulations individually from the screen or
picking by name from a Windows browser. If volumes are needed for multiple triangulations, use
the Solids by name option.
A density may be entered and a tonnage will be calculated.
Tutorial 17.16
What is the volume of the triangulation named pit?
Create a .txt file with volumes for each bench of the pit triangulation which was shelled
earlier.
Surface Volumes
The option Model > Triangle Surface > Volume will generate volumes between two surfaces.
Both must be loaded on-screen prior to starting the menu option. Vulcan will prompt to select
the original and new triangulations. The cut and fill volumes will then be displayed. The order of
195

triangulation selection is vital, as the cut and fill volumes will be reversed if triangulations are
chosen in the opposite order.
Tutorial 17.17
What is the volume of fill necessary to build the road (created in a previous tutorial)?
1. Load the TR_TQ1 layer on-screen.
2. Create a valid solid triangulation out of this data. Ensure the triangulation honours the
data and splits into two, creating a hole in the middle as shown below.
3. What is the volume of your TR_TQ1 triangulation?
Figure 17-34: Splitting triangulations
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18 Introduction to Grids
Grid Mesh Surfaces
Grid modelling is particularly useful for modelling stratigraphic deposits. Grid models represent
surfaces with a regular pattern (usually square) of nodes which can be thought of as X, Y and Z
points in space. Each node value is spaced from the surrounding values by a fixed distance,
which is called the grid size, or grid cell size. Values for grids are stored at the grid nodes where
the grid lines cross.
Figure 18-1: Nodes
The standard grid filename has the following format <proj><gfi>.<mv>g.

<proj> = Project code (maximum of four characters).
<gfi> = Grid file identifier.
<mv> = Mapping variable name, two letter code indicating the variable being modelled.
g = Standard suffix on the file extension, used to represent a grid file.
Tip!
When referencing a
grid, only the
distinguishing
components of that
grid name need to be
specified. The
default project name
and grid file identifier
are assumed if these
portions are omitted
from the grid name.
If the project name does not point to the required grid, then the name must be specified in full.
Grids can generally be divided into two types, structure grids and quality grids. Structure grids
represent the surface of a seam or geological contact in space, whereas quality grids represent
a quality value at a particular X and Y location where the Z value represents the quality variable
value. Examples of structure grids include topography, roof and floor grids, while quality grids
may include ash, sulphur, density or thickness grids.
Common grid file extensions are:
sr structure roof
sf structure floor
tk thickness
st structure thickness
pt - parting thickness
tp - topography
Grid Mesh Surfaces
197
Note:
While a grid model
may represent a
surface, it is not
necessarily planar.
Refer to the following
figures.
Figure 18-2: Plan view and isometric view of a grid model
A unique function of grids is that they can be mathematically manipulated. For example grids
can be added and subtracted to derive new grids. For this reason, grids can not represent
structures where more than one Z value exists for a particular X and Y location. Examples of
structures that can not be modelled by grids, include reverse faults and recumbent folds.
Loading and Removing Grids

Existing grids can be loaded and unloaded in the same way as triangulations:
Drag and drop the grid into the Primary window.
Double-click the grid.
Right-click the grid and select Load.
Select Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Load.
Loaded grids in Vulcan Envisage are dependent on the file extensions that have been
nominated in the Tools > Preferences menu under Vulcan Explorer > File Types > Grids.
To remove, right-click on the grid and select Remove or select Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces >
Remove By Name. Alternatively, click the Remove Underlay icon from the Standard toolbar.
Grids are stored in the Grids folder (Vulcan Explorer).
198
Tutorial 18.1
The grid named thorgrid.tpg has been provided in the data set. This grid was created
from the design layer CONTOURS in thordesign.dgd.isis and is an example of an
interpolated grid.
Open thordesign.dgd.isis and load layer CONTOURS.
Double-click thorgrid.tpg to load from the Grids folder.
Use the rotation tools to see how the grid conforms to the CONTOURS layer.
Figure 18-3: Grids example
Managing Grids in Envisage

All grid models are accessible through the Vulcan working directory and information on models
is available under Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Directory. Results are displayed in the
Report window, including filename, file size, access information, and the date/time the grid was
last modified.
Figure 18-4: Envisage Report window
Creating Grids
The two primary methods for creating grids in Vulcan are found under Model > Grid Mesh
Surfaces and under Grid Calc.
Grid Mesh Surfaces
199

Use the modelling methods under Grid Mesh Surfaces to create grids directly from displayed
coordinate data, or use simple interpolation and smoothing algorithms applied to mapfiles,
generated from a design or geological database. Use Grid Calc to create simple grids. Grid Calc
has the added ability to create and manipulate grids using sophisticated modelling algorithms,
making it a powerful tool.
When creating a grid, keep it less then 300,000 cells, as exceeding this can make viewing the
grid cumbersome. The grid extents must be divisible by the grid cell size. Grid extents are often
multiples of 100 and so it is ideal to set the grid cell size to numbers divisible by 100.
Simple Grids from Object Data
Use Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Create Simple to create simple grid models from
displayed coordinate data such as points, lines and polygons. A minimum of three data points
are required to create a model.
Tutorial 18.2
1. Load thordesign.dgd.isis and layer CONTOURS.
2. Select Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Create Simple.
3. On the Model Create dialog box, set the X and Y Mesh Size to 25.
4. Set Generate mesh from to Z elevation (a grid mesh can be generated from either Z
elevation or W tag).
5. Set the Model Surface Name to topo.tp. The grid resulting from this exercise will
have the name thortopo.tpg where thor is the project prefix and g is the grid suffix.
6. Select all of the following check boxes, which control the creation and display of the
triangulation and/or grid.
Figure 18-5: Model Create dialog box
Below is an example of how a grid would be displayed if only the X Mesh or Y Mesh check
box was selected.
Figure 18-6: Grids with only X and Y Mesh
200

7. Select the Preserve strings options. The Preserve strings and Points only options
determine how points are connected during triangulation. Using the Preserve strings
option prohibits the triangle facets from crossing digitised strings. The Points only
option connects points regardless of digitised strings. See the following figure:
Figure 18-7: Preserve strings and Points only options
8. Select Regularise grid area to grid size. This option ensures that the maximum and
minimum coordinates of the grid are multiples of the mesh size.
9. Click OK.
10. When prompted, indicate the model origin point. Define the extents to model by
choosing the bottom left and top right corners. Make sure the extents include all of
the contour lines.
11. Select Layer on the Select By menu.
12. Choose the CONTOURS layer.
13. Select Cancel on the Select By menu.
14. Select Model on the Confirm menu.
15. Name the triangulation thortopo.00t.
16. Click OK.
A triangulation and a grid model of the topo lines appear in the Vulcan Envisage window.
Interpolated Grids
Use Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Vulcan Grid Model to create grids. The main difference
between this option and Create Simple, is that the Vulcan Grid Model option uses interpolation
and smoothing algorithms. In addition, the Vulcan Grid Model option uses mapfiles to create
grids. If a mapfile does not already exist, it must be created from a design or geological
database.
The parameters of the grid (such as size and modelling method) are stored in a specification file.
The grids created from this specification have the standard grid file name format.
Creating Grids from Triangulations
Creating a simple grid from an existing triangulation:

1. Load a triangulation.
2. Select Model > Triangle Surface > Grid Mesh.
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201
Figure 18-8: Grid parameters dialog box
3. Type a X and Y Mesh Size and a Grid Model Name.

4. Click OK.
5. When prompted, indicate model origin point. Select the bottom left and top right corners
of the area to be gridded. If more than one triangulation is loaded, one of the
triangulations must be selected prior to the Grid parameters dialog box appearing. A grid
of the triangulation will be created.
Editing Grids
Grid Masking
Each grid occupies the full rectangular area defined in the grid creation process, but the whole
grid may not be visible. In addition to each node having a Z value, it also has a mask value,
which can be set to 1 or 0. If it is set to 0, the node is invisible. If it is set to 1 the node is visible.
This is useful if the grid does not exist over the whole rectangular area (for example data does
not cover the whole area, or there is uncertainty about what happens geologically beyond some
extent).
Mask values can be set using the menu Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Mask. This menu uses
Vulcan Envisage polygons to mask grids. Masks can be modified or replaced readily using the
menus Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Unmask and Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Mask.
Z values are not affected by masking. Grids can be masked and unmasked and the Z values will
be unchanged. The following figure shows an unmasked grid where the polygon represents a
mask limit.
Figure 18-10: Masked grid

Figure 18-9: Unmasked grid
After masking with the polygon, only the nodes that lie within the polygon are visible.
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The following diagrams show the results of the various masking options:
Grid Mesh Surfaces
203
Colouring and Contouring

Contouring
The Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Contour option allows grids to be contoured.
The contoured model can be displayed in one of the following ways:
Normal contouring results in each contour being displayed in 3D at its elevation value.
Fixed Contour Level results in each contour being displayed at the selected Z value.
Drape with surface model specifies the chosen model in the surface field draped over it.
For example, an ash grid can be draped over structure roof contours to reveal any
relationship between ash and seam level.
Intersection results in an intersection line being displayed between the contoured
model, and the model specified in the Surface field.
Four options are available for the contour colours. The default colour scheme and the
alternative colour scheme use intervals and colour legends. The manually entered colour allows
intervals and colours to be selected manually. The selected colour sequence allows a range of
colours to be selected.
.
Tutorial 18.3
1. Open a design database and load the grid created in Tutorial 18.2 by double-clicking
on thortopo.tpg.
2. Select Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Contour.
3. Under Grid mesh model to be contoured, select topo.tp.
4. Select Normal and type the colourscheme.
5. Click OK.
6. On the Colour Ranges dialog box choose appropriate From, To and Interval values.
Suggested values are 0.0, 600, and 25.
7. Click OK.
8. Click Cancel when the Contour dialog box reappears.
9. The contour strings are now displayed as an underlay. Use the rotate function to see
how the design strings follow the grid.
10. Select File > Underlays > Remove to remove the contour strings by selecting the
contour lines.
11. Select Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Contour to save the design strings as a layer.
In addition to the previously selected options select Save design strings and type a
layer name.
Colouring
The default method for colouring a grid is to make it all one colour. This can make it difficult to
distinguish trends in the grid model unless the model is rotated. Colouring a grid is achieved
using the Model > Grid Mesh Surface > Drape menu. Colouring the grid based on Z values
(either of the grid itself or from another grid) allows trends to be identified more easily.
When colouring grids, it is usually best to set up a Colour Legend using Analyse > Legend
Edit > Create. Legends give the user control of grid colouring by allowing the specification of
intervals and colours for each.
204
Tutorial 18.4
2. Select Analyse > Legend Edit > Legend Editor.
3. Choose CONTOUR.
4. Name the legend.
5. Click OK.
6. Fill out the Colour Ranges properties that follow:
Figure 18-11: Colour Ranges properties
7. Load the grid created in Tutorial 19.2.

8. Right-click on thortopo.tpg and select Load.
9. Select Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Drape. The Drape dialog box displays.
10. Choose Drape mesh name as ITSELF. Drape with an alternative colour scheme and
select the legend created earlier in this Tutorial.
11. Click OK.
12. The thortopo.tpg grid is now coloured according to the legend.
Node Editing
Grid node values are generated through mathematical interpolation and extrapolation. This
process does not always produce the desired values, and it may be necessary to alter the node
Z values. Grid nodes can be edited on an individual basis or by using a polygon to alter all
nodes inside/outside the polygon.
To alter grid nodes individually use the Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Node Edit menu. The
Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Set Value option can be used to edit multiple nodes inside/
outside a given polygon. The Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Patch option can be used to
copy values from an existing grid into a second grid. To use this option the grids must have the
same cell size and extent.
Tutorial 18.5
1. Open a design database and load the grid created in Tutorial 19.2.
3. Select Design > Create > Layer to create a new layer.
4. Select Design > Create > Polygon to draw a polygon around a portion of the grid.
Grid Mesh Surfaces
205
Figure 18-12: Polygon
5. Select Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Set Value.

6. Select the polygon and choose Set inside values.
Figure 18-13: Set Grid Node Value
7. Select Relative to node and Enter grid mesh value of 50. Clear Clip grid mesh to
current window and click OK.
8. Select Save. The nodes inside the polygon have been shifted to a value 50 feet above
their original value.
206
Figure 18-14: Nodes inside a polygon
Creating a Mapfile
Use Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Create Mapfile to generate either a mapfile or a database
that can be used for grade estimation. This option requires quality grids such as Moisture and
Ash in addition to a Structure surface model grid. Selecting Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces >
Create Mapfile generates the following dialog box.
Figure 18-15: Structure/Quality Grid Processing dialog box
In addition to structure surface models, various quality models can be selected. These models
must exist in order to be selected and can then be combined in either a database file or a
mapfile.
Grid Mesh Surfaces
207

Exporting Grids
Grids can be exported into other formats including triangulations and points. The Model > Grid
Mesh Surfaces > To Object option converts grid mesh data that is bounded by a polygon, into
a series of points. The Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > Triangulate option creates a
triangulation from a loaded grid model. Only the visible nodes are exported to the triangulation.
Tutorial 18.6
2. Load the grid created in Tutorial 19.2.
4. Select Design > Create > Layer to create a new layer.
5. Draw a polygon inside the grid extents using Design > Create > Polygon.
Figure 18-16: Polygon inside grid extents
6. Select Model > Grid Mesh Surfaces > To Object. Choose the layer the polygon is
drawn in and click OK.
7. When promoted, select the boundary polygon and then the grid mesh surface.
8. The nodes bounded by the polygon have been converted into point objects. To view
the points remove the grid by right-clicking on thortopo.tpg and selecting
Remove.
Figure 18-17: Removing point objects
208
Grids can be exported for use in other third-party applications using File > Import Export >
Export DXF and File > Import Export > Export Grid. The File > Import Export > Export DXF
option exports grids to a DXF (Drawing Exchange) file. Once created, this file appears in the
Vulcan working directory. The File > Import Export > Export Grid exports grids to an ESRI
ASCII grid file. This menu option can be used to export numerous grids simultaneously.
Introduction to Grid Calc

Grids can be the basis for powerful modelling options, especially in the application of Grid Calc,
Vulcans Grid Calculator Utility. The Grid Calc module offers significantly more complex
modelling and manipulation abilities than the Grid Mesh Surfaces menu.
One of the key features of Grid Calc is the ability to perform arithmetic to build new grid models.
Grid Calc can also be driven using macros that allow command sequences to be recorded and
played back. Grid Calc also operates as a separate entity from the other modules within Vulcan
Envisage. It uses a memory buffer to store and manipulate data. The menu options in the Grid
Calc module must be used to control data within the memory buffer.
Creating a Specification File
Most of the modelling commands within Grid Calc require that grids be the same size and
extent. To ensure this, a specification file must be produced. Specification files are created
using the menu Grid Calc > Edit Modelling Defaults > Create Grid Specifications. Once
created, the specification file should be saved through the Grid Calc > Edit Modelling Defaults
> Save Grid Specifications menu. Additionally, Grid Calc automatically creates polygons to
mask grids when it is operating. These Grid Calc polygons should be stored in a design
database.
.
Tutorial 18.7
1. Select File > New and create a design database named GRIDS.
2. Select Grid Calc > Edit Modelling Defaults > Create Grid Specifications. If this is
the first time the Grid Calc module has been opened in the current session of Vulcan
the Access Specs dialog box will display.
3. Select Close Current Spec.
4. Click OK.
5. Name the model area all.
6. Select OK. The Grid Area Specs dialog box will display.
Grid Mesh Surfaces
209
Figure 18-18: Grid Area Specs dialog box
7. Fill in the coordinates for the grid extents as shown. The grid extents must be divisible
by the grid cell size.
8. Click OK.
9. Select Grid Calc > Edit Modelling Defaults > Save Grid Specifications.
Loading Data
Grid Calc operates as a separate entity from the other Vulcan Envisage modules data and must
be loaded specifically into the Grid Calc module. Data is loaded into Grid Calc using the menus
Grid Calc > Data and the Grid Calc > Grids. Design data, triangulations, mapfiles, and grids
can all be loaded into Grid Calc.
Tutorial 18.8
1. Load design database thorgrids.dgd.isis.
2. Select Grid Calc > Grids > Load/Calculate Grid.
3. Load grid topo.tp.
4. Select OK.
The grid has been loaded in Grid Calc. It must be displayed before it becomes visible.
Displaying Data
Select Grid Calc > Display to display data that has been loaded. Triangulations, design data,
and grids can all be displayed using this menu. The Grid Calc > Display > Remove Underlay
option is used to remove data from the display.
210
Tutorial 18.9
2. Select Grid Calc > Display > Static Display Grid.
3. On the Grid Display Attributes dialog box the Z Mapping option allows grids to be
displayed using a combination of exaggeration and offset. Display Z= 1 x grid + 0
yields a display of real world Z values. Z = 1 x grid + 100 yields a grid display offset in
the Z direction by 100 units.
Figure 18-19: Grid Display Attributes dialog box
4. Choose a Colouring option, Grid Surface, and Grid Lines.

5. Click OK.
6. The grid is now displayed in the Vulcan Envisage window.
Grid Calc Preferences

When working in Grid Calc it is desirable to automatically display the data and grid models
without having to pick an icon or select a menu. Select Grid Calc > Display > Preferences to
set the preferences. Using Grid Calc > Edit Modelling Defaults > Save Grid Specifications
will save the selected preferences so they do not need to be reset with each new session of
Grid Calc.
Modelling Data
Use Grid Calc > Model > Grid Model to model data (loaded using Grid Calc > Data).
Numerous modelling methods can be used, including triangulation, inverse distance, and
kriging. In addition, user defined modelling methods can be applied.
Select Grid Calc > Grids > Save Grid to save new models.
Grid Mesh Surfaces
211
Tutorial 18.10
1. Load design database thordesign.dgd.isis.
2. Select Grid Calc > Data > Load Design.
3. The Load Design dialog box will display. Complete the Source tab as shown. The
thordesign.dgd.isis database has selected the CONTOURS layer (and all objects)
contained within the database.
Figure 18-20: Load Design dialog box
4. Set the Grid size to 50 and leave the rest default.

5. Click OK.
6. Select Grid Calc > Model > Grid Model.
7. On the Model Select dialog box, select Triangulation and click OK.
8. On the Model dialog box, leave all tabs to their default values and click OK. Although
nothing appears to happen, the grid has been created and must be displayed to
become visible.
9. Select Grid Calc > Grids > Save Grid. Name the grid contours.tp.
10. Click OK.
The grid should appear in the Grids folder in the Vulcan Explorer.
Grid Arithmetic
Grids can be manipulated using powerful grid arithmetic accessed through the Grid Calc >
Grids > Load/Calculate Grid menu. Arithmetic can be performed using simple arithmetical
operators (+,-,*,/) or a number of more complex functions.
212
Tutorial 18.11
1. Select Grid Calc > Grids > Load/Calculate Grid.
2. On the Load/Calculate dialog box, select a grid.
3. Click OK. This creates a new grid where all of the values from the
thorcontours.tpg grid have been shifted in the negative direction by 150 units.
4. Select Grid Calc > Grids > Save Grid.
5. The grid should now appear in the Grids folder in the Explorer window.
Contouring
Use Grid Calc > Contour and Limit Generation > Contour to contour grid models. The
contour lines generated using this menu are closed and can be used for masking grids and as
reserve limit lines.
Tutorial 18.12
2. Select Grid Calc > Grids > Load/Calculate Grid and choose thorcontours.tpg.
The grid is not shown in the Vulcan Envisage window but it has been loaded in Grid
Calc.
3. Select Grid Calc > Contour and Limit Generation > Contour. The Contour dialog
box displays.
4. On the Levels tab, select the Range Selection option and set the From at 0.0, To
700.00 and Interval at 25.0.
5. On the Save tab, select Save to database. Under Database name choose grids and
type CONTOUR as the layer name.
6. On the Advanced tab, select Less than.
7. Click OK.
The thorgrids.dgd.isis now contains layers CONTOUR 100 through CONTOUR 700.
These layers can be loaded and viewed in Vulcan Envisage.
Macros
Macros augment Grid Calc by allowing a series of command sequences to be recorded and
played back.
While using the Grid Calc module all of the commands that are used are saved in a macro called
replay.gdc_cmnd. This file is automatically generated and is stored in the Vulcan working
directory. It is overwritten with each new session of Grid Calc. To prevent the commands in the
replay.gdc_cmnd macro from being overwritten, the macro can be saved with a new name
using the Grid Calc > Macros > Save Macro command. Macros can be replayed using the
Grid Calc > Macros > Invoke Macro command.
Grid Mesh Surfaces
213
19 Data Organisation
.TRI Folders
Vulcan recognises .00t files as triangulations and places them into the Triangulations folder
(Explorer window). To arrange triangulations in subfolders inside of the main project folder, the
subfolder name must end in .tri. This will direct Vulcan where to look for triangulation files.
Note:
This subfolder also
appears under the
Triangulations folder
in Explorer window.
Subfolders inside the .tri subfolder do not need the .tri extension in order for Vulcan to
recognise triangulation files; however it is good practice to continue the .tri extension in case
the subfolder is copied or moved in the future. If a .tri folder is created in the Vulcan Explorer
while Vulcan is open, the subfolder will not automatically be detected until Vulcan is restarted.
To create the .tri folder, right-click the Triangulation folder in the Vulcan Explorer and select
Create Directory. This way the .tri folder will show up automatically without restarting.
Remote Directories
Tutorial 19.1
Set up a .tri folder named facilities.tri.
Remote directories are different than .tri folders in that the folder does not need to be in the
working directory and is set up for .dgds, grids, triangulations, and more. Remote directories
are useful to access data in another working folder from your computer, or to access data in
another folder located on a network.
Setting up a remote directory:

1. Select Tools > Preferences. You can browse to the data and data types needed.
2. In the Remote Directory column, left-click in the blank cell. The down-pointing arrow is
for a drop-down list box option and the three-dot button is for a browse option.
The Browse button will enable you to find any folder on the local computer or on
the network to use as a remote directory.
The Display Name is used if a unique name to this remote directory is required. For
example, if the remote directory is
C:\NETWORK\Vulcan\MASTER\ENGINEERING, a consistent display name may
be Master_Engineering. If a display name is not used, Vulcan will apply the full
file path name as the name in the Vulcan Explorer.
The various check boxes will determine if Vulcan files will be listed in the Vulcan Explorer. The
options are:
Triangulations
Grids (stratigraphic modelling)
Dgds
User Databases (Isis databases for drillholes, composite points)
Screen Files (saved screens)
Block Models
Lava Scripts
.TRI Folders
215

Multiple remote directories can be added following the same process in subsequent rows.
When finished adding the required directories, close the dialog box. The Vulcan Explorer
subfolders have been created in the appropriate sections corresponding with the check boxes
for the remote directories.
Using the Remote Directories

Once a remote directory exists, its files are available for access.
DGD Files
DGD files can be accessed just like any other .dgd in the work area. They can be locked for
editing or opened with layers loaded on-screen in the current directory.
To open a .dgd for editing, double-click on the file or right-click and select Open. A
green lock will appear on the newly opened .dgd.
To load layers from a closed Remote .dgd, click on the plus symbol to expand the
layers. Double-click on the layer to load.
When prompted, either Accept the selection, open as a read-only file, close and try again or
Cancel the operation entirely.
Yes - Creates a layer in your working .dgd as a duplicate of the layer in the remote .dgd.
As read-only - Loads the layer and objects and can be edited as normal. However, the
objects and any edits will not be saved when the layer is removed from the screen.
No - Applies when there is more than one layer being brought over from the closed .dgd.
If you have picked an incorrect layer, selecting No will skip the layer in question and the
process will continue for subsequent layers.
Cancel - Cancels the entire operation.
The check box to Remember My Selection for This Operation is useful when loading multiple
layers. Pick one of the Load options and Vulcan will apply the selection to all layers loading
otherwise you will need to click to confirm every time.
Triangulations and Grids
Triangulations and grids can be directly loaded and edited.
User Databases and Block Models
User Databases and Block Models should be directly accessible. However, if the set of colour
schemes in the .scd file differs from the set in the remote directory, the drillholes and block
model blocks may colour than if the remote directory was directly accessed. Furthermore, some
colour may not be available from one to the other.
Screen Files and Lava Scripts
These will load as normal, unless the screen file calls for data that does not exist in the user
folder. Likewise, if a Lava script calls an external function that is on a file path different than that
specified by the remote directory, it may malfunction.
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19 Data Organisation
20 Master/Working Directories
Multiple User Directories
Often more than one user is working in the same data area and potentially in the same layers in
a .dgd. In this situation, it is useful to create a master and a working directory to distinguish the
final data set from the draft that other users are editing.
To create multiple user directories on a network, file management and administration privileges
may be necessary.
Setting up directories on a network:

1. In a place accessible to all users, create a new folder named Vulcan.
2. Inside the Vulcan folder, create five subfolders named Master, Geology, Survey,
Engineering and Mineplanning.
MASTER - This subfolder will contain final data (for example, .dgd, triangulations)
that are not to be edited.
The final data is the final draft of work completed by a Vulcan user from their
working folder.
3. Create five master subfolders, Geology, Engineering, Documentation, Survey, and
Mineplanning.
Additional folders may be added as needed.
4. Ensure the master subfolder is set to read-only for anyone that is not in the
corresponding department. For example:
Geologists can view and write data to the Geology master subfolder.
Surveyors can view the Geology master subfolder but can not change any data
within the folder.
5. Once the five master subfolders have been created, add clean and accurate data
compiled from the various users.
The Documents folder should hold procedural information such as model update
details.
The Working Folders - The four other folders in the Vulcan directory should be the
Working Folders, which are subfolders for each user. For example, if there are three
engineers, there should be three subfolders in the Engineering folder.
Each user subfolder contains all of the data they will need to perform their tasks. When setting
these folders for the first time, the data in each folder must be uniform and identical to what is in
the master folder.
There are several files that should be copied from the master folders to the user folders:
The Project DG1
The .scd Colour Scheme file
The .ftd Feature Code file
The gdc_glob and gdc_spec files (if applicable, usually only for stratigraphic deposits).
217
Setting Up Administrative Restrictions

Once the master and working folders have been set up, using the Windows tools, set which
users will have write privileges. You may need Administrator privileges. To set up write privileges
for a user:
To allow an engineer to write data to the Vulcan\ENGINEERING\Username folder and to the
Vulcan\MASTER\ENGINEERING folder, right-click on the folder and select Properties. In
Folder Properties, set the Security parameters to Allow.
Blocking a user:
To block a surveyor accessing the Engineering folder, set the Security parameters to readonly so data the engineers are working with can not be changed.
Accessing the Master Data
Once the folders are set up, each users Vulcan workspace requires configuration to access the
master data.
1. Select Tools > Preferences.
2. Select Vulcan Explorer.
3. Double-click the cell under the Remote Directories and Browse to the subfolder in the
master folder.
4. Type a Display Name.
5. Check for data you want to see from the master folder. For example, an engineer, can
browse to the Vulcan\MASTER\ENGINEERING folder (and rename to
Master_Engineering), and select to see the .dgd and the Triangulations in that
folder.
6. Click OK.
Figure 20-1: Preferences > Vulcan Explorer
All the folders will appear in the Vulcan Explorer that correspond with the check boxed items
selected from the Remote Directory. For example, a folder will appear in this Design Databases
218
folder for the Master_Engineering .dgd, as well as a similarly named folder in the
Triangulations folder.
Viewing Data from a Master Folder
When the master folder has been set up as a remote directory, that folder should appear in your
Vulcan Explorer under each of the files that were selected. You may then use files in the master
folder and copy layers from design databases in this folder in the same way you copy them from
one design database to another.
Data from the master .dgd should be brought into the working .dgd for editing, and saved
back to the master .dgd when it is done. No data should be edited directly in the master .dgd.
When users are working in their respective .dgd and folder, they can expand any remote
directory .dgd and access the data.
Do not switch the active .dgd to one in the remote directory. The active directory is signified by
a green lock make sure the green lock stays on the working .dgd for the individual user, not
on the master .dgd.
Posting Data to a Master Folder
There are two methods for posting or saving data to a master folder. The first option is to select
the master folder from the Vulcan start up and save data directly to the folder. The second is
Save Layer To, which is accessed under the File menu.
The Save Layer To option is most often used when the master folder is accessed using a
remote directory and allows you to save loaded layers into a design database (headered) other
than the open database. The database may be in any directory.
Saving a layer:
1. Select File > Save Layer To. The Open Data Area dialog box will display.
Figure 20-2: Open Data Area dialog box
Use environment variable - Use for environment variables that point to the data
area. Type the environment variable. Make sure to add a forward slash (/) to the end
of the environment name.
Use absolute/relative path - Select this option to specify the path (relative or full)
to the data area.
Filter by project code - Tick this box if you want to list all of the design databases
that have the same project code as your project file (.dg1).
Load when starting Vulcan - Tick this box if you want to force Envisage to start
with the chosen design file. It is also possible to specify a design file to open when
Envisage starts by editing the project file.
219

2. Click OK.
Figure 20-3: Design Files dialog box
3. A list is then produced of all the design database files found within the specified data
area. An arrow will be used to indicate the currently open design database.
4. Left-click on the required design database and click OK. Once selected, the chosen
design database is opened and a list of all the layers stored within it is displayed.
5. Left-click on the required layer and click OK.
You use the Pattern field, the Apply Pattern button, and wildcards (* multicharacter and ? single character) to highlight the layers that begin or end with
certain characters.
If you wanted to highlight all layers that begin with S, then type S* into the pattern
field and click the Apply Pattern button. Once selected, all matching layers are
highlighted.
After the desired layer has been chosen, you may be required to confirm that you
wish to overwrite its contents.
When using master folders, you will need to set the environment variable LOCAL_WORKFILE to
any value and this will override the default that the work file has created in the same folder as
the design database file.
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21 Plotting
Introduction to Plotting
In this section, you will learn how to use the Plot All Wizard, which will enable you to plot
anything that is displayed on-screen.
There are multiple ways of presenting data electronically. Screen dumps captures still images.
For interactive images, you can produce an Audio Video Interleaved (AVI) file representing a
video clip of the Vulcan Envisage window. In addition, a 3D interactive NGRAIN model can be
used to export from Vulcan into another format, such as Microsoft Office products or Printer
Data File (.pdf).
Plot All Wizard

Changing the default settings:
1. Select File > Plot > Plot All Wizard.
This is where the plot file name is specified.
Plot All Wizard plot files have a .vpgz file extension.
Use options Create or Load specification file to save the plotting specifications to
allow reproduction or editing of existing plots.
Plot All Wizard specification files have a .pasf file extension.
Figure 21-1: Envisage Plot All wizard dialog box
221
Tip!
When naming a plot
file, use caution.
Vulcan always
remembers your last
plot filename and will
use it by default. Be
sure to change the
plot filename,
otherwise any
previous plot with
that filename will be
overwritten. You will
not be given a
warning before
overwriting a file.
The next screen will prompt you for the drafting template or drafting sheet to use, and give you
the option to Render WYSIWYG1.
Figure 21-2: Envisage Plot All wizard dialog box - second screen
Use Default Template - A dynamic template for basic plotting needs that will work for
any paper plot size in either landscape or portrait. If the default template does not meet
the requirements for plotting needs, a drafting sheet should be used.
Use Drafting Sheet - Picks a drafting sheet from a drafting sheet database
(drafting.dgd.isis in the Resources folder). Vulcan provides several drafting sheets
that can be used for creating a new or customised drafting sheet.
Use Render WYSIWYG to plot underlays (triangulations, block model slices). This option
takes a screen shot of your plot area, which can by modified to specify a resolution in
.dpi (dots per inch).
Using a Default Plot Template
If the default template is used, the Envisage Plot All wizard dialog box will display. If the
required sheet size is not available, a custom size may be specified. You can also specify a
printer to use, which is only to determine the margins set for that printer. It is not recommended
that these margins be changed here in Vulcan, rather if they need to be changed, do so in the
settings for your printer in Windows.
Lastly, the orientation of the plot is selected as landscape or portrait. If using a title block with
the default template, or using a drafting sheet with fields set up, the Title block dialog box will
appear allowing you to fill in the title block fields.
1. WYSIWYG is an acronym for What You See Is What You Get.
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21 Plotting
Figure 21-3: Envisage Plot All wizard dialog box - third screen
The following table contains a list of supported plotting variables that Vulcan allows in the Field
Value column. Use caution when typing the variables as they must appear exactly as they are
here (case sensitive).
Table 1: Plotting Variables
Variable
Text Plotted
%XAVG%
Average Easting
%YAVG%
Average Northing
%ZAVG%
Average Elevation
%X%, %EAST%, %EASTING%
Easting
%Y%, %NORTH%, %NORTHING%
Northing
%Z%, %RL%, %ELEV%, %ELEVATION%
Elevation
%XMAX%
Maximum Easting
%YMAX%
Maximum Northing
%ZMAX%, %CREST%, %BACK%, %ROOF%
Maximum Elevation
%XMIN%
Minimum Easting
%YMIN%
Minimum Northing
%ZMIN%, %TOE%, %SILL%, %FLOOR%
Minimum Elevation
%COUNTER%
Plot file counter
%PLTFILNAM%
Plot file name
%SC%, %SCALE%
Scale
%SCALE%
Date
The next dialog box allows you to control whether or not grids are plotted. There are two main
options; Plot Grid Annotation or Draw Dynamic Grid. Use Plot Grid Annotation to specify a
grid colour and spacing. These grids may be displayed as crosses or lines. If there is a grid
currently displayed on the screen that should be included in the plot. Use Draw Dynamic Grid
223

and the current grid will plot with the selected colour. If no grid is required, select No Plot Grid
Annotation.
Figure 21-4: Envisage Plot All wizard dialog box - fourth screen
The next dialog box allows you to specify the scale of the plot.
Figure 21-5: Envisage Plot All wizard dialog box - fifth screen
There are two options for setting the scale, Allow dynamic scale adjustment or Manual scale
adjustment. Manual adjustment allows you to key in a scale (example 1:1200). When using
dynamic scale adjustment, an origin must be specified by selecting Digitise Origin and then
selecting the origin in Vulcan Envisage.
A box will appear in the Vulcan Envisage window illustrating the extents of the plot based on the
specified scale. With dynamic adjustment, the size of the box can by changed by selecting
Adjust Extents, then clicking and holding any corner and dragging it to adjust the size. The
Adjust Extents tool can also be used to move the box by clicking and holding any edge of the
box and moving it to the desired location.
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21 Plotting
Figure 21-6: Plotting extents box
Check Remember extents settings button so the current extents and scale settings for
each plot created in the current Vulcan Envisage session are retained.
Check the Preview plot file button to show the resultant plot in the Plot Utility. The Finish
button will generate the plot.
Using a Plot Template

Using a user defined plot template in the Plot All Wizard is similar to creating a plot with the
default template. On the second dialog box of the plot all wizard setup, select a template by
choosing the Use Drafting Sheet option.
Information can be entered based on the prompt. All other dialog boxes will be the same as with
using a default template.
WYSIWYG Plotting
To plot triangulations, the WYSIWYG option needs to be active. This option works with both
user defined templates and with the default plot template. All other dialog boxes will be the
same, regardless of whether the WYSIWYG check box is active or not.
Tip!
For WYSIWYG plots,
the image resolution
should be between
100 and 300.
Resolutions greater
than 300 will create
large plot files and
the results may not
be any better than
they would at 300
.dpi.
If Vulcan crashes when creating a WYSIWYG Plot, go to Tools > Preferences and on the Video
Capture dialog box, check the box that says Use software rendering for single frame and
WYSIWYG capturing. This changes how the graphics card and drivers are used when creating
the image and can fix issues that occur with graphics cards and drivers.
Tutorial 21.1
Creating a simple plot using the Plot All Wizard:
1. Load layer CONTOURS and triangulation TQ1.
2. Reset the view to plan view.
225
Figure 21-7: Creating a simple plot
3. Select File > Plot > Plot All Wizard.

4. Name the first plot plot1.
5. Choose to create a specification file and name it plot1spec.
6. Click Next.
7. Select Use Default Template and select Title block and border, North point and
Bar scale.
8. Select Render WYSIWYG plot. Leave resolution at 100.
9. Click Next.
10. Accept all the defaults for page and printer selection. If you wish you may select an
alternative printer.
11. Click Finish.
Plot Utility
The Plot Utility is a separate program in Vulcan and can be open concurrently with Vulcan
Envisage. To switch between them, select the appropriate icon on the Application bar in the
lower right hand corner of the Vulcan window. To open Plot Utility, either double-click on any
plot file or click on the Vulcan Start button the lower right-hand corner of the Vulcan window
and select Plotting Utility.
Figure 21-8: Application bar
226
21 Plotting
Figure 21-9: Plotting Utility
Plot Utility has its own specialised toolbars. The first is the Plot Utility Application toolbar, which
includes options to plot, printer setup, plot file properties, page drag mode, zoom box mode,
and zoom in/out mode.
Figure 21-10: Plot Utility Application toolbar
Use the Printer Controls to choose or edit paper size and the plotter used to print out the plot
file.
Figure 21-11: Printer Controls toolbar
This plotter can also be changed by using the printer icon or (File > Page Setup). When you
open a plot file in Plot Utility, a white sheet of paper will display to represent the selected sheet
size.
Use the Page Drag Mode icon on the Plot Utility Application toolbar to drag the sheet around
the screen. If the plot file is too large for the page size, the printer, page size, and orientation of
the paper will need to be changed. Only what fits onto the white paper is printed. Ensure there is
ample room for margins as well.
Once the layout of the plot is set up, the plot can be sent to the printer using File > Print. If the
plot was larger than the paper in the plot utility, use the Fit to page check box on the print
dialog box. This will make the plot larger or smaller so that it fills the entire page. Note that this
will change the scale and if a scale bar is present on the map, it will become invalid.
227
Figure 21-12: Print dialog box
Tutorial 21.2
1. Create an 11X17 plot showing the boundary polygon, and warehouse polygons.
2. Name the plot Facilities1.vpgz.
228
21 Plotting
22 Presentation
Screen Dumps
The Screen Dump option is available from the Screen Dump toolbar, which is accessible by leftclicking on the Screen Dump icon.
Figure 22-1: Screen Dump icon
Once the option is active, the following child toolbar will be displayed.
Tip!
In general .png or
.jpg are the most
common formats.
Figure 22-2: Screen Dump toolbar
The screen capture will only capture data within the 3D Envisage window. Data can be captured
in the following outputs:
.png - Portable Network Graphics is a bit mapped image format.
.jpg - Commonly used standard method of compression for photographic images.
.bmp - Bit mapped graphics format used by Microsoft Windows, .bmp files are usually
not compressed and much larger than compressed image file formats of the same image.
.rgb - Image has three channels: red, green and blue that follow colour receptors in the
human eye and are used in computer display and image scanners.
.ireg - Vulcan image registration file both an image (.jpg) and ireg file are captured.
These can then be image textured onto a triangulation.
Screen Dumps
229

The name of the screen dump and output format can by changed by selecting the drop-down
list.
Figure 22-3: Screen Dump output format
Images can also be saved in different resolutions as indicated in the drop-down list box.
Figure 22-4: Screen Dump resolution size
Resolutions at Screen and higher, are preferred where the screen captures are used for printing
at large scales, such as posters.
1024 x 768 is the resolution of many projectors, so viewing in an image viewer at full screen on
such devices will give good results, as the image is mapped per pixel. When using smaller
resolutions, a blue box will appear to show you the extent of the screen dump. Smaller
resolutions are suitable for input for reports. Make sure to reset your resolution back to screen
when finished, otherwise the blue box will remain on screen even though the Screen Dump
option is closed.
To save the screen dump, click the disk icon on the toolbar, and the file will be saved to the
current Vulcan working directory. To copy the contents of the screen dump to the Windows
clipboard use the copy to clipboard icon.
Figure 22-5: Copy to Clipboard icon
230
22 Presentation
The screen dump can then be pasted into other software, such as Microsoft Word (see
below).
Figure 22-6: Screen dump in Microsoft Word
Tutorial 22.1
1. Load contours.00t and drillholes (Geology > Drilling > Load Drillholes) using
your assay legend.
2. Rotate your view in order to see both the drillholes and topography.
3. Open the Screen Dump child toolbar by left-clicking on the Screen Dump icon and
create an image called drill.jpg.
4. Select a resolution of 320 x 280 and click Save.
5. Open your working directory and double-click on drill.jpg to view the screen
dump.
Remember to reset your resolution back to screen when you are finished.
AVI Video
This option allows you to capture the image currently loaded in your Vulcan Envisage window
along with any movement applied to it.
Screen Dumps
231

Capturing an AVI video:
1. Select the AVI format from the Save As drop-down list, as well as the desired resolution.
A new AVI file name can also be entered manually.
2. Click the Save Screen Dump icon to begin recording.
3. Click the Enable recording AVI icon to start recording.
The Enable recording AVI mode allows you to capture frames each time the view
changes.
Clicking the [D] key adds single frames to the file.
When using the continuous recording mode, pause the recording by deselecting the
Enable recording AVI icon.
Save Screen Dump
Enable recording AVI

Figure 22-7: Screen Dump toolbar
4. Deselect the Enable recording AVI and then the Save Screen Dump icon to stop
recording. The file will be closed, which must be done before you can view the file
externally.
The speed at which the object(s) moves during the recording process is not the playback speed
(playback is much faster).
Tutorial 22.2
1. Load contours.00t and drillholes (Geology > Drilling > Load Drillholes) using
your assay legend.
2. Left-click the Screen Dump icon and open the Screen Dump toolbar.
3. Create a new audio video named drill.avi.
4. Set the screen resolution and click the Save Screen Dump icon.
5. Select a rotate mode and free rotate the data.
6. Click the Enable recording AVI icon.
7. Deselect the Enable recording AVI icon and load tq1.00t and click the icon again.
8. Zoom in on the tq1 ore body while in free rotate mode.
9. Deselect the Enable recording AVI and the Save Screen Dump icon to stop
recording.
Audio video files can become large very quickly so use caution when creating files.
NGrain
NGrain is an interactive 3D viewer that can be embedded in electronic documents such as
Microsoft Word and PowerPoint. The Export to NGrain option allows you to export design
data, triangulations, grids, and block models to the NGrain format. Anyone can then download
the free NGrain viewer and view the model.
This format allows users to view and rotate 3D data in space without having a Vulcan licence or
Vulcan software. The Export to NGrain option is found under the File menu in the Import
Export submenu.
232
22 Presentation
Design data, Triangulations, and Grids to NGRAIN

If exporting design data, the following dialog box will display prompting for selecting desired
data from the loaded layers. If exporting triangulations or grids, Vulcan will prompt for which
triangulations or grids to export. If only one grid or triangulation is loaded, Vulcan will
automatically select the loaded triangulation or grid.
When all desired design data is selected, right-click or select Cancel. When all triangulations
and/or grids are selected, right-click to Cancel. This will return you to the NGrain Export menu.
If no further data is to be exported, right-click or select Cancel. The Convert to NGrain dialog
box will then appear.
Figure 22-8: Convert to NGrain dialog box
Type the name of the file that will store the exported data. The file will be saved within your
current working directory under the Other folder. The resolution can either be manually entered
or specified using the slider bar.
Block Models to NGRAIN
Once Block Models are selected from the NGrain Export dialog box, the Convert to NGrain
dialog box is displayed.
1. Enter the name of the block model that you want to export. Use the Browse button if
you want to select a block model file from a different location.
2. Enter the grade variable that you wish to export.
3. Enter the colour legend that will be used to colour the chosen grade variable.
4. Click OK.
Screen Dumps
233

Figure 22-9: Export to NGRAIN dialog box
The Block Selection dialog box allows either all of the blocks or just specific blocks to be
selected and exported. If you choose to select specific blocks, type one or more of the following
criteria:
Table 1: Block Selection options
Command
Definition
Variable
Restricts blocks by a block model variable.
Bounding Triangulation
Restricts blocks by a triangulation. This option is not applicable to

open or 2D triangulations.
Bounding Box
Restricts blocks by a box. The bounding box is defined in Interactive or Coordinate mode.
Section Thickness
Restricts blocks by a section plane.
Condition
Constrains the (numeric) block model variable, for instance Fe GT

10.0 (iron value greater than 10.0)
Cut and Fill Surfaces
Restricts blocks to those that fall within two intersecting surfaces.
Reverse Matching
Selects outside the specified regions.
Use Block Centres
Uses the full cell evaluation method. If this check box is not ticked,
then the proportional cell evaluation method will be used.
Click OK and the NGrain Export dialog box is then re-displayed. You can either choose to
export additional data or right-click again to display the Convert to NGrain dialog box.
Inserting and Viewing NGRAIN Models
The first step in using an NGrain model is to download a viewer from the internet.
Once installed, you will need to make sure that you can run Macros and enable ActiveX controls
within Microsoft Word. The following is an NGrain model inside a Word document.
234
22 Presentation
Figure 22-10: Exported NGRAIN model
The NGrain viewer will appear in the start menu under NGrain. It can be used to view and
manipulate NGrain models at any time. To insert NGrain models into Microsoft Office
documents follow the instructions under Adding Viewer to Documents.
In order for others to view NGrain in documents you create, they will need to download and
install the NGrain viewer as well. Once installed, they will be able to view and manipulate NGrain
models by simply opening the document.
Tutorial 22.3
Export the contours triangulation to NGrain and insert it into a Word document.
Screen Dumps
235
Index
Symbols
.TRI Folders, 215
Numerics
2D Filter with a Minimum deviation, 65
2D Text, 54
3D Text, 56
A
About this manual, 15
Administrative Restrictions, 218
Align View With Current Slicing Plane, 43
All located invisible, 149
Along Record Checks, 139
Analyse, 93
Area, 94
Areas and Volumes, 167
At specified screen angle, 51
B
Bearing Input, 50
Blend texture, 160
Boundary Tab, 162
C
Centroid, 95
Check Triangulation Stability, 191
Checking Triangulations, 190
Client windows, 18
Clip, 44
Clip Translucent Solids, 43
Close Solid, 191
Coincident Points, 191
Condition Tab, 164
Contouring, 204
Coordinate, 93
Corporate Standards, 4
Create Line At Given Angle, 51
Create Section View, 40
Creating Grids, 199
Curvature, 95
Custom Cursor, 94
Cut, 193
D
Data Attributes, 77
Data Import/Export, 85
Data Tab, 162
Database Validation, 138
Dgd Files, 216

Digitise Tools, 48
Display, 43
Display simple contours, 158
Displaying Data, 210
Distance Along Line, 93
Distance Between Points, 93
Distance field, 51
Docked windows, 18
Downhole Checks, 139
Drag, 73
Drape, 204
Draw as wireframe, 156
Draw wireframe mesh over surface, 157
E
Editing Tools, 59
Ensure triangulation is not striped, 157
Enter Record Selection Conditions, 143
Environment variables, 3
ENVIS_RESO, 4
Exercise, 1, 2, 4, 7, 11, 12, 13, 15
Export Shape, 92
Export Tables, 142
Exporting ASCII Files, 90
Exporting Data, 141
Exporting DXF Files, 86
Exporting Grids, 208
Extract Located to DB, 149
F
Fill triangles with pattern, 158
Find objects, 95
Fit Layer, 38
Floating windows, 18
Fonts, 53
G
Grid Calculator Utility, 209
Grid Masking, 202
Grid Mesh, 165
Grid Mesh Surfaces, 197
H
Hardware/System Requirements, 1
Hidden windows
Highlight Intersections, 43
HOME directory, 3
237
I
Image Registration, 169
Import Shape File, 90
Importing ASCII Data Files, 87
Importing DXF Files, 85
Indicate, 48
Interpolated Grids, 201
Point Edits, 67
Point Insert, 70
Point Label to Text, 97
Point Labels, 97
Point Labels to Text, 99
Polygon Area, 94
R
K
Key In Point Data, 48
L
Last located invisible, 149
Lava script, 216
Loading and Removing Data, 31
Loading and Removing Grids, 198
Loading Triangulations, 155
Locating Holes, 148
M
main menu, 18
Managing Grids, 199
Mapfile Overview, 150
Master Data, 218
Menus, windows, and toolbars
main menu
windows, 17
Minimum Area and Angle, 191
Modelling Data, 211
Move Slicing Plane, 43
Moving Data, 72
N
No Clipping, 44
Node Editing, 205
Relimiting Surfaces, 165

Remote Directories, 215
Render WYSIWYG, 222
Report, 139
Requirements, 1
Rotating, 34
S
Save and Run, 139
Section View Properties, 43
Service packs, 5
Set View, 38
Set Visibility of Located, 149
Slice Backwards, 43
Slice Forward, 43
Small Angles, 191
Small Surface Area, 191
Smooth shading, 157
Snap to Grid, 48
Snap to Objects, 48
Snap to Points, 48
Solid shade triangulation, 156
Solid Volumes, 195
Split, 192
Spurs Tab, 163
Strike/Dip, 95
Surface definition angle, 158
Surface Triangulation Manipulation, 168
T
O
Object Area, 94
Object Edits, 60
Object Label, 99
Object Label to Text, 100
Ortho Rotation, 34
Ortho Sphere Rotation, 34
Other Views, 38
Own windows, 18
P
Panning, 33
Parallel to given line in 3D, 51
Parallel to given line on screen, 51
Perpendicular to given line on screen, 51
Perspective View, 36
Plot Utility, 226
Plotting, 221
238
TEMP and TMP, 3

Texture Mapping, 160
Texture resource, 160
Toggle Sliced View, 43
Track Section of Existing Line, 52
Trending Tab, 163
Triangulation Modelling, 153
Tutorial, 1, 2, 4, 7, 11, 12, 13, 15
Two Polygons, 165
U
Unique Collar Location, 139
Unloading Triangulations, 155
Updating an Existing Database, 143
Use Default Template, 222
Use Drafting Sheet, 222
Use load time shading, 158
Utilities > Export > Tables, 142
Index
V
Vertical Exaggeration, 38
View Ports and Overview Window, 35
Viewing and Animating Data, 31
Virtual Sphere Rotation, 34
Visibility, 39
Volume Calculations, 195
W
windows, 18
Work area, 17
Z
Zoom To Toolbar, 33
Zooming, 32
Z-Up Rotation, 34
239
240
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Maptek Vulcan

Installation, Setup and Licensing ............................................................................................................ 1

Vulcan Work Area ................................................................................................................................. 17

Introduction to Vulcan | Maptek Vulcan 8

Viewing and Animating Data ................................................................................................................. 31

Creating Design Data

Design Menu Create Tools ................................................................................................................... 45

Editing Design Data

Editing Tools ......................................................................................................................................... 59

Data Attributes ...................................................................................................................................... 77

Data Import and Export

Importing DXF Files ............................................................................................................................... 85

Data Information ................................................................................................................................... 93

Analyse Tools ........................................................................................................................................ 97

Database Overview ............................................................................................................................. 101

Viewing a Database in Isis

Opening the Database ........................................................................................................................ 119

Drillhole Databases ............................................................................................................................. 123

Modifying/Editing Databases .............................................................................................................. 131

Introduction to Vulcan | Maptek Vulcan 8

Using Geology Tools ........................................................................................................................... 145

Introduction to Triangulations ............................................................................................................. 153

Creating a Surface .............................................................................................................................. 161

Modelling Techniques ......................................................................................................................... 173

Triangle Edit > Delete Crossing Triangles ............................................................................... 194

Grid Mesh Surfaces ............................................................................................................................ 197

.TRI Folders ......................................................................................................................................... 215

Multiple User Directories ..................................................................................................................... 217

Introduction to Plotting ....................................................................................................................... 221

Screen Dumps .................................................................................................................................... 229

Introduction to Vulcan | Maptek Vulcan 8

Computer Requirements for Microsoft Windows XP/Vista

Installation, Setup and Licensing

Introduction to Vulcan | Maptek Vulcan 8

Microsoft Windows XP Instructions:

Microsoft Windows Vista Instructions:

Microsoft Windows XP Instructions:

Microsoft Windows Vista Instructions:

Click to access the

Figure 1-1: Control dialog box System properties

Click to check your

Figure 1-2: System Properties Advanced tab

There are four environment variables that must be set:

Installation, Setup and Licensing

Introduction to Vulcan | Maptek Vulcan 8

1. The Resource folder is located in the Vulcan Explorer

Introduction to Vulcan | Maptek Vulcan 8

Click to start the

Figure 1-3: Vulcan start dialog box

Shows the configuration is being used by which user.

Pack & Go (Borrow Licence)

Using a borrow licence:

Verifying a floating licence:

Verifying a FLEXnet Publisher:

Introduction to Vulcan | Maptek Vulcan 8

Setting the environment variable:

Figure 1-5: New System Variable dialog box

Activating a Borrow Session:

Figure 1-6: Vulcan Licence Administrator dialog box

Returning a borrowed licence:

Introduction to Vulcan | Maptek Vulcan 8

Groups and Features