Array

Array

An array is a list — an even arrangement of elements.

Using Array you can duplicate the selected points or polygons of an object (in the following this selection is referred to as an element) and distribute them more or less evenly in the X, Y and Z directions. You can vary the size and rotation of the duplicated elements about their axes.

With these options you can duplicate the array of elements in a perfectly even manner or alternatively produce a more random, scattered surface or point order.

Arrays will always be duplicated along the object axes of the selected object. Connected surfaces are coherently duplicated. If no elements are selected, all surfaces and points of the selected object are duplicated. If just points alone are selected then they will be duplicated without their adjacent surfaces. To create surfaces for these points, use the Bridge tool or Create Polygon tool.

Consider a blade of grass. You could easily use the Clone tool from the Mesh menu to copy the blade of grass and then randomly distribute these copies with the Randomize function. The disadvantage of this method is the many individual objects that result from it. With the Array tool you duplicate just the surfaces (or points) and not the complete object. Thus you can produce a complete meadow from a single blade of grass.