Tangent circles

Rhino Rhino for Windows
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1

OK this is what I’m looking to do and I’m not sure it’s possible in Rhino. I want to draw 4 tangent circles (each circle touching 2 other circles tangent to one another, see diagram).

I want to group them in such a way so that if 2 of the circles are pulled apart the other 2 circles will still be tangent, i.e. if I pull the top and bottom circles apart the two side circles will move closer together, but still remain tangent to the top and bottom circles.

Or if I take the left and right circles and move them a little further apart then top and bottom circles will move closer together so all 4 circles remain connected.

Does that make sense the way I worded it?

at about 3.50 in the youtube video you can see what I mean by moving the circles apart and having the others move to compensate.

Thanks
Steven

Capture
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2

Opps 2:20 not 3:50 sorry

4

I think the simplest way to do this in Rhino would be to use some construction geometry:
tancirc

You could set this up as a one-way parametric system in Grasshopper, where moving the first point would cause the other to update, and with Kangaroo you could also make it bi-directional so you could move either point. However, I think here the simple intersecting circles method in Rhino is the easier option.

1 Like
5

Maybe with kite quadrilateral

tan cir.gh (11.4 KB)