Point Codes may be the most underused feature in Traverse PC. By establishing a consistent default point code table, you can have Traverse PC create your drawings almost completely automatically. All you are left with is adding any pertinent descriptions and other text to the drawing and possibly some minor touch-ups. Once you start using TPC’s point codes, you will wonder how you ever got along without them.
Point codes are words, numbers or abbreviations you enter into point descriptions to help identify the points. They can be any combination of letters and//or numbers but we recommend that you make them short, logical, and easy to remember. The code 'CL' might identify a point as a 'center line' while the code 'OAK' might identify the point as an 'oak tree'. Point codes allow you to perform operations on all the 'center line' shots or all the 'oak' trees and allow TPC to draw these points based on their Traverse Settings.
TPC includes tools to group points into traverses based on their point codes. Once the points are grouped into traverses, TPC can sort them to the nearest neighbor or plot them on a map using different symbols and line types for each code.
When you collect data in the field, point codes can speed up the process of documenting points and add consistency to your data. Enter a code like 'TFC' for 'Top Face of Curb' and reuse it all day.
The Point Codes Manager manages the codes in your survey. You can create a default point code table that can be used for all surveys, enter codes and their descriptions, import codes from other code files, or the Point Codes Manager can search the survey points and generate a list of codes used in the survey.
The Point Codes Manager sorts codes numerically and alphabetically. You will find that if you enter a new code or edit an existing code, TPC moves it to its new 'sorted' position.
Once you have identified the codes you are working with in a survey, the Point Codes Manager can group the survey points into traverses, based on the codes embedded in the point descriptions.
The following columns can be displayed in the Point Codes Manager;
Code Displays the Code (CL or PP for example)
Description Displays the Code Description (Center Line or Power Pole for example)
Sort Displays Yes or No. If Yes is displayed, the code will sort points by nearest neighbor. If No is displayed, the code will sort points numerically.
Layer Displays the Traverse Layer (if any) that will be assigned to the resulting traverse.
Alias Points with this code are added to the Alias traverse when traverses are created.
To change the view format, choose Tools | View | Format.
The Point Codes Manager is able to search the points in your survey and identify any codes you have used in the survey but not yet included in the Point Codes Manager. See Updating Point Codes.
By default, TPC assumes that the first word in the description is a code. Anything that follows the first word is just part of the description and can be used to provide information about the point.
Additional codes can be placed in the description by preceding them with the 'code delimiter'. TPC uses two dashes '--' as its default code delimiter. You can embed as many codes as you like using code delimiters as in 'TFC--CB--SW' which includes the codes TFC, CB and SW.
If the description starts with the code delimiter, the code delimiter is ignored, so the point description '--CL--SD' will produce the same two codes (CL and SD) as the point description 'CL--SD'.
Any point that has multiple codes in itsAny point that has multiple codes in its description can be sorted into traverses for each of the codes. This gives you the ability to sort an OAK--TREE into both the Oak traverse and the Tree traverse for example. You may find many uses for this feature.
One of the simplest uses of point codes is to Override Point Symbols regardless of which traverses a point is included in, it will always be drawn the same way in Drawing View.
To set the Survey Point Properties, select the co so that regardless of which traverses a point is included in, it will always be drawn the same way in all drawings.
To set the Survey Point Properties, select the codes you want to work with and choose Tools |
Once you have your codes established, you can sort the survey points into traverses based on their codes.
Once TPC has created traverses for the codes you want, you can update these traverses anytime, adding any new points containing a code to the appropriate traverses. If you have a 'CL - Center Line' traverse with all the 'CL' points in it and you import 20 new 'CL' shots from your data collector, TPC can add the 20 new shots to the 'CL - Center Line' traverse.
To add new points to their traverses, just sort their codes by choosing
When TPC appends new points to a traverse using these commands, it does not re-sort the points within the traverse to the nearest neighbor. That option is only executed when the traverse is first created from its point code. You can however, go to the Traverse View for a traverse and choose Tools | Sort.
You can also sort points within a traverse. This removes the constraint of forcing you to collect your data points in sequence.
This is where the Point Codes really strut their stuff.
Each point code has its own Traverse Settings that can be used to draw the points associated with this code. When you sort points into traverses based on their codes, the Traverse Settings stored with the code are copied to the Control Point settings and Lot Label settings of the created traverse. TPC will draw the points with the appropriate symbol, line type, color, etc.
With just a little bit of work up front in establishing your point codes and their Traverse Settings, Traverse PC will almost completely automate the drawing process. All you have to do is add the pertinent information to the map and make minor adjustments!
To format the Point Codes Manager, choose Tools | View | Format View.
To sort points within a traverse to their nearest neighbor, include the Sort column in the display sequence and set the sort value to Yes for any codes you want sorted.
There are three ways to create new codes in the Point Codes Manager.
The codes are written to the point code file associated with the survey when you close the Point Codes Manager or close the survey.
You can change a code any time by editing the code or its description. If you edit the code, TPC will reposition it in the view based on its sorted position.
To edit the Traverse settings associated with a code, choose Tools | Modify Code | Traverse Settings.
To delete codes, select the codes you want to delete and choose Tools | Delete Selected Items.
Point Codes Manager
Default Point Code Settings
Traverses
Traverse Settings
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