Fill not removing peaks

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6
08-20-2019 06:25 AM
ScottWagoner
New Contributor III

I have a high resolution DEM scanned from mobile LiDAR.  From this I need to create 3D curbs.  The problem is, where the curbs are, there are peaks of data (Could have been a small bush, car, bug)  After some research, the Fill tool seemed to be the most promising.  I ran it, but my DEM never seemed to change:

Orginal DEM:

Orginal DEM

After running Fill:

Fill Spike

As you can see they are pretty much identical.  I ran the Fill tool with Z values left blank, and with Z values filled it.  Both ways kept the data the same.  The Filled DEM and the Original both have the same elevation.

Am I running the tool wrong?  What would be the best way to remove the peaks and smooth out the DEM?

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6 Replies
DanPatterson_Retired
MVP Emeritus

Fill, fills depressions, it doesn't remove peaks unless you invert the dem

Fill—Help | ArcGIS Desktop 

To get rid of your sample peak would probably require several runs of a Focal Mean or Focal Minimum

ScottWagoner
New Contributor III

Thanks for the reply, I was under the impression that it did both, fill and smooth.  I will mess around with the Focal Mean tool and see what comes from it.

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DanPatterson_Retired
MVP Emeritus

Scott, your peak isn't a spurious cell of elevated elevation, it has a pretty substantial areal coverage so it wouldn't be a sudden change in the localized trend

How Fill works—Help | ArcGIS Desktop 

ScottWagoner
New Contributor III

Since it looks like I won't be able to get rid of the peaks, is there a way to smooth the curb without reshaping it, bit by bit?

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DanPatterson_Retired
MVP Emeritus

Can you think your points first? it may be a case where less is more

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by Anonymous User
Not applicable

Hi Scott,

Not sure if you have access to ArcGIS Pro 2.4.1, but Pixel Editor was included with that release. That would offer a manual method of fixing the bumps, especially if there aren't very many:

Pixel Editor in ArcGIS Pro—ArcGIS Pro | ArcGIS Desktop 

Best,

Lauren

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