Voronoi Sketch Generator

Voronoi Sketch Generator

Win64, English

Autodesk, Inc.
This is an Autodesk® Fusion 360™ add-in for generating Voronoi diagrams. Once created, a Voronoi diagram is inserted into a sketch and then may be used for creating or modifying models.

General Usage Instructions

  1. Run the "Voronoi" add-in from the Scripts and Add-Ins dialog. Optionally, checkmark "Run at Startup" to automatically start each session.
  2. The command will be added to the Create dropdown in the Solids environment.
  3. Click on the "Voronoi Sketch Generator" menu item or button.
  4. The add-in dialog will be displayed with the following options:
    • Sketch or Profile:
      • You may choose one of the following:
        • Sketch: Select an existing sketch to add the Voronoi diagram.
        • Sketch Profile: Select a sketch profile to define the clipping bounds and where to add the Voronoi diagram.
        • Nothing: If no sketch or profile is selected then a new sketch will be created on the construction plane selected (see below).
    • Construction Plane:
      • Enabled when no sketch or profile is selected. Select which construction plane for the new sketch created for the Voronoi diagram.
    • Width, Height: The width and height of the Voronoi diagram.
  5. Leave the settings with their defaults and then click the 'Voronoi Editor' button.
  6. The add-in palette will be displayed.
    • On the top title bar are:
      • The left button toggles the settings palette opened or closed.
      • Download the SVG button can be used to download the diagram to a local drive.
      • Publish button will add the diagram into Fusion 360.
    • On the left side of the palette are the settings that control the Voronoi generation. See below for details.
      • Cell Style
      • This dropdown is used to define how the cells are rendered. The first two, Curves and Straight, create the two most common styles of Voronoi patterns. The remaining options are symbols. Selecting a symbol will cause one to be inserted at the centroid of each cell and scaled to fit within the cell. Note that the scaling is not perfect at the moment. The rotation of each symbol is also set to a random value. Warning: Modifies the current Voronoi pattern
      • Cell Count
      • This sets the number of cells. Note that a large number (> 100) of cells may take a while to generate (sometimes several minutes). Warning: Modifies the current Voronoi pattern
      • Cell Scale
      • This scales the cells and is useful to add a margin between cells or prevent overlap for symbols.
      • Relaxation
      • This is used to 'relax' the spacing between the cells. It's useful for normalizing the distances between cells and especially when using symbol styles (e.g. Stars). More information below in the 'Relaxation' section.
      • Clip Outside
      • Checking this will clip (remove) and cells outside of the profile
      • Clip Intersecting
      • Checking this will clip (remove) and cells that intersect the profile
      • Add Border
      • Toggle the drawing of the bounds/border as specified by the width and height values.
      • Padding
      • Adds a boundary between the pattern and the border.
      • Zoom Amount
      • This is used to zoom the view in/out. It does not affect the result inserted into the sketch. It's useful for when your palette window is too small and obscures some of the diagrams.
  7. Adjust the settings to find a Voronoi diagram that you like then click the 'Publish' button.
    • Note, for Voronoi diagrams with many cells (>100), there may be a delay before the palette closes and the main window appears.
  8. The Voronoi diagram should now appear in the document window.

Once the Voronoi diagram is added to a sketch, I will usually project the geometry onto a surface and then modify it from there. Or, use the pattern to cut or extrude on a body surface. This is even possible on curved surfaces.

Commands

Installation/Uninstallation

Install:
The installer that ran when you downloaded this app/plug-in from Autodesk App Store will start installing the app/plug-in. Or, simply double-click the downloaded installer to install the app/plugin.

Uninstall:
You can unload the add-in without uninstalling it by clicking the "Stop" button when the add-in is selected in the list box on the "Add-Ins" tab of the "Scripts and Add-Ins" dialog.
Unchecking "Run on Startup" causes the add-in not to be loaded in future sessions of Fusion 360.
To uninstall this plug-in, exit the Autodesk product if you are currently running it, simply rerun the installer, and select the "Uninstall" button.
Or, you can uninstall it from 'Control Panel/Programs and Features' (Windows 7/8.1/10), just as you would uninstall any other application from your system.

Additional Information

Known Issues

  1. Inserting a voronoi diagram with many cells may cause Fusion 360 to hang for a long time. There may be no workaround on the add-in side.
  2. When using a profile, the voronoi diagram will not be inserted at the offset of the profile. The workaround is to:
    • Edit the sketch containing the voronoi
    • Change the 'Select->Selection Filters' to select only Sketch Points.
    • Window or Freeform select all of the voronoi cells.
    • Select Move/Copy and move the points to the correct offset. Note, moving the points will also move the cell curves.

Contact

Company Name: Autodesk, Inc.
Support Contact: fusion.apps@autodesk.com

Author/Company Information

Autodesk, Inc.

Support Information

Email us at fusion.apps@autodesk.com with feedback or requests for enhancements.

Version History

Version Number Version Description

3.1.0

Updated release
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