Array

Array creates multiple copies of an object arranged in a pattern. Select a mode from the buttons at the top — Linear, Radial, or Transform — to switch between pattern types.

How to Use

1. Select an object
2. Apply the Array operation from the Duplication menu
3. Choose a mode (Linear, Radial, or Transform)
4. Adjust the parameters for the chosen mode

Mode: Linear

Linear mode places copies along a direction with optional rotation and scale progression.

Count — Number of copies (integer or expression). The source object is the first copy; additional copies are offset from it.

Offset Method — How spacing is calculated:

• Relative — Offset is multiplied by the object’s bounding box size. A Relative Offset of (1, 0, 0) spaces copies exactly one object-width apart along X.
• Offset — Fixed world-space distance in mm per copy.
• Endpoint — Set the position of the last copy; spacing is divided evenly between copies.

Relative Offset / Offset / Endpoint — The spacing vector, depending on the selected Offset Method.

Rotation Mode — How rotation accumulates across copies:

• Local — Each copy rotates in place at its own center; the offset direction stays in world axes.
• Compounding — Rotation accumulates and steers the offset, producing spirals, fans, and helices.

Rotation — Per-copy rotation in degrees on each axis.

Scale — Per-copy cumulative scale on each axis. Values less than 1 shrink copies; values greater than 1 grow them.

Scale Affects Offset — When on, the spacing between copies also scales with each step. Use this for tightening spirals and geometric progressions (nautilus shells, stacked nail-shell curves).

Mode: Radial

Radial mode distributes copies evenly around a central axis at a fixed radius.

Count Method — How the number of copies is determined:

• Count — Explicit number of copies.
• Distance — Angular gap between copies in degrees; count is calculated to fill the sweep.

Count / Angular Distance — Number of copies (Count mode) or angular spacing in degrees (Distance mode). Supports expressions.

Central Axis — The axis the copies circle, given as a construction plane: its normal is the axis and its origin is the centre of the circle. The origin starts at the centre of the source object’s bounding box, and the axis is drawn in the viewport while the Array is selected.

• Preset — XY circles about +Z (the default), XZ about -Y, YZ about +X. The Flipped presets reverse each of those, which reverses the direction copies are laid out in. Choosing a preset also resets the origin to the object’s own zero, so re-enter your centre afterwards if you had moved it.
• Origin — The centre of the circle. Supports expressions per component.
• Normal — The axis itself; any length will do.
• X Direction — Not used by Array. An axis has no need of a sideways direction.
• Pick Face — Click the button, then click a flat face anywhere in the scene to circle about that face’s normal. Press Esc to cancel.

Circle Segment — Whether copies span a full 360° circle (Full) or a partial arc (Arc).

Radius — Distance from the central axis to each copy.

Sweep Angle — Degrees of arc to fill (shown when Circle Segment is Arc). Supports expressions.

Align Rotation — Rotate each copy so its forward axis points outward from the center.

Forward Axis — Which axis of the copy is treated as “forward” for alignment (shown when Align Rotation is on).

Mode: Transform

Transform mode steps copies using a manual transform or by following another object’s transform.

Count — Number of copies (integer or expression).

Transform Reference — Where the per-step transform comes from:

• Input — You specify translation, rotation, and scale directly.
• Object — The transform is read from a named sibling object.

Translation — Per-step world-space offset in mm (shown when Reference is Input).

Rotation — Per-step rotation in degrees per axis (shown when Reference is Input).

Scale / Scale Axes — Uniform and per-axis scale applied at each step (shown when Reference is Input).

Transform Name — Name of the sibling object whose transform is used as the per-step increment (shown when Reference is Object).

Relative Space — When on, each copy’s transform compounds in the local frame of the previous copy; when off, each step is applied in world space (shown when Reference is Object).

Randomize

Enable Randomize to add variation to all copies.

• Random Offset — Maximum random position offset per axis in mm.
• Random Rotation — Maximum random rotation per axis in degrees.
• Random Scale Axes — Maximum random scale variation per axis.
• Exclude First — Keep the first copy at its exact computed position (default: on).
• Exclude Last — Keep the last copy at its exact computed position.
• Random Seed — Change this to get a different random arrangement. Supports expressions.

Merge

• Create Single Mesh — Combine all copies into one merged mesh object.
• Merge Vertices — Weld vertices within the merge distance threshold (shown when Create Single Mesh is on).
• Distance — Merge threshold in mm (shown when Merge Vertices is on).

Older files

An Array created before construction planes shipped keeps its original Central Axis control — a direction vector with an axis dropdown — and keeps working exactly as it did. New Array operations get the construction plane described above. To move an old one over, delete it and apply Array again.

Tips

• Use expressions for Count, Rotation, or Endpoint to create parametric patterns
• For circular patterns, use Radial mode — set Radius to control the circle size and enable Align Rotation if copies should face outward
• Compounding rotation in Linear mode creates spirals and fans without manually calculating angle offsets
• Scale Affects Offset creates nautilus-shell and geometric-progression layouts naturally
• Combine Array with Select Child to create patterns where each copy shows a different variant
• Inside an Array, [index] in an expression is the copy’s own position counting from 0 — pair it with index() to give every copy its own row of a Variable Sheet, as in =index("A", [index]+2)

Related

• Construction Planes - Presets, expressions, and Pick Face for the Central Axis
• Align - Position objects relative to each other
• Select Child - Pick a specific copy from an array by index or name
• Expressions - Drive each copy from [index] and sheet values