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Project 03 / Parametric design

Parametric spiral staircase

One rule, twenty-eight treads

Twenty-eight oak treads wind around a central steel pillar in a compact parametric modelling experiment. The Python generator creates editable mesh geometry, procedural materials, lighting and an automatically framed camera, leaving a complete Blender scene rather than only a finished image.

Oak spiral treads winding around a dark steel pillar above a neutral studio floor. Explore 1 view
Treads
28
Primary parameters
6
Model rise per tread
0.17 m
Rotation per tread
15 degrees

Beyond the render

Turn the idea around.

1 interactive model

0.2 MB on demand
Oak spiral treads winding around a dark steel pillar above a neutral studio floor.

Loads only when requested. No 3D download while you browse the renders.

Drag or use arrow keys to rotate. Scroll, pinch or use Zoom +/- to move closer. Zoom is bounded; Reset view restores the framing.

Parametric spiral staircase

The complete 28-tread staircase and central pillar, without the studio floor. Procedural oak is represented by its base colour. A design study, not a structural or access-safety specification.

Web-display copy in metres, with simplified geometry and materials where needed. Not a print file, measurement tool or safety certification. Native Blender/STL assets are unchanged.

Download GLB Download glTF

01 / The starting point

What we asked
the model to do.

A summary of the modelling brief, rather than a verbatim prompt.

PROMPT / BRIEF

Create a parameter-driven spiral staircase around a central pillar, with adjustable tread count, rise, rotation, radius and thickness. Give it oak and steel materials, a studio setting and a camera that frames the result, then retain both an editable Blender scene and a finished render.

Natural language in. Editable geometry out.

02 / From brief to scene

How it takes shape.

  1. 01

    Expose six primary dimensions and repetition controls as Python constants, and derive each tread's elevation and rotation from its index.

  2. 02

    Build closed meshes with Blender data APIs and bmesh. Shared arc divisions keep tread-to-pillar contacts flush while object origins remain on the pillar axis.

  3. 03

    Use procedural oak and steel shaders, with shader bevels for highlights rather than geometry changes to the specified dimensions.

  4. 04

    Frame the model automatically, light it in a studio scene and render with CPU Cycles. Geometry checks cover varied configurations and reject invalid parameters before clearing the scene.

03 / The rendered result

Every point of view.01

Open a view to zoom and explore.

Next experiment

3D Printing