# Voxel Terrain (Processed)

A **Voxel Terrain** entity represents a fully volumetric terrain surface. Unlike mesh-based terrain, this format captures both surface continuity and sub-surface volume, making it ideal for detailed rendering and volumetric analysis—such as detecting changes in terrain over time.

Voxel Terrain entities can be generated from **point clouds** and **heightmaps**, and they may also include **associated Ortho-Imagery**, whether supplied by the user or auto-generated during import.

Generate continuous voxel-based terrain models from point clouds or heightmaps. Supports integration with ortho-imagery and computed normals.  
→ *Ideal for topographic visualization and volume change detection.*

<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" id="bkmrk-" style="text-align: center;">---

</div>**Creating a Voxel Terrain**

1. Navigate to your project’s **Catalog** section.
2. Click **“Add Object”** and select **“Voxel Terrain”** from the menu.

[![image.png](https://help.mystart.com/uploads/images/gallery/2025-03/scaled-1680-/2giimage.png)](https://help.mystart.com/uploads/images/gallery/2025-03/2giimage.png)

 3. Fill in the configuration fields:

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" class="MsoNormalTable" id="bkmrk-field-description-%C2%A0-" style="width: 100%; height: 188.969px;"><thead><tr style="height: 19.7969px;"><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 27.1577%; height: 19.7969px;">**Field**

</td><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 72.7232%; height: 19.7969px;">**Description**

</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr style="height: 19.7969px;"><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 27.1577%; height: 19.7969px;">**Item Name**

</td><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 72.7232%; height: 19.7969px;">A descriptive name for the new terrain entity.

</td></tr><tr style="height: 19.7969px;"><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 27.1577%; height: 19.7969px;">**Source**

</td><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 72.7232%; height: 19.7969px;">Select one or more **Point Cloud** or **Heightmap** entities to be used as the base for the terrain.

</td></tr><tr style="height: 19.7969px;"><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 27.1577%; height: 19.7969px;">**Include** *(Point Cloud only)*

</td><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 72.7232%; height: 19.7969px;">Choose which point classifications to include in the terrain model. By default, all points are used.

</td></tr><tr style="height: 36.5938px;"><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 27.1577%; height: 36.5938px;">**Ortho-Imagery**

</td><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 72.7232%; height: 36.5938px;">Select one or more **Ortho-Imagery** entities to be draped over the terrain. These can be aerial photos or computed textures.

</td></tr><tr style="height: 36.5938px;"><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 27.1577%; height: 36.5938px;">**Detail Recovery – Use Point Cloud Colors**

</td><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 72.7232%; height: 36.5938px;">If selected, the system will use RGB values from point clouds (if available) to generate an Ortho-Imagery set automatically.

</td></tr><tr style="height: 36.5938px;"><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 27.1577%; height: 36.5938px;">**Detail Recovery – Generate Terrain Normals**

</td><td style="padding: 0.75pt; width: 72.7232%; height: 36.5938px;">Requests the system to generate a high-frequency elevation detail set in the form of a **normal map**, enhancing terrain realism.

</td></tr></tbody></table>

**Finalizing and Viewing**

- Click **“Create”** to start the voxelization and processing workflow.
- Progress can be monitored in the project’s **“Pending”** section.

Once processing is complete:

- Click **“View”** next to the Voxel Terrain entity in the **Catalog** to open it directly.
- Alternatively, create a **View** entity and set the Voxel Terrain as its source to include it in a broader visualization.