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-/****************************************************************************
-**
-** Copyright (C) 2012 Nokia Corporation and/or its subsidiary(-ies).
-** Contact: http://www.qt-project.org/
-**
-** This file is part of the documentation of the Qt Toolkit.
-**
-** $QT_BEGIN_LICENSE:FDL$
-** GNU Free Documentation License
-** Alternatively, this file may be used under the terms of the GNU Free
-** Documentation License version 1.3 as published by the Free Software
-** Foundation and appearing in the file included in the packaging of
-** this file.
-**
-** Other Usage
-** Alternatively, this file may be used in accordance with the terms
-** and conditions contained in a signed written agreement between you
-** and Nokia.
-**
-**
-**
-**
-**
-** $QT_END_LICENSE$
-**
-****************************************************************************/
-
-/*!
- \example graphicsview/elasticnodes
- \title Elastic Nodes Example
-
- The Elastic Nodes example shows how to implement edges between nodes in a
- graph, with basic interaction. You can click to drag a node around, and
- zoom in and out using the mouse wheel or the keyboard. Hitting the space
- bar will randomize the nodes. The example is also resolution independent;
- as you zoom in, the graphics remain crisp.
-
- \image elasticnodes-example.png
-
- Graphics View provides the QGraphicsScene class for managing and
- interacting with a large number of custom-made 2D graphical items derived
- from the QGraphicsItem class, and a QGraphicsView widget for visualizing
- the items, with support for zooming and rotation.
-
- This example consists of a \c Node class, an \c Edge class, a \c
- GraphWidget test, and a \c main function: the \c Node class represents
- draggable yellow nodes in a grid, the \c Edge class represents the lines
- between the nodes, the \c GraphWidget class represents the application
- window, and the \c main() function creates and shows this window, and runs
- the event loop.
-
- \section1 Node Class Definition
-
- The \c Node class serves three purposes:
-
- \list
- \li Painting a yellow gradient "ball" in two states: sunken and raised.
- \li Managing connections to other nodes.
- \li Calculating forces pulling and pushing the nodes in the grid.
- \endlist
-
- Let's start by looking at the \c Node class declaration.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.h 0
-
- The \c Node class inherits QGraphicsItem, and reimplements the two
- mandatory functions \l{QGraphicsItem::boundingRect()}{boundingRect()} and
- \l{QGraphicsItem::paint()}{paint()} to provide its visual appearance. It
- also reimplements \l{QGraphicsItem::shape()}{shape()} to ensure its hit
- area has an elliptic shape (as opposed to the default bounding rectangle).
-
- For edge management purposes, the node provides a simple API for adding
- edges to a node, and for listing all connected edges.
-
- The \l{QGraphicsItem::advance()}{advance()} reimplementation is called
- whenever the scene's state advances by one step. The calculateForces()
- function is called to calculate the forces that push and pull on this node
- and its neighbors.
-
- The \c Node class also reimplements
- \l{QGraphicsItem::itemChange()}{itemChange()} to react to state changes (in
- this case, position changes), and
- \l{QGraphicsItem::mousePressEvent()}{mousePressEvent()} and
- \l{QGraphicsItem::mouseReleaseEvent()}{mouseReleaseEvent()} to update the
- item's visual appearance.
-
- We will start reviewing the \c Node implementation by looking at its
- constructor:
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 0
-
- In the constructor, we set the
- \l{QGraphicsItem::ItemIsMovable}{ItemIsMovable} flag to allow the item to
- move in response to mouse dragging, and
- \l{QGraphicsItem::ItemSendsGeometryChanges}{ItemSendsGeometryChanges} to
- enable \l{QGraphicsItem::itemChange()}{itemChange()} notifications for
- position and transformation changes. We also enable
- \l{QGraphicsItem::DeviceCoordinateCache}{DeviceCoordinateCache} to speed up
- rendering performance. To ensure that the nodes are always stacked on top
- of edges, we finally set the item's Z value to -1.
-
- \c Node's constructor takes a \c GraphWidget pointer and stores this as a
- member variable. We will revisit this pointer later on.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 1
-
- The addEdge() function adds the input edge to a list of attached edges. The
- edge is then adjusted so that the end points for the edge match the
- positions of the source and destination nodes.
-
- The edges() function simply returns the list of attached edges.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 2
-
- There are two ways to move a node. The \c calculateForces() function
- implements the elastic effect that pulls and pushes on nodes in the grid.
- In addition, the user can directly move one node around with the mouse.
- Because we do not want the two approaches to operate at the same time on
- the same node, we start \c calculateForces() by checking if this \c Node is
- the current mouse grabber item (i.e., QGraphicsScene::mouseGrabberItem()).
- Because we need to find all neighboring (but not necessarily connected)
- nodes, we also make sure the item is part of a scene in the first place.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 3
-
- The "elastic" effect comes from an algorithm that applies pushing and
- pulling forces. The effect is impressive, and surprisingly simple to
- implement.
-
- The algorithm has two steps: the first is to calculate the forces that push
- the nodes apart, and the second is to subtract the forces that pull the
- nodes together. First we need to find all the nodes in the graph. We call
- QGraphicsScene::items() to find all items in the scene, and then use
- qgraphicsitem_cast() to look for \c Node instances.
-
- We make use of \l{QGraphicsItem::mapFromItem()}{mapFromItem()} to create a
- temporary vector pointing from this node to each other node, in \l{The
- Graphics View Coordinate System}{local coordinates}. We use the decomposed
- components of this vector to determine the direction and strength of force
- that should apply to the node. The forces accumulate for each node, and are
- then adjusted so that the closest nodes are given the strongest force, with
- rapid degradation when distance increases. The sum of all forces is stored
- in \c xvel (X-velocity) and \c yvel (Y-velocity).
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 4
-
- The edges between the nodes represent forces that pull the nodes together.
- By visiting each edge that is connected to this node, we can use a similar
- approach as above to find the direction and strength of all pulling forces.
- These forces are subtracted from \c xvel and \c yvel.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 5
-
- In theory, the sum of pushing and pulling forces should stabilize to
- precisely 0. In practice, however, they never do. To circumvent errors in
- numerical precision, we simply force the sum of forces to be 0 when they
- are less than 0.1.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 6
-
- The final step of \c calculateForces() determines the node's new position.
- We add the force to the node's current position. We also make sure the new
- position stays inside of our defined boundaries. We don't actually move the
- item in this function; that's done in a separate step, from \c advance().
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 7
-
- The \c advance() function updates the item's current position. It is called
- from \c GraphWidget::timerEvent(). If the node's position changed, the
- function returns true; otherwise false is returned.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 8
-
- The \c Node's bounding rectangle is a 20x20 sized rectangle centered around
- its origin (0, 0), adjusted by 2 units in all directions to compensate for
- the node's outline stroke, and by 3 units down and to the right to make
- room for a simple drop shadow.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 9
-
- The shape is a simple ellipse. This ensures that you must click inside the
- node's elliptic shape in order to drag it around. You can test this effect
- by running the example, and zooming far in so that the nodes are very
- large. Without reimplementing \l{QGraphicsItem::shape()}{shape()}, the
- item's hit area would be identical to its bounding rectangle (i.e.,
- rectangular).
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 10
-
- This function implements the node's painting. We start by drawing a simple
- dark gray elliptic drop shadow at (-7, -7), that is, (3, 3) units down and
- to the right from the top-left corner (-10, -10) of the ellipse.
-
- We then draw an ellipse with a radial gradient fill. This fill is either
- Qt::yellow to Qt::darkYellow when raised, or the opposite when sunken. In
- sunken state we also shift the center and focal point by (3, 3) to
- emphasize the impression that something has been pushed down.
-
- Drawing filled ellipses with gradients can be quite slow, especially when
- using complex gradients such as QRadialGradient. This is why this example
- uses \l{QGraphicsItem::DeviceCoordinateCache}{DeviceCoordinateCache}, a
- simple yet effective measure that prevents unnecessary redrawing.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 11
-
- We reimplement \l{QGraphicsItem::itemChange()}{itemChange()} to adjust the
- position of all connected edges, and to notify the scene that an item has
- moved (i.e., "something has happened"). This will trigger new force
- calculations.
-
- This notification is the only reason why the nodes need to keep a pointer
- back to the \c GraphWidget. Another approach could be to provide such
- notification using a signal; in such case, \c Node would need to inherit
- from QGraphicsObject.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/node.cpp 12
-
- Because we have set the \l{QGraphicsItem::ItemIsMovable}{ItemIsMovable}
- flag, we don't need to implement the logic that moves the node according to
- mouse input; this is already provided for us. We still need to reimplement
- the mouse press and release handlers, though, to update the nodes' visual
- appearance (i.e., sunken or raised).
-
- \section1 Edge Class Definition
-
- The \c Edge class represents the arrow-lines between the nodes in this
- example. The class is very simple: it maintains a source- and destination
- node pointer, and provides an \c adjust() function that makes sure the line
- starts at the position of the source, and ends at the position of the
- destination. The edges are the only items that change continuously as
- forces pull and push on the nodes.
-
- Let's take a look at the class declaration:
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/edge.h 0
-
- \c Edge inherits from QGraphicsItem, as it's a simple class that has no use
- for signals, slots, and properties (compare to QGraphicsObject).
-
- The constructor takes two node pointers as input. Both pointers are
- mandatory in this example. We also provide get-functions for each node.
-
- The \c adjust() function repositions the edge, and the item also implements
- \l{QGraphicsItem::boundingRect()}{boundingRect()} and
- \l{QGraphicsItem::paint()}{paint()}.
-
- We will now review its implementation.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/edge.cpp 0
-
- The \c Edge constructor initializes its \c arrowSize data member to 10 units;
- this determines the size of the arrow which is drawn in
- \l{QGraphicsItem::paint()}{paint()}.
-
- In the constructor body, we call
- \l{QGraphicsItem::setAcceptedMouseButtons()}{setAcceptedMouseButtons(0)}.
- This ensures that the edge items are not considered for mouse input at all
- (i.e., you cannot click the edges). Then, the source and destination
- pointers are updated, this edge is registered with each node, and we call
- \c adjust() to update this edge's start end end position.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/edge.cpp 1
-
- The source and destination get-functions simply return the respective
- pointers.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/edge.cpp 2
-
- In \c adjust(), we define two points: \c sourcePoint, and \c destPoint,
- pointing at the source and destination nodes' origins respectively. Each
- point is calculated using \l{The Graphics View Coordinate System}{local
- coordinates}.
-
- We want the tip of the edge's arrows to point to the exact outline of the
- nodes, as opposed to the center of the nodes. To find this point, we first
- decompose the vector pointing from the center of the source to the center
- of the destination node into X and Y, and then normalize the components by
- dividing by the length of the vector. This gives us an X and Y unit delta
- that, when multiplied by the radius of the node (which is 10), gives us the
- offset that must be added to one point of the edge, and subtracted from the
- other.
-
- If the length of the vector is less than 20 (i.e., if two nodes overlap),
- then we fix the source and destination pointer at the center of the source
- node. In practice this case is very hard to reproduce manually, as the
- forces between the two nodes is then at its maximum.
-
- It's important to notice that we call
- \l{QGraphicsItem::prepareGeometryChange()}{prepareGeometryChange()} in this
- function. The reason is that the variables \c sourcePoint and \c destPoint
- are used directly when painting, and they are returned from the
- \l{QGraphicsItem::boundingRect()}{boundingRect()} reimplementation. We must
- always call
- \l{QGraphicsItem::prepareGeometryChange()}{prepareGeometryChange()} before
- changing what \l{QGraphicsItem::boundingRect()}{boundingRect()} returns,
- and before these variables can be used by
- \l{QGraphicsItem::paint()}{paint()}, to keep Graphics View's internal
- bookkeeping clean. It's safest to call this function once, immediately
- before any such variable is modified.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/edge.cpp 3
-
- The edge's bounding rectangle is defined as the smallest rectangle that
- includes both the start and the end point of the edge. Because we draw an
- arrow on each edge, we also need to compensate by adjusting with half the
- arrow size and half the pen width in all directions. The pen is used to
- draw the outline of the arrow, and we can assume that half of the outline
- can be drawn outside of the arrow's area, and half will be drawn inside.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/edge.cpp 4
-
- We start the reimplementation of \l{QGraphicsItem::paint()}{paint()} by
- checking a few preconditions. Firstly, if either the source or destination
- node is not set, then we return immediately; there is nothing to draw.
-
- At the same time, we check if the length of the edge is approximately 0,
- and if it is, then we also return.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/edge.cpp 5
-
- We draw the line using a pen that has round joins and caps. If you run the
- example, zoom in and study the edge in detail, you will see that there are
- no sharp/square edges.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/edge.cpp 6
-
- We proceed to drawing one arrow at each end of the edge. Each arrow is
- drawn as a polygon with a black fill. The coordinates for the arrow are
- determined using simple trigonometry.
-
- \section1 GraphWidget Class Definition
-
- \c GraphWidget is a subclass of QGraphicsView, which provides the main
- window with scrollbars.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/graphwidget.h 0
-
- The class provides a basic constructor that initializes the scene, an \c
- itemMoved() function to notify changes in the scene's node graph, a few
- event handlers, a reimplementation of
- \l{QGraphicsView::drawBackground()}{drawBackground()}, and a helper
- function for scaling the view by using the mouse wheel or keyboard.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/graphwidget.cpp 0
-
- \c GraphicsWidget's constructor creates the scene, and because most items
- move around most of the time, it sets QGraphicsScene::NoIndex. The scene
- then gets a fixed \l{QGraphicsScene::sceneRect}{scene rectangle}, and is
- assigned to the \c GraphWidget view.
-
- The view enables QGraphicsView::CacheBackground to cache rendering of its
- static, and somewhat complex, background. Because the graph renders a close
- collection of small items that all move around, it's unnecessary for
- Graphics View to waste time finding accurate update regions, so we set the
- QGraphicsView::BoundingRectViewportUpdate viewport update mode. The default
- would work fine, but this mode is noticably faster for this example.
-
- To improve rendering quality, we set QPainter::Antialiasing.
-
- The transformation anchor decides how the view should scroll when you
- transform the view, or in our case, when we zoom in or out. We have chosen
- QGraphicsView::AnchorUnderMouse, which centers the view on the point under
- the mouse cursor. This makes it easy to zoom towards a point in the scene
- by moving the mouse over it, and then rolling the mouse wheel.
-
- Finally we give the window a minimum size that matches the scene's default
- size, and set a suitable window title.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/graphwidget.cpp 1
-
- The last part of the constructor creates the grid of nodes and edges, and
- gives each node an initial position.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/graphwidget.cpp 2
-
- \c GraphWidget is notified of node movement through this \c itemMoved()
- function. Its job is simply to restart the main timer in case it's not
- running already. The timer is designed to stop when the graph stabilizes,
- and start once it's unstable again.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/graphwidget.cpp 3
-
- This is \c GraphWidget's key event handler. The arrow keys move the center
- node around, the '+' and '-' keys zoom in and out by calling \c
- scaleView(), and the enter and space keys randomize the positions of the
- nodes. All other key events (e.g., page up and page down) are handled by
- QGraphicsView's default implementation.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/graphwidget.cpp 4
-
- The timer event handler's job is to run the whole force calculation
- machinery as a smooth animation. Each time the timer is triggered, the
- handler will find all nodes in the scene, and call \c
- Node::calculateForces() on each node, one at a time. Then, in a final step
- it will call \c Node::advance() to move all nodes to their new positions.
- By checking the return value of \c advance(), we can decide if the grid
- stabilized (i.e., no nodes moved). If so, we can stop the timer.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/graphwidget.cpp 5
-
- In the wheel event handler, we convert the mouse wheel delta to a scale
- factor, and pass this factor to \c scaleView(). This approach takes into
- account the speed that the wheel is rolled. The faster you roll the mouse
- wheel, the faster the view will zoom.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/graphwidget.cpp 6
-
- The view's background is rendered in a reimplementation of
- QGraphicsView::drawBackground(). We draw a large rectangle filled with a
- linear gradient, add a drop shadow, and then render text on top. The text
- is rendered twice for a simple drop-shadow effect.
-
- This background rendering is quite expensive; this is why the view enables
- QGraphicsView::CacheBackground.
-
- \snippet examples/graphicsview/elasticnodes/graphwidget.cpp 7
-
- The \c scaleView() helper function checks that the scale factor stays
- within certain limits (i.e., you cannot zoom too far in nor too far out),
- and then applies this scale to the view.
-
- \section1 The main() Function
-
- In contrast to the complexity of the rest of this example, the \c main()
- function is very simple: We create a QApplication instance, seed the
- randomizer using qsrand(), and then create and show an instance of \c
- GraphWidget. Because all nodes in the grid are moved initially, the \c
- GraphWidget timer will start immediately after control has returned to the
- event loop.
-*/