Suggestion: "glue" control points on to a curve

Rhino Rhino for Mac
1

Hi
I work with organic structures - sculptures and architecture. Thus I often work “free-style” with curves, meaning :
I nudge and bend curves , to find an interesting artistic balance in the form.
So I spend a lot of time manually nudging control points, and I often use Network surface command, to create organic, “sculptural” shapes. and I spend a LOT of time re-arranging secondary curves, as described in the following:

I have made a simple example here, where you see a primary curve , with three secondary curves attached.
Once I change the curvature of the primary curve, (by moving the control points) I would tediously have to re-arrange all the attached secondary curves, by moving and snap the end-control points to the primary curve.
Since i nudge both the primary and secondary curves a lot in my work-process, these re-arranging maneuvers can be immensely frustrating and repetitious.

I have an idea, or suggestion -
Would it be possible to “glue” control points from secondary curves, on to a primary curve, by simply click on them and run a command?

(perhaps this feature already exist in Rhino, then please some one point it out for me :smile: )

Then I would have a web of curves that I could manipulate, nudge and shape, using only very few control points.

I know of Cage-editing, soft-editing etc, but this is way too general shape-editing in my work process. This suggested “glue-control-points-to-curve” feature would be awesome, extremely intuitive, very entertaining and spark amazing creative ideas, im sure :smile:

network of curves:

control point activated:

control points “glued” to the primary line:

Primary line is moved, and the control points from the secondary lines are following:

2

Hmm -, what does glue really mean? - do you want the entire secondary curve to move, or just the end point that is glued, or? Should the orientation of the curve change if the main curve changes direction? How much, only the tangent point, or the entire curve, or? What do you expect to happen exactly? If it is only the location of the end control point then it should be technically possible, I imagine- dimensions work this way now, with History.

-Pascal

3

From what I think / see in the last image is sort of a ‘Sticky’ end point , that possible could be turned off & on (Point property maybe) .

You place end point(s) on the "left north-south"curve with near osnap. then when you adjust left curve, the end points move with curve because they are ‘glued’ to it.

This could come in handy.

Make sense?

4

This is the type of thing Grasshopper does well - unfortunately not available yet or in the near future for Mac… --Mitch

5

It would be nice to be able to do this without “going into” Grasshopper.

FWIW, how do points stick to curves in grasshopper ?

6

Hey Pascal - I thought the illustration would be clear - so - to put in words: Rhinorudi explains it quite well.
How do you mean “dimensions - with history” ?

I am using descriptions like “primary” and “secondary” - but in fact, it just about end-points of a curve, “sticking” on to another curve, even when that other curve is pulled, bent or moved around.

Perhaps it would make better sense to call it “permanent snap” ?

I have tried to make a new illustration, I hope this one makes the idea more clear.
…

Arch = primary curve (level3)
Straight lines = secondary curves (level3)

Control points activated

Three control points from the “secondary” lines are selected, and made “sticky”

In this example, only one control point (from the primary curve) is moved, and as you can see, only the “sticky” ones from the secondary curves are following - I can now concentrate on creating nice shapes on both the primary and secondary curves - without bothering to re-snap the ends of the (secondary) lines all the time … Does it make sense now?

In this example the whole (primary) curve is moved

7

Yup, got that - just the end control points - thanks- For now, Grasshopper is the way to go, as Mitch mentioned. As for dimensions, if you run the Dim command with History on, and snap to the ends of a curve or Near on a curve, moving or editing the curve will update the dimension- similar kind of thing, the point knows what parameter it is on on the curve and it stays at that parameter.

-Pascal

8

ok, thanks :smile:

  • so do you think this idea I have described could be integrated in a near future version of Rhino OSX?