Shape Class

An instance of this class represents a shape defined through a series of arc, line and Bezier segments. The segments can be a part of the shape outline, in which case they define the part of the shape is filled, used for hit-testing and for aligning links to the node edges. Segments can also be added as decoration elements, in which case they only affect the appearance of a ShapeNode.

Namespace: MindFusion.Diagramming
Assembly: MindFusion.Diagramming

 Syntax

C#

public class Shape

Visual Basic

Public Class Shape

 Remarks

Shape Definitions

The Shape class provides the means for defining complex node shapes. With its help you can design any shape composed of lines, arcs and Bézier-curves. A shape template should contain an outline to be used for hit testing, clipping and finding intersections with other items. If the outline is not defined, the rectangle specified by the Bounds property of nodes is used for hit-testing.

Predefined Shapes

MindFusion.Diagramming provides a set of over 100 predefined shape templates accessible through the static Shapes collection and the FromId method of Shape. A shape template can be applied to a node by assigning it to the Shape property of shape nodes. The predefined shapes are also exposed as properties of the Shapes class.

Custom Shapes

There are several Shape constructor overrides you might choose from, depending on the complexity of the shapes you want to create. They take arrays of ElementTemplate objects as arguments, which define the outline, decorations and text region definitions. Templates are described with coordinates expressed as percents of a shape node's area.

Shape Libraries

The ShapeDesigner tool included in the MindFusion.Diagramming suite lets you draw custom shapes and store them in shape libraries. A library file can be loaded into your application using the ShapeLibrary class. The definitions loaded from a shape library are automatically added to the Shapes collection and can be accessed through the FromId method, just as the predefined shapes.

Link Arrowheads

A Shape instance can be assigned to the HeadShape, BaseShape or IntermediateShape properties of a DiagramLink. When used for arrowheads, position (50, 0) in the shape definition corresponds to the arrowhead's tip point. Several predefined arrowhead shapes are provided as static properties of the ArrowHeads class.

 Example

Here is how the DirectAccessStorage shape is defined in the MindFusion.Diagramming source code:

C#

new Shape(
  new ElementTemplate[]
    {
      new LineTemplate(10, 0, 90, 0),
      new ArcTemplate(80, 0, 20, 100, -90, 180),
      new LineTemplate(90, 100, 10, 100),
      new ArcTemplate(0, 0, 20, 100, 90, 180)
    },
  new ElementTemplate[]
    {
      new ArcTemplate(0, 0, 20, 100, -90, 180)
    },
  new ElementTemplate[]
    {
      new LineTemplate(10, 0, 90, 0),
      new ArcTemplate(80, 0, 20, 100, -90, 180),
      new LineTemplate(90, 100, 10, 100),
      new BezierTemplate(10, 100, 35, 66, 35, 33, 10, 0)
    },
  fill, "DirectAccessStorage");

Visual Basic

New Shape( _
  New ElementTemplate() _
  { _
    New LineTemplate(10, 0, 90, 0), _
    New ArcTemplate(80, 0, 20, 100, -90, 180), _
    New LineTemplate(90, 100, 10, 100), _
    New ArcTemplate(0, 0, 20, 100, 90, 180) _
  }, _
  New ElementTemplate() _
  { _
    New ArcTemplate(0, 0, 20, 100, -90, 180) _
  }, _
  New ElementTemplate() _
  { _
    New LineTemplate(10, 0, 90, 0), _
    New ArcTemplate(80, 0, 20, 100, -90, 180), _
    New LineTemplate(90, 100, 10, 100), _
    New BezierTemplate(10, 100, 35, 66, 35, 33, 10, 0) _
  }, _
  FillMode.Winding, "DirectAccessStorage")

 Inheritance Hierarchy

System.Object
    MindFusion.Diagramming.Shape