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Error connecting to HEC RAS-generated .sdf file?

9 REPLIES 9
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Message 1 of 10
ltmullen
2227 Views, 9 Replies

Error connecting to HEC RAS-generated .sdf file?

I guess this could have easily been posted on the Map 3D page instead, but I'll post it here since it's a civil engineering "thing."

 

I have a HEC RAS model which I ran a steady flow simulation on, and then I tried to use the GIS Export button to get a .sdf file. When I tried to connect to the .sdf file in Civil 3D, I got these errors:

 

Failed to connect.

Failed to open FDO connection.

File is not an SDF file, or is an SDF file with an unsupported version.

An error occurred during SDF database access.

 

I played around with the settings I chose when I exported in HEC RAS and couldn't get any different results. Anyone know what might be going on? Thanks for any help in advance!

9 REPLIES 9
Message 2 of 10
Murph_Map
in reply to: ltmullen

The HEC_RAS sdf file format is a different format than the SDF used in Map3D or GIS. You will need to export it to shp file formats if you want to use it in anything other than Civ3D.

 

Murph
Supporting the troops daily.
Message 3 of 10
ltmullen
in reply to: Murph_Map

Are you saying that HEC RAS can export to a .shp? If so, how?

Message 4 of 10
Matt.Anderson
in reply to: ltmullen

On the Insert ribbon, Import tab, below the fold, select Import HEC-RAS.

 

This command reads the USACE HEC-RAS SDF file format to import reach, and profiles contained in the SDF.

Matthew Anderson, PE CFM
Product Manager
Autodesk (Innovyze)
Message 5 of 10
ltmullen
in reply to: Matt.Anderson

Know of any way to get this method to import the water surface extents as well? That's really what I'm looking for.

Message 6 of 10
Wilbers2013
in reply to: ltmullen

Generate the required layers with floodplain mapping, right click on the generated layer and select Save Layer As...  You can save the layer as a shapefile and import it back into Civil 3D with MAPIMPORT.

 

Hecras export.png

Willie Wilbers
AutoCAD & Civil 3D 2014
ArcGIS 10.1
Message 7 of 10
ltmullen
in reply to: Wilbers2013

I don't know how to get the results layer to show up on RAS Mapper.

 

Is it because I need to have a terrain layer? If so, I don't get that...why isn't the cross-sectional data sufficient?

Message 8 of 10
Wilbers2013
in reply to: ltmullen

You need the terrain file to generate the water surface elevation.  We use ArcGIS to create the flt file needed for the terrain.  I think the cross-sectional data is used to generate a water level at the cross-section and the terrain file is used to interpolate betrween the cross-sections.

Willie Wilbers
AutoCAD & Civil 3D 2014
ArcGIS 10.1
Message 9 of 10
ltmullen
in reply to: Wilbers2013

OK, thanks.

 

I was able to finally get a .flt file through a workaround (http://au.autodesk.com/au-online/classes-on-demand/class-catalog/2011/autocad-civil-3d/floating-away...). Basically the workaround is to export an existing ground surface from Civil 3D to a GEOTIFF by right clicking on the surface in the Prospector and selecting "Export to DEM," then specifying GEOTIFF as the file type in the dialog box that pops up when you click the "Dem file name" field. Then you can convert the GEOTIFF to a .flt using a free open-source program called SAGA, and after some edits to the header file associated with the .flt file (specified in the video found via the link), you've got a working .flt file that you can use to generate a terrain layer in HEC-RAS.

 

When I first tried this process I kept getting stuck at the step of exporting the surface to a GEOTIFF in Civil 3D...it seems that the surface I tried to export at first was too large, and when I used a smaller surface, it worked. I posted about my issue (and my realization of what the problem seemed to be) here: http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/AutoCAD-Civil-3D-General/HEC-RAS-Civil-3D-Connection-Floodplain-Mappin.... I think I'm good for now for the project I'm working on because I was able to make a surface that was small enough to be exported yet still large enough to be bigger than the floodplain I got for my current analysis in HEC-RAS, but if I was dealing with analyzing a portion of a river that was long enough, it seems that the surface size limit for exportation could be a problem...does anyone know of a way to patch two GEOTIFFs or two .flt files together?

Message 10 of 10
ltmullen
in reply to: ltmullen

Also, just for curiosity's sake and for the sake of the original question of the thread, is there a way to show the floodplain/water surface in Civil 3D using the .sdf file that HEC-RAS exports after executing the "Export GIS Data" command in the "File" menu?

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