Fence Diagram (3D Analyst)

Summary

Constructs a vertical cross section of a collection of surfaces.

Illustration

Fence Diagram tool illustration

Usage

  • A fence diagram provides a way to visualize the space between multiple overlapping surfaces in 3D space, such as stratigraphic data.

  • Any curved segments will be generalized into line segments using the Sample Distance parameter value. If a sampling distance is not specified, this value will be derived from the input surface. For a raster, the default sampling distance will be the raster's cell size. For a TIN, the default sampling distance will be based on the edges produced by the triangulated surface. If the curve is shorter than the sampling resolution, the curve will be simplified into a two-point line using its start and end points.

  • Bilinear interpolation will be used to derive the height along a raster surface. For TIN surfaces, natural neighbor or linear interpolation can be specified.

  • A table of the x,y,z-values in the fence diagram can be generated using the Stack Profile tool.

Parameters

LabelExplanationData Type
Input Line Features

The line features that will be used to construct the fence diagram.

Feature Layer
Input Surface

The raster and TIN surfaces that will be used to construct the fence diagram.

Mosaic Layer; Raster Layer; TIN Layer
Output Multipatch Feature Class

The output multipatch that is composed of vertical faces that depict the fence diagram.

Feature Class
Interpolation Method
(Optional)

Specifies the interpolation method that will be used to obtain z-values from TIN surfaces when constructing the fence diagram. This parameter does not apply to raster surfaces.

  • LinearLinear interpolation will be used. This is the default.
  • Natural NeighborsNatural neighbors interpolation will be used.
String
Floor Height
(Optional)

A constant height that will be used to define the lowest height of the fence diagram.

Linear Unit
Ceiling Height
(Optional)

A constant height that will be used to define the highest height of the fence diagram.

Linear Unit
Sample Distance
(Optional)

The horizontal distance that will be used to determine the positions where height measurements are interpolated from the underlying surfaces.

Linear Unit

arcpy.ddd.FenceDiagram(in_line_features, in_surface, out_feature_class, {method}, {floor_height}, {ceiling_height}, {sample_distance})
NameExplanationData Type
in_line_features

The line features that will be used to construct the fence diagram.

Feature Layer
in_surface
[in_surface,...]

The raster and TIN surfaces that will be used to construct the fence diagram.

Mosaic Layer; Raster Layer; TIN Layer
out_feature_class

The output multipatch that is composed of vertical faces that depict the fence diagram.

Feature Class
method
(Optional)

Specifies the interpolation method that will be used to obtain z-values from TIN surfaces when constructing the fence diagram. This parameter does not apply to raster surfaces.

  • LINEARLinear interpolation will be used. This is the default.
  • NATURAL_NEIGHBORSNatural neighbors interpolation will be used.
String
floor_height
(Optional)

A constant height that will be used to define the lowest height of the fence diagram.

Linear Unit
ceiling_height
(Optional)

A constant height that will be used to define the highest height of the fence diagram.

Linear Unit
sample_distance
(Optional)

The horizontal distance that will be used to determine the positions where height measurements are interpolated from the underlying surfaces.

Linear Unit

Code sample

FenceDiagram example 1 (Python window)

The following sample demonstrates the use of this tool in the Python window.

arcpy.env.workspace = 'c:/data'
arcpy.ddd.FenceDiagram('fence_profile.shp', 
                       ['alluvium.tif', 'white_limestone.tif', 'yellow_limestone.tif'], 
                       'fence_diagram.shp', sample_distance='5 Meters')

Licensing information

  • Basic: Requires 3D Analyst
  • Standard: Requires 3D Analyst
  • Advanced: Requires 3D Analyst

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