Filtering, Conversion, and Geometric Operations

Process point clouds with filtering, conversion, meshing, transformation, and geometric model fitting

Use Lidar Toolbox™ functions to transform raw point cloud data into a format that is easier to analyze. You can apply filtering algorithms, including downsampling and denoising, convert point cloud data into a surface mesh and digital elevation model (DEM), and fit geometric models, such as planes and cuboids, to point cloud data.

You can also interactively visualize, process, and analyze point cloud data using the Lidar Viewer app. For more information, see Get Started with Lidar Viewer.

Apps

Lidar ViewerVisualize and analyze lidar data (Since R2021b)

Functions

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pcdownsampleDownsample 3-D point cloud
pcdenoiseRemove noise from 3-D point cloud
pcmedianApply median filter to point cloud coordinates along each axis (Since R2020b)
removeInvalidPointsRemove invalid points from point cloud
removeHiddenPointsRemove hidden points from point cloud (Since R2023a)
findNearestNeighborsFind nearest neighbors of query points in point cloud
findNeighborsInRadiusFind neighbors within radius for query points in point cloud
findPointsInROIFind points within a region of interest in the point cloud
findPointsInCylinderFind points within a cylindrical region in a point cloud (Since R2023a)
pcnormalsEstimate normals for point cloud
pcorganizeConvert 3-D point cloud into organized point cloud (Since R2021b)
pc2demCreate digital elevation model (DEM) of point cloud data (Since R2021b)
pc2scanConvert 3-D point cloud into 2-D lidar scan (Since R2022a)
pc2surfacemeshConstruct surface mesh from 3-D point cloud (Since R2022b)
mesh2pcCreate point cloud from surface mesh (Since R2024b)
pcfromdepthConvert depth image to point cloud (Since R2022b)
pcbinSpatially bin point cloud points
pcalignAlign array of point clouds (Since R2020b)
pcmergeMerge two 3-D point clouds
pccatConcatenate 3-D point cloud array (Since R2020b)
pcfitplaneFit plane to 3-D point cloud
planeModelObject for storing parametric plane model
pcfitcuboidFit cuboid to 3-D point cloud (Since R2020b)
cuboidModelObject for storing parametric cuboid model (Since R2020b)
pcfitcylinderFit cylinder to 3-D point cloud
cylinderModelParametric cylinder model
pcfitsphereFit sphere to 3-D point cloud
sphereModelObject for storing a parametric sphere model
pc2surfacemeshConstruct surface mesh from 3-D point cloud (Since R2022b)
mesh2pcCreate point cloud from surface mesh (Since R2024b)
surfaceMeshCreate surface mesh (Since R2022b)
readSurfaceMeshRead surface mesh data from standard mesh file formats (Since R2022b)
writeSurfaceMeshWrite surface mesh to standard mesh file formats (Since R2022b)
surfaceMeshShowDisplay surface mesh (Since R2022b)
smoothSurfaceMeshSmooth surface mesh (Since R2023a)
clusterConnectedFacesCluster connected faces (Since R2023a)
pctransformTransform 3-D point cloud
rigidtform3d3-D rigid geometric transformation (Since R2022b)
affinetform3d3-D affine geometric transformation (Since R2022b)
simtform3d3-D similarity geometric transformation (Since R2022b)
transltform3d3-D translation geometric transformation (Since R2022b)
estgeotform3dEstimate 3-D geometric transformation from matching point pairs (Since R2022b)
undistortEgoMotionUndistort point cloud affected by ego motion (Since R2023a)

Topics

Featured Examples

New
Visualize Point Clouds On Maps Using Coordinate Reference System From LAS/LAZ Files

Visualize Point Clouds On Maps Using Coordinate Reference System From LAS/LAZ Files

Transform a point cloud between coordinate reference systems.

Export Point Cloud Segmentations to KML Files

Export Point Cloud Segmentations to KML Files

Export segmented point cloud data to a Keyhole Markup Language (KML) files and read and visualize the KML data using different tools.

Unorganized to Organized Conversion of Point Clouds Using Spherical Projection

Unorganized to Organized Conversion of Point Clouds Using Spherical Projection

Convert unorganized point clouds to organized format using spherical projection.

Create, Process, and Export Digital Surface Model from Lidar Data

Create, Process, and Export Digital Surface Model from Lidar Data

Process aerial lidar data received from an airborne lidar system into a GeoTIFF file. Import a LAZ file containing aerial lidar data, create a spatially referenced digital surface model (DSM) from the data, crop the DSM to an area of interest, and export the cropped DSM to a GeoTIFF file.

Extract On-Road and Off-Road Points from Point Cloud

Extract On-Road and Off-Road Points from Point Cloud

Extract on-road and off-road points from point cloud data.