13.18.1  Loci: locus

The locus command draws the locus of points determined by geometric objects moving in the plane, where the object depends on a point moving along a curve. It can draw a locus of points which depends on points on a curve, or the envelope of a family of lines depending on points on a curve.

The locus of points depending on points on a curve.

For drawing the locus of points depending on points on a curve:

• locus takes two mandatory arguments and two optional arguments:
  • var₁, a variable name which has already been assigned to a point, which itself is a function of var₂, the second argument.
  • var₂, a variable name which is assigned to element(C) for some curve C (see Section 13.6.15).
  • Optionally, t=a..b, where t is the parameter of the curve C. (You can double check the name of the parameter for a curve C with the command parameq(C).)
  • Optionally, tstep=s, to set the step size for the parameter t.
• locus(var₁,var₂ ⟨tstep=c⟩) draws the locus of points formed by var₁, as var₂ traces over the curve C.
  With the optional arguments, C is limited to the part parameterized from a to b, with a step size of c.

Examples.

• Input:

  P:= element(line(i, i+1))

  G:= isobarycenter(-1,1,P)

  locus(G,P)

  This will draw the set of isobarycenters of the triangles with vertices -1, 1 and P, where P ranges over the line through i and i+1. Output:
  
• Input:
  locus(G,P,t=-3..3,tstep=0.1)
  Output:
  

The envelope of a family of lines which depend on points on a curve.

For drawing the envelope of a family of lines which depend on points on a curve:

• locus takes two mandatory arguments and two optional arguments.
  • var₁, a variable name which has already been assigned to a line, which itself is a function of var₂, the second argument.
  • var₂, a variable name which has already been assigned to element(C) for some curve C (see Section 13.6.15).
  • Optionally, t=a..b, where t is the parameter of the curve C. (You can double check the name of the parameter for a curve C with the command parameq(C).)
  • Optionally, tstep=s, to set the step size for the parameter t.
• locus(var₁,var₂ ⟨tstep=c⟩) draws the envelope of lines formed by var₁, as var₂ traces over the curve C.
  With the optional arguments, C is limited to the part parameterized from a to b, with a step size of c.

Examples.

• Input:

  F:= point(1)

  H:= element(line(x=0))

  d:= perpen_bisector(F,H)

  locus(d,H)

  This will draw the envelope of the family of perpendicular bisectors of the segments from the point 1 to the points on the line x=0.
  Output:
  
• To draw the envelope of a family of lines which depend on a parameter, such as the lines given by the equations

  y + x tan(t) − 2sin(t)=0

  over the parameter t, the parameter can be regarded as the affixes of points on the line y=0.
  Input:

  H:= element(line(y=0))

  D:= line(y + x*tan(affix(H)) - 2*sin(affix(H)))

  locus(D,H)

  Output:
  
• Input:
  locus(D,H,t=0..pi)
  Output: