Spectra Precision FAST Survey Reference Manual - Manual (Page 238)

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Utilities
Road Utilities
includes necessary routines to convert centerlines, profiles and cross sections from other formats to the
formats used by FAST Survey. FAST Survey uses ASCII file formats for centerlines (“.cl” files), profiles (“.pro” files)
and cross sections (“.sct” files).
Road Utilities will also scale up or down centerlines and profiles, usually to convert between metric and English units.
In addition, Road Utilities includes a command for entering a superelevation file (“.sup”). This file can serve as an
optional input file and react with templates in commands such as Stake Road, Slope Staking and Elevation Difference
. Road Utilities has an option for a Template Series file (".tsf" file). This file will transition from one template to
another automatically between designated stations, as long as the templates share identical IDs. The Template Series
file can be substituted for a standard template file in Slope Staking and Stake Road, wherever design files are applied.
Finally, a "Template Grade Table" can be entered in Road Utilities, which designates slopes and offsets that apply left
and right of centerline for any road segment, between which a proportional grade and lane width transition is calculated.
Template Series files and Template Grade Tables are alternate methods of transitioning roads of variable width or slope
and should not be used in combination in the same station range.
File Conversion and LandXML:
The LandXML file format is becoming an encouraged standard of many
departments of transportation (DOTs). This standard is also recommended by Autodesk, Bentley and Carlson.
LandXML files have an “.xml” extension and may contain multiple road design files including centerlines, profiles, and
cross sections. The “header” lines within the “.xml” file will indicate what design files are included. In some cases,
several files of the same type, such as three or four centerlines or profiles, may appear in the same LandXML file. As
more and more software companies offer LandXML file output, this file type may become the preferred form of data
exchange. Be aware that each company tends to implement the LandXML format in slightly different ways, much like
DXF files for drawing data exchange were sometimes slightly different in format between Autodesk and Microstation,
or from release to release. Therefore, if a LandXML file containing centerlines, profiles or cross section files fails to
convert, it is recommended that the file be emailed to Ashtech so changes can be made in FAST Survey to enable