How to add a reference line in visualization?

ParaView Support
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1

Hey,
I want to simply add a reference line in my model like the following (where the line is hand-drawn):

Screen Shot 2022-11-16 at 22.42.38
Screen Shot 2022-11-16 at 22.42.38981×269 26.2 KB

I have x, y, z coordinates of the line, and from what I can find about pyvtk it seems pyvtk.RectilinearGrid is a good choise, so I have the following python code:

vtk_file = destDir + "example.vtk"
exampleCurve = pyvtk.RectilinearGrid(x,y,z)
vtk = pyvtk.VtkData(exampleCurve,"")
vtk.tofile(vtk_file,'binary')

When I open the vtk file produced in paraview, the following is what I get.

Screen Shot 2022-11-16 at 22.50.39
Screen Shot 2022-11-16 at 22.50.39881×225 2.05 KB

It seems I can only view this as an outline, and if I click any other forms of representation, ParaView immediately crashes.

Please note that I simply wanted to plot a structure, so pyvtk.VtkData(exampleCurve,"") does not provide any field data on to the curve.

I have two questions now.

  • What is the best way to plot a reference line/curve or any structure without field data in paraview?

  • What is a good reference to learn more about pyvtk. I didn’t find any good resourced or even documentation online.

    Thanks!

2

RectilinearGrid is a good choice if you have a grid of points. You have a curve, so a better choice would be a PolyData object with either a series of line segment cells or a polyline.

PyVTK is a separate project from ParaView. It looks like it hasn’t been maintained in 5 years, so I’m not sure where you could seek support.

PyVista on the other hand, is under active development and has a large community. I recommend using that instead of PyVTK.

1 Like
3

Thank you so much @cory.quammen ! PyVista works very well!