d3-hpgl

Work in in progress - to adapt d3-path to create HPGL output.

Currently only supports moveTo, lineTo, closePath and rect. My plotter - Roland DPX-3300 has no native support for bezier or quadratic curves, and I'm unsure if the arc command AA will support the same API as Canvas.

Pull requests welcome!

Say you have some code that draws to a 2D canvas:

function drawCircle(context, radius) {
  context.moveTo(radius, 0);
  context.arc(0, 0, radius, 0, 2 * Math.PI);
}

The d3-hpgl module lets you take this exact code and additionally render to HPGL. It works by serializing CanvasPathMethods calls to HPGL path data which is composed entirely of straight lines (using PA pen absolute commands), since this is easiest to gain compatability.

var context = d3.hpgl();
drawCircle(context, 40);
console.log(context.toString()));

Now code you write once can be used with any HPGL compatible device along with both Canvas (for performance) and SVG (for convenience). For a practical example of shapes you can create, see d3-shape.

Installing

If you use NPM, npm install d3-hpgl. Otherwise, download the latest release. AMD, CommonJS, and vanilla environments are supported. In vanilla, a d3 global is exported:

<script src="TODO-find-CDN-to-host"></script>
<script>

var path = d3.hpgl();
path.moveTo(1, 2);
path.lineTo(3, 4);
path.closePath();

</script>

Try d3-hpgl in your browser.

API Reference

# d3.hpgl() <>

Constructs a new path serializer that implements CanvasPathMethods.

# hpgl.moveTo(x, y) <>

Move to the specified point ⟨x, y⟩. context.moveTo and SVG’s “moveto” command.

# hpgl.closePath() <>

Ends the current subpath and causes an automatic straight line to be drawn from the current point to the initial point of the current subpath. Equivalent to context.closePath and SVG’s “closepath” command.

# hpgl.lineTo(x, y) <>

Draws a straight line from the current point to the specified point ⟨x, y⟩. Equivalent to context.lineTo and SVG’s “lineto” command.

# hpgl.quadraticCurveTo(cpx, cpy, x, y) <>

Draws a quadratic Bézier segment from the current point to the specified point ⟨x, y⟩, with the specified control point ⟨cpx, cpy⟩. Equivalent to context.quadraticCurveTo and SVG’s quadratic Bézier curve commands.

# hpgl.bezierCurveTo(cpx1, cpy1, cpx2, cpy2, x, y) <>

Draws a cubic Bézier segment from the current point to the specified point ⟨x, y⟩, with the specified control points ⟨cpx1, cpy1⟩ and ⟨cpx2, cpy2⟩. Equivalent to context.bezierCurveTo and SVG’s cubic Bézier curve commands.

# hpgl.arcTo(x1, y1, x2, y2, radius) <>

Draws a circular arc segment with the specified radius that starts tangent to the line between the current point and the specified point ⟨x1, y1⟩ and ends tangent to the line between the specified points ⟨x1, y1⟩ and ⟨x2, y2⟩. If the first tangent point is not equal to the current point, a straight line is drawn between the current point and the first tangent point. Equivalent to context.arcTo and uses SVG’s elliptical arc curve commands.

# hpgl.arc(x, y, radius, startAngle, endAngle[, anticlockwise]) <>

Draws a circular arc segment with the specified center ⟨x, y⟩, radius, startAngle and endAngle. If anticlockwise is true, the arc is drawn in the anticlockwise direction; otherwise, it is drawn in the clockwise direction. If the current point is not equal to the starting point of the arc, a straight line is drawn from the current point to the start of the arc. Equivalent to context.arc and uses SVG’s elliptical arc curve commands.

# hpgl.rect(x, y, w, h) <>

Creates a new subpath containing just the four points ⟨x, y⟩, ⟨x + w, y⟩, ⟨x + w, y + h⟩, ⟨x, y + h⟩, with those four points connected by straight lines, and then marks the subpath as closed. Equivalent to context.rect and uses SVG’s “lineto” commands.

# hpgl.toString() <>

Returns the string representation of this path according to SVG’s path data specficiation.