Contents

1. Language Basics

2. Geometry Basics

3. Geometric Primitives

4. Vector Math

5. Range Expressions

6. Collections

7. Functions

8. Math

9. Curves: Interpreted and Control Points

10. Translation, Rotation, and Other Transformations

11. Conditionals and Boolean Logic

12. Looping

13. Replication Guides

14. Collection Rank and Jagged Collections

15. Surfaces: Interpreted, Control Points, Loft, Revolve

16. Geometric Parameterization

17. Intersection and Trim

18. Geometric Booleans

A-1. Appendix 1: Python Point Generators

Introduction
Programming languages are created to express ideas, usually
involving logic and calculation. In addition to these objectives, the
Dynamo textual language (formerly DesignScript) has been
created to express design intentions. It is generally recognized
that computational designing is exploratory, and Dynamo tries to
support this: we hope you find the language flexible and fast
enough to take a design from concept, through design iterations,
to your final form.

This manual is structured to give a user with no knowledge of

either programming or architectural geometry full exposure to a
variety of topics in these two intersecting disciplines. Individuals
with more experienced backgrounds should jump to the individual
sections which are relevant to their interests and problem
domain. Each section is self-contained, and doesnt require any
knowledge besides the information presented in prior sections.

Text blocks inset in the Consolas font should be pasted into a

Code Block node. The output of the Code Block should be
connected into a Watch node to see the intended result. Images
are included in the left margin illustrating the correct output of
your program.
1: Language Basics
This document discusses the Dynamo textual programming
language, used inside of the Dynamo editor (sometimes referred
to as Dynamo Sandbox). To create a new Dynamo script, open
the Dynamo editor, and select the New button in the FILES
group:

This will open a blank Dynamo graph. To write a Dynamo text

script, double click anywhere in the canvas. This will bring up a
Code Block node. In order to easily see the results of our
scripts, attach a Watch node to the output of your Code Block
node, as shown here:

Every script is a series of written commands. Some of these

commands create geometry; others solve mathematical
problems, write text files, or generate text strings. A simple, one
line program which generates the quote Less is more. looks like
this:

"Less is more.";

The Watch node on the left shows the output of the script.
The command generates a new String object. Strings in Dynamo
are designated by two quotation marks ("), and the enclosed
characters, including spaces, are passed out of the node. Code
Block nodes are not limited to generating Strings. A Code Block
node to generate the number 5420 looks like this:

5420;

Every command in Dynamo is terminated by a semicolon. If you

do not include one, the Editor will add one for you. Also note that
the number and combination of spaces, tabs, and carriage
returns, called white space, between the elements of a command
do not matter. This program produces the exact same output as
the first program:

"Less Is More."

Naturally, the use of white space should be used to help improve

the readability of your code, both for yourself and future readers.

Comments are another tool to help improve the readability of

your code. In Dynamo, a single line of code is commented with
two forward slashes, //. This makes the node ignore everything
written after the slashes, up to a carriage return (the end of the
line). Comments longer than one line begin with a forward slash
asterisk, /*, and end with an asterisk forward slash, */.
 // This is a single line comment

/* This is a multiple line comment,

which continues for multiple
lines. */

// All of these comments have no effect on

// the execution of the program

// This line prints a quote by Mies van der Rohe

"Less Is More";

So far the Code Block arguments have been literal values,

either a text string or a number. However it is often more useful
for function arguments to be stored in data containers called
variables, which both make code more readable, and eliminate
redundant commands in your code. The names of variables are
up to individual programmers to decide, though each variable
name must be unique, start with a lower or uppercase letter, and
contain only letters, numbers, or underscores, _. Spaces are not
allowed in variable names. Variable names should, though are
not required, to describe the data they contain. For instance, a
variable to keep track of the rotation of an object could be called
rotation. To describe data with multiple words, programmers
typically use two common conventions: separate the words by
capital letters, called camelCase (the successive capital letters
mimic the humps of a camel), or to separate individual words with
underscores. For instance, a variable to describe the rotation of a
small disk might be named smallDiskRotation or
small_disk_rotation, depending on the programmers stylistic
preference. To create a variable, write its name to the left of an
equal sign, followed by the value you want to assign to it. For
instance:

quote = "Less is more.";

Besides making readily apparent what the role of the text string
is, variables can help reduce the amount of code that needs
updating if data changes in the future. For instance the text of the
following quote only needs to be changed in one place, despite
its appearance three times in the program.
 // My favorite architecture quote

quote = "Less is more.";

quote + " " + quote + " " + quote;

Here we are joining a quote by Mies van der Rohe three times,
with spaces between each phrase. Notice the use of the +
operator to concatenate the strings and variables together to
form one continuous output.

// My NEW favorite architecture quote

quote = "Less is a bore.";

quote + " " + quote + " " + quote;
2: Geometry Basics
The simplest geometrical object in the Dynamo standard
geometry library is a point. All geometry is created using special
functions called constructors, which each return a new instance
of that particular geometry type. In Dynamo, constructors begin
with the name of the objects type, in this case Point, followed by
the method of construction. To create a three dimensional point
specified by x, y, and z Cartesian coordinates, use the
ByCoordinates constructor:

// create a point with the following x, y, and z

// coordinates:
x = 10;
y = 2.5;
z = -6;

p = Point.ByCoordinates(x, y, z);

Constructors in Dynamo are typically designated with the By

prefix, and invoking these functions returns a newly created
object of that type. This newly created object is stored in the
variable named on the left side of the equal sign, and any use of
that same original Point.

Most objects have many different constructors, and we can use

the BySphericalCoordinates constructor to create a point lying
on a sphere, specified by the spheres radius, a first rotation
angle, and a second rotation angle (specified in degrees):

// create a point on a sphere with the following radius,

// theta, and phi rotation angles (specified in degrees)
radius = 5;
theta = 75.5;
phi = 120.3;
cs = CoordinateSystem.Identity();

p = Point.BySphericalCoordinates(cs, radius, theta,

phi);
Points can be used to construct higher dimensional geometry
such as lines. We can use the ByStartPointEndPoint
constructor to create a Line object between two points:

// create two points:

p1 = Point.ByCoordinates(3, 10, 2);
p2 = Point.ByCoordinates(-15, 7, 0.5);

// construct a line between p1 and p2

l = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p1, p2);

Similarly, lines can be used to create higher dimensional surface

geometry, for instance using the Loft constructor, which takes a
series of lines or curves and interpolates a surface between
them.

// create points:
p1 = Point.ByCoordinates(3, 10, 2);
p2 = Point.ByCoordinates(-15, 7, 0.5);

p3 = Point.ByCoordinates(5, -3, 5);

p4 = Point.ByCoordinates(-5, -6, 2);

p5 = Point.ByCoordinates(9, -10, -2);

p6 = Point.ByCoordinates(-11, -12, -4);

// create lines:
l1 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p1, p2);
l2 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p3, p4);
l3 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p5, p6);

// loft between cross section lines:

surf = Surface.ByLoft({l1, l2, l3});

Surfaces too can be used to create higher dimensional solid

geometry, for instance by thickening the surface by a specified
distance. Many objects have functions attached to them, called
methods, allowing the programmer to perform commands on that
particular object. Methods common to all pieces of geometry
include Translate and Rotate, which respectively translate
(move) and rotate the geometry by a specified amount. Surfaces
have a Thicken method, which take a single input, a number
specifying the new thickness of the surface.
 p1 = Point.ByCoordinates(3, 10, 2);
p2 = Point.ByCoordinates(-15, 7, 0.5);

p3 = Point.ByCoordinates(5, -3, 5);

p4 = Point.ByCoordinates(-5, -6, 2);

l1 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p1, p2);
l2 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p3, p4);

surf = Surface.ByLoft({l1, l2});

// true indicates to thicken both sides of the Surface:

solid = surf.Thicken(4.75, true);

Intersection commands can extract lower dimensional

geometry from higher dimensional objects. This extracted lower
dimensional geometry can form the basis for higher dimensional
geometry, in a cyclic process of geometrical creation, extraction,
and recreation. In this example, we use the generated Solid to
create a Surface, and use the Surface to create a Curve.

p1 = Point.ByCoordinates(3, 10, 2);

p2 = Point.ByCoordinates(-15, 7, 0.5);

p3 = Point.ByCoordinates(5, -3, 5);

p4 = Point.ByCoordinates(-5, -6, 2);

l1 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p1, p2);
l2 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p3, p4);

surf = Surface.ByLoft({l1, l2});

solid = surf.Thicken(4.75, true);

p = Plane.ByOriginNormal(Point.ByCoordinates(2, 0, 0),
Vector.ByCoordinates(1, 1, 1));

int_surf = solid.Intersect(p);

int_line = int_surf.Intersect(Plane.ByOriginNormal(
Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 0),
Vector.ByCoordinates(1, 0, 0)));
3: Geometric Primitives
While Dynamo is capable of creating a variety of complex
geometric forms, simple geometric primitives form the backbone
of any computational design: either directly expressed in the final
designed form, or used as scaffolding off of which more complex
geometry is generated.

While not strictly a piece of geometry, the CoordinateSystem is

an important tool for constructing geometry. A CoordinateSystem
object keeps track of both position and geometric transformations
such as rotation, sheer, and scaling.

Creating a CoordinateSystem centered at a point with x = 0, y =

0, z = 0, with no rotations, scaling, or sheering transformations,
simply requires calling the Identity constructor:

// create a CoordinateSystem at x = 0, y = 0, z = 0,
// no rotations, scaling, or sheering transformations

cs = CoordinateSystem.Identity();

CoordinateSystems with geometric transformations are beyond

the scope of this chapter, though another constructor allows you
to create a coordinate system at a specific point,
CoordinateSystem.ByOriginVectors:

// create a CoordinateSystem at a specific location,

// no rotations, scaling, or sheering transformations
x_pos = 3.6;
y_pos = 9.4;
z_pos = 13.0;

origin = Point.ByCoordinates(x_pos, y_pos, z_pos);

identity = CoordinateSystem.Identity();

cs = CoordinateSystem.ByOriginVectors(origin,
identity.XAxis, identity.YAxis, identity.ZAxis);

The simplest geometric primitive is a Point, representing a zero-

dimensional location in three-dimensional space. As mentioned
earlier there are several different ways to create a point in a
particular coordinate system: Point.ByCoordinates creates a
point with specified x, y, and z coordinates;
Point.ByCartesianCoordinates creates a point with a specified
x, y, and z coordinates in a specific coordinate system;
Point.ByCylindricalCoordinates creates a point lying on a
cylinder with radius, rotation angle, and height; and
Point.BySphericalCoordinates creates a point lying on a
sphere with radius and two rotation angle.

This example shows points created at various coordinate

systems:

// create a point with x, y, and z coordinates

x_pos = 1;
y_pos = 2;
z_pos = 3;

pCoord = Point.ByCoordinates(x_pos, y_pos, z_pos);

// create a point in a specific coordinate system

cs = CoordinateSystem.Identity();
pCoordSystem = Point.ByCartesianCoordinates(cs, x_pos,
y_pos, z_pos);

// create a point on a cylinder with the following

// radius and height
radius = 5;
height = 15;
theta = 75.5;

pCyl = Point.ByCylindricalCoordinates(cs, radius, theta,

height);

// create a point on a sphere with radius and two angles

phi = 120.3;

pSphere = Point.BySphericalCoordinates(cs, radius,

theta, phi);

The next higher dimensional Dynamo primitive is a line segment,

representing an infinite number of points between two end points.
Lines can be created by explicitly stating the two boundary points
with the constructor Line.ByStartPointEndPoint, or by
specifying a start point, direction, and length in that direction,
Line.ByStartPointDirectionLength.
 p1 = Point.ByCoordinates(-2, -5, -10);
p2 = Point.ByCoordinates(6, 8, 10);

// a line segment between two points

l2pts = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p1, p2);

// a line segment at p1 in direction 1, 1, 1 with

// length 10
lDir = Line.ByStartPointDirectionLength(p1,
Vector.ByCoordinates(1, 1, 1), 10);

Dynamo has objects representing the most basic types of

geometric primitives in three dimensions: Cuboids, created with
Cuboid.ByLengths; Cones, created with Cone.ByPointsRadius
and Cone.ByPointsRadii; Cylinders, created with
Cylinder.ByRadiusHeight; and Spheres, created with
Sphere.ByCenterPointRadius.

// create a cuboid with specified lengths

cs = CoordinateSystem.Identity();

cub = Cuboid.ByLengths(cs, 5, 15, 2);

// create several cones

p1 = Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 10);
p2 = Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 20);
p3 = Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 30);

cone1 = Cone.ByPointsRadii(p1, p2, 10, 6);

cone2 = Cone.ByPointsRadii(p2, p3, 6, 0);

// make a cylinder
cylCS = cs.Translate(10, 0, 0);

cyl = Cylinder.ByRadiusHeight(cylCS, 3, 10);

// make a sphere
centerP = Point.ByCoordinates(-10, -10, 0);

sph = Sphere.ByCenterPointRadius(centerP, 5);

4: Vector Math
Objects in computational designs are rarely created explicitly in
their final position and form, and are most often translated,
rotated, and otherwise positioned based off of existing geometry.
Vector math serves as a kind-of geometric scaffolding to give
direction and orientation to geometry, as well as to conceptualize
movements through 3D space without visual representation.

At its most basic, a vector represents a position in 3D space, and

is often times thought of as the endpoint of an arrow from the
position (0, 0, 0) to that position. Vectors can be created with the
ByCoordinates constructor, taking the x, y, and z position of the
newly created Vector object. Note that Vector objects are not
geometric objects, and dont appear in the Dynamo window.
However, information about a newly created or modified vector
can be printed in the console window:

// construct a Vector object

v = Vector.ByCoordinates(1, 2, 3);

s = v.X + " " + v.Y + " " + v.Z;

A set of mathematical operations are defined on Vector objects,

allowing you to add, subtract, multiply, and otherwise move
objects in 3D space as you would move real numbers in 1D
space on a number line.

Vector addition is defined as the sum of the components of two

vectors, and can be thought of as the resulting vector if the two
component vector arrows are placed tip to tail. Vector addition
is performed with the Add method, and is represented by the
diagram on the left.

a = Vector.ByCoordinates(5, 5, 0);
b = Vector.ByCoordinates(4, 1, 0);

// c has value x = 9, y = 6, z = 0
c = a.Add(b);
Similarly, two Vector objects can be subtracted from each other
with the Subtract method. Vector subtraction can be thought of
as the direction from first vector to the second vector.

a = Vector.ByCoordinates(5, 5, 0);
b = Vector.ByCoordinates(4, 1, 0);

// c has value x = 1, y = 4, z = 0
c = a.Subtract(b);

Vector multiplication can be thought of as moving the endpoint of

a vector in its own direction by a given scale factor.

a = Vector.ByCoordinates(4, 4, 0);

// c has value x = 20, y = 20, z = 0

c = a.Scale(5);

Often its desired when scaling a vector to have the resulting

vectors length exactly equal to the scaled amount. This is easily
achieved by first normalizing a vector, in other words setting the
vectors length exactly equal to one.

a = Vector.ByCoordinates(1, 2, 3);
a_len = a.Length;

// set the a's length equal to 1.0

b = a.Normalized();
c = b.Scale(5);

// len is equal to 5
len = c.Length;

c still points in the same direction as a (1, 2, 3), though now it has
length exactly equal to 5.
Two additional methods exist in vector math which dont have
clear parallels with 1D math, the cross product and dot product.
The cross product is a means of generating a Vector which is
orthogonal (at 90 degrees to) to two existing Vectors. For
example, the cross product of the x and y axes is the z axis,
though the two input Vectors dont need to be orthogonal to each
other. A cross product vector is calculated with the Cross
method.

a = Vector.ByCoordinates(1, 0, 1);
b = Vector.ByCoordinates(0, 1, 1);

// c has value x = -1, y = -1, z = 1

c = a.Cross(b);

An additional, though somewhat more advanced function of

vector math is the dot product. The dot product between two
vectors is a real number (not a Vector object) that relates to, but
is not exactly, the angle between two vectors. One useful
properties of the dot product is that the dot product between two
vectors will be 0 if and only if they are perpendicular. The dot
product is calculated with the Dot method.

a = Vector.ByCoordinates(1, 2, 1);
b = Vector.ByCoordinates(5, -8, 4);

// d has value -7
d = a.Dot(b);
5: Range Expressions
Almost every design involves repetitive elements, and explicitly
typing out the names and constructors of every Point, Line, and
other primitives in a script would be prohibitively time consuming.
Range expressions give a Dynamo programmer the means to
express sets of values as parameters on either side of two dots
(..), generating intermediate numbers between these two
extremes.

For instance, while we have seen variables containing a single

number, it is possible with range expressions to have variables
which contain a set of numbers. The simplest range expression
fills in the whole number increments between the range start and
end.

a = 1..6;

In previous examples, if a single number is passed in as the

argument of a function, it would produce a single result. Similarly,
if a range of values is passed in as the argument of a function, a
range of values is returned.

For instance, if we pass a range of values into the Line

constructor, Dynamo returns a range of lines.

x_pos = 1..6;
y_pos = 5;
z_pos = 1;

lines = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(Point.ByCoordinates(0,
0, 0), Point.ByCoordinates(x_pos, y_pos, z_pos));

By default range expressions fill in the range between numbers

incrementing by whole digit numbers, which can be useful for a
quick topological sketch, but are less appropriate for actual
designs. By adding a second ellipsis (..) to the range
expression, you can specify the amount the range expression
increments between values. Here we want all the numbers
between 0 and 1, incrementing by 0.1:
 a = 0..1..0.1;

One problem that can arise when specifying the increment

between range expression boundaries is that the numbers
generated will not always fall on the final range value. For
instance, if we create a range expression between 0 and 7,
incrementing by 0.75, the following values are generated:

a = 0..7..0.75;

If a design requires a generated range expression to end

precisely on the maximum range expression value, Dynamo can
approximate an increment, coming as close as possible while still
maintaining an equal distribution of numbers between the range
boundaries. This is done with the approximate sign (~) before the
third parameter:

// DesignScript will increment by 0.777 not 0.75

a = 0..7..~0.75;

However, if you want to Dynamo to interpolate between ranges

with a discrete number of elements, the # operator allows you to
specify this:

// Interpolate between 0 and 7 such that

// a will contain 9 elements
a = 0..7..#9;
6: Collections
Collections are special types of variables which hold sets of
values. For instance, a collection might contain the values 1 to
10, {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10}, assorted geometry
from the result of an Intersection operation, {Surface, Point,
Line, Point}, or even a set of collections themselves, { {1, 2,
3}, {4, 5}, 6}.

One of the easier ways to generate a collection is with range

expressions (see: Range Expressions). Range expressions by
default generate collections of numbers, though if these
collections are passed into functions or constructors, collections
of objects are returned.

// use a range expression to generate a collection of

// numbers
nums = 0..10..0.75;

// use the collection of numbers to generate a

// collection of Points
points = Point.ByCoordinates(nums, 0, 0);

When range expressions arent appropriate, collections can be

created empty and manually filled with values. The square
bracket operator ([]) is used to access members inside of a
collection. The square brackets are written after the variables
name, with the number of the individual collection member
contained inside. This number is called the collection members
index. For historical reasons, indexing starts at 0, meaning the
first element of a collection is accessed with: collection[0],
and is often called the zeroth number. Subsequent members
are accessed by increasing the index by one, for example:

// a collection of numbers
nums = 0..10..0.75;

// create a single point with the 6th element of the

// collection
points = Point.ByCoordinates(nums[5], 0, 0);

The individual members of a collection can be modified using the

same index operator after the collection has been created:
 // generate a collection of numbers
a = 0..6;

// change several of the elements of a collection

a[2] = 100;
a[5] = 200;

In fact, an entire collection can be created by explicitly setting

every member of the collection individually. Explicit collections
are created with the curly brace operator ({}) wrapping the
collections starting values, or left empty to create an empty
collection:

// create a collection explicitly

a = { 45, 67, 22 };

// create an empty collection

b = {};

// change several of the elements of a collection

b[0] = 45;
b[1] = 67;
b[2] = 22;

Collections can also be used as the indexes to generate new sub

collections from a collection. For instance, a collection containing
the numbers {1, 3, 5, 7}, when used as the index of a
collection, would extract the 2nd, 4th, 6th, and 8th elements from a
collection (remember that indices start at 0):

a = 5..20;

indices = {1, 3, 5, 7};

// create a collection via a collection of indices

b = a[indices];

Dynamo contains utility functions to help manage collections. The

Count function, as the name implies, counts a collection and
returns the number of elements it contains.
// create a collection with 10 elements
a = 1..10;

num_elements = Count(a);
7: Functions
Almost all the functionality demonstrated in DesignScript so far is
expressed through functions. You can tell a command is a
function when it contains a keyword suffixed by a parenthesis
containing various inputs. When a function is called in
DesignScript, a large amount of code is executed, processing the
inputs and returning a result. The constructor function
Point.ByCoordinates(x : double, y : double, z : double)
takes three inputs, processes them, and returns a Point object.
Like most programming languages, DesignScript gives
programmers the ability to create their own functions. Functions
are a crucial part of effective scripts: the process of taking blocks
of code with specific functionality, wrapping them in a clear
description of inputs and outputs adds both legibility to your code
and makes it easier to modify and reuse.

Suppose a programmer had written a script to create a diagonal

bracing on a surface:

p1 = Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 0);
p2 = Point.ByCoordinates(10, 0, 0);

l = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(p1, p2);

// extrude a line vertically to create a surface

surf = l.Extrude(Vector.ByCoordinates(0, 0,
1), 8);

// Extract the corner points of the surface

corner_1 = surf.PointAtParameter(0, 0);
corner_2 = surf.PointAtParameter(1, 0);
corner_3 = surf.PointAtParameter(1, 1);
corner_4 = surf.PointAtParameter(0, 1);

// connect opposite corner points to create diagonals

diag_1 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(corner_1, corner_3);
diag_2 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(corner_2, corner_4);

This simple act of creating diagonals over a surface nevertheless

takes several lines of code. If we wanted to find the diagonals of
hundreds, if not thousands of surfaces, a system of individually
extracting corner points and drawing diagonals would be
completely impractical. Creating a function to extract the
diagonals from a surface allows a programmer to apply the
functionality of several lines of code to any number of base
inputs.

Functions are created by writing the def keyword, followed by the

function name, and a list of function inputs, called arguments, in
parenthesis. The code which the function contains is enclosed
inside curly braces: {}. In DesignScript, functions must return a
value, indicated by assigning a value to the return keyword
variable. E.g.

def functionName(argument1, argument2, etc, etc, . . .)

{
// code goes here
return = returnVariable;
}

This function takes a single argument and returns that argument

multiplied by 2:

def getTimesTwo(arg)
{
return = arg * 2;
}

times_two = getTimesTwo(10);

Functions do not necessarily need to take arguments. A simple

function to return the golden ratio looks like this:

def getGoldenRatio()
{
return = 1.61803399;
}

gr = getGoldenRatio();

Before we create a function to wrap our diagonal code, note that

functions can only return a single value, yet our diagonal code
generates two lines. To get around this issue, we can wrap two
objects in curly braces, {}, creating a single collection object. For
instance, here is a simple function which returns two values:
 def returnTwoNumbers()
{
return = {1, 2};
}

two_nums = returnTwoNumbers();

If we wrap the diagonal code in a function, we can create

diagonals over a series of surfaces, for instance the faces of a
cuboid.

def makeDiagonal(surface)
{
corner_1 = surface.PointAtParameter(0, 0);
corner_2 = surface.PointAtParameter(1, 0);
corner_3 = surface.PointAtParameter(1, 1);
corner_4 = surface.PointAtParameter(0, 1);

diag_1 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(corner_1,
corner_3);
diag_2 = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(corner_2,
corner_4);

return = {diag_1, diag_2};

}

c = Cuboid.ByLengths(CoordinateSystem.Identity(),
10, 20, 30);

diags = makeDiagonal(c.Faces.SurfaceGeometry());
8: Math
The Dynamo standard library contains an assortment of
mathematical functions to assist writing algorithms and
manipulating data. Math functions are prefixed with the Math
namespace, requiring you to append functions with Math. in
order to use them.

The functions Floor, Ceiling, and Round allow you to convert

between floating point numbers and integers with predictable
outcomes. All three functions take a single floating point number
as input, though Floor returns an integer by always rounding
down, Ceiling returns an integer by always rounding up, and
Round rounds to the closest integer

val = 0.5;

f = Math.Floor(val);
c = Math.Ceiling(val);
r = Math.Round(val);
r2 = Math.Round(val + 0.001);

Dynamo also contains a standard set of trigonometric functions

to calculate the sine, cosine, tangent, arcsine, arccosine, and
arctangent of angles, with the Sin, Cos, Tan, Asin, Acos, and
Atan functions respectively.

While a comprehensive description of trigonometry is beyond the

scope of this manual, the sine and cosine functions do frequently
occur in computational designs due their ability to trace out
positions on a circle with radius 1. By inputting an increasing
degree angle, often labeled theta, into Cos for the x position, and
Sin for the y position, the positions on a circle are calculated:
 num_pts = 20;

// get degree values from 0 to 360

theta = 0..360..#num_pts;

p = Point.ByCoordinates(Math.Cos(theta),
Math.Sin(theta), 0);

A related math concept not strictly part of the Math standard

library is the modulus operator. The modulus operator, indicated
by a percent (%) sign, returns the remainder from a division
between two integer numbers. For instance, 7 divided by 2 is 3
with 1 left over (eg 2 x 3 + 1 = 7). The modulus between 7 and 2
therefore is 1. On the other hand, 2 divides evenly into 6, and
therefore the modulus between 6 and 2 is 0. The following
example illustrates the result of various modulus operations.

7 % 2;
6 % 2;
10 % 3;
19 % 7;
9: Curves: Interpreted and Control Points
There are two fundamental ways to create free-form curves in
Dynamo: specifying a collection of Points and having Dynamo
interpret a smooth curve between them, or a more low-level
method by specifying the underlying control points of a curve of a
certain degree. Interpreted curves are useful when a designer
knows exactly the form a line should take, or if the design has
specific constraints for where the curve can and cannot pass
through. Curves specified via control points are in essence a
series of straight line segments which an algorithm smooths into
a final curve form. Specifying a curve via control points can be
useful for explorations of curve forms with varying degrees of
smoothing, or when a smooth continuity between curve
segments is required.

To create an interpreted curve, simply pass in a collection of

Points to the NurbsCurve.ByPoints method.

num_pts = 6;

s = Math.Sin(0..360..#num_pts) * 4;

pts = Point.ByCoordinates(1..30..#num_pts, s, 0);

int_curve = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(pts);

The generated curve intersects each of the input points,

beginning and ending at the first and last point in the collection,
respectively. An optional periodic parameter can be used to
create a periodic curve which is closed. Dynamo will
automatically fill in the missing segment, so a duplicate end point
(identical to the start point) isnt needed.

pts = Point.ByCoordinates(Math.Cos(0..350..#10),
Math.Sin(0..350..#10), 0);

// create an closed curve

crv = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(pts, true);

// the same curve, if left open:

crv2 = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(pts.Translate(5, 0, 0),
false);
NurbsCurves are generated in much the same way, with input
points represent the endpoints of a straight line segment, and a
second parameter specifying the amount and type of smoothing
the curve undergoes, called the degree.* A curve with degree 1
has no smoothing; it is a polyline.

num_pts = 6;

pts = Point.ByCoordinates(1..30..#num_pts,
Math.Sin(0..360..#num_pts) * 4, 0);

// a B-Spline curve with degree 1 is a polyline

ctrl_curve = NurbsCurve.ByControlPoints(pts, 1);

A curve with degree 2 is smoothed such that the curve intersects

and is tangent to the midpoint of the polyline segments:

num_pts = 6;

pts = Point.ByCoordinates(1..30..#num_pts,
Math.Sin(0..360..#num_pts) * 4, 0);

// a B-Spline curve with degree 2 is smooth

ctrl_curve = NurbsCurve.ByControlPoints(pts, 2);

Dynamo supports NURBS (Non-uniform rational B-spline) curves

up to degree 20, and the following script illustrates the effect
increasing levels of smoothing has on the shape of a curve:
 num_pts = 6;

pts = Point.ByCoordinates(1..30..#num_pts,
Math.Sin(0..360..#num_pts) * 4, 0);

def create_curve(pts : Point[], degree : int)

{
return = NurbsCurve.ByControlPoints(pts,
degree);
}

ctrl_crvs = create_curve(pts, 1..11);

Note that you must have at least one more control point than the
degree of the curve.

Another benefit of constructing curves by control vertices is the

ability to maintain tangency between individual curve segments.
This is done by extracting the direction between the last two
control points, and continuing this direction with the first two
control points of the following curve. The following example
creates two separate NURBS curves which are nevertheless as
smooth as one curve:
 pts_1 = {};

pts_1[0] = Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 0);

pts_1[1] = Point.ByCoordinates(1, 1, 0);
pts_1[2] = Point.ByCoordinates(5, 0.2, 0);
pts_1[3] = Point.ByCoordinates(9, -3, 0);
pts_1[4] = Point.ByCoordinates(11, 2, 0);

crv_1 = NurbsCurve.ByControlPoints(pts_1, 3);

pts_2 = {};

pts_2[0] = pts_1[4];
end_dir = pts_1[4].Subtract(pts_1[3].AsVector());

pts_2[1] = Point.ByCoordinates(pts_2[0].X + end_dir.X,

pts_2[0].Y + end_dir.Y, pts_2[0].Z + end_dir.Z);

pts_2[2] = Point.ByCoordinates(15, 1, 0);

pts_2[3] = Point.ByCoordinates(18, -2, 0);
pts_2[4] = Point.ByCoordinates(21, 0.5, 0);

crv_2 = NurbsCurve.ByControlPoints(pts_2, 3);

* This is a very simplified description of NURBS curve geometry,

for a more accurate and detailed discussion see Pottmann, et al,
2007, in the references.
10: Translation, Rotation, and Other Transformations

Certain geometry objects can be created by explicitly stating x, y,

and z coordinates in three-dimensional space. More often,
however, geometry is moved into its final position using
geometric transformations on the object itself or on its underlying
CoordinateSystem.

The simplest geometric transformation is a translation, which

moves an object a specified number of units in the x, y, and z
directions.

// create a point at x = 1, y = 2, z = 3
p = Point.ByCoordinates(1, 2, 3);

// translate the point 10 units in the x direction,

// -20 in y, and 50 in z
// p2s new position is x = 11, y = -18, z = 53
p2 = p.Translate(10, -20, 50);

While all objects in Dynamo can be translated by appending the

.Translate method to the end of the objects name, more
complex transformations require transforming the object from one
underlying CoordinateSystem to a new CoordinateSystem. For
instance, to rotate an object 45 degrees around the x axis, we
would transform the object from its existing CoordinateSystem
with no rotation, to a CoordinateSystem which had been rotated
45 degrees around the x axis with the .Transform method:

cube = Cuboid.ByLengths(CoordinateSystem.Identity(),
10, 10, 10);

new_cs = CoordinateSystem.Identity();
new_cs2 = new_cs.Rotate(Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0),
Vector.ByCoordinates(1,0,0.5), 25);

// get the existing coordinate system of the cube

old_cs = CoordinateSystem.Identity();

cube2 = cube.Transform(old_cs, new_cs2);

In addition to being translated and rotated, CoordinateSystems
can also be created scaled or sheared. A CoordinateSystem can
be scaled with the .Scale method:

cube = Cuboid.ByLengths(CoordinateSystem.Identity(),
10, 10, 10);

new_cs = CoordinateSystem.Identity();
new_cs2 = new_cs.Scale(20);

old_cs = CoordinateSystem.Identity();

cube = cube.Transform(old_cs, new_cs2);

Sheared CoordinateSystems are created by inputting non-

orthogonal vectors into the CoordinateSystem constructor.

new_cs = CoordinateSystem.ByOriginVectors(
Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 0),
Vector.ByCoordinates(-1, -1, 1),
Vector.ByCoordinates(-0.4, 0, 0));

old_cs = CoordinateSystem.Identity();

cube = Cuboid.ByLengths(CoordinateSystem.Identity(),
5, 5, 5);

new_curves = cube.Transform(old_cs, new_cs);

Scaling and shearing are comparatively more complex geometric
transformations than rotation and translation, so not every
Dynamo object can undergo these transformations. The following
table outlines which Dynamo objects can have non-uniformly
scaled CoordinateSystems, and sheared CoordinateSystems.

Non-Uniformly
Class Scaled Sheared
CoordinateSystem CoordinateSystem
Arc No No
NurbsCurve Yes Yes
NurbsSurface No No
Circle No No
Line Yes Yes
Plane No No
Point Yes Yes
Polygon No No
Solid No No
Surface No No
Text No No
11: Conditionals and Boolean Logic
One of the most powerful features of a programming language is
the ability to look at the existing objects in a program and vary
the programs execution according to these objects qualities.
Programming languages mediate between examinations of an
objects qualities and the execution of specific code via a system
called Boolean logic.

Boolean logic examines whether statements are true or false.

Every statement in Boolean logic will be either true or false, there
are no other states; no maybe, possible, or perhaps exist. The
simplest way to indicate that a Boolean statement is true is with
the true keyword. Similarly, the simplest way to indicate a
statement is false is with the false keyword. The if statement
allows you to determine if a statement is true of false: if it is true,
the first part of the code block executes, if its false, the second
code block executes.

In the following example, the if statement contains a true

Boolean statement, so the first block executes and a Point is
generated:

geometry = [Imperative]
{
if (true)
{
return = Point.ByCoordinates(1, -4, 6);
}
else
{
return = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(
Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 0),
Point.ByCoordinates(10, -4, 6));
}
}

If the contained statement is changed to false, the second code

block executes and a Line is generated:
 geometry = [Imperative]
{
// change true to false
if (false)
{
return = Point.ByCoordinates(1, -4, 6);
}
else
{
return = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(
Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 0),
Point.ByCoordinates(10, -4, 6));
}
}

Static Boolean statements like these arent particularly useful; the

power of Boolean logic comes from examining the qualities of
objects in your script. Boolean logic has six basic operations to
evaluate values: less than (<), greater than (>), less than or equal
(<=), greater than or equal (>=), equal (==), and not equal (!=).
The following chart outlines the Boolean results

< Returns true if number on left side is less than number on right
side.
> Returns true if number on left side is greater than number on
right side.
<= Returns true of number on left side is less than or equal to the
number on the right side.*
>= Returns true of number on the left side is greater than or equal
to the number on the right side.*
== Returns true if both numbers are equal*
!= Returns true if both number are not equal*

* see chapter Number Types for limitations of testing equality

between two floating point numbers.

Using one of these six operators on two numbers returns either

true or false:

result = 10 < 30;

 result = 15 <= 15;

result = 99 != 99;

Three other Boolean operators exist to compare true and false

statements: and (&&), or (||), and not (!).

&& Returns true if the values on both sides are true.

|| Returns true if either of the values on both sides are true.
! Returns the Boolean opposite

result = true && false;

result = true || false;

result = !false;

Refactoring the code in the original example demonstrates

different code execution paths based on the changing inputs from
a range expression:
def make_geometry(i)
{
return = [Imperative]
{
// test if the input is divisible
// by either 2 or 3. See "Math"
if (i % 2 == 0 || i % 3 == 0)
{
return = Point.ByCoordinates(i, -4, 10);
}
else
{
return = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(
Point.ByCoordinates(4, 10, 0),
Point.ByCoordinates(i, -4, 10));
}
}
}

g = make_geometry(0..20);
12: Looping
Loops are commands to repeat execution over a block of code.
The number of times a loop is called can be governed by a
collection, where a loop is called with each element of the
collection as input, or with a Boolean expression, where the loop
is called until the Boolean expression returns false. Loops can
be used to generate collections, search for a solution, or
otherwise add repetition without range expressions.

The while statement evaluates a Boolean expression, and

continues re-executing the contained code block until the
Boolean expression is true. For instance, this script continuously
creates and re-creates a line until it has length greater than 10:

geometry = [Imperative]
{
x = 1;
start = Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 0);
end = Point.ByCoordinates(x, x, x);
line = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(start, end);

while (line.Length < 10)

{
x = x + 1;
end = Point.ByCoordinates(x, x, x);
line = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(start, end);
}

return = line;
}

In associative Dynamo code, if a collection of elements is used

as the input to a function which normally takes a single value, the
function is called individually for each member of a collection. In
imperative Dynamo code a programmer has the option to write
code that manually iterates over the collection, extracting
individual collection members one at a time.

The for statement extracts elements from a collection into a

named variable, once for each member of a collection. The
syntax for for is: for(extracted variable in input collection)
geometry = [Imperative]
{
collection = 0..10;
points = {};

for (i in collection)
{
points[i] = Point.ByCoordinates(i, 0, 0);
}

return = points;
}
13: Replication Guides
The Dynamo language was created as a domain-specific tool for
architects, designers and engineers, and as such has several
language features specifically tailored for these disciplines. A
common element in these disciplines is the prevalence of objects
arrayed repetitive grids, from brick walls and tile floors to faade
paneling and column grids. While range expressions offer a
convenient means of generating one dimensional collections of
elements, replication guides offer a convenient means of
generating two and three dimensional collections.

Replication guides take two or three one-dimensional collections,

and pair the elements together to generate one, two- or three-
dimensional collection. Replication guides are indicated by
placing the symbols <1>, <2>, or <3> after a two or three
collections on a single line of code. For example, we can use
range expressions to generate two one-dimensional collections,
and use these collections to generate a collection of points:

x_vals = 0..10;
y_vals = 0..10;

p = Point.ByCoordinates(x_vals, y_vals, 0);

In this example, the first element of x_vals is paired with the first
element of y_vals, the second with the second, and so on for the
entire length of the collection. This generates points with values
(0, 0, 0), (1, 1, 0), (2, 2, 0), (3, 3, 0), etc. If we apply a
replication guide to this same line of code, we can have Dynamo
generate a two-dimensional grid from the two one dimensional
collections:

x_vals = 0..10;
y_vals = 0..10;

// apply replication guides to the two collections

p = Point.ByCoordinates(x_vals<1>, y_vals<2>, 0);
By applying replication guides to x_vals and y_vals, Dynamo
generates every possible combination of values between the two
collections, first pairing the 1st element x_vals with all the
elements in y_vals, then pairing the 2nd element of x_vals with
all the elements in y_vals, and so on for every element of
x_vals.

The order of the replication guide numbers (<1>, <2>, and/or <3>)
determines the order of the underlying collection. In the following
example, the same two one-dimensional collections are used to
form two two-dimensional collections, though with the order of
<1> and <2> swapped.

x_vals = 0..10;
y_vals = 0..10;

p1 = Point.ByCoordinates(x_vals<1>, y_vals<2>, 0);

// apply the replication guides with a swapped order

// and set the points 14 units higher
p2 = Point.ByCoordinates(x_vals<2>, y_vals<1>, 14);

curve1 = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(Flatten(p1));
curve2 = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(Flatten(p2));

curve1 and curve2 trace out the generated order of elements in

both arrays; notice that they are rotated 90 degrees to each
other. p1 was created by extracting elements of x_vals and
pairing them with y_vals, while p2 was created by extracting
elements of y_vals and pairing them with x_vals.

Replication guides also work in three dimensions, by pairing a

third collection with a third replication symbol, <3>.
 x_vals = 0..10;
y_vals = 0..10;
z_vals = 0..10;

// generate a 3D matrix of points

p = Point.ByCoordinates(x_vals<1>,y_vals<2>,z_vals<3>);

This generates every possible combination of values from

combining the elements from x_vals, y_vals, and z_vals.
14: Collection Rank and Jagged Collections
The rank of a collection is defined as the greatest depth of
elements inside of a collection. A collection of single values has a
rank of 1, while a collection of collections of single values has a
rank of 2. Rank can loosely be defined as the number of square
bracket ([]) operators needed to access the deepest member of
a collection. Collections of rank 1 only need a single square
bracket to access the deepest member, while collections of rank
three require three subsequent brackets. The following table
outlines collections of ranks 1-3, though collections can exist up
to any rank depth.

Rank Collection Access 1st Element

1 {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} collection[0]
2 { {1, 2}, {3, 4}, {5, 6} } collection[0][0]
{ { {1, 2}, {3, 4} },
3 collection[0][0][0]
{ {5, 6}, {7, 8} } }
...

Higher ranked collections generated by range expressions and

replication guides are always homogeneous, in other words
every object of a collection is at the same depth (it is accessed
with the same number of [] operators). However, not all Dynamo
collections contain elements at the same depth. These
collections are called jagged, after the fact that the depth rises up
and down over the length of the collection. The following code
generates a jagged collection:

j = {};

j[0] = 1;
j[1] = {2, 3, 4};
j[2] = 5;
j[3] = { {6, 7}, { {8} } };
j[4] = 9;

fail when it attempts to perform operations not supported on a

collection.
The following example shows how to access all the elements of
this jagged collection:

// generate a jagged collection

j = {1, {2, 3, 4}, 5, {{6, 7}, {{8}}}, 9};

s = j[0] + " " + j[1][0] + " " + j[1][1] + " " +

j[1][2] + " " + j[2] + " " +
j[3][0][0] + " " + j[3][0][1] + " " +
j[3][1][0][0] + " " + j[4];
15: Surfaces: Interpreted, Control Points, Loft, Revolve

The two-dimensional analog to a NurbsCurve is the

NurbsSurface, and like the freeform NurbsCurve, NurbsSurfaces
can be constructed with two basic methods: inputting a set of
base points and having Dynamo interpret between them, and
explicitly specifying the control points of the surface. Also like
freeform curves, interpreted surfaces are useful when a designer
knows precisely the shape a surface needs to take, or if a design
requires the surface to pass through constraint points. On the
other hand, Surfaces created by control points can be more
useful for exploratory designs across various smoothing levels.

To create an interpreted surface, simply generate a two-

dimensional collection of points approximating the shape of a
surface. The collection must be rectangular, that is, not jagged.
The method NurbsSurface.ByPoints constructs a surface from
these points.

// python_points_1 is a set of Points generated with

// a Python script found in Appendix 1

surf = NurbsSurface.ByPoints(python_points_1);

Freeform NurbsSurfaces can also be created by specifying

underlying control points of a surface. Like NurbsCurves, the
control points can be thought of as representing a quadrilateral
mesh with straight segments, which, depending on the degree of
the surface, is smoothed into the final surface form. To create a
NurbsSurface by control points, include two additional
parameters to NurbsSurface.ByPoints, indicating the degrees of
the underlying curves in both directions of the surface.

// python_points_1 is a set of Points generated with

// a Python script found in Appendix 1

// create a surface of degree 2 with smooth segments

surf = NurbsSurface.ByPoints(python_points_1, 2, 2);
We can increase the degree of the NurbsSurface to change the
resulting surface geometry:

// python_points_1 is a set of Points generated with

// a Python script found in Appendix 1

// create a surface of degree 6

surf = NurbsSurface.ByPoints(python_points_1, 6, 6);

Just as Surfaces can be created by interpreting between a set of

input points, they can be created by interpreting between a set of
base curves. This is called lofting. A lofted curve is created using
the Surface.LoftFromCrossSections constructor, with a
collection of input curves as the only parameter.

// python_points_2, 3, and 4 are generated with

// Python scripts found in Appendix 1

c1 = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(python_points_2);
c2 = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(python_points_3);
c3 = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(python_points_4);

loft = Surface.LoftFromCrossSections({c1, c2, c3});

Surfaces of revolution are an additional type of surface created

by sweeping a base curve around a central axis. If interpreted
surfaces are the two-dimensional analog to interpreted curves,
then surfaces of revolution are the two-dimensional analog to
circles and arcs. Surfaces of revolution are specified by a base
curve, representing the edge of the surface; an axis origin, the
base point of the surface; an axis direction, the central core
direction; a sweep start angle; and a sweep end angle. These are
used as the input to the Surface.Revolve constructor.
pts = {};
pts[0] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 0);
pts[1] = Point.ByCoordinates(3, 0, 1);
pts[2] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 2);
pts[3] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 3);
pts[4] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 4);
pts[5] = Point.ByCoordinates(5, 0, 5);
pts[6] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 6);
pts[7] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 7);

crv = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(pts);

axis_origin = Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 0);

axis = Vector.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 1);

surf = Surface.ByRevolve(crv, axis_origin, axis, 0,

360);
16: Geometric Parameterization
In computational designs, curves and surfaces are frequently
used as the underlying scaffold to construct subsequent
geometry. In order for this early geometry to be used as a
foundation for later geometry, the script must be able to extract
qualities such as position and orientation across the entire area
of the object. Both curves and surfaces support this extraction,
and it is called parameterization.

All of the points on a curve can be thought of as having a unique

parameter ranging from 0 to 1. If we were to create a NurbsCurve
based off of several control or interpreted points, the first point
would have the parameter 0, and the last point would have the
parameter 1. Its impossible to know in advance what the exact
parameter is any intermediate point is, which may sound like a
severe limitation though is mitigated by a series of utility
functions. Surfaces have a similar parameterization as curves,
though with two parameters instead of one, called u and v. If we
were to create a surface with the following points:

pts = { {p1, p2, p3},

{p4, p5, p6},
{p7, p8, p9} };

p1 would have parameter u = 0 v = 0, while p9 would have

parameters u = 1 v = 1.

Parameterization isnt particularly useful when determining points

used to generate curves, its main use is to determine the
locations if intermediate points generated by NurbsCurve and
NurbsSurface constructors.

Curves have a method PointAtParameter, which takes a single

double argument between 0 and 1, and returns the Point object
at that parameter. For instance, this script finds the Points at
parameters 0, .1, .2, .3, .4, .5, .6, .7, .8, .9, and 1:
 pts = {};
pts[0] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 0);
pts[1] = Point.ByCoordinates(6, 0, 1);
pts[2] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 2);
pts[3] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 3);
pts[4] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 4);
pts[5] = Point.ByCoordinates(3, 0, 5);
pts[6] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 6);

crv = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(pts);

pts_at_param = crv.PointAtParameter(0..1..#11);

// draw Lines to help visualize the points

lines = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(pts_at_param,
Point.ByCoordinates(4, 6, 0));

Similarly, Surfaces have a method PointAtParameter which takes

two arguments, the u and v parameter of the generated Point.

While extracting individual points on a curve and surface can be

useful, scripts often require knowing the particular geometric
characteristics at a parameter, such as what direction the Curve
or Surface is facing. The methods
CoordinateSystemAtParameterAlongCurve and
CoordinateSystemAtParameter find not only the position but an
oriented CoordinateSystem at the parameter of a Curve and
Surface respectively. For instance, the following script extracts
oriented CoordinateSystems along a revolved Surface, and uses
the orientation of the CoordinateSystems to generate lines which
are sticking off normal to the surface:
 pts = {};
pts[0] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 0);
pts[1] = Point.ByCoordinates(3, 0, 1);
pts[2] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 2);
pts[3] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 3);
pts[4] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 4);
pts[5] = Point.ByCoordinates(5, 0, 5);
pts[6] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 6);
pts[7] = Point.ByCoordinates(4, 0, 7);

crv = NurbsCurve.ByPoints(pts);

axis_origin = Point.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 0);

axis = Vector.ByCoordinates(0, 0, 1);

surf = Surface.ByRevolve(crv, axis_origin, axis, 90,

140);

cs_array = surf.CoordinateSystemAtParameter(
(0..1..#7)<1>, (0..1..#7)<2>);

def make_line(cs : CoordinateSystem) {

lines_start = cs.Origin;
lines_end = cs.Origin.Translate(cs.ZAxis, -0.75);

return = Line.ByStartPointEndPoint(lines_start,
lines_end);
}

lines = make_line(Flatten(cs_array));

As mentioned earlier, parameterization is not always uniform

across the length of a Curve or a Surface, meaning that the
parameter 0.5 doesnt always correspond to the midpoint, and
0.25 doesnt always correspond to the point one quarter along a
curve or surface. To get around this limitation, Curves have an
additional set of parameterization commands which allow you to
find a point at specific lengths along a Curve.
17: Intersection and Trim
Many of the examples so far have focused on the construction of
higher dimensional geometry from lower dimensional objects.
Intersection methods allow this higher dimensional geometry to
generate lower dimensional objects, while the trim and select trim
commands allow script to heavily modify geometric forms after
theyve been created.

The Intersect method is defined on all pieces of geometry in

Dynamo, meaning that in theory any piece of geometry can be
intersected with any other piece of geometry. Naturally some
intersections are meaningless, such as intersections involving
Points, as the resulting object will always be the input Point itself.
The other possible combinations of intersections between objects
are outlined in the following chart. The following chart outlines the
result of various intersection operations:

Intersect:
With: Surface Curve Plane Solid
Surface Curve Point Point, Curve Surface
Curve Point Point Point Curve
Plane Curve Point Curve Curve
Solid Surface Curve Curve Solid

The following very simple example demonstrates the intersection

of a plane with a NurbsSurface. The intersection generates a
NurbsCurve array, which can be used like any other NurbsCurve.

// python_points_5 is a set of Points generated with

// a Python script found in Appendix 1

surf = NurbsSurface.ByPoints(python_points_5, 3, 3);

WCS = CoordinateSystem.Identity();

pl = Plane.ByOriginNormal(WCS.Origin.Translate(0, 0,
0.5), WCS.ZAxis);

// intersect surface, generating three closed curves

crvs = surf.Intersect(pl);

crvs_moved = crvs.Translate(0, 0, 10);

The Trim method is very similar to the Intersect method, in that it
is defined for almost every piece of geometry. Unlike intersect,
there are far more limitations on Trim than on Intersect

Trim
Using:
On: Point Curve Plane Surface Solid
Curve Yes No No No No
Polygon NA No Yes No No
Surface NA Yes Yes Yes Yes
Solid NA NA Yes Yes Yes

Something to note about Trim methods is the requirement of a

select point, a point which determines which geometry to
discard, and which pieces to keep. Dynamo finds the closest side
of the trimmed geometry to the select point, and this side
becomes the side to discard.

// python_points_5 is a set of Points generated with

// a Python script found in Appendix 1

surf = NurbsSurface.ByPoints(python_points_5, 3, 3);

tool_pts = Point.ByCoordinates((-10..20..10)<1>,
(-10..20..10)<2>, 1);

tool = NurbsSurface.ByPoints(tool_pts);

pick_point = Point.ByCoordinates(8, 1, 3);

// trim with the tool surface, and keep the surface

// closest to pick_point
result = surf.Trim(tool, pick_point);
18: Geometric Booleans
Intersect, Trim, and SelectTrim are primarily used on lower-
dimensional geometry such as Points, Curves, and Surfaces.
Solid geometry on the other hand, has an additional set of
methods for modifying form after their construction, both by
subtracting material in a manner similar to Trim and combining
elements together to form a larger whole.

The Union method takes two solid objects and creates a single
solid object out of the space covered by both objects. The
overlapping space between objects is combined into the final
form. This example combines a Sphere and a Cuboid into a
single solid Sphere-Cube shape:

s1 = Sphere.ByCenterPointRadius(
CoordinateSystem.Identity().Origin, 6);

s2 = Sphere.ByCenterPointRadius(
CoordinateSystem.Identity().Origin.Translate(4, 0,
0), 6);

combined = s1.Union(s2);

The Difference method, like Trim, subtracts away the contents

of the input tool solid from the base solid. In this example we
carve out a small indentation out of a sphere:

s = Sphere.ByCenterPointRadius(
CoordinateSystem.Identity().Origin, 6);

tool = Sphere.ByCenterPointRadius(
CoordinateSystem.Identity().Origin.Translate(10, 0,
0), 6);

result = s.Difference(tool);

The Intersect method returns the overlapping Solid between

two solid Inputs. In the following example, Difference has been
changed to Intersect, and the resulting Solid is the missing void
initially carved out:
s = Sphere.ByCenterPointRadius(
CoordinateSystem.Identity().Origin, 6);

tool = Sphere.ByCenterPointRadius(
CoordinateSystem.Identity().Origin.Translate(10, 0,
0), 6);

result = s.Intersect(tool);
A-1: Python Point Generators
The following Python scripts generate point arrays for several
examples. They should be pasted into a Python Script node as
follows:

python_points_1

out_points = []

for i in range(11):
sub_points = []
for j in range(11):
z = 0
if (i == 5 and j == 5):
z = 1
elif (i == 8 and j == 2):
z = 1
sub_points.Add(Point.ByCoordinates(i, j, z))
out_points.Add(sub_points)

OUT = out_points
python_points_2

out_points = []

for i in range(11):
z = 0
if (i == 2):
z = 1
out_points.Add(Point.ByCoordinates(i, 0, z))

OUT = out_points

python_points_3

out_points = []

for i in range(11):
z = 0
if (i == 7):
z = -1
out_points.Add(Point.ByCoordinates(i, 5, z))

OUT = out_points

python_points_4

out_points = []

for i in range(11):
z = 0
if (i == 5):
z = 1
out_points.Add(Point.ByCoordinates(i, 10, z))

OUT = out_points
python_points_5

out_points = []

for i in range(11):
sub_points = []
for j in range(11):
z = 0
if (i == 1 and j == 1):
z = 2
elif (i == 8 and j == 1):
z = 2
elif (i == 2 and j == 6):
z = 2
sub_points.Add(Point.ByCoordinates(i, j, z))
out_points.Add(sub_points)

OUT = out_points