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Beginners' Questions How to draw a line perpendicular to another of any direction?
  1. #1
    Joelle Joelle @Joelle

    I search and search but I am not able to find the simple solution.

    How to draw a line perpendicular to another of any direction?

    Thank you very much.

  2. #2
    brynn brynn @brynn

    Welcome to the forum!

    I don't think there is any simple way to do it.ย  But I'm sure we can help you find the easiest way.

    As with many things in Inkscape, there are a few different ways to approach the problem.ย  And that might depend on the specific circumstances of your unique canvas.ย 

    If I had just started drawing, and I need to draw a single object with a 90 degree angle, which does not start out horizontal or vertical, I would probably draw it horizontal or vertical and then rotate the finished object.ย  Or possibly I would use the Rectangle tool as a starting place to draw this object.

    If I'm in the middle of a complex drawing, and I realize I need a 90 degree angle, I might use Guides.ย  Guides can be rotated (in the most recent versions of Inkscape anyway).ย  This would be my routine:

    • drag out a guide and snap it to the first side of the angle
    • rotate it around until it snaps to the other end of that line
    • note the angle that guide turned out to be
    • add or subtract 90
    • create a new guide and rotate to that angle
    • snap it to the first line, in such a way that I can make the 90 degree angle

    Another way might be to use Object menu > Transform > Rotate.

    • identify the angle of the first line
    • calculate the needed angle for the 2nd line
    • draw a horizontal or vertical line
    • use Object menu > Transform > Rotate, to rotate it to the proper angle
    • use node editing and the Node tool to connect it to the first line

    Maybe other people will share other ideas?

  3. #3
    Joelle Joelle @Joelle

    Thank you very much. It's very kind of you. I hoped not to know an easy tool but it isn't. I used the Rectangle tool and the Transform menu but it is not really convenient. I didn't know the use of guides. Thank you.

  4. #4
    Maren Hachmann Maren Hachmann @Moiniโš–
    ๐Ÿ‘

    Inkscape 1.0 has the 'draw perpendicular bisector' path effect, https://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/Release_notes/1.0#Perpendicular_Bisector

    Currently, Inkscape 1.0 is still in beta stage.

  5. #5
    Corneel Eijsbouts Corneel Eijsbouts @neelio

    I came across thisย after I googled if there was a better way then my way (due OS stuff I am stuck on 0.92.2) and I wanted to share my solution.
    My solution is probably to time consuming if you need to do a lot of angles, I just needed to do 2, so I was happy doing it this way.
    I used geometry and math to fill in the positions of the third node. This way you get a second segment in a 90 degrees angle with the first and it will have the same length:

    node 1:
    x:ย 56.602 (x1)
    y: 1596.361 (y1)

    node 2:
    x:ย 677.516 (x2)
    y: 1514.976 (y2)

    Then node 3 must be (to angle 'upwards'):
    x: x2 + (y1 - y2) =ย 677.516 + (1596.361 - 1514.976) =ย 677.516 + 81.385 = 758.901 (x3)
    y: y2 + (x2 - x1) =ย 1514.976 + (677.516 - 56.602) =ย 1514.976 + 620.914ย = 2135.890 (y3)

  6. #6
    Tyler Durden Tyler Durden @TylerDurdenโš–
    *

    There is a Snap Perpendicular option in the Document properties panel.

  7. #7
    Joelle Joelle @Joelle

    It's marvellous ! Thank you very much.

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