Finding coordinates of a point in a circle with angle

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around finding the coordinates of a point on a circle given a center point, a distance, and an angle. The context includes programming applications, particularly in a 3D environment, although the third dimension is not utilized in the calculations.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Mathematical reasoning

Main Points Raised

  • One participant presents a formula for calculating the coordinates: (x_?,y_?) = (x+d*cos(α), y+d*sin(α)).
  • A participant shares their code implementation and the resulting output, noting unexpected repeated values and discrepancies in the calculated points.
  • Another participant calculates expected coordinates for specific angles and questions the accuracy of the provided output, suggesting a potential issue with angle measurement units.
  • One participant proposes that the issue may stem from using radians instead of degrees for angle calculations, which is later confirmed by another participant.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants agree that the issue may be related to the use of radians versus degrees, but the overall problem of the code's output remains unresolved as they explore the implications of this potential error.

Contextual Notes

The discussion highlights the importance of ensuring correct angle measurement units in trigonometric calculations, but does not resolve the broader implications of the code's behavior or the accuracy of the outputs.

AlicanC
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I have a point (x,y), a distance (d) and an angle (a). I need a method to find a point using x,y,d and a. For example:
http://c.imagehost.org/0836/03082008299.png
I will apply this on a 3D environment, but I am not going to use the 3rd dimension so it's safe.
This is also about programming, but I am capable of applying methods in the programming language so I asked it here.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
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<br /> (x_?,y_?) = (x+d\cos\alpha,y+d\sin\alpha)<br />
 
Thanks for the answer, but I have a problem. I wrote some code to put this in action. The code starts from "0" and adds "20" to the angle until the vaule is greater than to "360". I don't know why but the code produced this:
http://c.imagehost.org/0346/2008-08-03_092702.png
As you can see there are some mistakes. All are getting repeated but the ones I marked. Here is the debug output I get:
(1) Center of the circle located at (-49.013168, -1082.446166)
(1) Drawing at (50.986831, -1082.446166) Angle is 0.000000
(1) Drawing at (-8.204959, -991.151611) Angle is 20.000000
(1) Drawing at (-115.706977, -1007.934875) Angle is 40.000000
(1) Drawing at (-144.254455, -1112.927246) Angle is 60.000000
(1) Drawing at (-60.051891, -1181.835083) Angle is 80.000000
(1) Drawing at (37.218719, -1133.082763) Angle is 100.000000
(1) Drawing at (32.404930, -1024.385009) Angle is 120.000000
(1) Drawing at (-68.794525, -984.422180) Angle is 140.000000
(1) Drawing at (-146.576110, -1060.503662) Angle is 160.000000
(1) Drawing at (-108.859176, -1162.561401) Angle is 180.000000
(1) Drawing at (-0.294399, -1169.775878) Angle is 200.000000
(1) Drawing at (50.595352, -1073.606323) Angle is 220.000000
(1) Drawing at (-16.435035, -987.901672) Angle is 240.000000
(1) Drawing at (-122.032585, -1014.122192) Angle is 260.000000
(1) Drawing at (-141.187133, -1121.227050) Angle is 280.000000
(1) Drawing at (-51.222831, -1182.421752) Angle is 300.000000
(1) Drawing at (41.357345, -1125.261718) Angle is 320.000000
(1) Drawing at (26.953659, -1017.415100) Angle is 340.000000
(1) Drawing at (-77.382278, -986.554565) Angle is 360.000000
As you can see some values are too close. I am really bad at trigonometry, so I can't find the problem.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
The center is at (-49, -1082) and your first point, with the angle, 0 is at
(51, -1082) then radius, d, is 100.

So, when the angle is 20 the point should be
100(\cos(20)) + -49 \approx 45
100(\sin(20))+ -1082 \approx -1048

But you have:

Drawing at (-8.204959, -991.151611) Angle is 20.000000

*Could you be in radians instead of degrees?
 
futurebird said:
Could you be in radians instead of degrees?
Ah, you are right! I was making calculations with radians.

Thank you both so much! I was trying to figure this out for two days! Normally I post my questions to forums related to coding or just ask my friends, but can't get an answer :D
 
futurebird said:
Could you be in radians instead of degrees?
Always a problem if you forget. When I get errors like that, the first thing I do is to check the mode on my calculator. Lol.
 

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