ArcMap

VCS

Summary

Provides information about the vertical coordinate system (VCS) component of a SpatialReference object.

Discussion

Spatial references are comprised of a coordinate system and storage and processing parameters (tolerances and resolution settings). A VCS may also be included, containing information about the Z (or vertical) coordinates. For example, a point has a Z value of 100.0, but without knowing it's VCS information we are left with the following questions:

  • 100.0 from what? What is at 0.0?
  • 100.0 in what units? Meters, feet, miles?
  • 100.0 in which direction from 0.0?

Properties

PropertyExplanationData Type
datumName
(Read and Write)

The name of the vertical coordinate system's datum.

String
direction
(Read and Write)

The positive direction of the z coordinates; 1 is upwards, -1 is downwards (in the direction of gravity).

Integer
factoryCode
(Read and Write)

The factory code of the vertical coordinate system.

Integer
linearUnitName
(Read and Write)

The name of the linear units.

String
name
(Read and Write)

The name of the vertical coordinate system.

String
verticalShift
(Read and Write)

The vertical shift of the vertical coordinate system.

Double

Code sample

import arcpy

# Create a Spatial Reference (Europe Equidistant Conic) with a VCS (EVRF_2007)
sr = arcpy.SpatialReference(102031, 5621)

# Use the SpatialReference as input to a tool
out = arcpy.management.CreateFeatureDataset(outgdb, "euro_fds", sr)

# Describe the output to confirm the VCS factoryCode
sr = arcpy.Describe(out[0]).spatialReference
print(sr.VCS.factoryCode)  # prints 5621