Filtering, Conversion, and Geometric Operations

R2026b
Process point clouds with filtering, conversion, meshing, transformation, and geometric model fitting

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

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

Apps

Point Cloud AnalyzerView, edit, and analyze point cloud data

Functions

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pcclusterpropsCalculate properties of 3-D point cloud clusters (Since R2026b)
pcdownsampleDownsample 3-D point cloud
pcdenoiseRemove noise from 3-D point cloud
pcdistanceCompute distance between two point clouds (Since R2026a)
pcmedianApply median filter to point cloud coordinates along each axis
pcnormalsEstimate normals for point cloud
removeInvalidPointsRemove invalid points from point cloud
removeHiddenPointsRemove hidden points in point cloud from given viewpoint (Since R2023a)
findNearestNeighborsFind nearest neighbors of query points in point cloud
findNeighborsInRadiusFind neighbors within radius for query points in point cloud
findPointsInROIFind points within region of interest in point cloud
findPointsInCylinderFind points within a cylindrical region in a point cloud (Since R2023a)
pcorganizeConvert 3-D point cloud into organized point cloud
pc2demCreate digital elevation model (DEM) of point cloud data
pc2scanConvert 3-D point cloud into 2-D lidar scan (Since R2022a)
pc2surfacemeshConstruct surface mesh from 3-D point cloud (Since R2022b)
mesh2pcCreate point cloud from surface mesh (Since R2024b)
pcfromdepthConvert depth image to point cloud (Since R2022b)
pcbinSpatially bin point cloud points
pc2imageConvert point cloud to image by projection (Since R2026b)
pcalignAlign array of point clouds
pcmergeMerge two 3-D point clouds
pccatConcatenate 3-D point clouds
pcfitplaneFit plane to 3-D point cloud
planeModelObject for storing parametric plane model
pcfitcuboidFit cuboid to 3-D point cloud
pcfitcuboidalignFit aligned cuboid to 3-D point cloud (Since R2026b)
cuboidModelObject for storing parametric cuboid model
pcfitcylinderFit cylinder to 3-D point cloud
cylinderModelObject for storing parametric cylinder model
pcfitsphereFit sphere to 3-D point cloud
sphereModelObject for storing a parametric sphere model
pc2surfacemeshConstruct surface mesh from 3-D point cloud (Since R2022b)
mesh2pcCreate point cloud from surface mesh (Since R2024b)
surfaceMeshCreate surface mesh (Since R2022b)
readSurfaceMeshRead surface mesh data from standard mesh file formats (Since R2022b)
writeSurfaceMeshWrite surface mesh to standard mesh file formats (Since R2022b)
surfaceMeshShowDisplay surface mesh (Since R2022b)
smoothSurfaceMeshSmooth surface mesh (Since R2023a)
clusterConnectedFacesCluster connected faces (Since R2023a)
pctransformTransform 3-D point cloud
rigidtform3d3-D rigid geometric transformation (Since R2022b)
affinetform3d3-D affine geometric transformation (Since R2022b)
simtform3d3-D similarity geometric transformation (Since R2022b)
transltform3d3-D translation geometric transformation (Since R2022b)
estgeotform3dEstimate 3-D geometric transformation from matching point pairs (Since R2022b)
undistortEgoMotionUndistort point cloud affected by ego motion (Since R2023a)
quaternionCreate quaternion array (Since R2026b)
se3SE(3) homogeneous transformation (Since R2026b)
so3SO(3) rotation (Since R2026b)

Topics

Featured Examples

Visualize Point Clouds on Maps Using Coordinate Reference System from LAS/LAZ Files

Visualize Point Clouds on Maps Using Coordinate Reference System from LAS/LAZ Files

Transform a point cloud between coordinate reference systems.

Export Point Cloud Segmentations to KML Files

Export Point Cloud Segmentations to KML Files

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

Unorganized to Organized Conversion of Point Clouds Using Spherical Projection

Unorganized to Organized Conversion of Point Clouds Using Spherical Projection

Convert unorganized point clouds to organized format using spherical projection.

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

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

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

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

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

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

New
Estimate Forest Fire Canopy Damage from Aerial Lidar Point Clouds

Estimate Forest Fire Canopy Damage from Aerial Lidar Point Clouds

Assess forest canopy damage after wildfire by comparing pre-fire and post-fire aerial lidar point clouds.

Visualize LAS Classification Labels

Visualize LAS Classification Labels

Read classification attributes from a LAS file and color the point cloud by class in pcviewer. Point cloud data from collection methods like aerial surveys often includes per-point classification labels (ground, vegetation, buildings) following the ASPRS standard.