DXF Gate — EARTH-CALC

DXF Gatesurvey check · EARTH-CALC

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DXFGate practice guide

DXFGate helps you inspect messy DXF survey data and prepare a clean EC CSV for Earth-Calc. Use it when a DXF opens visually but does not already contain clean Earth-Calc roles such as BB, TB, L, or PSL.

DXFGate+ adds site-check tools: Area, Dist, Dim, Profile, Pnt ID, and future report/DXF export routes.

Topsoil sample - uncoded mound prep

Load Topsoil.
Press Fit, then zoom or pan until all points are visible.
Use ID, Z, and Text only when you need point numbers, levels, or raw DXF labels.
Click a point, or use Pnt ID, to inspect it in Point Info.
Notice this sample has useful positions and levels, but no Earth-Calc roles. That makes it ideal DXFGate prep work.
Press Shot order. The thin dotted orange line shows the order the shots were collected.
Treat shot order as a draft guide only. It is not a confirmed BB base string yet.
Use Select or Lasso to highlight the internal mound points.
Avoid the perimeter/toe points. If you highlight the wrong points, press Deselect before assigning a role.
Press PSL. The selected internal points become spot/internal level points.
Repeat the Select/Lasso and PSL step until only the likely perimeter/toe points remain in the draft line.
When the remaining line follows the base/toe of the mound, clear any selection and press BB.
Check that the solid orange BB string and red PSL points look sensible on screen.
Use Join pts or Delete line for small BB repairs if needed.
Check the CSV Review.
When Export EC CSV becomes active, export the CSV. The original DXF is not overwritten.
Load the exported CSV into Earth-Calc and run the mound volume calculation.

Topsoil is an approximate prep route because the original DXF is not properly coded. Visually confirm the chosen BB perimeter before relying on the volume.

Substock sample - coded base/top route

Load Substock, then zoom out or press Fit.
Notice the two outlier points away from the main mound. This is common in site DXF files.
Clean route: press Delete point, then click each outlier point in turn.
Alternative route: press Shrink-wrap first. If the outliers are pulled into the orange base outline, use Delete point on them, then recheck the outline.
Shrink-wrap creates a confirmed BB base outline and turns remaining candidate mound points into PSL.
When the base outline and PSL points look sensible, check the CSV Review.
When Export EC CSV becomes active, export the CSV and load it into Earth-Calc for the volume calculation.
For an extra inspection check, find Surface Builder in the right column and press Build TIN preview.
Press Profile in the top toolbar, then click one point just outside the mound and another point on the opposite side.
The profile appears along the bottom of the screen. Press CLEAR PNTS before CLOSE if you want to remove the current profile line.

Known base/toe codes still take priority when present. Shrink-wrap is an assist, not proof: always check the orange BB outline before export.

Full sample - large mixed DXF inspection

Load Full. This is a large mixed-survey DXF with two far-apart data spots.
If the file is unknown, zoom into both spots first and decide which one is the real site body of work.
In this sample, keep the top-right survey data. The bottom-left point is an outlier.
Fit is not helpful yet because the outlier controls the drawing extents.
Use Select and drag around the bottom-left outlier point.
Press Delete selected.
Now press Fit. The main survey should fill the view properly.
You should now see a temporary site setup, canal, and a canal-bank breach/repair area.
Use Area to estimate the breach footprint. Area supports up to 30 vertices.
Use Dist for quick checks and Dim if you want to leave labelled measurements on the drawing.
Use Surface Builder then Build TIN preview before using Profile.
Use Profile across the breach area to inspect the approximate shape of the breach section.
A typical future workflow is to trim the file down to the breach area, then compare this survey with a later repair survey as two surfaces to estimate gross placed material.

Full is mainly a viewer/inspection practice file. It highlights why outliers must be removed before Fit, Area, Profile, or later surface comparison work becomes useful.

Formation sample - secondary viewer practice

Load Formation to practise general DXF viewing, text, point inspection, and layer behaviour.
Use Pnt ID to check both survey points and source DXF vertices.
If it does not help the Earth-Calc route, treat it as optional familiarisation rather than a core volume example.

Thin dotted orange = shot-order draft. Solid orange = confirmed BB. Blue/orange/magenta tools are inspection/report aids. Approximate exports still need visual checking by the user.

Drop a DXF to inspect it

or use the panel on the right

What's in it

Load a file to inspect.

Surface Builder

Load a file to inspect surface sources.

Point Info

Click a point to inspect.

Boundary & recode

Advanced shot range

BB shots -

Overwrites current roles from shot numbers. Use only when the DXF numbering is known and trusted.

code as

Code Map

Load a file to inspect codes.

Layers

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Markup

Use Note or Highlight to mark the drawing.

Report Basket

Load a file before capturing report views.

CSV Review

No export rows yet.

Export to EARTH-CALC

Export EC CSV

Load a file first.

Topsoil sample - uncoded mound prep

Substock sample - coded base/top route

Full sample - large mixed DXF inspection

Formation sample - secondary viewer practice

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