projected versus idealized profile

[Anonymous_Coward]

Could someone please explain what an idealized profile view is? I don't have my copy of On Station handy.

I understand extended profile. I'm pretty sure a projected profile is looking straight through the cave from a particular azimuth. What makes an idealized profile?

Any explanations would be appreciated.

Thanks,

[Anonymous_Coward]

Is an idealized profile just a projected profile with the pesky obscuring side passages removed?

[cavemanjonny]

I think an idealized profile is what you are taught about when you first begin to sketch, where every passage is as round as a subway tunnel and passages always join at 90° angles. I have finally progressed to cynical and bitter profiles. Oh, shoot, I was thinking of idealistic profiles. I have no idea what idealized profiles are.

[Jeff Bartlett]

OK, back home and in front of On Station. From page 131:

An idealized profile is a compromise between the other two profiles. It maintains the approximate bounds of the projected profile, but expands the length of the passages to better show the passage details. This profile, like the others, has advantages, but may or may not give a true representation of the passage.

so... it's a slightly extended profile?

[George Dasher]

A projected profile is a profile view where the station locations are projected straight down from the plan view. There is no accounting for the twists and turns of the cave's passages, which means that the profile view can twist or cross back over itself.

An extended profile is a profile where the slope distances between the stations are maintained. In other words, the profile is shown as if it "pulled straight," with all the turns and twists taken out. This profile view can be longer in view than the plan view.

An idealized profile is a compromise between the two, and where the cartographer makes subjective decisions about how to handle the passages' turns and twists. In other words, an idealized profile shows some of the twists and turns of the passage, but not all of them.

Each profile has its uses, which is a good thing, because sometimes a projected profile works best, sometimes an extended profile works best, and sometimes an idealized profile works best.

Here the examples from On Station.