Place Gutter
Place Gutter is used to define the following hydraulic characteristics of a drainage network:
The feature definition used in this command determines whether the hydraulic definition of the gutter comes from the physical model of the road surface or not.
When the tool is started there is a check made to determine if Analytic View is turned on. The analytic view needs to be toggled on if you want to be able to see and pick a graphic for the gutter.
When the command starts:
- Pull and Segment Length - used to define a curved gutter layout by applying a deflection at each joint.
- Method - Between Nodes, or Using Trace Slope. If Between Nodes is selected, pick the start and stop nodes, and the gutter element is created between them. By default this is in a straight line, although bend points and curves can be added if required. If Using Trace Slope is selected, and the catch basins that you want to place the gutter between use a terrain model for the Elevation Reference, then pick the start (upstream) node. A downstream flow trace technique is used to find the location of the stop (downstream) node. The points along the path are stored in the geometry of the gutter.
- Slope - user defined slope along the conduit.
- Feature Definition - Defines the feature definition to be assigned to the new gutter.
- Description - A feature definition can contain multiple definitions for size. The available, defined dimensional variations are available here.
The feature definition used for the gutter layout can define:
- A specific cross-sectional shape of the gutter - either user-defined, or from a catalog.
- State that the gutter shape is to match the settings for the gutter in the start or stop node.
- State that the gutter shape should be determined from the terrain model of the road surface.
These settings are available in the Hydraulic Prototype for the gutter feature definition.
If catch basins are located at the edge of a road surface, and their elevation is determined from a terrain model, then you would normally use the "Using Trace Slope" method, and set the Hydraulic Prototype for the gutter feature definition so that the Gutter Type is set to "Use Gutter Sections."
The advantages of this technique are:
- The plan geometry of the gutter reflects the terrain model, which is useful where smaller radii are found, such as at a junction.
- The longitudinal slope between each pair of gutter sections is used in the calculations to determine spread width and depth.
- If either the start or stop nodes (catch basins) are moved, the gutter geometry is updated.
- Variations in gutter shape, (example, superelevation changes along the length of the gutter), are reflected in the gutter sections, and the spread width and depth that is calculated at each section.
There are still situations where the Between Nodes method is appropriate, such as, when you need to place a gutter between two catch basins that are on opposite sides of a road. Similarly, deriving gutter sections from a terrain model will not always be appropriate.
The settings for how gutter sections are determined can be found under Tools > Project Tools > Gutter Section Settings.
Refer to Gutter Section Viewer Dialog for more information.