View3D
Release of EE7.1 provided the capability to view the model domain in three dimensions with the tool View3D as shown in Figure 1.
Much like the ViewPlan mode, the user may select which view option is desired in the View Options drop down. Each option provides a different interface in the right hand column. When viewing water surface the user may toggle water surface and bottom elevation, as well as adjusting the degree of opacity of each for better visualization. The options currently available include: water surface, water column, velocities, bed shear, sediment bed, bed heat, oil spill.
The Grid frame is available in all options and provides the user with the ability to switch between views of the grid at the water surface, flat grid, grid at bottom, 3D grid and no grid. The opacity of the grid may also be adjusted by the viewer to suit the visualization effect required. A frame box may also be toggled on and off to help the viewer interpret the viewing angle.
Figure 1 View 3D: Viewing Options
A number of further options are available in the toolbar at the top of the form. Those that differ from ViewPlan are described in Table 1 below.
Table 1 Summary of View3D toolbar.
General Functions | |
| Exit to main screen. |
| Save image to file (JPG, BPM, PNG, GIF, TIF) |
| Copy image |
| Toggle Pan |
 | Zoom In |
 | Zoom Out |
 | Zoom Extents |
 | Information Inquire |
 | Background image display |
| Display options for color ramp, vectors, grid lines, overlays, etc. |
| Configuration of 3D rotation and camera |
| View XY plane from above |
| View from East to West |
| View from West to East |
| View from North to South |
| View from South to North |
| Adjust light settings and toggle light on and off |
| Animation tool. Output animations to the screen and/or AVI files. |
| Animate Z axis rotation |
| Animate index I blanking |
| Animate index J blanking |
| Animate index K blanking |
 | Flight path utility |
 | Blanking controls |
Right clicking the legend also provides the user with a number of configuration options in the General 3D Options tab of 2D Plan View and 3D View Display Options form as shown in Figure 2.
The View Options frame is used to set the elevation of the text and overlay in the 3D elevation viewing mode. The user should adjust this so that they overlay sits above the model outputs for the view required. The Overlay 3D Elevation sets the default elevation to set overlays when they do not have elevations associated with them. A "Z offset for WC bottom" sets the vertical offset when displaying the water column and bottom surface.
Due to horizontal scales typically orders of magnitude larger than the vertical scales, the user may adjust the scale factor with the Vertical Scale Magnification option.
Figure 2 View3D: General 3D Options.
When using 3D the user has the ability to display multiple color ramps simultaneously. Within each of these options the user may define the color ramp cut offs or whether to auto-color based on the parameter min and max. The user may also simply display a gray color ramp or used a fixed color. The gradient fill option blends the color from one cell to another providing a more realistic appearance.
The options displayed depend on which sub-models have been activated in EE. For example, if LPT and oil is run then the Oil Thickness is also displayed with options for color ramp, single color and auto ramp functions.
Figure 3 View3D: 3D Color Ramp Options.
The 3D Geo/DEM Options tab is shown in Figure 4. Guidance in how to use this tool is provided in the How-to Guidance section. The Three Gorges dam example for this is also downloadable from the Resources section of our website (Demonstration Model 1.13).
Figure 4 View3D: 3D Geo/DEM Options