Then it renders another triangle using points 1, 2, and 3. What OpenGL actually does is this: First it renders a triangle using points 0, 1, and 2. But to do that, the corners must be in a triangle-sequence order, like so: However, as a convenience, OpenGL allows you to pass in the four corners of the polygon and it will render the two triangles automatically. One way to do that is to first draw one triangle, then draw the other triangle. You cannot really draw a polygon with more than three corners, so if you want to draw a square (for example), you must draw it as two triangles: If you pass it a three-cornered polygon (i.e. Q: I’m trying to draw a simple polygon like this square:īut when I render it in OpenGL it comes out all broken looking, like this:Ī: Welcome to the world of triangle tessellation! It sounds complicated, but it’s really easy once you understand it. This complete article, unmodified, may be freely distributed for educational purposes. The researchers hope that Mori3 robots will be used for communication purposes and external repairs.OpenGL Polygon Triangle Tessellation (Strip) and Corner Order Demystified OpenGL Polygon Triangle Tessellation (Strip) and Corner Order Demystified That said, Mori3's biggest selling point is its versatility.' Mori3 robots were designed in part to be used in spacecraft, which don't have the room to store different robots for each individual task that needs to be carried out. 'Of course, a general-purpose robot like Mori3 will be less effective than specialized robots in certain areas. 'Polygonal and polymorphic robots that connect to one another to create articulated structures can be used effectively for a variety of applications,' she says. What is the advantage in creating modular and multi-functional robots? Paik explains that, to perform a wide range of tasks, robots need to be able to change their shape or configuration. 'These robots can change their own shape, attach to each other, communicate and reconfigure to form functional and articulated structures.' This proof of concept is a success as Mori3 robots are good at doing the three things that robots should be able to do: moving around, handling and transporting objects, and interacting with users. 'We had to rethink the way we understand robotics,' explains Belke. To achieve this, the team had to push the boundaries of various aspects of robotics, including the mechanical and electronic design, computer systems and engineering. 'We have shown that polygon meshing is a viable robotic strategy,' says Christoph Belke, a Post-doctoral researcher in robotics. The modules easily join together to create polygons of different sizes and configurations in a process known as polygon meshing.

The individual modules of the Mori3 robot are triangular in shape. 'Mori3 can change its size, shape and function.' 'Our aim with Mori3 is to create a modular, origami-like robot that can be assembled and disassembled at will depending on the environment and task at hand,' says Jamie Paik, director of the Reconfigurable Robotics Lab.

The EPFL research, which has been published in Nature Machine Intelligence, shows the promise of modular robotics for space travel. By combining inspiration from the digital world of polygon meshing and the biological world of swarm behavior, the Mori3 robot can morph from 2D triangles into almost any 3D object.

Polygon andb triangle tessellation