Drawing Tools
AVAG’s drawing tools let you mark locations, trace straight or curved paths, outline areas, and add notes directly to your data.
Use the drawing toolbar on the left edge of a viewing pane to create points, lines, arcs, polygons, and notes.
Click Measurements under Project in the left sidebar to manage your measurement shapes. The panel groups them into Polygons, Lines, and Points. Arcs are listed under Lines. Text annotations are available through Notes.
Before you draw: check folder visibility
Section titled “Before you draw: check folder visibility”A measurement is visible only when both its folder and the measurement itself are switched on. Click the folder icon to toggle the folder’s visibility. Use the individual measurement’s checkbox to show or hide that shape.
A measurement that is individually hidden stays hidden when its folder is switched on. If you draw into a hidden folder, the new measurement will not appear until you switch on the folder. These visibility rules apply to all measurement types.
Folder visibility is different from expanding a folder to browse its contents. Selecting or editing a measurement does not override a hidden folder.
Points
Section titled “Points”Select the point tool (circle icon), then click a location to place a point.
Select a point to view:
- X, Y, Z coordinates: its position and elevation.
- Elevation profile: click Generate to compare elevations at its location across active layers.
- Note: add a text note.
Points appear under Points in Measurements. Use the checkbox beside a point to show or hide it, and make sure its folder is also visible.
Select the line tool (diagonal-line icon). Click to place each vertex, then click Confirm or press Space to finish. A line needs at least two points.
Select a line to view its horizontal Length, 3D Length, Highest point, and Lowest point. Lines also support elevation profiles and section profiles.
Select the arc tool (curved-line icon). Click to place the first point, then the second. Shape the curve and add further points as needed, then double-click to finish.
Arcs appear under Lines in Measurements. Their detail panel includes Length, 3D Length, Highest point, and Lowest point. Arcs support elevation profiles and section profiles.
Confirm and Space are for lines and polygons. Arcs use their own click sequence.
Polygons
Section titled “Polygons”Select the polygon tool (pentagon icon). Click to place each vertex, then click Confirm or press Space to finish. A polygon needs at least three points.
Select a polygon to view:
- Area: its horizontal area, projected onto the XY plane.
- Polygon 3D Area: the area of the polygon’s geometry in 3D space. This does not necessarily follow the terrain between its vertices.
Volume results also include Layer Surface Area, calculated from the DSM to account for surface variations inside the polygon.
Calculate volume
Section titled “Calculate volume”Select the polygon and locate Measure volume in its detail panel.
For a single dataset, choose a Base surface: Triangulated, Lowest point, Highest point, Average point, or Custom.
Enable Also generate cut/fill map if required, then click Execute. Check the layer identifiers on the button to confirm which data will be used.
Results appear in the detail panel. Use Export protocol to prepare a PDF report and review the generated file before sharing it.
The colored cut/fill overlay is visible only in 2D. Numerical volume results can also be inspected in 3D. See Measurement and Analysis for the calculation methods and result definitions.
Finish or cancel a drawing
Section titled “Finish or cancel a drawing”For lines and polygons, Confirm and Space work in both 2D and 3D. A line requires two points; a polygon requires three.
On desktop, Confirm appears in the drawing bar at the top of the pane. On smaller screens and touch-first devices, Cancel and Confirm appear at the bottom right, above the information panel when it is open.
Press Esc or use the drawing bar’s Esc/Cancel control to cancel. Switching off the active drawing tool also cancels the sketch.
Space retains its usual behavior in text fields, dialogs, menus, and focused drawing-bar buttons. Points, notes, and arcs use their own click sequences.
Generate profiles for lines and arcs
Section titled “Generate profiles for lines and arcs”For an Elevation profile, set the sampling resolution and click Generate.
For Section profiles, configure:
- Along: spacing between sections.
- Left and Right: widths on either side of the path.
- Stationing: the starting station value.
- reversed direction: reverse the section direction.
- Generate elevation profiles automatically: generate profiles for the sections as part of the operation.
Click Generate. See Measurement and Analysis for interpreting and exporting profiles.
Select Draw note (speech-bubble icon) to add a text annotation at a location. Use it to identify features, record observations, or add context. Access these annotations through Notes in the sidebar.
You can also add a note to a measurement in its detail panel. Where available, enable Show note on map to display the text in the view.
Edit a polygon
Section titled “Edit a polygon”Make sure both the polygon and its folder are visible, then select it on the map or in Measurements.
Unlock the polygon before editing: click Locked to switch to Unlocked, or press U.
- Move a vertex: press and hold the vertex, drag it to the new position, then release. On a touch screen, touch and hold, then drag.
- Add a vertex: click the polygon’s edge where you want to add it. Drag the new vertex if needed.
- Delete a vertex: double-click it.
Moving the entire shape as one object is not currently supported. Adjust its vertices instead.
Lock the polygon again when you finish. Use the Name field to rename it and its three-dot menu to access other available actions.
Organize measurements
Section titled “Organize measurements”Click Add Folder in Measurements to organize shapes by location, date, or task. Use a shape’s action menu for available move or copy options. The panel’s Actions menu provides bulk operations for selected shapes.
Click a folder icon to control visibility for that folder. Individual checkboxes control each shape; show / hide all controls a group.
Do not confuse measurement folders with dataset folders in Layers. The Layers panel supports nested folders; this guide does not describe nesting folders within Measurements.
Frequently asked questions
Section titled “Frequently asked questions”Why can’t I see or edit my polygon?
Section titled “Why can’t I see or edit my polygon?”If the polygon is missing, check that both its folder and its individual checkbox are switched on. This also applies to newly drawn shapes in a hidden folder.
If it is visible but you cannot change its vertices, check that it is unlocked.