--- title: "Nodes Spline" url: "https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/NET_MAXON_NEUTRON_GROUP_GENERATORWITHMATRIX_SPLINE_BASE.html" section_path: "The Node Editor > The individual Assets > Asset Construction > Nodes Spline" element_id: "NET_MAXON_NEUTRON_GROUP_GENERATORWITHMATRIX_SPLINE_BASE" description: "This page describes the Nodes Spline group (with matrix) of the Scene Nodes system in Cinema 4D. A node group with a prepared Geometry output for spline …" --- # Nodes Spline > **Note:** **What is it about?** > > This page describes the **Nodes Spline group** (with matrix) of the Scene Nodes system in **Cinema 4D**. A node group with a prepared Geometry output for spline generators — the starting shell for custom curve capsules. ## Topic overview of this page - The working principle - The processing of child object splines in the Object Manager This group is comparable to a standard Node group, which can be used to combine any Nodes. The only difference is that a *Geometry* output is already available, e.g., to lead a newly-created spline geometry out of the group. Above all, however, the *Node Spline* is designed to serve as a basis for the creation of asset capsules. Spline geometries created within a *Node Spline* can therefore also be used directly in the *Object Manager*. To do this, drag the *Node Spline* directly from the *Asset Browser* into the *Object Manager*. Double-clicking on the *Node Spline* icon in the *Object Manager* automatically opens the *Node Editor* in *Capsule* mode.\ You can find more information on the use of this Node type in the following section, and on the subject of asset construction in general [on this page](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/80721.html.md).\ If you want to process or create classic point or polygon geometry instead, select [Node Mesh](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/NET_MAXON_NEUTRON_GROUP_GENERATORWITHMATRIX_BASE.html.md). Additional inputs required for the group can be added via the *Resource Editor* or, for example, by right-clicking on the group and selecting *Add Input*. Further information on adding and managing these individual parameters to assets can be found on this [page on the user interface](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/NodeAsset_User_Interface.html.md).\ These inputs are already available and are mainly useful if the *Nodes Spline* is used directly in the *Object Manager*: ## The working principle The Node automatically forwards all settings typical for splines to the *Attribute Manager*. So if you use the Node as a capsule directly in the *Object Manager*, a user can set the open/close status of the generated spline, its interpolation and also the generation of intermediate points directly in the *Attribute Manager* - without having to open the *Node Editor*. The settings configured within the asset are made available directly in the *Attribute Manager* as **Auto** settings, but can also be overwritten there individually if, for example, a spline that is actually closed is to be opened manually. The following illustration demonstrates the principle. There, the *Nodes Spline* Capsule was first dragged from the *Asset Browser* into the *Object Manager* (shown in the illustration on the right). Double-click on it to display the content of the asset in the *Capsule* mode of the *Node Editor*, where the asset can now be filled with any number of nodes. In the example shown, two parametric splines are connected and opened at the end using the *Set Closed Status* Node before they are sent to the output of the Node as *Geometry*. Exactly this shape is now generated and also displayed in the views, provided that the *Auto* settings for **Type** and **Close Spline** are active in the *Attribute Manager* (see middle section of the following illustration). The **Close Spline** status and also the **Type** of spline can also be overwritten there in a different way to the configuration within the *Node Editor*. ![Image: 2025-0_Nodes_Spline_01.png](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/2025-0_Nodes_Spline_01.png)\ The spline created in the Nodes Spline asset is used the same way in the Object Manager as well, because of its Auto settings for the **Type** and the **Close Spline** options However, these properties can also be overwritten individually in the Subdivision settings. ## Processing child object splines in the Object Manager In the example above, primitive spline objects based on nodes were used directly within the *Nodes Spline*. This has the advantage that you can work directly with the available spline functions of the node environment. However, situations are also conceivable in which, for example, you want to leave it up to the user to decide which splines should be processed by the asset. You can use *User Data* to access the child-objects of the asset. [This page](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/NodeAsset_User_Interface.html.md) informs you about all the options for using custom data on an asset. Let's look at another simple example. To do this, open the **Nodes** category in the *Asset Browser* and find the entry for **Nodes** > **Asset Construction** in the left-hand category list. You will find the entry for the *Nodes Spline* there, which you can drag directly into the *Object Manager* with the mouse. Double-click on the *Nodes Spline* element in the *Object Manager* to display the content of the *Nodes Spline* asset in the *Node Editor*.\ The node set-up of this asset should now work with two splines, which a user must group below the *Nodes Spline* in the *Object Manager*. The following illustration shows this on the left-hand side. ![Image: 2025-1_Nodes_Spline_02.png](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/2025-1_Nodes_Spline_02.png)\ Spline objects grouped as childs under the Nodes Spline can be read via manually created Object - Child inputs in the Nodes Editor. So that we can now access these two splines under the *Nodes Spline* in the [Node Editor](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/60626.html.md), two corresponding inputs must also be created there. To do this, right-click in the *Node Editor* and select**Add input** > **Object - Child**. This will give you a new input on the left-hand side of the *Node Editor*, which you can use to access the topmost object under the *Nodes Spline* in the *Object Manager* (see middle illustration in the figure above). Double-click on the name of this input to rename it individually in the *Node Editor*.\ Repeat these steps again to add a second input in the *Node Editor*. As can also be seen on the right-hand side of the figure above, these inputs can also be expanded in order to directly access all important properties of the two child objects, such as their **Geometry** or **Matrix**. Please note that the information at the **Geometry** ports for splines is generally only provided as Line geometry. It is also possible that the user accidentally uses polygon objects as children instead of splines. You should therefore carry out a few checks so that you can be sure that you are working with the correct object types within the asset. ![Image: 2025-1_Nodes_Spline_03.png](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/2025-1_Nodes_Spline_03.png)\ Convert Line Geometry to Spline Geometry with a **Connect**node. Shown on the left for a single geometry, demonstrated on the right for combining several line geometries into a spline geometry with several segments. As can be seen in the figure above, a [Connect](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/NET_MAXON_NEUTRON_GEOMETRY_CONNECT_GEOMETRIES.html.md) node can be used to convert the line geometry into a spline geometry (see **Output Mode** setting for this node). If you require all child objects as separate geometry within the node set-up, simply route each **Geometry** input to a separate *Connect* node, as shown in the example on the left-hand side of the illustration for the first child object.\ Alternatively, several **Geometry** inputs can also be configured on the *Connect* node, as shown in the illustration on the right. In this case, all connected line geometries become individual segments on a spline geometry. The first child object therefore becomes segment 0 and the second becomes segment 1 on the connected spline. When processing geometry, it should generally be noted that its points and tangents, for example, are only ever passed on in local coordinates. If you are planning a spline output based on the child splines in the *Object Manager*, for example, which also moves accordingly when the spline objects are moved or rotated, the line geometries in the node set-up must be converted globally. To do this, we use [Transform Geometry](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/NET_MAXON_NEUTRON_GEOMETRY_TRANSFORM_ELEMENT.html.md) nodes, as shown in the following illustration. ![Image: 2025-1_Nodes_Spline_04.png](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/2025-1_Nodes_Spline_04.png)\ Global conversion of geometry If you combine these nodes with the **Matrix** of the read geometry, you will receive a globally converted geometry at the **Geometry** outputs of the *Transform* nodes. Just make sure that the **Type** setting on the *Transform Geometry* node is set to *Points*, as we are dealing with a line geometry that does not contain any edges or polygons. But stop! How do we actually know that the user has done everything correctly and that two spline objects, as required by our asset, have actually been grouped as childs in the *Object Manager*? Well, of course we can't know that and should therefore check it in the node environment before we work with these geometries. ### Checking child objects A *Geometry Info* node can be used to check whether an object required in the circuit is actually available and also has the required type. This provides various outputs with bool signals, which can be used to query whether a geometry exists at all (**Has Value**) and whether the geometry is of type line (**Is Line**), for example. In our example, we compare the two outputs mentioned with a [Boolean Operator](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/NET_MAXON_NODE_BOOLEANOPERATOR.html.md) in *AND* mode. This node then only supplies a positive bool signal if both inputs are also positive, i.e., both a geometry is present and their type is *Line*. As two line geometries are required for out node calculations, we carry out the same check for the second **Geometry** input. The results of both checks can be summarized again with an *AND* check, which then only returns a positive result (or TRUE or 1) if all criteria apply to both child objects. As can be seen in the following illustration, this could be used, for example, as an **Index** for a [Switch](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/html/NET_MAXON_NODE_SWITCH.html.md) node to provide either the geometry of the two inputs or, for example, a default geometry (here a *Circle* with the **Ring option** activated to obtain two segments) for further geometry calculations or the output. ![Image: 2025-1_Nodes_Spline_05.png](https://help.maxon.net/c4d/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/2025-1_Nodes_Spline_05.png)\ Check the assigned objects and output an alternative geometry in the event that no compatible geometry is available.