Conformal Grid

The Conformal Grid bends a square lattice along the paths of a flowing fluid. The lines follow the current around whirlpools, sources and a spinning cylinder, yet every cell stays a tiny square however hard the grid is bent. The floor is coloured by speed, alternate channels carry dye, and short dashes ride the current like the bubble lines used in real flow experiments.

How it works

Each of the four flows is an ideal, frictionless fluid. Its streamlines and its lines of equal pressure always meet at right angles, which is why the lattice stays square. Colour is the physics: slow water takes the cell colour, fast water the line colour, and the fastest, around the poles or over the cylinder, shifts toward the accent. The points where the flow stops go dark. The lattice streams along the flow, so the dashes speed up where streamlines crowd together.

Settings

• Flow Map: Source + sink (circles in a Smith-chart look), Spiral vortex, Spinning cylinder or Corner.
• Pole Spread is the distance to the poles, or the radius of the cylinder.
• Spokes and Arms shape the vortex web and its spiral.
• Circulation is the cylinder's spin and lift.
• Drift is the speed of the current; negative reverses it.
• Fill and Dye set the speed colouring and the dashes.

Use it for

Science and engineering content, fluid and climate visuals, fintech and data floors that need motion with structure. See also the Flow Net Grid.