Discover ManualDrillHoles

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15 Drillholes
Drillhole menu and toolbar items
The Discover Drillholes module provides the following key features for processing
and visualising drillhole data in section and plan view:
• Project Setup
Define drillhole data tables and columns
• Section Manager
Manage project drillhole sections and plans
• Save Project Workspace

Save a project workspace containing drillhole sections with hidden drillhole
tables removed
• Subset Project
Create a new drillhole from a selection of drillholes in an existing project
430 Encom Discover Reference Manual
• Import or Export
Transfer drillhole projects between machines or to archive
• Export Located Bitmap

Display drillhole map and section windows directly in Encom Discover 3D or
Profile Analyst
• Define New Section or Plan

Select parameters and display drillhole section in any orientation or plan
view
• Define New Trench or Costean

Display trench or costean samples in section or plan
• Display Downhole Data

Display up to 16 downhole data variables as text, histograms, linegraphs,
trace shade or structure ticks and save as permanent display settings
• Log Display
Log style display for individual drillholes with up to 24 data columns
• Edit Colour Patterns

Create colour patterns to use for downhole data display
• Load Colour Patterns

Import colour pattern files from other users
• Draw Section Grid

Add map grid to section map window
• Add Section to Layout

Create drillhole section layout including grid and titleblock
• Create Section Collar Plan

Create a plan of drillhole collars for a specified section
• Boundary Digitizing
Digitize ore or geological boundaries on drillhole sections and export as 3D
DXF file
• Sectional Resource Calculator

Calculate resource volume and grade for a section
• Validate Drillhole Database

Check drillhole project data tables for hole name inconsistencies, sample
interval gaps or overlaps, downhole data extending past EOH, large survey
deviations, etc
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• Downhole Compositing
Composite drillhole data by attribute, cut-off grade, RL or depth downhole
• Calculate 3D Coordinates
Downhole coordinates created on-the-fly
• Calculate Maximum and EOH Values

Extract maximum drillhole value for assay and EOH assay values
Encom Discover provides a comprehensive environment for processing and

visualising drillhole data. The Drillhole module links in with functionality from the
Surfaces module and also Map Making tools.
Steps to Create Drillhole Sections
A drillhole dataset is made up of a series of tables containing information such as

drillhole collar location and geometry, downhole survey measurements, downhole
geochemical, geological or geophysical data and other related information.
To create drillhole sections and plans use the following steps:
1. Organise all drillhole data into a format recognized by MapInfo. File formats
such as Access, Excel, and Text etc should be first opened into MapInfo to
create .TAB files.
2. The collar table must be mappable. i.e. displayed in a map window.
3. Create a new drillhole project and assign the correct table and column
names.
4. Use the data validation utility to check for drillhole name mismatches,
missing data, sample overlaps or end of hole depth discrepancies.
5. Select a section line or number of drillholes and create the section.
6. Select and display downhole data on section.
7. Add the section to a layout window at the correct scale including section grid
and titleblock ready for printing.
8. Save the section to be used in the future.

Drillhole Data Format
The Drillholes module in Discover can use drillhole data captured in a number of
different formats. Discover can use drillhole data stored in any database format
that MapInfo can read, including Access and ODBC databases. Discover does not
need to make any alterations or additions to the source data.
Discover calculates 3D coordinates for downhole samples when it displays the

drillhole, which means that it is not necessary to store these coordinates in the
original data tables. This improves ease of use with Microsoft Access database
tables and read-only tables (such as Excel spreadsheets). Also, changes to the
collar coordinates or to the downhole surveys do not require downhole coordinates
to be recalculated.
Drillhole data is stored in a number of related tables, with the Hole ID acting as the
key to link the different tables. Some or all of the following data tables are used to
define the project.
Collar Table
The collar location table is a mappable table containing point objects for each
drillhole collar. The collar table must include the following columns:
HoleID
Easting
Northing
Elevation
Total Depth
If there is no separate downhole survey table then the collar table must contain two
additional numeric columns for drillhole collar Azimuth and Dip. Dip may be
expressed as positive or negative values. E.g. -90° or 90°
Any other data columns are optional. All columns must be numeric aside from
HoleID which may be a text field. For native MapInfo tables it is recommended that
coordinates are stored in columns with a Float (Floating Decimal) data type.
Note The actual names and order of the mandatory columns is not important, as to the
columns are nominated during project setup.
Downhole Survey Table
The downhole survey table is a non-mappable table that contains a list of depths
and surveys for each drillhole. This table is optional but if available must contain
the following columns:
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HoleID
Depth
Azimuth
Dip
Depth, Azimuth and Dip columns must be numeric and dip values may be positive
or negative. It is unlikely that other data is included in this table and Discover does
not check for any other columns.
Drillholes having no downhole surveys are displayed as straight lines using the
Dip, Azimuth and Total Depth values from the Collar table.
Note The actual names and order of the mandatory columns is not important, as to the
columns are nominated during project setup.
Downhole Data Tables
Downhole data tables are non-mappable tables that contain geochemical,

geological or geophysical data values for selected intervals down each drillhole. A
drillhole project can contain multiple downhole data tables. The downhole data
tables must contain the following columns:
HoleID
Depth From
Depth To
Depth From and Depth To columns must be numeric. The position and data type
of the mandatory columns must be the same in each downhole data table. Other
data columns (such as sample number, rock type, gold grades etc) may be
included as required. Discover can display data from any of the columns in the
downhole data tables.
Note In the drillhole project setup the mandatory columns are assigned using the first
downhole table selected. If the mandatory columns in other downhole data tables
are in a different column position then incorrect data may appear on the drillhole
sections or plans.
Discover enables downhole datasets measured over different sample intervals to

be displayed together. For example, Au values may be displayed from 10-11m,11-
12m, 15-16m, and 18-21m with lithology values from 0-11.4m, 11.4-19.1m, and
19.1-21.0m. Only data that conforms to the same sampling intervals should be
stored in the one table. In the above example above two separate downhole tables
would be created; one table for assay data and one table for rock type. Multiple
downhole data tables may be used as required.
Note The dh_collars, dh_survey, dh_assay and dh_lith tables in the

Discover_Tutorial\Drillholes folder create an example data set in a format
suitable for use with Discover. Examine the structure of these tables to help in
preparing data to display and use this test data set to run through the drillhole
display program.
ODBC Database
Discover can use drillhole downhole data from ODBC databases in one of two
ways.
1. Use the MapInfo File>Open ODBC connection command in the normal way
to link to ODBC tables. The linked ODBC tables can then be selected for
use in the drillhole project setup.
2. Directly access just the ODBC data required for a specific section. This
greatly reduces the local storage requirements for linked tables and can
speed up operations. This manner of data access requires a special
configuration file to be generated for each ODBC table used and is designed
for database administrators to set up direct ODBC access.
In order to use direct ODBC access for downhole data, there already needs to be a
linked table (i.e. opened from the MapInfo File>Open ODBC connection
command) which connects to the ODBC database using the appropriate SQL
statement. This table (which need contain no data) is then used by Discover to
create a template file (.XFG), when creating or modifying a project definition.
The structure of the data retrieved from the ODBC data tables must conform to the
guidelines described above for downhole data tables, but as this is accessed via
an SQL query, the structure of the base ODBC tables is not limited. When
generating a section the .XFG file is read by Discover to connect to the ODBC
database and download just the information required for this section.
• To use the direct ODBC access feature, create a new project or modify an
existing project. Choose ODBC definition as the data table for survey or
downhole data and select the New option to create a new .XFG file. At this
stage select the linked tab file that the .XFG template file is based upon.
• Once the linked table to use is nominated, enter the column numbers to use
for downhole data (column positions for HoleID, From and To columns) or
downhole survey data (column positions for HoleID, Depth, Azimuth and
Dip). Enter the SQL delimiter that Discover uses when amending the
selection statement. The delimiter is probably dependent upon the database
but may be (ASCII 39).
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• Having created the ODBC template (.XFG) file, there is one task that needs
performing and which must be done manually. In order for Discover to
download the data for just the current section, it needs to add a list of Hole
IDs into the SQL clause, in the form of “Where HoleID IN (‘ddh1’, ddh2’….)”.
Discover requires that this sub-clause be present in the SQL statement but
with the Hole ID string replaced by a placeholder (<listofholes>). Ensure that
the following text is placed at an appropriate position in the .XFG file:
where (`HoleID` in (<listofholes>))
noting that the correct column name is used in place of HoleID and that this
may need to be added to an existing where condition.
An example SQL statement from an .XFG file (for a simple Access

database) is:
"select `HoleID`, `from`, `to`, `sampno`, `au`,`MAPINFO_ID` from

`c:\tmp\drill_test`.`Dhole1` where (`holeid` in (<listofholes>))"
Once the .XFG definition has been completed, sections can be generated as
normal. Because an ODBC query is run for each data source in each section,
processing is not as quick as if data is being read from local files. Once the section
has been generated, the mappable section tables remain in MapInfo format, but
the downloaded ODBC data is deleted.
Current limitations are that the ODBC access feature cannot be used with the
drillhole info tool, data compositing or data validation features in Discover.
Grid and Contour Surfaces
Discover can extract sectional profile information from gridded and contoured
surfaces (such as surface topography, soil geochemistry or pit profiles) to display
in the drillhole section.
A surface grid can be in any grid format supported by Discover such as ER

Mapper, Surfer or Geosoft format. Contour plans must have polylines attributed
with the appropriate Z value. See Surfaces>Grid File Formats for more
information.
Surface Geology
To display a geology layer, an appropriate surface file must also be used. A

gridded DEM surface provides the best surface profile however attributed contour
data can also be used. When using contour data the surface geology (or polygon)
layer is only shown in the area covered by the contour data. Discover does not
extrapolate data outside the limits of the topography surface.
Drillhole Project Setup

Discover>Drillholes>Project Setup
In order to use the Drillholes module a drillhole project must be opened or

created. From the Drillhole>Setup menu item, select an existing project to use
from the Select Drillhole Project or Directory pull-down list or click on the New
button to create and define a new drillhole project. To modify the definition of a
selected drillhole project select the Modify button and to delete an existing drillhole
project select the Delete button.
Drillhole Display – Choose Project dialog
Create New Drillhole Project
1. Select the New button in the Drillhole Display - Choose Project dialog.
2. Enter a name for the new project in the Drillhole Project Manager dialog.
Click OK and browse to the directory to be used as the project working
directory. The drillhole dataset files do not have to be located in this
directory.
3. Click OK again to open up the Drillhole Project Definition dialog. The

drillhole data tables to be used in the drilling project are defined here.
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The Drillhole Project Definition dialog
Drillhole dataset tables must have a MapInfo .TAB file associated with them. The
tables may be open in MapInfo prior to setting up the drillhole project or use Open
a Table or Open Table to browse to the location of the data table.
• Drillhole Collar Table (mandatory) – Mappable table for drillhole locations

containing HoleID, Easting, Northing, Elevation and Total Depth. A collar
table must be specified for each project. If no Downhole Survey Table is
used the collar must contain Azimuth and Dip columns.
• Downhole Survey Table (optional) – Non-mappable table containing

HoleID, downhole survey depth, azimuth and dip data. The downhole survey
table is optional and does not need to contain surveys for each drillhole.
• Downhole Data Tables – Non-mappable tables containing HoleID, Depth

From and Depth To columns with associated assay, lithology or other
downhole information. As many downhole tables as required may be
selected.
Use the Select and Deselect buttons to move downhole tables from the Available
to the Selected window.
• Topography– Gridded or contoured surface topography table used to

construct sectional profile surfaces. The grid must be registered BIL, Surfer,
ER Mapper or Geosoft grid or MapInfo polygon grid. Contour surface must
have a numeric column containing the Z-value attribute. If a topography
surface table is not specified, a surface profile is generated by joining the
drill collars together.
• Polygon Surface – Mappable table containing attributed polygons such as

geology. The polygons are draped over the surface topography when
displayed in section. The polygon surface table is optional.
• Other Surfaces – Other grid or contour surfaces such as base of

weathering, pit profile or soil geochemistry can be displayed in profile in the
cross-section. The grid surfaces must be registered BIL, Surfer, ER Mapper
or Geosoft grids or attributed contour tables.
When the drillhole project tables have been selected in the Drillhole Project
Definition dialog, click OK to display the Assign Spatial Columns dialog.
Assign Spatial Columns
Specify the data columns to be used from the mandatory collar table and optional
downhole survey, downhole data and surface tables.
Check the Down Dip is negative box if the data contain negative dip values and
select the appropriate Depth Units to use. This allows depth units to be different to
the X and Y units used for collar coordinates.
Assigning Spatial Columns dialog

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Upon completion of the Drillhole Project Setup, the user will be prompted to run the
Validate Drill Database utility. It is strongly recommended to do so after either
new project setup or the addition/update of any drillhole project tables.
The validation prompt displayed at the end of the Drillhole Project Setup procedure.
Note If you want to change a setting in the previous Drillhole Project Definition dialog
press Cancel to navigate back.
Note All columns except the HoleID and Polygon Code should be numeric. The
HoleID columns for each table should be of character type.
The column position of the HoleID, Depth From and Depth To columns in the
each downhole data table must be identical.
Define New Section or Plan

Discover>Drillholes>Define New Section or Plan
When a drillhole project is opened Discover will open a map of the collar table to
enable a section or plan to be defined.
A cross-section can be generated for a vertical plane at any location and in any
orientation. A plan may be generated for a horizontal plane at any elevation.
Sections cannot be generated for polylines (e.g. fences) or for inclined planes.
A section or plan is defined in the Drillhole Plotting dialog. All the parameters for
selecting the drillholes to plot, the downhole data tables to use, displaying other
grid surfaces, annotating with collar name and depth ticks, drawing topographic
profiles, creating multiple sections and applying downhole display settings are
available in this dialog.
Select the type of Drillhole Display, either Vertical Section or Horizontal Plan.
Vertical Section
Defining a cross-section to be displayed
The first step in creating a drillhole vertical cross-section is to determine which

drillholes are to be included in the section. The Hole Selection by control contains
the following drillhole selection options:
• Manually Select - manually pre-select all of the drillholes to include in the

section. In this case, the entire length of each selected drillhole is displayed
and the section envelope width is not used. This option is the only drillhole
selection option available for plans. All the Section Definition parameters
apart from Envelope Width must be entered manually.
• Specify section – default option that selects all drillholes that lie within a
section envelope. All the Section Definition parameters must be entered
manually.
• Use Selected Line - draw a line in the map window along which the section
is to be generated. This line must be a straight line containing a maximum of
two nodes (start and end). The line must be selected in the map window
prior to selecting the Define New Section or Plan menu item otherwise the
Use Selected Line option will be disabled.
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Check the Search all Holes box to search through all the drillholes in the database
and include in the section any drillholes that are collared outside the specified
section envelope but intersect the section envelope at depth. This option is
unavailable for plans.
Using a selected to define drillhole section
Section Definition Parameters
When using a selected line, the section start is automatically populated and the
section orientation taken from the direction in which the line was drawn. The
section length and envelope width can be altered in the Section Definition
parameters. For the other drillhole selection options the section start coordinates,
orientation and length must be entered manually.
The Envelope Width is a distance in metres specified from the section line. For
example, an envelope width of 50m will extend the section area 50m either side of
the section line to create a drillhole section 100m wide. When creating a section
Discover will include any drillholes that are collared within the envelope width area
along with any drillholes that intersect the section envelope at depth if the Search
all holes box is checked.
The View Direction determines the direction from which the section is to be
viewed. The view direction is automatically calculated by Discover based on the
selected line orientation or from the section definition parameters. Section view
orientations can only be set at +/- 90 degrees of the section line orientation. This
enables the section to be viewed from either direction.
A Section Name must be entered for each drillhole section. If a selected line is
used, the Section Name is automatically populated with the Northing for E-W or
oblique sections or the Easting for N-S sections (e.g. N8475292). These section
names can be overwritten with any user-defined section name.
Horizontal Plan
To generate a horizontal plan of drillhole collars select the drillholes to include in

the plan from the map window. Select Drillholes>Define Section or Plan and
choose Horizontal Plan.
Plan Definition Parameters
A horizontal plan may be generated for all selected drillholes with no elevation
limits. The entire length of each selected collar will be displayed on the horizontal
plan. By default the Plot Survey traces only box is checked. This is to reduce the
processing time for large downhole datasets if no downhole data is to be displayed
along the drillhole traces. If downhole data is to be displayed on the horizontal plan
uncheck the Plot survey traces only box.
Check the Use elevation range box to generate horizontal level or flitch plans at
specified elevations. Enter a Central Elevation in metres and an Envelope Width.
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The Envelope Width is the distance in metres above and below the specified
elevation. For example, an envelope width of 50m will extend the section area 50m
above and below the specified elevation to create a horizontal section 100m wide.
The elevation plan will display the trace of all drillholes that intersect the horizontal
section envelope.
Enter a Plan Name for the horizontal section.
Display Options
Downhole Data
To display downhole data on a section the downhole data tables must be selected
during the creation of the drillhole section or plan. Data from a new downhole table
cannot be displayed on a section or plan after it has been created. During the
creation of a section or plan downhole data for selected drillholes is extracted and
incorporated into the created MapInfo drillhole section tables. These created
drillhole tables are used by Discover to display downhole data.
By default, all downhole data tables selected in the Drillhole Project Setup should
be listed as Selected data to display. There may be instances where a drillhole
project contains multiple downhole tables but not all the data tables are required for
each section. Use the Add and Remove buttons to make sure only the required
downhole tables are selected. The selected downhole data tables are retained
from one section to the next.
Surfaces
Any surfaces such as pit profile, weathering profiles, geochemical or geophysical

surveys included in the drillhole project as Other Surfaces during setup should be
listed under Available Surfaces. Use the Add button to move a surface to the
Surfaces selected to display list. Highlight each surface in this list and choose
the appropriate Surface Display Settings.
For each surface that is selected the profile of the surface is displayed where it
crosses the line of the section. The position of the surface profile may be Absolute
or Relative. If the surface measures real elevation (e.g., proposed pit plan or depth
of weathering) then the profile position is Absolute with no scaling or offsets other
than the same vertical exaggeration as the section.
If the profile surface is not in elevation units (e.g., a geochemical or geophysical

grid) then Relative position should be selected. The relative positioning and
scaling can be either automatic or the offset and scale can be specified explicitly.
This method of surface profile placement is the same as used in the
Surfaces>Draw Grid Profile function.
When the position, offset and scaling has been determined use the Accept Settings
button to confirm. For multiple surfaces the Accept Settings button must be
pressed for each surface.
Annotation
The Annotation options control the appearance of the section or plan. Available
annotation options include:
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• Preferred Scale - scale at which the section is to be viewed or plotted. Text

label sizes and other annotation are relative to this scale. Base of hole
symbols are taken from a TrueType font file shipped with Discover and so
appear at the same size regardless of the Map Window zoom width.
• Vertical Exaggeration - provides control over the vertical scale with larger
values giving greater exaggeration and a value of 1 giving no exaggeration.
• Drillhole Labels – display Hole ID labels at collar or EOH or EOH labels

showing maximum depth and tick. The size of the labels is controlled by the
Label font size and label style by the Default Text Style.
• Display Surface Line - display a surface profile on the section. If a

Topography surface was selected in the drillhole project setup then the
surface line will be created from this surface. If no topography surface is
available the surface line will be created by joining the drillhole collars
together.
• Use Data Display Setting - apply a saved downhole data display setting
including linegraphs, histograms and text labels to the drillholes at the time
the section is generated. See Display Downhole Data for more information
on data display settings.
• Depth Ticks - place a depth tick and a text label at nominated depths, e.g.
every 10 metres down the hole. Only label selected depth ticks.
• Show distance behind/infront plane of section – display the offset of

each drillhole collar from the section plane
Drillhole Display Section Annotation dialog

Multiple Sections
Discover can generate multiple sections or level plans. The multiple sections are
created parallel to the first specified section or elevation with an equal offset from
one section to the next.
Enter the number of sections to generate up to a maximum of 20 and the offset in

metres from the first section (the offset defaults to twice the envelope width
specified for the first section). Choose a prefix to use in the naming convention
from Easting, Northing, 1 – 20 or A to Z.
Alternatively, select multiple section lines in the collar map window to plot at the
same time. These section lines do not need to be parallel and are created using
the section envelope width, view direction and section name specified in the
Define Section or Plan dialog. Subsequent sections are named using a “1, 2, 3,
etc” filename extension so it is important to enter a logical section name and not
use the default easting or northing section name.
Define New Trench or Costean

Drillholes>Define New Trench or Costean
The Drillhole module incorporates the ability to generate section and plan views of
trenches (also known as costeans). Unlike drillholes, trenches do not require an
algorithm (e.g. tangential averaging) to be applied generate the trace; trench traces
are generated by simply joining a number of survey points, whether these are XYZ
locations or distance and bearing measurements. This is therefore also an
excellent way of displaying tunnel/drive wall data.
Trenches created using this module can be controlled via the Section Manager in
the same way as a drillhole section or plan. Trench assay and lithological data can
be applied as “downhole” data. Thus shallow subsurface data can be related to
drillhole derived data, allowing a more comprehensive interpretation to be made in
plan and section views.
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A combined trench and drillhole section view.
Trench table formats
The data tables required to create trench/costean views are very similar to those
required for drillholes:
Collar (compulsory)
Survey (optional)
Downhole data (optional)
Topography (optional)
Collar
The trench collar file must be mappable (as with drillhole collar files) using the
Table>Create Points option, and requires the following fields:
Trench ID
Easting
Northing
Elevation
Length (not required if an XYZ survey table is used; see below)

Bearing (optional)
The elevation field can be populated with the collar RL, or alternatively elevation
data can be automatically captured by the Trenching tool from a topographic grid
file associated with the drillhole project (under Project Setup).
The Bearing field is compulsory if no survey table is present (i.e. for a straight
trench). It is not required if an XYZ survey table is used. If a Bearing and Distance
survey table is used, it is optional (the collar bearing could be incorporated into
either the collar file or the survey file).
Survey
If the trench is non-linear i.e. it has a number of azimuth changes/inflexions along

its length, a survey table is required. This requires a Trench ID field matching that
in the Collar Table. The survey table can have two formats:
1. XYZ: the survey table contains the following fields listing the locations of
inflexion points along the trench:
X (easting)
Y (northing)
Z/elevation (optional)
Elevation data can either be supplied in a Z field, or Z values can be captured from
a topographic grid associated with the drillhole project (under Project Setup) at
each defined survey point. This table must include the trench endpoint X/Y
coordinates.
Note If an XYZ Survey table is used, both the Length and Bearing fields in the Collar
table are not required (and will be ignored if specified).
Note The Z specification can be different to that in the collar file: it is possible to assign
a Z field in the collar file, whilst Z values in the Survey table setup are captured
from a DEM grid file (or vice versa).
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An example of XYZ trench collar and survey tables. These include elevation data. MCS021 has one
inflexion point, whilst MCS022 is a straight trench.
2. Bearing and Distance: trench inflexion points are listed as a series of point
bearing and distance measurements. The Distance field is treated as the
cumulative distance the inflexion point is from the trench origin (not just from
the previous inflexion/survey point), with a Bearing measurement at this
point.
Note If a Bearing and Distance Survey table is used, a total trench Length field needs
to be specified in the collar file setup. The initial trench azimuth can be specified
either in the collar file or in the survey file (with a Distance of 0).
The Trench/Costean utility does not support survey dip information.

An example of Bearing and Distance trench collar and survey files. Note that trench MCS003 will plot as
a linear costean as it has no survey information. Also, there is no elevation information, thus collar and
inflexion point elevation data will need to be automatically captured from a DEM grid associated with the
drillhole project.
“Downhole” data
Trench data such as assay, susceptibility and lithological data need to be in the
same table format as required for drillholes. They require the following fields:
• Trench ID matching those in the collar and survey tables,
• From
• To
• Fields for each data type (e.g. Cu and Au assays, or a Lithology field).
As with drillholes, the order and positioning of the TrenchID, From and To fields
must be identical for all downhole data tables associated with the drillhole project,
as these fields are assigned only once, and are therefore assumed to have the
same position for all tables.
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An example of a trench assay table.
Interval data (e.g. composite chip samples, lithological units) must have a To value
greater than or equal to the From value. The trenching tool (and in fact the drillhole
module) cannot handle overlapping downhole data intervals within the same field
(e.g. zinc chip samples over the intervals of 121-125m and 124-130m in the same
trench will cause display errors). Geophysical point measurements (e.g. magnetic
susceptibility) must have the same From and To values to plot correctly. For
example magnetic susceptibility readings taken at 38m, 39m & 40m will have the
following format:
An example of a geophysical (point sample) downhole data table: the From and To fields must be
identical for each measurement.
Topographic (optional)
As indicated previously in the Collar and Survey sections, elevation data for trench
“collar” points as well as any inflexion points can be captured from a DEM/DTM
grid associated with the drillhole project (as opposed to having elevation data
supplied in RL/Z fields in the collar and/or survey files). This grid may have been
created using the Discover Surfaces module (using the Create Grid option) from
point RL data, or imported from a grid format supplied by a geophysical contractor
using the Surfaces > Import Grid File option.
Note RL/elevation data will only be captured for each inflexion point in the Survey table,
as well as the collar location. This may be insufficient for regions of undulating
topography; linear trenches will not follow the topographic profile. To rectify this,
assign extra survey points to increase the frequency of elevation measurements.
For instance, for a 500m linear trench, create a survey table with distance
increments of 100m (e.g. 100, 200, 300, etc) and assign each survey point the
same bearing as the collar. The trench trace will still be identical to the original,
except that RL values will now be assigned every 100m; the trench section will
more accurately follow the terrain.
Project Setup
In order to generate a trench/costean section or plan, the relevant trench tables

first need to be associated with a drillhole project. This will generally be an existing
project; however a new project can be created if there are no drillholes associated
with the prospect. If a drillhole project already exits, the trench files need to be
placed in the same directory as the drillhole data tables. For information on
opening an existing or creating a new drillhole project, see the Drillhole Project
Setup section.
If there are no drillholes associated with the trench (e.g. a regional exploration
trench), create a new Drillhole Project using the Drillholes>Project Setup>New
menu option:
1. Browse to the project folder (containing the costean tables) and press OK.
2. Assign the trench collar file as the Drillhole Collar Table within the Drillhole
Project Definition dialog (if the collar table is not already open in MapInfo,
use the “Open a Table” option at the bottom of the pull down list to browse
for it).
3. Leave the other table assignments empty, and press OK.
4. In the Assign Spatial Columns dialog, assign the appropriate fields: the
trench ID field to the HoleID, easting, northing and collar elevation fields
(even if the elevation field is empty as this data will be captured from an
associated DEM grid), costean length to the Total Depth, etc. Ensure that
the Depth Units are set to the appropriate unit. Press OK to complete the
project setup.
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Note It is also recommended to enable the Section Manager to allow more efficient
handling of trench sections or plans. To do so, open the Drillholes>Section
Manager option, and select the Settings button. Tick the “Add New Sections to
Section Manager” option, and choose the appropriate file handling sub-option
(the “Create New Directory for each Section” option is recommended to allow
hierarchical storage of section/plan files).
The Section Manager configured to handle Sections and Plans, and to create each one in a new
subdirectory.
Trench table assignments need to be made in two locations:
Downhole trench data tables and the optional topography grid are assigned in
the Drillhole Project Setup dialog.
1. Modify the existing drillhole Project by selecting Drillholes>Project

Setup>Modify and selecting the appropriate project from the pull-down list.
2. In the Drillhole Project Definition dialog, ensure that the trench downhole
data tables are displayed in the Available window of the Downhole Data
Tables section. If not, utilise the Open Table button below to open these
tables.
3. Populate the Selected window with these tables by highlighting them and
using the Right arrow button.
4. If a DEM/DTM grid file is to be used, ensure this is selected in the

Topography pull-down (again use the Open a Table option if this grid file is
not open in MapInfo)
Assigning the trench downhole data tables (in this case assay and lithology tables) and DEM
(topography) grid file to the Drillhole Project Definition dialog.
5. Press OK to progress to the Assign Spatial Columns dialog. Within this,

ensure that the Downhole Data Columns are set correctly (if this is a
drillhole project, this will likely be correctly configured already). Press OK to
complete this portion of the trench setup.
This process can be repeated at a later time if new data tables become available.
Trench collar and survey tables are assigned via the Trenching Setup dialog.
1. Open the trench and survey files into MapInfo
2. With the Drillhole Project open, select Drillholes> Define New Trench or
Costean to open the Trenching Setup dialog.
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3. Set the collar table in its assignment pull-down list. Then set the various
required and optional fields in the Field Mappings area, as detailed in the
Collar section.
4. Set the survey table in its assignment pull-down list. Tick either the XYZ or
Bearing and Distance format option as detailed in the Survey section, and
set the required Field Mappings.
5. For both the collar and survey tables, if elevation data is to be captured from
a DEM/DTM, set the appropriate fields to “None: (Zero based or topo
grid)” rather than any existing elevation/RL field.
6. An Offset Z value can be specified as a (negative) value below the surface

at which the trench trace will be plotted in section views. This is appropriate
when assay samples have been collected a constant depth below surface
e.g. 1.5m. The units used will be those specified in the Drillhole Project
Setup dialog. Press OK to complete the trench setup.
The Trenching Setup dialog configured for a Bearing and Distance survey table. The collar RL has been
set to be captured from a DEM associated with the Drillhole Project. If a section is generated, the trench
trace will be initiated 1.5m below the surface RL at the collar location, due to the assigned Offset Z
value.
Once trench data has been defined for a drillhole project, there is no need to
repeat the setup process: the various trench assignments are stored with the
project. Simply open the drillhole project, and run the Define New Trench or
Costean tool. If changes need to be made to the Collar or Survey tables

assignments, access the setup dialog via the “Setup tables for project” button
within the Trenching dialog.
Create Trench view
It is recommended to assign downhole trench data tables to the drillhole project

before defining either trench plans or section, otherwise it will not be possible to
apply downhole data display settings.
To generate a trench plan or section, ensure the relevant drillhole project (to which
the trench files have been associated) is open and select the Drillholes>Define
New Trench or Costean. This will open the Trenching dialog:
The Trenching dialog.
Create plans:
Tick the Plan option, and highlight the trenches to plot from the list on the left of the
dialog. The output plan name and file location can be changed using the Save
button under Output Options. Press OK to generate the trench plan. This will be
opened in a new mapper window.
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Defining a trench plan for only the MCS002 trench.
Create sections:
Tick the Section option, and highlight the trenches to plot from the list on the left of
the dialog. Two methods of trench section specification are available:
1. Manual Input
This requires manual definition of the section origin X, Y & Z values, the
section length and width, and the angle (azimuth) of the section. The section
angle can be either entered as a numeric value, or set using the interactive
compass.
2. Selected Line
This requires a section definition line to be already selected in the trench
collar map window (before the Trenching tool is opened). The only extra
parameters required are the section envelope width and origin elevation.
The section view orientation is governed by the line drawing direction; the
section will be displayed left (start) to right (end).
Defining a trench section using a selected line.
The trenching tool will generate section traces only for those portions of the
selected trenches that intersect the defined section envelope. The output section
name and file location can be changed using the Save button under Output
Options. Press OK to generate the trench section. This will be opened in a new
mapper window.
To alter the Z offset (i.e. how far below the surface the trench is plotted), access
the “Setup tables for project” button, and alter the “Offset Z values by” option
(which is in the units specified during the Drillhole Project Setup phase).
The Offset Z option at the base of the Trenching Setup dialog.
The Annotations button in the Trench dialog opens the Trench Annotation
dialog. This contains options for displaying:
• the Trench ID as a collar label

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• length ticks and labels; the distance between these can be set in the Length
Interval window.
The font controls at the bottom of the dialog will apply to any annotations selected.
The Trench annotation dialog, incorporating display options for TrenchID and length ticks and labels.
Apply downhole trench data
Downhole data (e.g. assays and lithological data) can be applied to trench cross-
section or plan views in the same way as downhole drillhole data. With the relevant
section or plan open, run the Drillholes>Display Downhole Data menu option.
For a full description on the use of this option, see the Display Downhole Data
section.
Note The use of histograms and linegraph displays on trench plans with large azimuth
changes at inflexion points is not recommended.
Note Ensure that downhole trench data is associated with the Drillhole Project before
generating trench plans or sections, otherwise this data will not be able to be
displayed on the section/plan view.
Combine drillhole and trench section views
If adding a costean section to a drillhole section (or vice-versa), ensure the same
section definition parameters are used, or same section definition line, to ensure
the section views are spatially related. It is recommended to save section definition
lines to a table (e.g. section_lines), and then reuse these to generate both drillhole
and trench sections. Also ensure that the view directions of both sections are
identical.
To add a trench section to a spatially related drillhole section window, ensure both
sections are open, and make the drillhole section window the topmost mapper.
Using either the Layer Control or Enhanced Layer Control, use the Add Layer
option to select all relevant trench section layers (e.g. sectionname_TrenchD,
sectionname_TrenchA and possibly sectionname_Trench1, sectionname_Trench2,
etc) and add them to the drillhole section mapper.
Using the Add Layer option of the Enhanced Layer Control to add trench section tables to a spatially
related drillhole section map window.
Display Downhole Data

Discover>Drillholes>Display Downhole Data
Display downhole data on a section or plan in a number of different formats. Save

downhole display settings and apply to new sections.
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Drillhole Section with geochemical assay values and histogram representation
The Discover Display Downhole Data utility contains the following functionality:
• Display up to 16 different data attributes (or variables) for each drillhole
• Data attributes can be displayed from any appropriate column in any

downhole data table
• Data attributes can be displayed in five formats - text, histogram, linegraph,

trace shade or structure tick
• Display data attributes using colour patterns
• Create editable data attribute legend
• Save and re-apply data attribute settings to new sections
Although up to 16 attributes may be displayed at the same time on a section or

plan this may not be practical due to drillhole spacing or plot scale. To create a
well-presented section map display a suitable number of data attributes.
Part of the Downhole Data Display settings dialog
1. To create a data attribute setting select a downhole data table from the table
pull-down list in the first column.
2. Choose the column that contains the attribute data from the column pull-
down list.
3. Select one of the following Display Types:
• Text
Display exact attribute column entries. Ideal for assays.
• Histogram
Scaled bars for each sample interval indicating the sample value
• Linegraph
Continuous line along drillhole with distance from the trace indicating
depth value
• Trace Shade
Coloured/Patterned log style display ideal for lithology
• Structure
Lines drawn across the drillhole trace to show true or apparent dip of
measured structures
In addition to these data display types, the MapInfo Thematic Mapping and
Labelling tools may be used to display data on the section or plan.
Each of the display types apart from Linegraph can be displayed using a colour
pattern. The colour pattern may be used to display different geological units in a
Trace Shade or denote assay ranges in a Histogram or Text display.
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Text Labels
The Text display option displays data in numeric or character attribute fields as
labels for each sample or interval down the drillhole. The Text Labels dialog
contains options to modify the data parameters, the text label orientation and the
position of the text label on the drillhole section or plan.
Parameters
If the attribute column is numeric the minimum and maximum data values are
calculated by default. To change the data limits click on the Limits button and
enter in new minimum and maximum values. Intervals with values outside the
specified data range will not have a text label displayed.
When specifying how text labels appear on section or plan, the label size is the
most important parameter. As the size of the text label is related to the scale the
section or plan is to be plotted enter an appropriate font size for the output map
scale. Alternatively, check the Autoscale labels to fit intervals box to create text
labels scaled to the downhole intervals. Use the Text Style button to select the text
label font and colour.
Entering parameters for text labelling of drillhole data
To display text coloured by data range or attribute category choose a colour

pattern from the pull-down list. Use the Browse button to open the Legend
Editor and create a new colour pattern. See Edit Colour Patterns for more
information on creating and using colour patterns.
Text Display Abbreviations
It is possible to set up a list of abbreviations and replacement text for Discover to

use when displaying numeric downhole data as text. This can be particularly useful
when negative numbers have been stored to represent non-numeric values such
as “no sample taken”, or “below detection limit”. To set up the abbreviations, simply
open and edit the MapInfo table d_abbrev table from the Discover\Config folder
(default installation path of C:\Program
Files\MapInfo\Professional\Discover\Config).
The value in the Number_Code field is replaced by the Alpha_Code field value. For
example -5 may be replaced by BDL. The entry in the description field is for
commenting purposes only and is not used by Discover.
Orientation and Position
Text labels can be displayed in a number of orientations on the section or plan.

Choose from Horizontal, Perpendicular, Parallel or a Custom Angle.
Text labels are offset relative to the drillhole trace. Select an appropriate Offset
position taking into account the location of other downhole display variables
including thickness of trace shades. Positions left of the drillhole trace are denoted
by negative values. The distance (mm) can be overwritten for each offset position.
The location of the text label within the interval can be controlled by selecting either
Top, Centre or Bottom.
For numeric data columns the number of decimal places can be set to values
between 0 and 5 decimal places (0 dp to 5 dp in the list). For example, 0.08
displays as 0 when formatted to 0 decimal places, and as 0.1 with 1 decimal place.
To leave data values as they are set the Format to None.
Histogram/Linegraph
Linegraphs and Histograms are used to display numeric data in graphical form.
The data limits are shown at the top of the dialog and the range of data displayed
may be modified by clicking the Limits button and entering a restricted range.
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Modifying the data limits can be used to visually “cut” high grade assays. Intervals
with values outside the specified data limits will be displayed at the appropriate
limiting value. Discover can also log transform the raw data.
Specifying linegraph and histogram display parameters
The Scale of the histogram or linegraph is specified in mm per data unit and is
related to the map scale at which the section or plan is to be viewed. The larger the
histogram/linegraph scale, the larger the histogram and linegraphs. If Discover
detects that the scale entered is inappropriate for the data range, a message will
be displayed.
A Colour Pattern may be selected to colour a histogram according to data ranges.

A linegraph cannot be coloured using a colour pattern as the linegraph is created
as one continuous polyline for each drillhole. The Linegraph line style however can
be displayed in any of the available linestyles. Linegraphs display much faster than
histograms as there is just one map object per drillhole.
Linegraphs and Histograms can be offset to the left or right of the drill trace which
enables multiple linegraphs and histograms to be displayed next to each drill trace.
Trace Shade
The Trace Shade display type is designed for displaying downhole data such as
lithology as a polygon of set width for each downhole interval shaded by a
specified colour pattern.
Specify a colour pattern to use for the trace shade from the pull-down list.
Alternatively, use the Browse button to open the Legend Editor and create a
new colour pattern. See Edit Colour Patterns for more information on creating
and using colour patterns. If the attribute value for an interval does not match any
of the values in the colour pattern, no trace shade polygon is displayed for that
interval.
The width of the trace shade polygons are specified in mm relative to the map
scale in which the section or plan is to be plotted. The position of the trace shade
can also be specified as an offset from the drillhole trace. The offset is relative to
the centre of the trace shade, so that a trace shade 2mm wide, offset 1mm to the
left of the drillhole is displayed with its right margin flush with the drill trace.
Structure Ticks
The Structure Tick display type enables downhole structural data measurements
to be displayed on a drillhole section. Discover generates a line that crosses the
drill trace at the appropriate dip angle. The structure measurement may be
displayed as an Apparent Dip for unoriented core or True Dip for oriented core.
For apparent dip display, two structure ticks, symmetrical about the drill trace, are
displayed. Structure ticks can be placed at the Top, Centre or Bottom of the
measured structural interval.
To display True Dip for oriented core the Dip Direction (azimuth) column must be
selected from the pull-down list.
Drillholes 467
Specifying drillhole structural data display parameters
Note Note that the dip for oriented core is relative to the core rather than true. Discover
calculates the correct dip of the structure using the downhole surveys.
To display Apparent Dip for unoriented core select whether zero dip has been
measured parallel or perpendicular to the core axis.
Structure ticks can be coloured according to entries in another column in the

structure table. For example, Bedding, Foliation, Cleavage, etc. This enables
different types of structural data measurements to be displayed using different line
colours and styles.
Specify a colour pattern to use for the trace shade from the pull-down list.
Alternatively, use the Browse button to open the Legend Editor and create a
new colour pattern. See Edit Colour Patterns for more information on creating
and using colour patterns.
Note It is best to use a text based legend to colour the different structure types such as
Quartz vein or foliation and even if the structure types have been coded as 1, 2, 3,
etc rather than using a numerical colour legend.
Enter an appropriate Tick Length (mm) for the map scale the drillhole section is to
be viewed or plotted. If a colour pattern is not used the default tick display can be
modified using the Line Style button.
Display Annotation
The following Display Annotation options are available:
• Data Legend – schematic drillhole trace with text showing the location of
each data display attribute including a legend for each colour pattern used in
the section downhole display.
• Histogram Scale - data scale for histograms and linegraphs. This scale can
also be displayed graphically in the section (or plan) map window. The scale
is placed at the top left of the section. To move the scale, ensure the
annotation table is editable, select all the scale objects (lines and text) using
the marquee select tool and then move them to the desired location.
Save Display Settings
Display parameters can be saved as a Display Setting which can be re-applied to

new or existing sections. When all of the display settings have been entered click
the Save button. Enter an appropriate setting name. Unless working with a saved
Display Setting, any display setting that is defined is referred to as the Current
Display Setting.
To select an existing setting to apply to a section choose the display setting from
the Available Settings pull-down list and click the Use button. Settings can be
modified and re-saved with the same setting name. Remove unwanted display
settings from the Available Settings list using the Delete button.
Note Saved display settings may be selected for use during section generation by
selection the setting name from the list displayed in the Define Section or
Plan>Annotation dialog.
Downhole display settings are stored in the xs_disp.cfg file in the
Discover>Config directory.
Drillholes 469
Edit Colour Patterns

Discover>Drillholes>Edit Colour Patterns
Downhole numeric and textual data can be displayed using pre-defined colour
patterns. For example, assay values displayed as text labels or histograms may be
coloured by specific data ranges to enable high or low values to be easily
identifiable. Lithological data displayed in a trace shade can have standard colours
and/or patterns assigned for each lithological unit. Colour patterns can also be
applied to textual data displayed as text labels or structure ticks.
Drillhole colour patterns are created and modified through the Discover Legend
Editor which is accessed via the Drillholes>Edit Colour Patterns menu option.
Colour patterns created using the Discover>ColourMap utility can be imported
into the Legend Editor and drillhole colour patterns created by other users can be
loaded using the Drillholes>Load Colour Patterns utility. Legends created using
the Legend Editor can be displayed in the Discover3D add-on module.
Colour patterns are stored as files with a .LEG extension in the Program
Files\Encom\Common\LUT directory. Use the Settings button to view the current
file path for the legend and pattern directories. The Settings button also stores the
MapInfow.pen path. When a new user logs on to MapInfo an individual
MapInfow.pen file is created as part of the user install and stored in C:\Documents
and Settings\XXXX\ Application
Data\MapInfo\MapInfo\Professional\780\MapInfow.pen. In order for the Legend
Editor to be used correctly this path must be set when a user opens the Legend
Editor for the first time. Substitute the new user log-in for XXXX in the above
example and the 780 with the correct MapInfo version installed. (780 = MapInfo
7.8, 800 = MapInfo 8.0 etc)
Note If the MapInfow.pen path is not visible in Windows Explorer select Tools>Folder
Options and under the View tab click on the Show hidden files and folders
option.
Available colour patterns (legends) are listed in the Legends window on the left
hand side of the Legend Editor dialog. When a legend is highlighted in this
window the Legend name, Description, Filename and Data Type is populated
with the associated legend entries displayed in the main legend window.
Legend Editor dialog showing assigned properties, colours and patterns.
Three operational buttons are located at the base of the Legends List:
• New - create new colour pattern legend
• Import – import Discover ColourMap table as legend table
• Delete – remove an existing legend file from the list
To save a new or modified legend click on the Save button on the right-hand side
of the Legend Editor dialog. To save legends with another name use the Save As
button. Use the Close button to exit the Legend Editor dialog.
Drillholes 471
Create New Legend
1. Click New button to display the New Legend dialog.
2. To use an existing field in a drillhole downhole table as the basis for the new
legend check the Populate legend from dataset box. Select the downhole
table from the Dataset pull-down list and the data attribute column from the
Field pull-down list.
If an existing field is not used to create the legend the number of rows and
data range will need to be selected manually.
3. Select the legend Data Type from the following options:
• Text –individual textual categories
• Numeric – numeric ranges whereby the upper limit of one range is

continuous with the lower limit of the next range. Only values that are
less than the maximum value for each range are displayed using the
range colour. If using the Populate legend from dataset option the
maximum value will need to be increased in order for the maximum
value in the dataset to be coloured.
4. Select the Number of rows to display in the legend. If a text field is selected
as a Data source the Number of rows is automatically populated with the
number of unique data entries.
5. Enter the Data range to use for numeric legends. The data range
determines the minimum and maximum data values to display in the legend.
The data range is divided by the number of rows to create the initial legend
from and to values. If a numeric field is selected from a downhole table as a
Data source the Data Range is automatically populated although this value
can be changed manually.
6. Enter a Legend name for the output table. If a field is selected from a
downhole table as a Data Source the Legend name is automatically
created by concatenating the downhole table and attribute field name
together. This name can be overwritten with a user-defined name.
7. Click OK to display the legend in the Legend Editor dialog.
Legend Properties
Each legend is made up of a number of properties that can be modified at any

time. To modify a legend select the legend from the list. The existing legend
properties will be automatically displayed in the Legend Editor window. For each
legend entry the following legend properties are available:
• Row – Incremental legend row number
• String – Text legend entry field. Double-click with the mouse in the string
column to modify entry.
• Label – If text is to be displayed, the label text is presented
• From – Numeric legend minimum range value. Double-click with the mouse
in the From column to modify entry.
• To - Numeric legend maximum range value. Double-click with the mouse in

the To column to modify entry.
• Fg (Foreground colour) – Colour used for solid or pattern fills. Left-mouse

click in the Fg colour box in the legend entry to display the colour palette.
Select from any of the standard colours available or press Custom to create
a new colour. In the Colour dialog select a colour from the Basic Colours
palette. Click in the colour spectrum window or enter RGB or HSL values
until the desired colour is created. Use the Add to Custom Colours button
to add the colour to the Custom Colours palette. The Fg colour can also be
set to Transparent to display data with this legend entry see-through.
Drillholes 473
• Bg (Background colour) – Colour displayed as solid background fill if a

pattern is selected. Selection of background colours is identical to selection
of foreground colours (see above)
• Pattern – Pattern displayed for a legend entry. Left-mouse click in the

Pattern box in the legend entry to display the available patterns. The pattern
selected is displayed with the colour of the nominated Fg (Foreground
colour)
Pattern styles are stored in bitmap files located in the ..\\Program

Files\Encom\Common\Patterns directory.
• LCol – Line colour used for trace shade or histogram boundaries and
structure ticks. Left-mouse click in the LCol box in the legend entry to
display the colour palette. To copy the Foreground colours to use as the line
colours highlight the Fg column entries and press Ctrl-C. Highlight the
corresponding lines and press Ctrl-V.
• LStyle – Line style used for trace shade or histogram boundaries and
structure ticks. Left-mouse click in the LStyle box in the legend entry to
display the available styles.
• LThick – Line thickness used for trace shade or histogram boundaries and
structure ticks.
• Comment – Descriptive text entry for each legend row can be stored with
the legend.
• RGB Interp/HSL Interp - Interpolate RGB (Red:Green:Blue) or HSL

(Hue:Saturation:Lightness) shades in colour columns across rows of
selected cells.
RGB and HSL interpolations can be used with any of the legend colour
columns Fg, Bg or LCol. To select the rows to shade either left-mouse click
in the first colour cell and drag the mouse cursor to the last colour cell or left-
mouse click in the first colour cell and hold down the Shift or Ctrl keys to
select the last colour cell. Click the RGB Interp or HSL Interp button. The
intermediate rows show continuous shading between the first and last
selected colour cells.
• Step Patterns - Automatically assign patterns across rows of selected cells.

To select the rows to pattern either left-mouse click in the first pattern cell
and drag the mouse cursor to the last pattern cell or left-mouse click in the
first pattern cell and hold down the Shift or Ctrl keys to select the last pattern
cell. Click the Step Patterns button. Each row is displayed in a different
pattern according to the order in the available pattern
• Duplicate - Copy a colour, pattern or line style across rows of selected

cells. Select the cell to copy and drag the mouse cursor to the last cell or
hold down the Shift or Ctrl keys to select the last cell. Click the Duplicate
button and all selected cells will be updated with the same parameter as the
selected cell.
• Insert row - insert an empty row above the selected row
• Delete rows - remove single or multiple rows. Select a row to delete by

clicking in the legend row column. Use the Shift and Ctrl keys to select
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multiple rows. Any cell selection that is highlighted is removed with this
operation. A confirmation message is displayed before the rows are deleted.
Warning If rows are deleted from a legend they cannot be restored once the modified
legend is saved.
Load Colour Patterns

Discover>Drillholes>Load Colour Patterns
The Discover Load Colour Patterns utility is designed to import colour patterns
that have been created and saved on other machines running Discover. Users can
copy standard colour patterns between computers in the same office or at different
sites.
The drillhole colour pattern parameters are stored in the xs_colr table located in the
..\\Program Files\MapInfo\Professional\Discover\Config directory. The xs_colr table
stores information relating to the colour pattern name, individual categories or
ranges and the background, foreground, patterns and styles used in each colour
pattern entry. To import colour patterns using this utility the table structure must
adhere to this format.
To import a colour pattern table select the Drillholes>Load Colour Patterns menu
option and browse to the directory containing the new colour pattern file. The new
patterns are appended to the current Discover xs_colr table and should be
available for selection in the Downhole Data Display and Log Display utilities.
For each newly imported colour pattern a .LEG file is created in the ..\\Program
Files\Encom\Common\LUT directory. This enables the new colour patterns to be
modified using the Legend Editor in Drillholes>Edit Colour Patterns.
Export Colour Patterns
To send an entire drillhole colour pattern table to another user simply copy both the
xs_colr.TAB and xs_colr.DAT files from the ..\\Program
Files\MapInfo\Professional\Discover\Config directory. To send selected colour

patterns only open the xs_colr table into MapInfo and use the Data
Utilities>Select by Group menu option to choose the colour patterns to export.
When the selected colour patterns are opened in a Query table use File>Save
Copy As to save the selected colour patterns to a new table which can then be
sent to other users.
Selecting colour patterns from xs_colr table using Select by Group utility
Log Display
Discover>Drillholes>Log Display
The Drillhole Log Display function in Discover can display up to 24 columns of

downhole data for one drillhole in a plain log style display.
The drillhole log style display is a valuable means of displaying relationships

between multiple downhole variables such as a geochemistry assays, lithology and
geophysical readings within a drillhole.
To create a Log Display select one or more drillholes from the collar map window.
If multiple drillholes are selected a separate drillhole log is created for each
drillhole. The drillhole log is saved to a mappable table in a Non_Earth (cm)
projection and named according to the selected drillhole. The drillhole log table can
be further annotated and added to the layout window for printing.
Drillholes 477
Drillhole data displayed in log style
Define Log Display
The log display is defined by choosing a downhole data table, selecting the
columns from the table to display and selecting how each of these columns is to be
displayed. The log can display up to 24 columns, with column 1 being at the left of
the log, and column 24 at the right.
Defining the tables, columns and Display Type in the Drillhole Log Display dialog
Select a downhole table containing attribute data columns from the Select
columns from Data Table pull-down list. The log display may be made up of
attribute data from more than one data table. For each downhole table select the
attribute columns and the assigned column positions from the Columns to Display
in Log dialog.
To change the column position for an attribute column click on the Reorder
Columns button. Use the Up and Down buttons to move the attribute columns to
their correct positions. Remove an attribute column using the Delete button.
Drillholes 479
Log Display Parameters
Choose a Display Type for each data attribute column. Click the Settings button
in either the Columns to Display in Log or Drillhole Log Display dialog. The
following Log Types are available:
• Text – Numeric and non-numeric data. By default the Text Style scale box
is checked to autoscale text within drillhole log intervals. To modify text size
and colour click on the Text Style button. Display text using a Colour
Pattern or check the Replace numbers with alias from table d_abbrev
box if required.
• Trace Shade - Numeric and non-numeric data. Trace shades must be

displayed using an associated Colour Pattern.
• Histogram – Numeric data only. Histograms may be displayed using a

Colour Pattern or select a Pen style and Brush style to apply to all
histogram bars.
• Linegraph – Numeric data only. Linegraphs may be filled with plain colour
using the Brush style colour or from a Trace Shade Colour Pattern
displayed in another drillhole log column.
The width of each log is set to a 2 cm default but can be modified for each log
column. Numeric data can be displayed as log values or between selected
minimum and maximum data values. Logs can be scaled from the minimum data
value or by a defined Horizontal Scale. Numeric data options are also available to
show or ignore negative values, set negative values to 0 or multiply negative
values by -0.5.
When the log display settings have been setup for each data attribute they can be
saved and re-used for other drillhole log displays. Click the Save button and enter
a name for the setting. To use a saved setting select the setting from the Saved
Settings pull-down list. Use the Remove button to delete a saved setting from the
list. By default the Last Settings Used are automatically displayed whenever the
Drillhole Log Display dialog is opened during a current work session.
Global Settings
Defining Global Settings
A number of log display parameters can be set up as global settings and defaults.
Many of these settings, such as the column width and graphic styles, can be
overridden in the individual log settings either when the data attribute column is
first selected or from the Drillhole Log Display dialog. The following Global
Settings and Default Style may be set:
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• Log Dimensions - column width, vertical scale, horizontal scale, column

spacing, minimum and maximum log depths
• Annotation settings – linegraph scale, column labels, depth ticks, depth

lines, axis style and label styles
• Data Handling – negative data value options, replace numbers using alias
from the d_abbrev table
• Default Log Styles - numeric and character default log styles, linegraph fill,
text style, linegraph pen style, fill style, Log(10) transform, log scale from
minimum value
Default Style in the Drillhole Log Display dialog

Draw Section Grid

Discover>Drillholes>Draw Section Grid
Drillhole Section Grid dialog
Select an appropriate X and Elevation Grid Spacing. The section grid may be
displayed as Lines, Points or Edge Ticks. Use the style buttons to modify grid
linestyles, point symbols, colour and font. Make sure the Label Size is appropriate
for the Scale the section is to viewed or plotted.
Section grid labels may be displayed in a polygon mask outside of the map frame
and at the top, bottom, left and right in the map window. Use the Other Label
Options to modify the text displayed in the grid label or to label only selected grid
intervals. The grid file is automatically written to section directory and named using
the section name with a “G” extension. To save the grids to a different location or
under a different name use the Save As button.
See the Map Grid section for more information on Discover grids.
Add Section to Layout

Discover>Drillholes>Add Section to Layout
Add one or more sections to the layout window. Select the scale and layout page
size for a section and add a section grid, titleblock and scalebar. Create a section
collar plan and add to the layout in a separate frame.
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Select drillhole section, map scale and page size
The Add Section to Layout dialog enables a user to specify a map scale and
page size frame for a drillhole section in the same way as Scaled Output. Select
the section to add to a layout from the Select Section window. Only one section
can be selected from this window and the layout frame parameters will be based
on this section and applied to any additional sections selected in the next dialog.
Choose a scale from the Map Scale pull-down list. If the desired scale is not
available then choose Custom Scale at the bottom of the list and manually enter a
map scale.
Select a page size and orientation from the Frame Setup list. To add a new page
size see Scaled Output>Configure Frame Settings for more information on
creating and saving page frames. The page dimensions and map window area
covered by the chosen frame are displayed at the base of the dialog. When the OK
button is clicked a MapSize frame is added to the selected section map window. A
new menu named Section Output is also added to the MapInfo menu bar.
Whatever is displayed within this frame in the section map window is what will
appear in the layout. If the frame does not appear in the correct location then select
the frame in the map window and drag to cover the desired window contents. Do
NOT re-size the MapSize frame as this will affect the map scale in the layout.
When the MapSize frame is correctly positioned choose Accept Map Position
from the Section Output menu.
Section Output menu options
If the MapSize frame is too big or too small for the section map window contents
then choose Section Output>Re-Specify Parameters and select a different Map
Scale or Frame Setup. Continue this process until an acceptable MapSize frame
is created and choose Accept Map Position from the Section Output menu.
Section Layout Options
Adding scaled sections to the layout window, ready to print
Once the section map position is accepted the scale, frame width, height, top RL
and frame left details are displayed under Frame Parameters in the Add Section
to Layout dialog. Click the Preview button to re-size the section map window to
frame parameters. The frame parameters can be modified manually if required.
To create multiple layouts based on the same frame parameters highlight

additional sections from the Choose Sections to Add window. To view how an
additional section will be displayed in the layout, select the section from the list and
click the Preview button. If necessary modify the frame parameters to
accommodate the additional section dimensions.
Drillholes 485
The Add Plan of Collars to Layout box is automatically checked to include a plan
of the drillholes displayed in the cross-section in the layout. The collar plan is
opened into a new map window and displayed in a separate frame in the layout
above the cross-section. The collar plan can be edited and additional layers such
as surface geology added to enhance the layout.
Note Collar plans are added to the top of the map frame in the layout which may result
in a layout bigger than the original page size selected. Select larger page size or
create custom map frame as a workaround.
A layout frame can be added to an existing layout if one is already open and
multiple sections can be placed in one layout (with multiple pages) or a separate
layout can be created for each section. Check the Show section info text in
layout box to include information such as scale, section origin X, Y and RL and
section orientation on the layout.
A section grid is created automatically as part of the section layout. See Draw
Section Grid for more information. A titleblock and scalebar can be added to the
layout window for each section in a similar method to using the Discover map
making tools such as Scaled Output. See Scaled Output and Appendix A for
more information on titleblocks and creating a customized titleblock.
This menu option is specifically for cross-sections. If there are multiple plans to
print use the Discover>Map Making>Add Scaled Frame to Layout menu option.
With either of these functions, frames can be added to existing layout windows,
enabling a user to add accurately scaled frames for sections and plans together in
the one layout.
Create Section Collar Plan

Discover>Drillholes>Create Section Collar Plan
Use the Drillholes Create Section Collar Plan menu option to create a section
collar plan without having to run the Add Section to Layout utility. The collarmap
plan can be added to a layout using the Frame Tool from the MapInfo Drawing
Toolbar.
Section Manager
Discover>Drillholes>Section Manager
The Drillholes Section Manager is designed to help with the management of

section and plan tables, allowing easy retrieval of previously created sections or
plans. The Section Manager can also be used to specify a directory to save
sections or plans or change the name and file path of a drillhole project.
Section Manager dialog
If the section manager is activated (See Section Manager Settings) all sections
and plans created for the drillhole projection are listed in the Available Sections
window. Use the Open button to display a previously created section or plan in a
map window. The Close button will close the selected section tables in MapInfo
and the Delete button will permanently remove the section tables from the Section
Manager and the Windows project directory. This section can then be used for
plotting, amending the data display, calculating resources etc.
If a section has been created but not assigned to the Section Manager it can be
added to the list of Available Sections for a project using the Add button.
Highlight the section to add from the list of currently open sections in the Add
Section to Section Manager window.
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Refresh Downhole Data
Base data for a drillhole project can change over time. New assay results may be
received or survey data updated. Instead of re-generating any sections that have
already been created, the Refresh button in the Section Manager can be used to
update any drillhole sections or plans with the new data from the base tables.
The Refresh option can only be used in instances where the depth intervals used
in the creation of the original section remain the same. If the original depth
intervals, downhole column names or column order are changed or new data
columns added in the base table the section or plan will need to be re-created.
Sections or plans must also be re-created if new drillholes have been added to the
collar table or a new downhole table is added to the drillhole project after the
original section or plan was generated.
Section Manger Settings
All sections and plans created for a drillhole project can be managed using the
Section Manager. By default, new drillhole sections or plans are saved to the
temporary directory specified in Discover>Configuration>Settings. (This is
generally the MapInfo\Professional\Tmp directory).
Under Section Manager there are two options for automatically saving each
section or plan created in Discover. To have all the sections saved together in the
one directory select the Add Section to Project Root Directory option (the
directory in which the project was established) and all the sections will be saved
together. To have each section saved into a separate directory below the project
root directory select the Create New Directory option.
Drillhole Section Manager to Modify a Project’s details

The file path and project name for a Drillhole Project can also be modified using
the Projection Definition parameters. If project files have been moved use the
Browse button to browse to the new file location. Alternatively, to copy project
data files from their original location to a new location check the Copy Files to
new location box.
Downhole Info Tool
Select the Downhole Info tool from the Drillhole toolbar and click on a drillhole
collar. The Downhole Info dialog displays all the data in the collar table along
with downhole survey data. To view information from any downhole tables select
the table from the downhole data pull-down list.
Drillhole information from the graphically selected hole
Boundary Digitizing
Discover>Drillholes>Boundary Digitizing>Digitize Boundary
Once drillhole sections are created, geological or ore boundaries can be

interpreted visually. Section boundaries can be viewed in external 3D visualization
packages or used to generate solids for volume calculations. The boundary table
can also be used with the sectional resource calculation function to restrict the area
over which the resource is interpolated.
Boundaries are digitized on the screen in the section map window as polygon map
objects into a new section map layer. Each section has a separate boundary table
that is stored with the other section tables. Select the Digitize Boundary menu
option and choose the section to digitize into from the Available Sections pull-
down list. A new editable boundary layer is added to the section map window. This
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layer is named using the section name and a “B” extension. Select the Polygon
tool from the MapInfo Drawing Toolbar and proceed to digitize the boundary into
the section boundary layer. When complete, save the section boundary table using
the File>Save Table menu option.
Export Boundaries
Discover>Drillholes >Boundary Digitizing>Export Boundaries
Objects digitized into a section boundary table can be exported to 3D DXF files for
visualisation in 3D software systems including the Discover 3D add-on module.
The 3D DXF format is compatible with AutoCAD® 2005.
Any type of map object (polylines, regions, points etc) may be digitized into the
boundary table. When these objects are exported to 3D DXF, any attributes that
have been added to the boundary objects are also exported.
Choose the boundary to export from the Available Section Feature Layers list.
Enter a Layer Name for the boundary or check the Use section name as layer
name option. Discover can export section boundaries as a single 3D DXF file with
all boundaries in one layer. In addition, a single 3D DXF file with separate layers
for each boundary may be exported.
3D DXF files may also be created using unique attributes from a column in the
section boundary table. For example, if one or more section boundary tables
contain lithological boundaries for shale, sandstone, basalt, etc select the column
that stores this attribute from the Multiple Files pull-down list. A series of 3D DXF
files are created with each file containing all the lithology polygons for one unique
attribute. E.g. Shale.DXF
Sectional Resource Calculator

Discover>Drillholes>Sectional Resources Calculator
Discover provides a simple method for interpolating resources from cross-sections

or level plans. The Sectional Resource Calculator uses a two dimensional
inverse distance weighted interpolator (similar to that used in the Discover
Surfaces module) to produce a grid of interpolated values. Section grids can be
generated over an entire section or contained using a boundary that has already
been digitized using the Drillholes Boundary Digitizing utility.
Note Ore resource values generated by the Discover Sectional Resource Calculator
are approximation only and should be used in conjunction with other resource
calculation applications.
The resource grid is stored as a table named with the section (or plan) name plus a
suffix to show it is a resource grid, and stored in the project or section folder.
The Sectional Resource Calculator requires a drillhole project and either a cross-
section or plan of the drillhole results to be used for the calculations. In order to
ensure that all drillhole assay results which intersect the cross-section are included
in the interpolation check the Search all holes box in the Drillholes Define New
Section or Plan dialog. This option will ensure that any drillholes that is collared
outside of the section envelope but intersects the section envelope at depth are
included in the cross-section.
Once the resource grid has been generated it may be contoured, queried or re-
coloured using the functions in the Discover Surfaces module.
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Drillhole plotting dialog and selected Search all holes option
The sectional resource will generally be contained within a boundary that has been
interpreted based on geological or geochemical restraints. Drillhole assay results
that lie within the selected boundary are used in the resource interpolation. See
Boundary Digitizing menu option for more information on creating boundaries.
Setup Resource Parameters
1. Select the Drillholes>Sectional Resource Calculator menu option.
Drillhole Sectional Resources Step 1 of 3 dialog
2. Select the section(s) to be used in the sectional resource calculation and

click OK.
Drillhole Sectional Resources – Step 2 of 3 dialog
3. Use the From Table pull-down list to select the assay table to use in the
resource calculation. Highlight the appropriate assay column in the From
Column list.
4. If there is a section boundary in the section map window the options to Use
Data Bounds or Use Digitized Boundaries are available. The Use
Digitized Boundaries option will restrict the sectional resource calculation
to within the interpreted ore boundaries by excluding all assay results that lie
outside the computed boundary.
5. Check the Convert area to tonnes box to more accurately calculate the
resource tonnage. The Width value is the total distance from the section line
in either direction to include in the resource calculation. For example, a
resource calculation width of 20m is comprised of a +/-10m envelope either
side of the section line. Effectively this value is twice the envelope width
specified in the Drillholes Define New Section or Plan dialog.
Enter a Specific Gravity (sg) or density for the ore. The section volume is
multiplied by this value to calculate the resource tonnage.
If the Use Digitized Boundaries option is selected the Store Resource in

column becomes active. Check this box to store the results of sectional
resource calculation in a new column named Resource in the digitized
boundary table (cross-section table with “B” extension).
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Section Grid Parameters
Drillhole Sectional Resources – Step 3 of 3 dialog
7. The Grid Cell width/height is automatically populated but can be changed

to a more appropriate size if required. The minimum and maximum X and Y
extents for the output grid are also displayed and may be changed manually
if no ore boundary is selected. Enter a Null cell value for any blank grid
cells created (default -999999).
The interpolation used by Discover in the Sectional Resource Calculation is a

simple two dimensional Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) algorithm similar to that
used in the Discover Surfaces menu. A search ellipse of fixed size and orientation
can be defined and a grid cell value is then calculated from the weighted average
of all data points that lie within the ellipse centred on each grid cell. If the input data
points are not evenly distributed then using an oriented search ellipse may produce
a more representative grid.
8. Uncheck the Ignore zero data values or Ignore negative data values
boxes to include zero or negative data values in the section resource
calculation.
9. The Weight power determines the rate at which the influence of each data
point declines with increasing distance from the grid cell being interpolated.
Increasing the weighting power reduces the influence distant points have on
the calculated value of each grid node. The weighting value defaults to 2 (i.e.
the weight of any data point is inversely proportional to the square of its
distance from the grid cell) which is appropriate for most situations. If
required, the weighting value can be altered to any positive value.
10. Enter a Min points per cell value. This value represents the minimum points
required within the search ellipse before a grid cell value can be
interpolated and controls the appearance and smoothness of the output
grid.
Note If the minimum number of points is set greater than 1, some cells may report a
null value as they do not contain sufficient data points within the search ellipse.
11. For a simple search with no bias in the search orientation use the default
Search Ellipse Orientation of 0 degrees. Set the Ellipse Long Radius and
Ellipse Short Radius to the same value to create a circular search ellipse.
When the mineralisation orientation such as the dip or plunge of the ore
body is known, alter the search ellipse parameters accordingly. The search
ellipse orientation may be between –90° and 90°, where 0° is vertical and -
90° and 90° orientations are horizontal search orientations in the left and
right hemispheres respectively. For example, a section with the
mineralisation plunge/dip 50° to the right on section requires a search
orientation of –40°. The long axis (major) and the short axis (minor) define
the search ellipse used by the grid algorithm.
12. The sectional resource grid is saved by default with the section name plus
“Resource” suffix in the drillhole section directory. The grid can be saved
with a different name and location if required. Choose a colour look-up table
to shade the new sectional resource grid from the Image Shading pull-down
list.
13. Click OK to create the sectional resource grid. The grid is automatically
added to the section map window and the tonnage and grade displayed in a
message window. The tonnage and grade is also written to the Resource
column of the boundary table if this option was selected.
Validate Drillhole Database

Discover>Drillholes>Validate Drillhole Database
Discover includes a number of options to assist in validating the data used in a

drillhole project. Using the data validation options can highlight data which can
cause problems when creating drillhole sections and plans. Some of the main
sources of the failure to plot all downhole data successfully on a section can be
attributed to drillhole name or total depth mismatches and overlapping sample
intervals within the collar and downhole data tables.
Drillholes 495
Drillhole Selection dialog
The validation procedure may be run on the entire project database tables,
selected drillholes in the collar map window or by the manual selection of drillholes
to validate from the project drillhole list.
Data validation results may be printed to the screen and/or written to a log text file.
Data Validation dialog
Discover provides the following validation options to identify a number of common

data problems:
• Drillhole name mismatch – Common problems occur where the drillhole

name is specified differently in the collar table and the downhole tables (e.g.
DDH007 and DDH7 are considered by Discover to be different drillholes).
Drillhole project files linked to Excel spreadsheets may contain spaces

before or after entries causing drillhole name mismatches.
• Total depth mismatch – If downhole data exists below the total depth
specified in the collar table it will not be displayed in section. This can occur
due to data entry errors or if the collar data was entered before the drilling
was complete.
• Large Dip/Azimuth changes – Data entry errors in either collar table

dip/azimuth measurements or downhole survey readings can cause
significant problems that are difficult to pick up. Discover lists all drillhole
surveys where the drill trace deviates by more than a specified amount
between surveys.
• Duplicate sample numbers – In some instances duplicate sample numbers

are an indication of data entry errors and need to be identified.
• Overlapping sample intervals – Sample intervals should not overlap in the

same downhole data table and any such intervals must be identified.
• Sample interval gaps – Although many drillholes do not have contiguous

sample intervals from top to bottom, it is often very useful to list out where
the gaps are located to ensure these are not attributed to data entry errors.
Downhole Compositing
Discover>Drillholes>Composite
The Discover drillhole compositing utility composites downhole data in a number of

ways:
• Cut-off grade – Composite data using a minimum cut-off grade for a

specified downhole length or vertical thickness interval. Include internal
dilution parameters.
• Elevation – Composite data using regular downhole elevation intervals such

as mining bench RL or downhole depth from surface.
• Attribute – Composite data using a unique-value attribute such as lithology

or alteration. All contiguous intervals with the same attribute value are
grouped together and assays composited for each contiguous group.
Drillholes 497
Compositing dialog options
Select Drillholes to Composite
By default all drillholes are selected for compositing. To composite a selection of

drillholes choose the drillholes in the collar map window prior to running the
compositing utility. Alternatively, click the Unselect All button in the Compositing
dialog and highlight individual drillholes using the left mouse button. To select
consecutive drillholes hold down the Shift key and for non-consecutive drillholes
holes hold down the Ctrl key.
Note In the original downhole table to composite make sure that the From and To
columns are set to Float or Decimal (particularly if the drillholes are inclined) as
the original From and To column formats are carried over into
the output composite table. If these columns are set to integers then the downhole
From and To depths reported may be incorrect due to rounding to the nearest
whole number.
General Settings
Select the table to composite from the Composite from downhole table pull-down
list. Select the primary data column to composite from the Composite using value
in column pull-down list. Data to composite must be in a numeric column.
Composite data is stored in a new table. The new composite table is named using
the original downhole table name with a default Composite table suffix of
“_comp”. The suffix can be changed to any user-specific name. All downhole tables
in the drillhole project are displayed in the Downhole tables to composite
window.
The Select Columns button controls which additional fields are to be composited.
By default only the primary field specified in the Composite using value in
column pull-down list is selected (along with the compulsory HoleID, From & To
fields); use the arrow buttons to add extra fields to the Selected list (ensure that the
primary field remains in the selected list). If additional fields are to be composited, it
is recommended to alter the Composite table suffix to reflect the primary
compositing field, e.g. ‘_comp_Cu’.
Enabling the Add interval column to output option adds a new column (default
name ‘Interval’) to the output table. This will contain the downhole length of each
composited interval. An existing field cannot be specified.
Check the Add output to current project box to automatically add newly created
composite tables to the current drillhole project. Composite data can then be
viewed on a section using the Display Downhole Data utility.
If the downhole table to composite contains character values in other columns then
some composite columns in the composite table may be meaningless. Check the
Clear character columns box to avoid incorrect values being carried over to the
composite table.
Composite Data Handling Options
A number of Data Handling Options are available in order to assist Discover to

composite drillhole data. Downhole assay data is often received in a format that
requires some manual manipulation before the data can be used effectively in
downhole analysis.
Drillholes 499
Data Handling Options dialog
• Negative Values – Negative values can be set to “0” or to a single user-

specified value.
Check the Multiply negative values box by -0.5 to convert each negative
value to a new positive assay value which is half the detection limit.
Alternatively, multiply all negative values by a single user-specified value.
• Zero Values - Zero values can be set to a single user-specified value.
• Custom Template – To apply different replacement values for element data

in a table or for multiple replacements within the same element field a
custom template can be created. The template must contain three fields
which contain the element name, the original assay value and the new
replacement assay value. The template must be open in MapInfo in order to
be selected for use in the Data Handling Options dialog.
Cut-off Grade
Compositing by cut-off grade is commonly used to summarize assay data into

intervals above a specified value. A minimum interval length can also be specified
along with internal dilution constraints.
The composited interval is calculated using a downhole running weighted average

of consecutive samples that conform to the cut-off grade parameters. Cut-off grade
composites can only be calculated for one element at a time.
Compositing by cut-off grade
• Minimum Grade
Enter a minimum grade for a sample to be included as part of the composite.

The downhole running grade is also assessed against the Minimum Grade; if
it falls below the Minimum Grade, the composite is stopped (unless Internal
Dilution has been specified).
• Cut High Values to maximum
Enter a maximum grade for a sample to be included as part of the

composite, any grades higher than the specified value will be automatically
treated as the high cut value.
• Minimum Length
A minimum length downhole (e.g. 5m) can be set for samples over the over
the cut-off grade. If the minimum length is not reached then the samples are
not included in the final composite table.
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• Minimum Vertical Thickness
A minimum vertical thickness (e.g. 5m) can be set for samples over the over
the cut-off grade. If the minimum vertical thickness is not reached then the
samples are not included in the final composite table.
• Internal Dilution
It is not uncommon for samples above the cut-off grade to be separated by

samples with low grade assay values. Due to restrictions such as minimum
mining width then it may be necessary to include this material as part of a
composite interval.
An internal dilution thickness and grade can be set so a minimum length or

vertical thickness interval can be reached which includes some low grade
material. If the low grade material is above the internal dilution grade it will
be included as part of the composite until the specified internal dilution
thickness is reached. Low grade material is not added to the end of a
composite interval.
Internal dilution can be calculated as either a composite (default) or applied

as a minimum dilution grade. For example, if Internal dilution is set at 5m @
50ppb, with the Composite option checked an interval of 5m @ 63ppb would
be valid regardless of the actual sample values making up this interval.
However, if the Composite option was unchecked, and the 5m @ 63ppb
incorporated 1m @ 30ppb, the interval would not be valid.
• Edge Grade
Specifying an Edge Grade allows the application of Edge padding when

downhole compositing. The Edge Grade value (GE) should be set between
the Internal Dilution (GD) and Minimum Grade (GM) values. It is used in
conjunction with Internal Dilution; the maximum Edge Grade thickness will
be the same as set for Internal Dilution.
Edge Padding allows a composite ending in a valid internal dilution interval

to be carried through to a sample >=GM if the intervening interval meets the
Edge Grade requirements (and the overall running grade >= GM throughout).
For example, if:
GM = 500ppb
Internal Dilution is 5m @ 50ppb
GE = 250ppb
(and assuming that the running grade is >=500ppb across the
composite)
The following interval would be treated as a continuous composite:
Depth Interval grade Interval length
105-120m 702ppb 15m
120-125m 89ppb 5m valid internal dilution
125-127m 400ppb 2m valid Edge padding
127-130m 550ppb 3m grade>GM
The following interval would finish the composite at 120m:
105-120m 702ppb 15m
125-127m 230ppb 2m invalid edge padding;
grade<GE
127-130m 550ppb 3m
The following interval would also finish the composite at 120m:
105-120m 702ppb 15m
125-127m 300ppb 6m length>specified internal
dilution width
127-130m 550ppb 3m
Elevation
Compositing by RL or depth is useful to normalize downhole data tables to a

consistent sampling interval or mining bench height. For example, a hole collared
at RL 257.9m and composited at 10m RL intervals has intervals of 0-10m (257.9-
247.9m), 10-20m (247.9-237.9m), etc. The same hole composited at 10m
Downhole Depth intervals has intervals of 0-10, 10-20, etc from surface. In the
Drillholes 503
case of vertical holes these composite intervals and grades should be identical but
for inclined holes some variation will be observed.
In both instances the composite is calculated using a weighted average based on

samples that fall entirely and partially within the designated composite interval. If a
composite interval contains no samples or missing samples then a zero value is
inserted and used in the final calculation.
Compositing by elevation
Downhole Depth
Downhole depth composites are calculated using the From and To intervals in the
downhole table.
1. Click on the Elevation tab in the Compositing dialog.
2. Enter a suffix for the composite table to be created or leave the “_comp” as
the default in the Composite table suffix window.
3. Choose the downhole table to composite from the Downhole tables to

composite list and use the Select Columns option to select the data
columns to composite plus any additional columns to display in the results

table.
4. Check any other options under the General settings to display an interval
column in the results table, clear any character columns and add the newly
created composite table to the current project as required.
5. Select Downhole Depth as the composite type
6. Enter the interval to composite by into the Composite at elevation interval

box.
7. If only a portion of the drillhole is to be composited then enter a Start RL

(max) and/or End RL (min) depth into the appropriate boxes. Eg. Start at
10m downhole and composite at 10m intervals until End depth of 80m is
reached.
8. Click OK to create the composite table.
RL Depth
Compositing by RL (Reduced Level) is used for situations where absolute

elevations are required. For example; to create a composite grade for mining
bench extraction purposes. RL composites are calculated by converting the From
and To intervals in a drillhole to the corresponding downhole XYZ coordinates and
using the Z value for each sample to determine whether it falls entirely within or
partially within a composite interval.
1. Enter a suffix for the composite table to be created or leave the “_comp” as
the default in the Composite table suffix window.
2. Choose the downhole table to composite from the Downhole tables to

composite list and use the Select Columns option to select the data
columns to composite plus any additional columns to display in the results
table.
3. Check the Add output to current project box (this is needed in order to
calculate 3D coordinates for the table later). Check any other options under
the General settings to display an interval column in the results table or,
clear any character columns as required.
4. Click on the Elevation tab in the Compositing dialog.
5. Select RL as the composite type
6. Enter the interval to composite by into the Composite at elevation interval

box.
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7. Enter the Start RL (max) elevation and/or an End RL (min) elevation depth
into the appropriate boxes. Eg. Start at 200 RL and composite at 10m
intervals until End depth of -150 RL is reached. If no end RL is entered then
the compositing will continue until end of hole depth is reached.
The initial composite table contains all the selected columns from the original table
plus the downhole composite column/s and interval column if this option is
checked.
The From and To columns which are displayed in the results table are the
downhole intersections which correspond to the RL values. In order to display the
corresponding RL or Z value for each composite interval the following steps are
required:
9. Go to the Drillhole>Project Setup menu option and select the current

drillhole project and click OK. This is required in order to make sure the
drillhole project registers the new composite table in the list of available
downhole tables.
10. Select Drillholes>Calculate 3D Coordinates and choose the newly created

composite table. (You may need to also select the downhole Survey table if
one is present and the downhole 3D coordinates for this table have not been
calculated already.
11. Click OK to calculate the 3D coordinates and re-display the composite table
in a browser window.
The Calculate 3D Coordinates utility adds six new columns to the composite table
with the corresponding XYZ for the From value (XF columns) and To value (XT
columns). The XFR and XTR columns contain the RL values for the upper and
lower composite interval.
Attribute
Compositing by unique attribute is generally used to merge contiguous drillhole

intervals together that contain the same attribute, e.g. Lithology, alteration, etc. A
table may be composited using the intervals generated from compositing a column
in another table, e.g. assay grades can be composited based on lithology
composite intervals. Numeric values are composited with a weighted average.
Compositing by attribute using assay data in one table with lithology data in another table
To composite assays based on lithology:
1. Click on the Attribute tab in the Compositing dialog.
2. Select the lithology table from the Composite using downhole table pull-
down list.
3. Select the column from the lithology table containing the attributes to
composite by from the Composite using value in column pull-down list.
Eg. Geology_Code
4. Choose the assay table to composite from the Downhole tables to

composite list and use the Select Columns option to select the elements to
composite plus any other columns to display in the results table.
5. Check any other options under the General settings to display an interval
column in the results table, clear any character columns and add the newly
created composite table to the current project as required.

Drillholes 507
Calculate 3D Coordinates
Discover>Drillholes>Calculate 3D Coordinates
3D coordinates for downhole samples do not need to be calculated in order for the
data to be displayed in Discover. However, these coordinates may be needed if the
data is to be transferred to another data processing or visualisation software
package.
The Calculate 3D Coordinates function updates the selected downhole data

tables with easting, northing and elevation values for the top and bottom of each
sample. The coordinates are written into columns with specific names XFE, XFN,
XFR, XTE, XTN and XTR respectively. If the columns do not already exist in the
table new columns will be created.
If the downhole tables are stored in an Access database Discover cannot set the
order of the 3D coordinate columns. In this instance the 3D coordinate columns are
created as the first 6 columns in the downhole table. This is likely to invalidate the
drillhole project column assignments that Discover stores. After calculating 3D
coordinates for the Access downhole table modify the column order in
Table>Maintenance>Table Structure and the column assignments in
Drillholes>Project Setup.
Note If a downhole data table that includes 3D coordinates is composited, the 3D

coordinates must be re-calculated after the compositing is complete.
Calculate Maximum and EOH Values

Discover>Drillholes>Calculate Maximum and EOH Values
The Maximum and EOH (End of Hole) values in a downhole table can be
extracted for all collars in the drillhole project. The Maximum and EOH values are
saved to a new table and can be gridded or contoured in the Discover Surfaces
module or thematically mapped using the MapInfo Map>Create Thematic Map

menu option to display enrichment zones or mineralized trends.
Select the project Collar Table and Downhole Data table from the pull-down
lists. Highlight the attribute columns in the Available list and use the left and right
arrow buttons to move to the Selected list. Click OK and choose a table location
and name for the calculated values.
The calculated values are displayed in a mappable table with the maximum value
and EOH value for each drillhole attribute along with the CollarX and Y.
Save Project Workspace

Discover>Drillholes>Save Project Workspace
The Drillholes Save Project Workspace menu option enables drillhole cross-
sections and layout windows to be saved to a workspace file.
When a drillhole project is open and sections are created a number of hidden files
are used to store information about the drillhole project, manage the drillhole
section manager and save colour patterns or downhole display settings. If a
workspace is saved while these hidden tables are “open” in the background the
workspace may have trouble being opened especially if the workspace is shared
with other users either on the same network or sent off-site.
If the workspace is saved using the Save Project Workspace utility these hidden
drillhole tables are not saved to the workspace. This eliminates the problem with
opening the drillhole section workspaces later on.
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Subset Project
Discover>Drillholes>Subset Project
The Subset Project tool allows an existing open drillhole project to be subsetted
based on a selection of drillholes. This will create copies of all the relevant drillhole
tables (collar, survey, downhole data, topography, etc) subsetted to the drillhole
selection, automatically creating a new drillhole project based on these new tables.
The Subset Drillhole Project dialog.
The Subset Drillhole Project dialog displays a list of the open project’s drillholes,
with the current selection highlighted. Holes can be selected manually from this list
(use the CTRL keyboard button in conjunction with the left mouse button to select
non-adjacent holes). Alternatively a selection can be made in MapInfo prior to
opening this dialog, using tools such as graphical selection, an SQL query or the
Discover>Data Utilities>Select by Group option (hyperlink). This selection will
then be automatically highlighted when the Subset Drillhole Project dialog is
opened.
A new Drillhole Project will be automatically created by adding a “_Subset” suffix to

the current project’s name; this name will be also be used to create a new
subdirectory under the current Project directory, into which the subsetted tables will
be placed. This New Project Name can be changed in the appropriate window; the
tool will automatically alter the output directory name, which can also be manually
specified using the browse button. A “_subset” suffix is also attached by default to
the subsetted output tables; this can also be altered in the Suffix to append to
tables window.
The Optional Files list allows selection of project files to incorporate into the new
project (by default all tables are selected). For example, if the current project
included 10 downhole data tables, this option could be used to select only three
tables of interest. If a survey table is associated with the current project, it is
recommended to ensure that this is selected.
Note: Grid and Image files associated with the current project will not be subsetted,
but simply copied in their entirety to the output directory with the “_subset” (or other
user-defined) suffix attached.
Once this dialog has been configured, press the Subset button. When completed,
a text report will be displayed detailing each table created and any issues that may
have arisen.
The Subset Project Report indicating the success of each table subset.
Import or Export
Discover>Drillholes>Import or Export >Export Discover Drillhole Project
Drillhole projects can be imported and exported to allow transfer of projects to

other computers and for the safe archiving of projects.
When a drillhole project is exported from Discover all related files including the
downhole colour patterns, section definition files, collar, survey and downhole data
tables are also exported. All exported drillhole project files are copied to a single
directory along with a newly created .DXP file. The .DXP file is a drillhole project
Drillholes 511
marker file that is selected in the Import Discover Drillhole Project menu option
on another computer. When the drillhole project files have been copied the entire
contents of the export directory can be zipped and sent to other users or be
archived.
To import a drillhole project extract the project directory files onto the local machine
or network. Select the Import Discover Drillhole Project menu option and browse
to the drillhole project directory. Select the .DXP file and the drillhole project is
added to the current project list and any other colour pattern files etc. are
appended to their respective tables.
Discover>Drillholes>Export Located Bitmap for Profile Analyst
The Export Located Bitmap for Profile Analyst menu item enables a drillhole
section or plan to be converted to a PNG file with an associated EGB (Encom
Georeferenced Bitmap) header file in order to be viewed within Encom Profile
Analyst or the Discover 3D add-on module.
Saved Drillhole Settings
When displaying drillhole data in Discover, there are a number of ways to save
display settings to make it easy to obtain consistent output from one session to the
next. These various methods have already been described previously but are listed
here to provide a summary.
• Colour Patterns – Created using the Legend Editor in the Edit Colour
Patterns menu option. Used for numeric (ranged) or character (individual)
downhole data display in drillhole section or log view. The colour patterns
can also be used with surface sampling data (see Map Making>Colour
Text Labels from Pattern). Settings are stored in the xs_colr.TAB table in
the Discover\Config directory.
• Downhole Data Display Setting – Used to store the parameters for

displaying downhole data in section or plan. The setting lists which data
columns are to be displayed and how they are to be displayed e.g. Text,
trace shade, histogram, etc. The display method also includes scaling and
colouring information. Settings are stored in the xs_disp.CFG table in the
Discover\Config directory.
• Log Display Setting – Used to store the parameters for displaying data in
log view. The log display settings list the global display parameters, the
columns to display and the log display parameters for each column. Settings
are stored in the xs_disp.INI table in the Discover\Config directory.

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Drillholes 429

Drillhole menu and toolbar items

• Save Project Workspace

• Export Located Bitmap

• Define New Section or Plan

• Define New Trench or Costean

• Display Downhole Data

• Edit Colour Patterns

• Load Colour Patterns

• Draw Section Grid

• Add Section to Layout

• Create Section Collar Plan

• Sectional Resource Calculator

• Validate Drillhole Database

• Calculate Maximum and EOH Values

Encom Discover provides a comprehensive environment for processing and

Steps to Create Drillhole Sections

A drillhole dataset is made up of a series of tables containing information such as

To create drillhole sections and plans use the following steps:

2. The collar table must be mappable. i.e. displayed in a map window.

5. Select a section line or number of drillholes and create the section.

6. Select and display downhole data on section.

8. Save the section to be used in the future.

Drillhole Data Format

Discover calculates 3D coordinates for downhole samples when it displays the

Downhole Survey Table

Downhole Data Tables

Downhole data tables are non-mappable tables that contain geochemical,

Discover enables downhole datasets measured over different sample intervals to

Note The dh_collars, dh_survey, dh_assay and dh_lith tables in the

where (`HoleID` in (<listofholes>))

An example SQL statement from an .XFG file (for a simple Access

"select `HoleID`, `from`, `to`, `sampno`, `au`,`MAPINFO_ID` from

Grid and Contour Surfaces

A surface grid can be in any grid format supported by Discover such as ER

To display a geology layer, an appropriate surface file must also be used. A

Drillhole Project Setup

In order to use the Drillholes module a drillhole project must be opened or

Drillhole Display – Choose Project dialog

Create New Drillhole Project

3. Click OK again to open up the Drillhole Project Definition dialog. The

The Drillhole Project Definition dialog

• Drillhole Collar Table (mandatory) – Mappable table for drillhole locations

• Downhole Survey Table (optional) – Non-mappable table containing

• Downhole Data Tables – Non-mappable tables containing HoleID, Depth

to the Selected window.

• Topography– Gridded or contoured surface topography table used to

• Polygon Surface – Mappable table containing attributed polygons such as

• Other Surfaces – Other grid or contour surfaces such as base of

Assign Spatial Columns

Assigning Spatial Columns dialog

Define New Section or Plan

Defining a cross-section to be displayed

The first step in creating a drillhole vertical cross-section is to determine which

• Manually Select - manually pre-select all of the drillholes to include in the

Using a selected to define drillhole section

Section Definition Parameters

To generate a horizontal plan of drillhole collars select the drillholes to include in

Plan Definition Parameters

Enter a Plan Name for the horizontal section.

Any surfaces such as pit profile, weathering profiles, geochemical or geophysical

If the profile surface is not in elevation units (e.g., a geochemical or geophysical

• Preferred Scale - scale at which the section is to be viewed or plotted. Text

• Drillhole Labels – display Hole ID labels at collar or EOH or EOH labels