This page describes the point cloud viewer in Aura Cloud. It covers the controls, side bar, and modals used to view, configure, share, and download a point cloud. For navigating projects and folders, see Aura Cloud projects view. For account and company settings, see Aura Cloud account and settings.
Some viewer controls only appear when the point cloud contains the relevant data. For example, the Show 360° panos toggle and the photo dome markers appear only when the scan includes 360 image data; the Accuracy download appears only for georeferenced scans. Conditional behavior is noted in the relevant sections.
Point cloud viewer
Purpose
The point cloud viewer opens when a point cloud is selected. It displays the scan in 3D and provides controls for navigating, configuring the view, and viewing keyboard shortcuts.
The viewer has a side bar on the left for appearance, download, and settings options, a small toolbar in the top-right of the canvas, and an orientation cube in the top-right of the canvas. The viewer canvas itself fills the rest of the screen. For the full set of mouse and keyboard interactions for moving around inside a scan, see the linked Related actions.
Layout
Elements
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Point cloud viewer side bar | Side bar | Appearance, download, and settings options for the open point cloud, organized under three tabs. | |
2 | Point cloud | Render | The scan rendered in 3D, filling the viewer canvas. | Appearance is set in the Appearance tab. See Appearance tab. |
3 | Reference grid | Indicator | A grid overlaid on the ground plane to help gauge scale and orientation. | Shown or hidden by Show grid in the Settings tab. See Settings tab. |
4 | Navigation target | Indicator | A red, green, and blue axis marker placed by double-clicking a surface in the point cloud. The camera orbits around the navigation target. | |
5 | Collapse sidebar | Button | Collapses the side bar to give more room to the viewer canvas. | Shown as a panel icon in the top-right of the canvas. |
6 | Fit to view | Button | Resets the camera to the default view, fitting the whole point cloud in the canvas. | Shown as a home icon in the top-right of the canvas. |
7 | Orientation cube | Indicator | Shows the current camera orientation. Click a face to snap to that view. | See Orientation cube. |
8 | Photo dome | Marker | A captured 360° panorama location. Double-click to enter the 360° panorama. | Only present when the scan includes 360 image data. See 360° panoramas. |
Camera view mode, camera control mode, rendering, performance, and keyboard shortcuts are set in the side bar Settings tab. See Settings tab.
Keyboard shortcuts
Keyboard shortcuts are listed in the Settings tab, under the Keyboard Shortcuts section. They are grouped into Movement and Panning, and a Reset to defaults button restores the default key assignments.
Movement
Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
Forward |
|
Backwards |
|
Left |
|
Right |
|
Panning
Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
Increase elevation |
|
Decrease elevation |
|
Rotate right |
|
Rotate left |
|
Rotate up |
|
Rotate down |
|
Select Reset to defaults to restore the default key assignments.
Related actions
Point cloud viewer side bar
Purpose
The point cloud viewer side bar provides appearance, download, and settings options for the open point cloud. It is visible on the left of the point cloud viewer.
The side bar has a header with the point cloud name and the Download and Share buttons, and three tabs: Appearance, Download, and Settings. Each tab is organized into collapsible sections. Some controls only appear when the point cloud contains the relevant data. For example, the Show 360° panos toggle appears only when the scan includes 360 image data, and the Color by options change based on what is recorded in the scan.
Layout
Elements
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Back | Button | Returns to the project view. | Shown as a back arrow next to the point cloud name. |
2 | Point cloud name | Header | The name of the open point cloud. | |
3 | Download | Button | Opens the Download menu. | See Download menu. |
4 | Share | Button | Opens the Share point cloud modal. | See Share point cloud. |
5 | Appearance | Tab | Controls how the point cloud looks, grouped into Color, Modes, Clipping planes, and Points sections. | See Appearance tab. |
6 | Download | Tab | File downloads available for the point cloud. | See Download tab. |
7 | Settings | Tab | Camera, rendering, performance, and keyboard shortcut settings for the viewer. | See Settings tab. |
Appearance tab
The Appearance tab controls how the point cloud is rendered in the viewer canvas. It is organized into collapsible sections: Color, Modes, Clipping planes, and Points. Available controls depend on the data recorded in the scan.
Color
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Color by | Dropdown | Sets the attribute used to color points, such as Elevation (height relative to the lowest point). The options shown depend on the data recorded in the scan. | See Color by options. |
2 | Color ramp | Dropdown | Sets the gradient applied to the selected attribute, such as Primary (bold, high contrast for presentations and screenshots). A reset button returns it to the default. | See Color ramp options. |
3 | Min and Max | Fields | Set the value range the color ramp is mapped across. | Shown below the ramp gradient. |
Modes
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Show 360° panos | Toggle | When on, shows photo dome markers in the viewer canvas. | Only available when the scan includes 360 image data. |
2 | Point opacity | Slider | Fades the point cloud to reveal the panorama behind it. Range is 0 to 100%. | Default is 100%. |
Clipping planes
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Near clipping plane | Toggle and slider | When on, hides points in front of the camera to see through walls and floors. The Clipping value sets the distance. | |
2 | Far clipping plane | Toggle and slider | When on, hides distant points to focus on what is nearby. The Clipping value sets the distance. |
Points
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Shape | Toggle group | Sets the shape of each point. Circle blends points smoothly; Square defines edges more sharply. | Circle is the default. |
2 | Size | Slider | Sets the point size. Use a smaller size for detail work, or a larger size for visibility from a distance. | |
3 | Eye Dome Lighting | Toggle | When on, adds shading that makes edges and depth easier to see. |
Color by options
The Color by dropdown sets how points are colored. The available options depend on the data recorded in the scan.
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Elevation | Menu item | Colors points by their height. Uses the selected color ramp. | |
2 | Solid | Menu item | Colors all points the same color, picked from the color picker. | |
3 | Intensity | Menu item | Colors points by LiDAR return intensity. Uses the selected color ramp. | |
4 | Time | Menu item | Colors points by the time they were captured. Uses the selected color ramp. | |
5 | Range | Menu item | Colors points by their distance from the scanner. Uses the selected color ramp. | |
6 | Position | Menu item | Colors points by their position. Uses the selected color ramp. | |
7 | Color | Menu item | Colors points using camera color data captured during the scan. | Only available for colorized point clouds. |
Color ramp options
The Color ramp dropdown sets the gradient used for scalar color options such as Elevation, Intensity, Time, Range, and Position. A reset button next to the dropdown returns it to the default.
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Emesent | Menu item | Emesent-branded gradient. | |
2 | Warm | Menu item | Warm gradient (yellow to red). | |
3 | Primary | Menu item | Bold, high-contrast gradient for presentations and screenshots. | Default. |
4 | Gray | Menu item | Grayscale gradient. | |
5 | Sienna | Menu item | Sienna gradient. | |
6 | Viridis | Menu item | Viridis gradient (perceptually uniform). | |
7 | Inferno | Menu item | Inferno gradient (black to yellow). | |
8 | Plasma | Menu item | Plasma gradient. | |
9 | Magma | Menu item | Magma gradient. | |
10 | Rainbow | Menu item | Full-spectrum rainbow gradient. |
Download tab
The Download tab lists the files available for download from the point cloud. Available files depend on the data recorded in the scan.
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Point Cloud | Section | Section heading for the point cloud file download. | |
2 | LAZ | File row | The point cloud file in LAZ format. Shows the file size. Select the download icon to download. | |
3 | Accuracy | Section | Section heading for accuracy file downloads. | Only available for georeferenced scans. |
4 | RTK_FIT_METRICS | File row | RTK fit metrics file. Shows the file size. Select the download icon to download. | Only available for georeferenced scans. |
5 | Images | Section | Section heading for image downloads. | Only available when the scan includes 360 image data. |
6 | Download All | Button | Downloads all images as a zip file. | Only available when the scan includes 360 image data. |
7 | Image row | File row | An individual image. Shows the frame name, format badge, and file size. Select the download icon to download. | Only available when the scan includes 360 image data. |
Share point cloud
Purpose
The Share point cloud modal generates a public link for sharing the point cloud with people outside the team. It opens from the Share button in the point cloud viewer side bar.
The modal title shows the point cloud name, for example Share Road Survey: Bozeman.
Layout
Elements
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Modal title | Header | Shows the point cloud name in the format Share <name>. | |
2 | Description | Text | Reads: Send the point cloud to anyone outside your team by copying the link below. | |
3 | Enable public access | Toggle | When on, generates a public link to the point cloud and shows the link below. | Off by default. |
4 | Share link | Read-only field | The generated public link to the point cloud. | Only shown when Enable public access is on. |
5 | Copy link | Button | Copies the share link to the clipboard and indicates the link has been copied. | Only shown when Enable public access is on. |
6 | Close | Button | Closes the modal. | Shown as an X in the top-right of the modal. |
Download menu
Purpose
The Download menu provides shortcuts for downloading the point cloud or its associated images. It opens from the Download button in the point cloud viewer side bar.
Selecting an option starts the download. A progress notification appears while the download runs, followed by a success notification when it completes.
Layout
Elements
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Download .laz | Menu item | Downloads the point cloud as a LAZ file. | |
2 | Download Images | Menu item | Downloads all images as a zip file. | Only available when the scan includes 360 image data. |
360° panoramas
Purpose
A photo dome marks the location of a captured 360° panorama inside a point cloud. Photo domes appear as small blue 3D disks with the Emesent logo, placed at the location each panorama was captured during the scan.
Photo domes are only present in scans that include 360 image data. Use the Show 360° panos toggle in the Appearance tab to show or hide them. For the full walkthrough, see Use 360° panoramas.
Layout
Elements
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Photo dome | Marker | A captured 360° panorama location. Double-click the photo dome to enter the 360° panorama. | Shown as a small blue 3D disk with the Emesent logo in the viewer canvas. |
Orientation cube
Purpose
The orientation cube indicates the current camera orientation in the point cloud viewer. It is displayed in the top-right of the viewer canvas and rotates as the camera moves.
Each face of the cube is labeled with a view direction. Click a face to snap the camera to that view. This is an alternative to the keyboard shortcuts in the Settings tab.
Layout
Elements
# | Element | Type | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Front | Cube face | Snaps the camera to the front view. | |
2 | Back | Cube face | Snaps the camera to the back view. | Available in Perspective camera view mode only. |
3 | Left | Cube face | Snaps the camera to the left view. | |
4 | Right | Cube face | Snaps the camera to the right view. | Available in Perspective camera view mode only. |
5 | Top | Cube face | Snaps the camera to the top view. | |
6 | Bottom | Cube face | Snaps the camera to the bottom view. | Available in Perspective camera view mode only. |