Glossary
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Text or predefined shapes inserted into a 3D scene to provide labels, notes, or visual markers.
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The visual style used to display a geometric object in a view, defining how it is rendered (e.g., wireframe, flat-shaded, smooth-shaded, textured, or points). An object’s appearance applies to all views and is constrained by the appearances supported for that object.
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A three-dimensional model composed of smaller units called blocks.
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A specification describing the structure and attributes of a block model, including block size, dimensions, origin, rotation, and variables. It defines the framework for creating specific block model instances, such as dense, subblocked, or sparse models.
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The smallest axis-aligned, rectangular prism that completely contains the geometry of an object.
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The location where drilling started.
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A mapping that associates colours with numeric ranges or string values. Colour maps (also called legends) are used to visualise physical trends or attributes in spatial data.
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The point in 3D space beneath the mouse cursor when the user opens a context menu.
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The object that was under the mouse cursor when the user activated the context menu, typically by right-clicking. It allows scripts or tools to determine which object the user intended to interact with.
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A framework that maps 3D object coordinates to real-world locations.
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A block model where all blocks are uniform in size and defined at every location in a 3D grid, fully populating the model’s extent.
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A planar feature that marks a change in the physical or chemical properties of a rock mass. Defined by a set of coplanar points, a discontinuity is visualised as a surface-like object but does not support point or facet properties like a full surface.
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A representation of data obtained from exploration drilling, typically stored in a drillhole database.
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An edge network is a collection of potentially disjoint edges—such as contour lines, polylines, or polygon edges—defined by a set of points and edges connecting them. It allows multiple discontinuous lines to be treated as a single object.
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A three-dimensional geometric object defined by a centre point and a size along the semi-major, major, and minor axes that determines its shape. Ellipsoids are used to control implicit modelling in GeologyCore.
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The set of minimum and maximum X, Y, and Z coordinates that define the axis-aligned bounding box enclosing an object.
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A polygon whose interior, or part of it, is coloured.
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A surface representation composed of a grid of quadrilateral points (cells) instead of triangular facets. Grid surfaces cannot contain holes or disconnected components, making them simpler and more compact than regular surfaces.
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A method for calculating distances by measuring the time taken for reflected light from laser pulse to return to the receiver.
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A vector perpendicular to a surface, facet, or plane, indicating its orientation in 3D space.
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A multidimensional, homogeneous array of values provided by the NumPy library, allowing efficient storage and computation on numerical data in Python.
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An action in which the user selects an object, primitive, or coordinate, typically by clicking in a view window.
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An arbitrary set of points in space, with no topological links between points.
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A closed line made of multiple edges connecting at least three points.
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An open-ended line made of one or more connected edges and at least two points.
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A fundamental geometrical element that forms the building blocks of spatial objects. The simplest primitive is a point, and all other primitives (edges, facets, cell, and blocks) are defined based on points.
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A local repository of data that you interact with during a session in a Maptek application. In the SDK, scripts connect to an open project to access and manipulate its data.
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A grid-based representation of an image where each cell, or pixel, contains colour information.
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1. A geometric object defined by a sequence of points, with additional properties such as point widths and angles that give it a ribbon-like shape. Ribbons are used to control the shape of an implicit model. There are two types: ribbon chains, analogous to polylines, and ribbon loops, analogous to polygons. 2. A user interface element in Maptek Workbench applications, providing access to commands and tools.
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A dataset representing lidar measurements acquired from a terrestrial laser scanner. Each scan consists of many points defined by azimuth (horizontal angle), elevation (vertical angle), and range (distance from the scanner). Scans can be treated as point clouds or as grid structures reflecting the scanner’s acquisition pattern.
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A collection of objects in a project used for performing operations. The active selection is highlighted in the project explorer and view windows and can be modified by the user or via a script.
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An object that stores selection criteria for drillholes, typically based on names, within a project. Selection file objects can be created, edited, and read programmatically, and may originate from imported Vulcan .sel files, though they do not necessarily correspond to a physical file.
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A closed 3D surface that fully encloses a volume.
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A block model with uniform-sized blocks defined only at specific locations within the 3D grid, optimising storage when the model contains voids or empty spaces.
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A block model in which blocks can be subdivided into smaller subblocks, allowing detailed representation where needed.
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A two-dimensional structure in 3D space composed of points connected by triangular facets
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A location in a triangulated surface where a single edge splits into three, creating a junction that breaks the normal two-dimensional structure of the surface.
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A window that displays spatial data in a Maptek application.
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An object used to organise and store other objects within a project, similar to a folder in a file system. Visual containers can be nested to create hierarchical structures inside the project.
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