Terrain Analytics
DroneDB provides a set of tools for analysing elevation data — DEMs, DSMs, and DTMs — directly in the CLI and in Hub. No GIS software required.
Contour lines
Generate GeoJSON contour lines from any single-band elevation raster:
ddb contour dem.tif -o contours.geojson
Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
-i, --interval | Contour interval in raster units (default: auto) |
-n, --count | Number of contour levels (alternative to --interval) |
-b, --base | Base offset for the first contour level |
--min | Ignore values below this threshold |
--max | Ignore values above this threshold |
-t, --tolerance | Douglas-Peucker simplification tolerance (0 = disabled) |
--band | Band index (1-based, default: 1) |
-o, --output | Output GeoJSON path |
Examples
# Contours every 10 m, simplified to 1 m
ddb contour dem.tif -o contours.geojson -i 10 -t 1
# 20 evenly spaced levels
ddb contour dem.tif -o contours.geojson -n 20
# Clip to a specific range before contouring
ddb contour dem.tif -o contours.geojson -i 5 --min 0 --max 200
In Hub, open a DEM dataset, click the Contour Lines toolbar button, adjust the interval and smoothing, and the contours are overlaid on the map interactively.
Stockpile detection & volume
Auto-detecting stockpiles
Click anywhere on a DEM in Hub to detect the nearest stockpile footprint. The result is a GeoJSON polygon with a volume estimate and a confidence score. You can also scan the entire DEM to return all detected stockpiles sorted by estimated volume.
Volume calculation
For any polygon region on a DEM, DroneDB computes:
| Value | Description |
|---|---|
| Cut volume | Material above the base plane (to be removed) |
| Fill volume | Material below the base plane (void to be filled) |
| Net volume | Cut minus fill |
| 2D area | Projected horizontal area of the polygon |
| 3D area | Surface area of the terrain within the polygon |
Base plane methods
| Method | Description |
|---|---|
lowest_perimeter | Lowest elevation point on the polygon boundary |
average_perimeter | Mean elevation of the polygon boundary |
best_fit | Least-squares plane fitted to the boundary points |
flat | Horizontal plane at the minimum elevation |
In Hub, open a DEM dataset, click the Stockpile Volume toolbar button, then:
- Click to auto-detect the stockpile under the cursor
- Draw polygon to manually define the area
- Scan all to detect every stockpile in the DEM at once
The results panel shows cut, fill, net, 2D area, and 3D area.
Elevation profile
Sample a raster along a line to plot an elevation or value chart.
In Hub, click the Raster Profile toolbar button, draw a line across the DEM, and an equispaced chart of elevation vs. distance is shown.
Raster Profile, Contour Lines, and Stockpile Volume work on any single-band raster — DEMs, DSMs, DTMs, and single-band thermal GeoTIFFs.