GMS:3D Mesh Tool Palette
The following tools are contained in the dynamic portion of the Tool Palette when the 3D Mesh Module is active. Only one tool is active at any given time. The action that takes place when the user clicks in the Graphics Window depends on the current tool. The following table describes the tools in the 3D Mesh tool palette.
| Tool | Tool Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| File:Tool SelectBoundaryNodes.png | Select Boundary Nodes | The Select Boundary Nodes tool is similar in function to the Select Nodes tool except that it selects only nodes that are on the boundary of the mesh. This tool is useful when assigning nodal boundary conditions.
All of the standard multi-selection techniques are available with this tool. In addition, if the Control key is depressed when a selection is made, all nodes on the same "side" of the mesh as the selected node are automatically selected. This option is useful when the same boundary condition is to be assigned to all nodes on the selected mesh side. The extent of the selected "side" is determined by feature breaks on the exterior of the mesh. If the angle between two adjacent element faces on the mesh is sharp, the common edge of the faces is assumed to be a feature break and is the boundary of a mesh side. |
| File:Tool SelectBoundaryFaces.png | Select Boundary Faces | The Select Boundary Faces tool is similar in function to the Select Boundary Nodes tool except that it selects faces of elements on the boundary of the mesh. This tool is useful when assigning flux type boundary conditions.
All of the standard multi-selection techniques are available with this tool. In addition, if the Control key is depressed when a selection is made, all element faces on the same "side" of the mesh as the selected face are automatically selected. This option is useful when the same boundary condition is to be assigned to all faces on the selected mesh side. The extent of the selected "side" is determined by feature breaks on the exterior of the mesh. If the angle between two adjacent element faces on the mesh is sharp, the common edge of the faces is assumed to be a feature break and is the boundary of a mesh side. |
| File:Tool SelectMaterialZones.png | Select Material Zones | The Select Material Zones tool is used to select all elements of the mesh that have the same material type. This tool is useful for hiding or isolating zones in the mesh corresponding to a material type. When this tool is active, an icon appears on the mesh display for each of the material types. A material zone is selected by selecting the icon. |
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Select Elements | The Select Elements tool is used to select individual elements. Elements are typically selected for hiding, or for changing the material type associated with the element. Multi-selection can be performed by holding down the Shift key while selecting or by dragging a rectangle to enclose the elements to be selected. The ID of the selected element is displayed in the Edit Window.
Only visible elements can be selected. Elements which have been hidden cannot be selected. Hidden elements can be made visible by selecting the Show command in the Display menu. When selecting elements by dragging a box, all elements that lie within the box are selected. When selecting elements by clicking on individual elements with the cursor, only elements on the exterior of the visible portion of the mesh are selected. Elements in the interior of the mesh can be selected individually by first hiding the elements surrounding the elements to be selected. An element can also be selected by using the Find Element command in the Mesh menu user is prompted for an element ID and the element is selected. Any previously selected elements are unselected. |
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Select Nodes | The Select Nodes tool is used to select individual nodes for editing. Multi-selection can be performed by holding down the Shift key while selecting or by dragging a rectangle to enclose the nodes to be selected.
The ID of the selected node is displayed in the Edit Window. The coordinates of the selected node are also displayed in the Edit Window and can be edited by typing in new coordinates and selecting the TAB or Return key. Nodal coordinates can also be edited by dragging a node using the Select Nodes tool. When in plan view, nodes can be dragged in the XY plane. In any other view, nodes are constrained to move along the Z axis when they are being dragged. Since it is possible to accidentally drag points, nodes can be "locked" to prevent them from being dragged by selecting the Lock All Nodes command from the Mesh menu. The nodes can be unlocked by selecting Unlock All Nodes from the Mesh menu. A node can also be selected by using the Find Node command in the Mesh menu. The user is prompted for a node ID and the node is selected. Any previously selected nodes are unselected. |
| File:Tool SelectVertexString.png | Select Node Strings | The Select Node Strings tool is used to select one or more strings of nodes. Node strings are used for operations such as adding breaklines to the mesh.
The procedure for selecting node strings is somewhat different than the normal selection procedure. Strings are selected as follows:
To remove the last node from a string, press the Backspace key. To abort entering a node string, press the ESC key. To end a node string, press Return or double-click on the last node in the string. Another node string can then be selected. |
| File:Tool SelectWells.png | Select Wells | The Select Wells tool is used to select nodes which have a well (point source/sink) type boundary condition assigned to them. Since wells are often assigned to nodes in the interior of the mesh, it may be difficult to select the node that a well has been assigned to using the Select Nodes tool due to the large number of nodes in a mesh. This tool makes this type of selection easier since only well nodes can be selected when the tool is active. |
| File:Tool SelectCrossSection.png | Select Cross Sections | Once a set of cross sections has been created, they can be selected using the Select Cross Sections tool. Selected cross sections can be deleted, or they can be made visible or invisible using the Hide and Show commands.
When this tool is active, a cross section icon appears on each cross section. A cross section is selected by selecting the icon. When a different tool is selected, the icons disappear. When there are several cross sections, it is often easier to differentiate cross section icons in plan view (assuming the cross sections were created in plan view). As a general rule the icons are placed in the center of the first line segment used to cut the cross section. |
| File:Tool SelectParticleStartingLoc.png | Select Particle Starting Locations | Particle starting locations, used in particle tracking, can be selected with the Select Particle Starting Locations tool. Selected particles can be deleted. Statistical information for the selected particles, such as the path length and time, is displayed in the status bar. |
| File:Tool CreateCrossSection.png | Create Cross Section | Cross sections can be created from a 3D mesh using the Make Cross Section tool. Cross sections are formed when the user enters a polyline. A polyline is entered by clicking on several points and double-clicking on the final point when the line is finished. The Delete or Backspace key may be used to remove a point from the polyline, and the ESC key can be used to abort the process. A cross section or fence diagram is then computed by cutting perpendicular to the current viewing orientation through the currently visible elements of the mesh. While most cross sections are created with the mesh in plan view, any viewing orientation can be specified.
Once cross sections are created, they can be deleted, hidden, or shown using the Select Cross Sections tool. Datasets are automatically interpolated from the 3D mesh to the cross sections for generation of contour and color fringe plots. |
| File:Tool DefineTetrahedron.png | Define Tetrahedron | Four tools are provided for interactively creating the four types of elements supported in GMS. While it is not practical to create an entire mesh with these tools, they are often useful for editing an existing mesh. The following steps are taken to construct individual elements:
If the wrong node is selected, hitting the Delete or Backspace key backs the process up by one node. Hitting the ESCAPE key aborts the entire process. |
| File:Tool DefinePyramidElement.png | Define Pyramid Element | |
| File:Tool DefineWedgeElement.png | Define Wedge Element | |
| File:Tool DefineHexahedronElement.png | Define Hexahedron Element |
| GMS – Groundwater Modeling System | ||
|---|---|---|
| Modules: | 2D Grid • 2D Mesh • 2D Scatter Point • 3D Grid • 3D Mesh • 3D Scatter Point • Boreholes • GIS • Map • Solid • TINs • UGrids |  |
| Models: | FEFLOW • FEMWATER • HydroGeoSphere • MODAEM • MODFLOW • MODPATH • mod-PATH3DU • MT3DMS • MT3D-USGS • PEST • PHT3D • RT3D • SEAM3D • SEAWAT • SEEP2D • T-PROGS • ZONEBUDGET | |
| Aquaveo | ||
