Elevation Profile

The Elevation Profile tool lets you draw a line across your site and see a detailed elevation chart along that path. The interactive SVG chart shows terrain height with a hover crosshair, and the statistics panel reports minimum and maximum elevations, total gain and loss, and horizontal distance.

Activating the Tool

Open the Measurements tab in the site detail floating panel and click the Elevation Profile icon, or press E on your keyboard. The cursor changes to a crosshair.

⚠️ Watch out!

The Elevation Profile tool requires a processed DEM (digital elevation model) for your site. Without a DEM, the tool cannot sample elevation data along the drawn line. Upload and process drone survey data to generate a DEM before using this tool.

Drawing the Profile Line

Click on the map to draw the line along which you want to see the elevation profile:

1. First click — places the starting point of the profile line
2. Subsequent clicks — add waypoints to change direction along the profile
3. Double-click — places the final point and generates the elevation chart

The profile line does not need to be straight. Add intermediate waypoints to follow a road centreline, a pipeline route, or any path where you want to understand the terrain.

💡 Tip

For a quick terrain overview, draw a single straight line across the area of interest by clicking the start point and double-clicking the end point. For more detailed profiles along a specific route, add waypoints at each direction change.

The Elevation Chart

Once the line is drawn, SiteView samples the DEM at regular intervals along the path and renders an interactive SVG elevation chart in the results panel.

Chart Features

• Terrain profile line — a continuous line showing the elevation at each sampled point along the path
• Hover crosshair — move your mouse over the chart to see the exact elevation and distance at any point along the profile
• Vertical axis — elevation in metres (AHD or site datum)
• Horizontal axis — cumulative distance along the profile line from the start point
• Shaded area — the region beneath the profile line is lightly shaded to give visual weight to the terrain shape

The crosshair synchronises with the map — as you hover over a point on the chart, a marker moves along the profile line on the 3D globe showing you exactly where that point is on the ground.

Statistics

The statistics panel alongside the chart displays:

ℹ️ Did you know?

Elevation gain and loss are cumulative values that account for all undulations along the profile, not just the difference between start and end. A profile that goes uphill, downhill, and uphill again will report the total of all climbs as gain and all descents as loss.

Practical Uses

• Route planning — visualise the terrain along a proposed road, pipeline, or cable route to identify steep sections
• Drainage design — check that the ground falls in the right direction for gravity drainage
• Earthworks estimation — understand the terrain shape before calculating cut and fill volumes
• Access road assessment — check the gradient of an existing or proposed haul road
• Terrain understanding — quickly see the lay of the land across a section of the site

Sampling Resolution

SiteView samples the DEM at regular intervals along the profile line. The sampling density is determined by the DEM resolution — higher-resolution DEMs produce more detailed profiles with finer features visible. The chart automatically adjusts its resolution to match the available data.

For long profile lines, the chart may compress the horizontal axis. Zoom into the chart by scrolling or pinching to see detail in specific sections.

Saving the Measurement

Click Save to record the elevation profile. The saved measurement includes the profile line geometry, the elevation chart data, and the statistics. Add a category, notes (such as the proposed route name or chainage reference), and photos. Saved profiles appear in the Measurements tab and can be re-displayed on the map with their chart.

What's Next?

• Gradient / Slope — measure the slope between two points with colour-coded results
• Cross-Section — generate cross-section profiles with design surface overlay
• Measurement Tools Overview — return to the full list of measurement tools