Here is an attempt at a Raspberry, using Flow.

1. Use SpherePoints script to make 60 points on a unit sphere.
2. CopyToPoints script to copy small sphere to the points, to create the object to Flow.
3. Create big unit sphere, to use as base surface for Flow.
4. Create an outline of a raspberry, and revolve, to make the target surface for Flow.
(Also revolved an egg for another target surface for Flow.)
5. Flow Rigid.

It turned out pretty good Brian!

My rabbit also sometimes produces stuff that looks like that but they're not raspberries... ;)

- Michael

:-) Orchard Deer also.

Maybe I'll try some line segment "normals" from the center of the sphere to the points??
Then the objects copied could be oriented outward... somehow, with the right script...

Ok! I wondered at one time on how to design a raspberry and strawberries as well in MoI. That's clever.


I had a good friend that raised pure-bred Angoras....... fer eatin'! :-p

..and that's all I want to say... :-( pauvres petits lapins pour manger!

If the script CopyToPoints can be enhanced with Orient, then the
objects can be copied to the points on the sphere, so they are radial with respect to the sphere. (?)

Hi Brian, I don't think that it's possible to script that right now because the orient command relies on object snaps that it gets from the point picker and right now there isn't any way to generate a "picked point" that has object snaps on it by a script.

So for now anyway you would need to use just the plain non-scripted orient command to place those. When you check the "Make copies" box you can place a new copy with just 2 clicks (one left click and then one right click if you don't need to adjust the orientation), so you can place about 1 instance a second so for something like 30 points or so that should be possible to do in just a minute or so of work even non scripted.

- Michael

Thank you Michael.

The orient command is very fast!

> Maybe I'll try some line segment "normals" from the center of the sphere to the points??
Then the objects copied could be oriented outward... somehow, with the right script...


Hey guys! Don't forget the "ArrayGem" command.

...how I automatically arranged the bristles on the bush in my tutorial:

http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=4388.47




It's application might be useful with placing other features on a specific surface. Then all you have to worry about is using Flow or Project to get the target path curve on the surface.

The problem with ArrayGem for this particular case is that ArrayGem places things along curves that are on the surface, not at individual point locations like Brian had here. Also ArrayGem is only focused on handling open curves too.

It is definitely related though since it does generate equally spaced circles along one direction, but I'm not sure if the particular way it does it would apply here.

- Michael

Well, for what it is worth, figured out how to use ArrayGem to place protrusions normal to a sphere, which would be
scriptable.
ArrayGem works with line segments drawn from the surface, to the center of the sphere! (Not from the center, to the surface.)
It also works on eggs, and should work on other solids, and other surfaces.
It is necessary that the Gem distance is larger than the lengh of the line segment...+/-.
For the egg, started with a circle, and scaled it up to surround the egg, then trimmed the lines.

This might be good for placing a lot of objects on a surface...
(For a few, or several dozen, the orient command is superb.)

Attached is an egg which has predator protection...

Another way to use ArrayGem with points.
ArrayGem does not work with points, so created a very tiny line of length 0.001 units, and assigned the line
an Object name of Line.001Long. In order to select it, and pick its centerline as the base point, click on its Object name select
box area, then hit the screen reset button, to auto zoom in. Used CopyToPoints to copy it to the spherical points.
Then use GemArray to copy octagonal object to the line segments, with the sphere as the base surface. This sets them normal to
the sphere, per the selection circle, at a radial distance error, from the surface of the sphere, of between 0.0005 and -0.0005 units, depending on which side of the sphere they are on. Attached is a spherical pattern with 500 points. (Also did one with 2000 points.)

Kind of resembles a pineapple...

Hi Brian, that's a cool way to make use of ArrayGem - basically that ends up just placing the first element of the array at the start of the curve only but that's all that you want for your case anyway!

- Michael

Might someone expound a bit on message 5178.11 ?

The image is missing and I don't get how to follow the suggestion.
Maybe someone might be so kind as to make a screen-cam demo...?

Please?
- Mindset