landscape visualisation and solar study workflow query

[bingo]

Hi, I'm a landscape architect and have a similar query to Talkietom's (whose progress I'm watching eagerly).

I have two areas for which I'd hope to use TG2; robust landscape visualisation and solar studies, both require being
able to import data (generally .dwg/.dxf), this will be in the form of TIN data or 3D points or 3d polyline data (often all three in the same file);
process it and produce outputs reliable enough to stand up in court;
and also to export the results in some way for reuse as .dwg/.dxf file data;
an animated output would be nice too...

Typically architecture will be inserted into a terrain model and 'shots' taken from given points to show the building is visible, then the building might be changed or painted differently, trees added etc. and shots taken again to show that the building now cannot be seen.

The other work is reliable sun and shade modelling, and being able to take the effects of deep valleys into account. Here in southern NZ
it's common for valley walls to rise 1000m or more from the valley floor, and for terrain to be quite complex, so even a little bump here and there makes all the difference between a house getting 5 hours of sun per day or none for weeks.

Is it possible to do this type of work in TG2?

Cheers and thanks in advance for any answers to these questions
Nigel

[N810]

You should be able to export you DWG's as OBJ's and import them into Terragen.
Also you should be able to use GeoTifs for your landscape,
there are a lot of other post on the site that have detailed explination on how this is achieved.

[Oshyan]

I think your needs could potentially be met by TG, but it will require getting your data into formats TG2 can work with. DWG/DXF is not an ideal source format for terrain, even though you can convert it to OBJ. Objects can't be treated like heightfield or procedural terrain in TG at this point (for example you cannot populate objects, e.g. trees, on an imported object). So ideally you would have your terrain in a heightfield format like GeoTIFF. That would give you the best results.

Likewise export options are currently rather limited. Realistically if you want to make terrain modifications to incorporate back in your modeling process, TG is probably not the best app to do it. A dedicated heightfield modeler or GIS app may be more suited. TG is really most suited for final rendering purposes.

- Oshyan

[bingo]

Thanks N810 and Oshyan, this gives me something to think about. The workflow seems to be
a bit lengthy at this point, what with needing Geotiff processing in order to populate surface
with objects.

I will continue to keep an eye on Terragen tho', as programs that can do any solar and visual analysis
with complex topography are quite limited - I'm currently also looking at Formz and Key-TERRA FIRMA.

cheers
Nigel