Point File

Point File Conversion works with point data records that are in a tabular format such as a spreadsheet. See Supported File Formats for the list of compatible file types. Coordinate data must be uniformly organized into columns with all coordinates in a given column being relative to the same coordinate reference system. Coordinates are read from the input columns for each row in the table, converted, and written to the specified output columns in a downloaded file. For typing in a single point for testing, use the Point tool.

The following three Operation Types are supported:

• Conversion converts or transforms coordinates between coordinate reference systems.
• Forward is used to compute a new coordinate that is a given distance and azimuth away from a starting coordinate. Both the source and destination points must be referenced to the same geodetic base coordinate system. Forward calculations follow one of three paths: 
  • Geodesic ("great circle" or the shortest path between two points on the surface of the ellipsoid)
  • Rhumb Line (constant azimuth)
  • Grid Distance (valid for projected "grid" coordinates only)
• Inverse computes the distance between two known coordinates on the same datum. The result may be calculated using Geodesic, Rhumb, or Grid (valid for projected coordinates only) calculation methods. Both the source and destination points must be referenced to the same geodetic base coordinate system.

Point File Conversion

Point Conversion converts or transforms coordinates between coordinate reference systems.

To perform point conversion, the following will be needed:

• Enter a coordinate pair 
• Select the known source coordinate reference system 
• Set the desired target coordinate reference system
• If the source and target coordinate systems use a different geodetic datum, you will be prompted to select an appropriate datum transformation from the GeoCalc Datasource to convert the source point to the target coordinate system
• Optional: Enter the elevation value (Z) associated with the X, Y and set the source/target vertical coordinate reference systems to prompt vertical transformation
• Optional: a source and target date are required to access time-dependent transformations

How to set up the Point File Conversion Operation:

1. Load a point file by clicking the Open File button. 
2. Set the appropriate header options, then click the Reload button to apply to the loaded data.
   • Header Rows - The number of rows at the top of the file that either contain the column header (label) or other header information not to be included in processing.
   • Label Row - This option appears when multiple header rows are indicated. Use this to identify which row number contains the column labels.
   • Preview Rows - the number of rows to display in the browser for preview.
3. Choose output file settings.
   1. Output File extension - choose which file type the completed calculation should be exported as. This can be the same as the input file. The default point file output type is .XLSX.
   2. Save Header - enabling this option will preserve the existing header row displayed in the datagrid in the output file and preview window after processing. If left disabled, the output file and preview will contain the calculated output without the displayed header.
   3. Define Output Filename - Leave this field blank unless you would like to change the name of your output file. If left blank, the input filename will be used as the base of the output filename.

   4. Use the arrow button to switch between adding a Suffix or Prefix:

      • Add Suffix - Use this option to add a suffix to the original file name. Default is "_output".
      • Add Prefix - Use this option to add a Prefix to the original file name. Default is "output_".

      Point File results are automatically downloaded to your computer in the file location determined by your browser settings. The default option is typically the Downloads folder. Consult your browser settings to determine or change this path.

4. Under Transformation Operation Type, choose Conversion.
5. Specify the Source and Target Coordinate systems. If available, the Source coordinate system will populate from the Coordinate Reference System (CRS) information associated with the loaded data file. If needed, you can set the coordinate system manually. Select a coordinat

6. A preview of the loaded data is displayed. Use the Select Column dropdown to assign Input columns in the Datagrid.

• Identify the Input latitude/northing, Input longitude/easting, and Input height (if used). If multiple columns are assigned the same dropdown setting, the first column set in order is the one that is used for input.

• Create and assign columns for Output Latitude/Northing, Output Longitude/Easting, and Output Height (if used). Scale is optional for projected systems. Use the plus button to add additional columns.

  Use the "..." button in the header of each column to rename, change the order of, or add/remove existing columns if needed.

7. Process the file.

• Use the Preview button to view the calculated coordinates in the designated output columns within the Loaded Point File Datagrid.
• Use the Clear button to remove the loaded point data and reset all options.
• Click the Process button to calculate the output coordinates and download the new output file. Values will be read from the input columns for each row in the table, converted, and written to the specified output columns. Files from finished calculations are listed in the Processing Files section. To clear any of the processes listed, use the "x" button to the right.

Point File Forward Calculation

A Forward Calculation is used to compute a new coordinate that is a given distance and azimuth away from a starting coordinate. Forward calculations follow one of three paths: Geodesic (Great Circle), Rhumb Line (constant azimuth), or Grid distance (valid only for projected coordinates).

Forward Calculation requires the following:

• Enter the starting coordinate pair as the source point
• Set the source and target coordinate system (target must be on the same datum as the starting source system)
• Enter the desired distance and azimuth from the starting coordinate
• Choose the line calculation method (Geodesic, Rhumb, or Grid)

How to set up the Point File Forward Calculation:

1. Load a point file by clicking the Open File button. 
2. Set the appropriate header options, then click the Reload button to apply the changes to the loaded data.
   • Header Rows - The number of rows at the top of the file that either contain the column header (label) or other header information not to be included in processing.
   • Label Row - This option appears when multiple header rows are indicated. Use this to identify which row number contains the column labels.
   • Preview Rows - the number of rows to display in the browser for preview.
3. Choose output file settings. 
   1. Output File extension - choose which file type the completed calculation should be exported as. This can be the same as the input file. The default point file output type is .XLSX.
   2. Save Header - enabling this option will preserve the existing header row displayed in the datagrid in the output file and preview window after processing. If left disabled, the output file and preview will contain the calculated output without the displayed header.

   3. Define Output Filename - Leave this field blank unless you would like to change the name of your output file. If left blank, the input filename will be used as the base of the output filename.

      Use the arrow button to switch between adding a Suffix or Prefix:

      • Add Suffix - Use this option to add a suffix to the original file name. The default is "_output".
      • Add Prefix - Use this option to add a Prefix to the original file name. The default is "output_".

      Point File results are automatically downloaded to your computer in the file location determined by your browser settings. The default option is typically the Downloads folder. Consult your browser settings to determine or change this path.

4. Under Transformation Operation Type, choose Forward.

5. Specify the Source and Target Coordinate systems. If available, the Source coordinate system will populate from the Coordinate Reference System (CRS) information associated with the loaded data file. If needed, you can set the coordinate system manually. The source and destination coordinates must be referenced to the same geodetic datum to calculate Forward.
 

6. Set the Method (Geodesic, Rhumb, or Grid) along with distance and azimuth from the starting coordinate.
7. A preview of the loaded data is displayed. Use the Select Column dropdown to assign Input columns in the Datagrid.
   • Identify the columns that contain the Input latitude/northing, Input longitude/easting, and Input Height (if used). If multiple columns are assigned the same dropdown setting, the first column set in order is the one that is used for input.
   • Identify the columns that contain the Input Distance and Input Azimuth.

   • Create and assign columns for Output Latitude/Northing, Longitude/Easting, and Output Height (if used). Scale is optional for projected systems. Use the plus button to add additional columns.

     Use the "..." button in the header of each column to rename, change the order of, or add/remove existing columns if needed.
     

8. Process the file.
   • Use the Preview button to view the calculated coordinates in the designated output columns within the Loaded Point File Datagrid.
   • Use the Clear button to remove the loaded point data and reset all options.
   • Click the Process button to calculate the output coordinates and download the new output file. Values will be read from the input columns for each row in the table, converted, and written to the specified output columns. Files from finished calculations are listed in the Processing Files section. To clear any of the processes listed, use the "x" button to the right.

Point File Inverse Calculation

The Inverse Calculation computes the distance between two known coordinates on the same datum. The result may be calculated using Geodesic, Rhumb, or Grid (valid for projected coordinates only) methods. Both the source and destination points must be referenced to the same geodetic base coordinate system.

Inverse Calculation requires the following:

• Under Transformation, click the Operation Type drop-down and select Inverse.
• Source and Target Coordinate Point Definitions
• Source and Target Point Coordinate systems, both on the same Datum

The Distance, Azimuth, and Back Azimuth will be calculated from those parameters.

How to set up the Point File Inverse Calculation:

1. Load a point file by clicking the Open File button. 
   1. Header Rows - The number of rows at the top of the file that either contain the column header (label) or other header information not to be included in processing.
   2. Label Row - This option appears when multiple header rows are indicated. Use this to identify which row number contains the column labels.
   3. Preview Rows - the number of rows to display in the browser for preview.
2. Set the appropriate header options, then click Refresh to apply the changes to the loaded data.
3. Choose output file settings.
   1. Output File extension - choose which file type the completed calculation should be exported as. This can be the same as the input file. The default point file output type is .XLSX.
   2. Save Header - enabling this option will preserve the existing header row displayed in the datagrid in the output file and preview window after processing. If left disabled, the output file and preview will contain the calculated output without the displayed header.
   3. Define Output Filename - Leave this field blank unless you would like to change the name of your output file. If left blank, the input filename will be used as the base of the output filename.

   4. Use the arrow button to toggle between adding a Suffix or Prefix:

      • Add Suffix - Use this option to add a suffix to the original file name. The default is "_output".
      • Add Prefix - Use this option to add a Prefix to the original file name. The default is "output_".

      Point File results are automatically downloaded to your computer in the file location determined by your browser settings. The default option is typically the Downloads folder. Consult your browser settings to determine or change this path.

4. Under Transformation Operation Type, choose Inverse.
5. Specify the Source and Target Coordinate systems. If available, the Source coordinate system will populate from the Coordinate Reference System (CRS) information associated with the loaded data file. If needed, you can set the coordinate system manually. The source and destination coordinates must be referenced to the same geodetic datum.

6. Set the Method: Geodesic, Rhumb, or Grid.
   
7. A preview of the loaded data is displayed. Use the Select Column dropdown to assign Input columns in the Datagrid.
   • For the first point in each pair, identify the columns that contain the Input latitude/northing, Input longitude/easting, and Input Height (if used). If multiple columns are assigned the same dropdown setting, the first column set in order is the one that is used for input.
   • For the second point in each pair, identify the columns these as the Output Distance and Output Azimuth.
   • Create and assign columns for Distance, Azimuth, and Back Azimuth. Use the plus button to add additional columns. Use the "..." button in the header of each column to rename, change the order of, or add/remove existing columns if needed.
8. Process the file.

• Use the Preview button to view the calculated values in the designated output columns within the Loaded Point File Datagrid.
• Use the Clear button to remove the loaded point data and reset all options.
• Click the Process button to calculate the values and download the new output file. Values will be read from the input columns for each row in the table, converted, and written to the specified output columns. Files from finished calculations are listed in the Processing Files section. To clear any of the processes listed, use the "x" button to the right.