Houdini 20.0 Shelf tools

L-system shelf tool

Creates fractal geometry from the recursive application of simple rules.

On this page

Overview

Creates fractal geometry from the recursive application of simple rules. This tool is useful for simulating flora such as trees, shrubs, corals etc.

Placing an L-System in the viewer

To...Do this

Place the L-System anywhere in the scene

  1. Click the L-System tool on the Create tab.

  2. Move the cursor into the scene view.

    Note

    You can hold Alt to detach the L-System from the construction plane.

  3. Click LMB to place the L-System anywhere in the scene view and press Enter to confirm your selection.

    If you press Enter without clicking, Houdini places the L-System at the origin.

Place the L-System at the origin

Press ⌃ Ctrl + LMB on the L-System tool on the shelf.

Note

L-systems can be moved once they are placed by either dragging them in the scene view or changing the values in the parameter editor.

Default L-Systems can be chosen from the Gear drop-down menu at the geometry level.

L-System Handles

The L-System does not have its own rotation parameters; however, you can rotate it at the object level using the handles in the scene view or by adding a Transform node at the geometry level.

Note

The origin of the L-System is at the base of the tree, not the middle of the object.

For specific parameter help see the L-System node help.

See also

Shelf tools

Using the shelf

  • Customize the shelf

    How to change the look of the shelf, change and rearrange its contents, and create your own shelf tools.

Technical