Constant Length Line and Chain

[JuneTheSecond]

Here is a drawing containing some example of constant length line and chain.
And here is a short video explaining the functions of these shapes.
https://youtu.be/-5UDxXJ9ZPU

Please enjoy.

[Yacine]

Very cool!

[vojo]

cool....can you do this with shapes (link several shapes in a chain and drag the chain around)?

[JuneTheSecond]

Making long chain is not hard.
But this is too long.

[Visio Guy]

This is beautiful! And really fun when you pull the worm around with the Surface Pro 3 pen!

I added a connection point onto the tail, so you can glue your own worm segments together.

[JuneTheSecond]

Thank you Visio.Guy, I forgot connection point.
Now Connection Added and Deleted events enable me to think about something more fun.

[Yacine]

Hi Junichi,
I see 2 immediate applications for your technic.
1) mechanical transmissions (http://www.igm.rwth-aachen.de/getriebemodellsammlung/home/liste.php?order=gts_nr)
2) Comics / drawn bodies where the limbs need constant lengths, but also the necessity to be drawn freely to what ever position they need to by. This would/could end up in a kind of reverse kinematic tool. (you remember my playing with comic characters (http://visguy.com/vgforum/index.php?topic=1572.0)


The problem: I don't know if/how this technique can be applied to shapes bound to TWO different shapes.
To explain:
1) In a transmission mechanism the shape could be linked to a fixed position on one side, but follow a driving shape from the other one.
2) With a comic character, I need to link the arm to the body, but want to move it by dragging the hand.

[Visio Guy]

So I was dragging these things around and around and around the ellipse, wondering whether they would converge onto the ellipse itself. I'm not sure if it is speed-sensitive or not, I think the resulting "worm" is some sort of elliptical spiral. The worm does not ever seem to converge onto the ellipse (maybe a small number of very short segments would.)

I wonder if there is some sort of name for this phenomena, and whether engineers or scientists have a use for it?

[Visio Guy]

Übrigens ist die getriebemodelldsamlung der Hammer!

[JuneTheSecond]

Thanks everybody.
Mechanical transmission is interesting theme!
Here is a short YouTube video of my trial. Piston mechanism.
https://youtu.be/ZYiYjGcz3PE

Please enjoy.

By the way the add in used to rotate a line in video is written in VS 2013 Community.

Code Select Expand


Private Sub Button12_Click(sender As Object, e As RibbonControlEventArgs) Handles Button12.Click
        Dim Ang As Double
        Dim shp As Visio.Shape
        Dim x As Double, y As Double
        Dim pi As Double
        Dim win As Visio.Window

        pi = Math.PI
        Ang = Convert.ToDecimal(EditBox1.Text) * pi / 180.0
        win = Globals.ThisAddIn.Application.ActiveWindow

        If win.Selection.Count <> 1 Then Exit Sub

        shp = win.Selection(1)

        If Not shp.CellExistsU("BeginX", False) Then Exit Sub

        x = shp.Cells("BeginX").Result("mm") + (shp.Cells("EndX").Result("mm") - shp.Cells("BeginX").Result("mm")) * Math.Cos(Ang) _
    - (shp.Cells("EndY").Result("mm") - shp.Cells("BeginY").Result("mm")) * Math.Sin(Ang)

        y = shp.Cells("BeginY").Result("mm") + (shp.Cells("EndX").Result("mm") - shp.Cells("BeginX").Result("mm")) * Math.Sin(Ang) _
    + (shp.Cells("EndY").Result("mm") - shp.Cells("BeginY").Result("mm")) * Math.Cos(Ang)

        shp.Cells("EndX").Formula = Str(x) + "mm"
        shp.Cells("EndY").Formula = Str(y) + "mm"
    End Sub
End Class


[JuneTheSecond]

Here is an example of a kind of link motion.
Also a short video in YouTube.
https://youtu.be/NHBQEBbbWD4

Please enjoy.

[cliff50]

I watched the youtube single cylinder piston engine .. very slick !
it reminds me of my old victa lawn mower.

The other one reminds me of the driving wheels on old steam trains.. great work June 

[JuneTheSecond]

I made Bounded Length Line from Constant Length Line.
The length is bounded between small and large. It expands and contracts, but unfortunately elasticity.
It would be  better, if it is elastic like a rubber band.
The advantages are easy to close as a polygon, and more accurate to trace a free curve.

Here is a short video in YouTube.
https://youtu.be/sjPBQJy-WKU
Here is a Visio drawing for example.

[Yacine]

Hi Junichi,
going back to my mechanisms idea, I wonder if a combination of your technique and Wapperdudes SetAtReF article, would be a way to go, for getting line segments that can be moved from BOTH ends. (That's what those mechanisms require).

[JuneTheSecond]

Here is an example drawing of new lines, 2 way constant length line.
You can drag any side of constant length line.
Here is a short video in YouTube.
https://youtu.be/Fz6Wy_gjE7U

But unfortunately they are ready for amusement only.
They don't work in any valuable fields, as it cannot be glued to other shapes on any side of the line.
It is because I used SETF functions for both end of line.
I tried SETATREF function many times, but I could not find the good solution.