Here is a short tutorial on getting help from Grasshopper in physical terrain modeling. It is a classical architectural terrain modeling process. Let’s see how Grasshopper can help us with this. Part 1: Terrain modeling for Laser cutter The terrain model entered in the Brep data store in this application is a closed/solid model. For now, you can also use ready-made components such as Cone or Sphere (Sph) to quickly […]

Here is another basic exercise in Grasshopper. This exercise “Point Waves” creates wave-like deformations on the grids of points. The major function of the definition is to calculate the distances from every point of a grid to an attractor point, with the help of Distance (Dist). Then it sorts them from the smallest to the largest (= closest to farthest) with the Sort List (Sort) component. This component takes and […]

We continue with the Grasshopper for Beginners series by explaining Rhino+Gh workflow principles. What does GH add to Rhino‘s standard drawing and modeling functions? To put the question differently, what does GH do that conventional modeling programs, such as Rhino, can’t? What is the difference and relationship between Rhino+Gh? Let’s take an example to answer these questions. Our example is about parametrically describing a surface model and deriving its alternatives. […]

This is the continuation of the physical prototyping project of a folding pattern from 9 years ago. I simulate the folding pattern using the Rhino Grasshopper Kangaroo. As seen in the video, this is possible thanks to the pre-set hinge positions on the Rhino model. Thus, the folding motion can be animated on the screen. You can download and try the Grasshopper code. I often use this code in my […]

Let’s continue the Grasshopper for Beginners series. We start with the traditional “Hello World!” displayed on the Rhino screen: Placing the Components In most CAD programs, the text creation function, which is the equivalent of the Text command, is performed by a component called Text Tag (Tag) in GH. The Text Tag (Tag) component is in the Dimension panel under the Display tab. If you’re not comfortable with tabs and […]

Here is the Grasshopper implementation of the famous Evolution Door design by Klemens Torggler. The code I used here is from my course on Parametric Modeling. This Grasshopper algorithm is a good exercise for the basics of Kangaroo. I attached several goal objects to a special mesh object created in Rhinoceros. Kangaroo’s goal objects work as expected to simulate the folding door behavior. I used the goal objects to fix […]

In this 5th episode of Grasshopper for Beginners, the interface continued by exploring the interface of Grasshopper. With the help of these two methods (tabs and search box), we can find the components. We can select them with the left click and place them on the canvas with the left click again. Now take random components and try to place them on the canvas with both methods. Therefore, components with […]

In this fourth episode of Grasshopper for Beginners, the explanation of the graphical user interface continued. We call the data flow diagrams definitions. GH definitions are rendered on a large blank screen area called canvas. We can zoom in and out (zoom) the canvas with the middle mouse wheel. Or pan sideways by holding down the right mouse button. Tabs and panels are menus where all the components of the […]

We will try to create collapsible structures in this new series called Folding Experiments. In this example, we will be using Grasshopper and Kangaroo components to understand the Folding Experiments: Basics first. Like other projects, this is a Parametric Modeling course exercise that usually includes primary Grasshopper usage. In our first example, we will try to fold a mesh object. To be able to fold a surface like origami, we […]

Installation In this episode of Grasshopper for Beginners, we will look at the Interface. If you do not have the Rhino software, you can download the 90-day trial version from www.rhino3d.com and install it. The website will give you the latest version, Rhino 7. The compatibility of the applications and examples with the Rhino 7 version has been checked. Therefore, all applications and examples can run on version 1.0.0007 of […]

We continue the Grasshopper for Beginners (2) series with the data flow programming concept. Control flow diagrams we use in traditional programming languages control the sequence of executed commands. In data flow diagrams, the focus is not on the order of commands but on how the data progresses. In the previous example, it doesn’t matter whether the Circle and Polyline command runs first. As a result, both are prerequisites for […]

This is a new series aimed at beginners in Grasshopper. The design method pioneered by Grasshopper with the way he defines geometric relationships is becoming increasingly popular today. Its interactive interface, which looks like a game or a puzzle at first glance may seem easy and its impressive geometric results are a little dazzling. But when you enter the world of Grasshopper, it is understood that it is not a […]

Here is a design exercise I’ve been giving to students. It aims to familiarize students with the concept of dataflow diagrams used in Grasshopper. Dataflow is a different concept than conventional computer programming. Here is a good comparison between control flow and dataflow languages. In most educational settings (such as courses and workshops) we concentrate on the fundamental issue of dataflow management via design projects. This requires us to think […]

Here is a short series of videos showing the basic usage of Ladybug tools in a canopy design. So, I prepared this for my Parametric Design Systems elective course. Then, I encouraged my students to design their own canopies utilizing a similar Ladybug workflow in Grasshopper. In this first video, I am building a test surface in Grasshopper. I use the Graph Mapper component to derive 3D points and Interpolated […]

This exercise was a popular one in the 2015 and 2016 Architectural Geometry classes. Recently, I found these images of student works. However, some of the students’ names are missing (please e-mail me if one of them is yours). I love this exercise because it is a quick and efficient way of explaining and experimenting with the workflow of digital to physical production. In this particular exercise, students created Rhino […]

“Grasshopper” çalıştayı İstanbul Bilgi Üniversitesi Eyüp / santralİstanbul Kampüsü’nde, Mimarlık Fakültesi içerisinde 26 ve 27 ekim tarihlerinde 2 gün boyunca saat 10:00 – 16:00 arasında gerçekleştirilecektir. “Grasshopper ile Parametrik Modelleme” kitabının yazarları Tuğrul Yazar ve Serkan Uysal tarafından yürütülecek çalıştayda Grasshopper’a giriş, veri yapıları ve temel geometrik dönüşümler incelenecek ve uygulamalar yapılacaktır. Çalıştay dili Türkçedir. Katılım ücretsizdir. Katılım için önceden kayıt yaptırmak gerekmektedir. Kayıt başvurusu için 24 ekim saat 18:00’e kadar […]

After several readings, I’ve understood the way of working the new and very interesting feature of Kangaroo 2: “Grab”. Now, we can actually grab the Grasshopper objects from Rhino viewport! Also, on one hand, the new Kangaroo has a very special way of working (not common to us, native Grasshopper users) and on the other hand, it is very very easy to use and understand now. I loved that. Here […]

It is a nice exercise to study various components of point-to-curve transformations and vice versa. Tower Crane was our second-week exercise at İstanbul Bilgi University Faculty of Architecture Parametric Modeling class, asking students to design and draw a parametric object that has joints and parts that are moving alongside straight lines. Below is the most “safe-side” solution for me, although there are also very complicated solutions such as Mertcan’s. [GHX: 0.9.0076] here […]

This is a classical method of generating tree-like forms utilizing a simple command “Arc SED”. The idea is simple, as the command draws arcs using an input direction vector, so this could easily be implemented creating a “smooth” composition of curves just by iteration. Actually, this has been a previous study, discussed before here, using Hoopsnake. Now, this time I’m implementing the same algorithm using Anemone and a couple of other […]

About to finish the well-defined section of this year’s Parametric Modeling course, here are the mid-term questions I’ve asked; First question checks if the curve < > point conversions are well understood in Grasshopper. Evaluating a parametric curve and generating the closest point from another curve. This also requires a basic understanding of the use of the Grasshopper interface. The second question was testing a basic and classical use of […]