Description:
Meanders is a generative system driven by the interaction of growing agents. The agents are defined by their initial position, a velocity vector (ordered or random), and a constraint boundary (usually a circle), moreover they are able to avoid proximity events with other agents (and their own body too) by means of their bow sensor. However while the bodies fill the available space, an agent may experiencing a kind of 'blind alley' condition, that would mean the dead of that agent. But in that case an unexpected (emergent?) feature of the software creates a sort of extra propulsion, that allows the agent to quick escape from that deadly situation, crossing the surrounding walls of bodies. The software is a Processing applet with an OBJ exporter I am working on, that can archive each mesh separately with material, normals, uv texture info and mtllib support.
Below some renders and applet's video and images.
Images:
1 / Horizontal velocity vectors from x = 0
2 / Two repulsive points at north/south
3 / Four orthogonal sets of agents collide and bounce
4 / Two repulsive points at east/west
5 / Two agents emitter at north/south
6 / Two agents emitter at 2/3 of radius
7 / Two parallel sets of agents in opposite directions
8 / Four attractors at north/east/south/west
9 / A central agents emitter
10 / Agents with multiple of 30 degrees preferred directions
11 / Detail from system 8
12 / Detail from system 10
13 / Detail from system 1
14 / Start. Proximity events: orange lines, proximity sensor circles: blue.
15 / The proximity events sensors in action. Generated geometry is partially represented without smoothing.
16 / Mesh points inside sensor's circle, are considered for collision avoidance.
17 / In the exported model each trail is substituted by complete geometry.
18 / Overcrowded areas result in a more convoluted path.