Creating mapped fields from point cloud data

Open the Create Mapped Field dialog box using one of the following methods:
- From the main menu bar, select ToolsAnalytical FieldCreate.
  Tip: You can also click Create in the Analytical Field Manager.
- From the interaction editor in the Interaction module, click next to the Definition or Emissivity distribution field.
- From the load or predefined field editor in the Load module, click next to the Distribution field.
Choose Mapped field as the Type, and click Continue.
In the Name text field, enter a name for the mapped field. For information on naming objects, see Using basic dialog box components. In the Description text field, enter a description for the mapped field.
Choose Point cloud as the Data source to import point cloud data files that you have generated from another CAE application. These files must contain your field values and coordinates in either XYZ format or Grid format, as described in Point cloud data file formats for mapping.
For a point cloud data source you can optionally assign a local coordinate system to the source data region to simplify the three-dimensional definition of points in space. Click and use one of the following methods:
- Select an existing datum coordinate system in the viewport.
- Select an existing datum coordinate system by name.
  1. From the prompt area, click Datum CSYS List to display a list of datum coordinate systems.
  2. Select a name from the list, and click OK.
- Click Use Global CSYS from the prompt area to revert to the global coordinate system.
Click to create a new datum coordinate system.
When you assign a local coordinate system, the source data coordinates will be defined in that coordinate system, which is an assembly-level (not part-level) coordinate system. See Coordinate system for point cloud mapped fields, for more information.
If desired, toggle on Supplied data are defined in part space to indicate that the source data and its local coordinate system are both defined in the part-level coordinate system of the target model region.
If desired, choose one of the following to enter a Scale factor and to scale the source data coordinates; for example, to account for a mismatch of units (i.e., meters to millimeters):
- Choose Uniform, and enter a single scale factor.
- Choose Nonuniform, and enter a scale factor for the X-, Y-, and Z-coordinates.
Enter a value for Default unmapped field value, or accept the default of zero. Abaqus/CAE assigns this value at any target points for which it cannot find a source point from which to map. See Search controls for mapped fields.
On the Point Data tabbed page, choose one of the following as the data format:
- Choose XYZ if your data file contains rectangular X-, Y-, and Z-coordinates with corresponding field values. See XYZ format, for details about this format. Click to browse and select your data file to import. For more information about reading data from a file, see Entering tabular data.
  
  If your local coordinate system is cylindrical or spherical rather than rectangular, Abaqus/CAE expects your data file to contain the appropriate coordinate types. See Coordinate system for point cloud mapped fields.
- Choose Grid if your data files contain field values defined in a three-dimensional grid of points. See Grid format, for details about this format.
  
  In the Field Data table, specify the planes and then import the field values as follows:
  1. Select the grid plane in which your data are organized, such as XY, YZ, XZ, YX, ZY, or ZX for a rectangular coordinate system.
  2. Click to add a plane in the left frame. Enter the plane height, click OK, and enter the field values in the table or click to import from a file. For example, add a plane at Z=2 and then import the field values at various X- and Y-coordinates within this plane.
  3. Repeat for other plane heights within the same grid plane; for example, at Z=3, Z=4, etc.
    
    You can use the following editing tools in the Data Values table:
    
    Add Plane
    
    Edit Plane
    
    Copy Plane
    
    Delete Plane
  For more information about reading data from a file, see Entering tabular data.
On the Mapper Controls tabbed page, you can adjust the search tolerance parameters. See Search controls for mapped fields.
Click OK to create the mapped field and to close the dialog box.

When you later apply a load, interaction, or predefined field using a mapped field, you can display symbols in the viewport to visualize the locations and magnitudes of the field values. However, you must mesh the model first to be able to see these symbols.