My floorplate geometry is set up such that the centers of each arc lie on the same circle, and each arc is tangent to the same circle (so all the arcs are the same size). Also, the centers of the arcs are equadistant from each other, so the straight lines connecting the endpoints are all the same length. That's all well and good, but it's not the point.
I have a parameter to set the length of the straight line segments, and the radii/positioning of the arcs adjusts to the line segment constraints. Since there is no upper limit to where I can set the line segment parameter, I can push the line segments until they cross eachother, which creates a bit of a crisis for the arcs that are supposed to be in between the segments. I pushed the parameter beyond this limit and Mickey Mouse popped out.
The trick is, once Mickey appears, he won't go away, even if I decrease the line segment length parameter back to within appropriate bounds. It's like DP has created new geometry to adjust for the segments when they are too long, and then that new geometry stays put even after the line segments go back to their original length. I wonder if there's a way to get around this....
an animation of pushing the parameter limits
#2: Sticking parameters in power copies
I'm still getting used to what it means to include parameters and relations in power copies, both on the input and copy creation side of the bar. My floorplate geometry is supposed to respond to 3 parameters: the length of the straight line connecting the arcs, a factor that adjusts the amount of rotation, and the distance between floors. In this example I had spent so long worrying about the adjustments I made in plan, that I completely forgot that I had set parameters for adjustment in elevation. Note the missing 'floor_to_floor' parameter:
The worst part is that I forgot to test the floor_to_floor parameter until after I had painstakingly added 18 power copies that lacked that height adjustment ability. The planes that made up the supports for each copy could be readily adjusted, but the extrusion height of each copy was supposed to follow suit. Ahh, I can't wait until we learn how to script...
On the plus side, the straight line segment adjustment and the rotation adjustment worked just fine.
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