Constraints, site, and terrain properties

In this document

You will learn to access your site’s properties, change segment types, terrain approximation method, or elevation model, and display map wireframe.

The site’s specifications

You can access the information about your site using the left navbar. The section offers Site properties, Terrain, and Constraints categories.

Site properties

Top of the Site properties section displays your site’s basic information, such as GPS coordinates, slope, azimuth, and location’s altitude. There is also an “Add array” button that allows you to add an array to the reference point if it has not already been added.

Next, you can change your segment type and terrain approximation method. Currently, only ground segment type is supported.

The terrain approximation method is set to adaptive by default, showing the slope, azimuth, and altitude from the map data. To change these values, switch to manual.

Terrain properties

The terrain properties category lets you choose the preferred elevation model and display the wireframe on the map. Alternatively, you can toggle the wireframe on/off using the View menu at the top of the 3D map.

The default elevation model is Copernicus DSM, and the wireframe and simulation inclusion are turned off.

Available Elevation Models

No elevation data - The elevation data is uniformly distributed across a surface to illustrate topographic features in a simplified manner.
Copernicus DSM ~30m (1 arcsec) - A high-resolution digital surface model with a spatial resolution of approximately 30 meters (1 arcsecond), representing the Earth's surface including natural features like vegetation and built structures such as buildings and infrastructure. It is characterized by its vertical accuracy of less than 4 meters and horizontal accuracy of less than 6 meters.
SRTM GL1 DEM ~30m (1 arcsec) - Offers resolution of approximately 30 meters (1 arcsecond) derived from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission. It provides a global representation of the Earth's terrain, capturing elevation data that includes both natural and man-made features. This model is particularly useful for various applications such as geographic information systems (GIS), environmental monitoring, and land-use planning, offering a vertical accuracy of about 16 meters in forested areas and 6 meters in open terrains.
Solargis DEM ~90m (3 arcsec) - Offers resolution of approximately 90 meters (3 arcseconds), providing elevation data primarily for land surfaces while also capturing some effects from vegetation cover. This model is suitable for regional terrain analysis, such as assessing shading impacts from surrounding topography.

Constraints

The constraints section includes all restricted areas, restricted lines, and line objects drawn in the design. These represent areas to be avoided by the installation such as rock formations, swamps, maintenance paths, or shading objects, respectively. Constraints are added using the interactive 3D map.

For every constraint you can decide whether inverters should be installed there or not. This can be useful when some areas, like swamps, cannot have an electrical inverter while others, like maintenance routes, can.

Constraint options

Every constraint can be edited through its options menu. Hover over the constraint with the mouse, and the three-dots will show. Click it to open the options menu. Every option has its own keyboard shortcut to speed up the editing process.

Rename (R)- will rename the constraint.
Show/hide (H) - toggle the constraint outline visibility on/off.
Edit verticles (E) - will initiate the verticle-editing process. You can add, delete, or drag anchor points. Press enter to confirm changes.
Delete (Del) - will delete the verticle.

Additionally, you can also change every constraint’s properties. The parameters differ based on their type and are located in the properties panel to the right.

Constraint type	Available Properties
Restricted area	height (in meters) albedo (constant or monthly)
Restricted line	safe zone (in meters) inverter units allowed/not allowed in the zone
Line object	height (in meters) albedo (constant or monthly)