View Cell Map

Owned by Bui Bich Thuy (Deactivated)
Last updated: 25 Oct, 2024 by Duy Pham
6 min read

The Cell Map view is helpful when wanting to obtain an overview of the arrangement of the cells in the grid. It also allows for the editing of the arrangement of cell blocks. Cell blocks are groups of cells that are connected with cell connectors, whether E-W or N-S. When a model has two or more cell blocks connected by cell connectors, it may be necessary to reconfigure it to run as MPI. MPI requires that all the cell connectors or hydraulic structures be within one subdomain. This page describes the features available in the Cell Map view.

Click the Show Cell Map for Active Model button on the main form as shown in the Figure 1. Then the Cell Map will be displayed as shown in Figure 2. The magenta lines indicate the location of each cell block in the model. 

Figure 1. Show Cell Map option.


Figure 2. Cell Map window.

There are several options for viewing cell maps at the top of the window in the Colored By drop-down menu as well as the buttons next to it. The buttons are described in the next section.

Colored By Drop-down Menu

The Colored By drop-down menu allows the viewing of cells by color with three options, including Active Cells, Cell Codes, MPI Sub-domains (see Figure 3). In this drop-down list, if Active Cell is selected, the cell map will be shown with different colors assigned to the active cells and inactive cells (see Figure 4). If Cell Codes is selected, then the cell map is visualized by codes (see Figure 5). If the model domain is divided into subdomains to run with EFDC+ MPI, then the cell map will be illustrated with different colors assigned to the different MPI subdomains (see Figure 6-1).

This view is also helpful in determining if a model has the requisite cell buffers in the rows and columns at the four sides. This is necessary when running a model with MPI. Figure 6-2 shows an example of a model divided into MPI sub-domains. The "BAD" location indicates that it has only one extra cell on the cell map side, while the "GOOD" location indicates that it has two extra cells on the side of the cell map. If there are too few buffer rows or columns, such as in this case, the grid will need to be regenerated. To add another row or column to the edge you can use Add/Remove Grid Rows/Columns function in EEMS as shown in the Figure 17


Figure 3. Colored By options.


Figure 4. Colored By active cells.


Figure 5. Colored By cell codes.

Figure 6-1. Colored By MPI sub-domains.

Figure 6-2. MPI sub-domains: Cell buffer


Cell Map Buttons

The Cell Map view displays the overview of the arrangement of the cells in the grid. The buttons at the top of the Cell Map window are described in the table below and in figures linked to each button. 

ButtonDescription

Zoom to Full Extents: This button zooms to the full extent in order to view the whole model cell map

Pan: The toggle pan allows the user to move to the cell map by clicking on the button and dragging it to the desired location. This can also be done by holding Shift and selecting the Arrow keys from the keyboard.

Select a grid cell: This button is selected, and information about the cell will be displayed in a yellow box by clicking the cell on the cell map. (see Figure 7)

Select a Grid Block: Grid Blocks are groups of cells that are connected with cell connectors, whether E-W or N-S. When a model has two or more grid blocks connected by cell connectors, it may be necessary to reconfigure it to run as MPI. MPI requires that all the cell connectors or hydraulic structures be within one subdomain. Each grid block is bounded by a magenta box in Cell Map view. Click on this button to switch to select grid block mode. By selecting the block, the user can move the block to a different location in the cell map. (see Figure 8)

Toggle Grid Uniform View:  By default, a cell map will always be displayed with uniform dimensions, which means all cells will be displayed with the same size. Click on this button to switch to the non-uniform view, where all cells will be displayed at their actual size. (see Figure 9)

Toggle Grid Lines On/Off: This button will hide all grid lines or display all grid lines. (see Figure 10)

Toggle Grid Blocks On/Off: By default, each block is bounded by a magenta box. This button hides them as shown in the figure below. Click the button again to enable them again. (see Figure 11)

Show Cell Connections: This button displays the cell connections. Green lines indicate E-W connectors and blue lines indicate N-S connectors. (see Figure 12)

Toggle Legend On/Off: Hide or re-enable the legend with this button. (see Figure 13)

Label Steps: This feature sets the interval of display of I and J. They can use it to extend the distance for an easier view. (see Figure 14)

Auto Arrange Grid Blocks: This button will automatically arrange the grid block positions so that it can be used for an MPI run. The cell connectors are arranged so that they are all within one sub-domain. This can also be performed manually with the Select a Grid Block button. (see Figure 15)

Trim Grid Top Rows: After re-arranging grid blocks, it may be possible to trim some rows that are unnecessary. Clicking on this button will automatically remove them. (see Figure 16)

Table 1. Cell Map: Buttons function.


Figure 7. Cell Map: Select a Grid Cell.


Figure 8. Cell Map: Select a Grid Block.


Figure 9. Cell Map: Toggle Grid Uniform.


Figure 10. Cell Map: Toggle Grid Lines On/Off.


 

Figure 11. Cell Map: Toggle Grid Blocks On/Off.



Figure 12. Cell Map: Show Cell Connections.



Figure 13. Cell Map: Toggle Legend On/Off.


Figure 14. Cell Map: Label Steps.


Figure 15. Cell Map: Auto Arrange Grid Blocks.



Figure 16. Cell Map: Trim Grid Top Rows.

Figure 17. Cell Map: Add/Remove Grid Rows/Columns.