desmos-studio 1.2.3

Convert images and videos to mathematical curves for Desmos or matplotlib

desmos-studio 🎨➡️📐

Transform any image or video into beautiful mathematical curves! Convert photos, drawings, logos, and videos into Desmos graphing calculator equations or matplotlib visualizations using advanced edge detection.

✨ Features

• 🖼️ Image Processing: JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF, and more
• 🎬 Video Processing: MP4, AVI, MOV → Mathematical animations with audio
• 📈 Desmos Integration: Copy-paste parametric equations directly
• 📊 Publication-Ready Plots: High-quality matplotlib visualizations
• 🔍 Advanced Edge Detection: OpenCV Canny edge detection
• ⚡ CLI Interface: Professional command-line tool
• 🎛️ Highly Customizable: Fine-tune every parameter
• 🎵 Audio Preservation: Video output retains original audio

🚀 Installation

pip install desmos-studio

System Requirements:

• ImageMagick - Image processing
• Potrace - Curve tracing
• FFmpeg - Video processing (for --video mode)

Install system dependencies:

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt-get install imagemagick potrace ffmpeg

# macOS (with Homebrew)  
brew install imagemagick potrace ffmpeg

# Windows (with Chocolatey)
choco install imagemagick potrace ffmpeg

📖 Usage Guide

Image Processing

Basic Commands

# Default: Canny edge detection → matplotlib plot
desmos-studio photo.jpg

# Generate Desmos equations
desmos-studio image.png --mode desmos

# Generate both outputs
desmos-studio artwork.jpg --mode both

Advanced Image Options

# Fine-tune edge detection
desmos-studio photo.jpg --canny-low 30 --canny-high 120

# Reduce noise with blur
desmos-studio image.jpg --blur 3

# Custom output filename
desmos-studio logo.png --output my_logo_curves.png

# Disable grid in plots
desmos-studio diagram.jpg --no-grid

# Use old threshold method instead of Canny
desmos-studio simple.png --no-canny --threshold 40

# Keep temporary files for debugging
desmos-studio test.jpg --keep-temp

Video Processing

Basic Video Commands

# Convert entire video to mathematical animation
desmos-studio video.mp4 --video

# Limit processing to first 100 frames
desmos-studio long_video.mp4 --video --max-frames 100

# Control output framerate
desmos-studio video.mp4 --video --fps 24

# Custom output filename
desmos-studio dance.mp4 --video --output mathematical_dance.mp4

Advanced Video Options

# High-quality edge detection
desmos-studio video.mp4 --video --canny-low 20 --canny-high 100 --blur 2

# Fast processing (fewer frames)
desmos-studio video.mp4 --video --max-frames 50 --fps 15

# Debug mode (keep temporary files)
desmos-studio video.mp4 --video --keep-temp --max-frames 10

🎯 Command Reference

General Options

desmos-studio INPUT [OPTIONS]

Arguments:
  INPUT                 Input image or video file

Options:
  --video              Process as video (creates animation)
  --mode {plot,desmos,both}  
                       Output mode for images (default: plot)
  -o, --output FILE    Custom output filename
  --keep-temp          Keep temporary processing files
  -h, --help           Show help message
  --version            Show version

Edge Detection Parameters

  --canny-low N        Canny lower threshold (default: 50)
  --canny-high N       Canny upper threshold (default: 150)  
  --blur N             Gaussian blur kernel size (default: 5, 0=disable)
  --no-canny           Use simple threshold instead of Canny
  --threshold N        Threshold for --no-canny mode (default: 50)

Display Options

  --no-grid            Disable grid in matplotlib plots

Video-Specific Options

  --max-frames N       Limit number of frames (default: process all)
  --fps N              Target output framerate (default: use original)

📁 Output Files

Image Processing Outputs

Mode	Output Files	Description
--mode plot	image_plot.png	High-resolution matplotlib visualization
--mode desmos	image_equations.txt	Parametric Bézier curve equations
--mode both	image_plot.png image_equations.txt	Both outputs

Video Processing Outputs

Input	Output	Description
video.mp4 --video	video_curves_animation.mp4	Mathematical animation with original audio

Temporary Files (with --keep-temp)

File	Purpose
*_temp.pbm	Edge-detected bitmap
*_temp.svg	Vector curves from Potrace
temp_frames/	Extracted video frames
temp_plots/	Individual plot images

🎨 Example Workflows

Photography → Mathematical Art

# Portrait photography
desmos-studio portrait.jpg --canny-low 30 --canny-high 80 --blur 2

# Landscape photography  
desmos-studio landscape.jpg --canny-low 50 --canny-high 150

# Architecture
desmos-studio building.jpg --canny-high 200 --no-grid

Logos & Graphics → Desmos

# Clean logo conversion
desmos-studio logo.png --mode desmos --canny-high 180

# Hand-drawn sketches
desmos-studio sketch.jpg --mode desmos --blur 1 --canny-low 20

Video → Mathematical Animations

# Music video
desmos-studio music_video.mp4 --video --max-frames 200

# Dance performance
desmos-studio dance.mp4 --video --fps 30 --canny-low 40

# Nature footage
desmos-studio nature.mp4 --video --blur 3 --max-frames 150

🔧 Technical Details

How It Works

1. Edge Detection: OpenCV Canny algorithm finds edges in image
2. Vectorization: Potrace converts edges to smooth Bézier curves
3. Export: Generates parametric equations or matplotlib plots
4. Video: Processes each frame + combines with FFmpeg

Performance Tips

• Use --max-frames to limit video processing time
• Adjust --blur to reduce noise (higher = smoother, slower)
• Use --canny-low and --canny-high to control detail level
• Enable --keep-temp to debug edge detection results

Quality Settings

# Maximum quality (slow)
desmos-studio input.jpg --blur 1 --canny-low 20 --canny-high 200

# Balanced (default)  
desmos-studio input.jpg --blur 5 --canny-low 50 --canny-high 150

# Fast processing
desmos-studio input.jpg --blur 9 --canny-low 80 --canny-high 120

📊 Use Cases

• Education: Visualize mathematical concepts from real images
• Art: Create algorithmic art from photographs
• Desmos: Import complex shapes into graphing calculator
• Research: Convert diagrams to vector graphics
• Social Media: Generate unique mathematical content
• Animation: Transform videos into abstract mathematical art

🤝 Contributing

Contributions welcome! Please submit issues and pull requests on GitHub.

📝 License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

🙏 Acknowledgments

• OpenCV - Advanced edge detection
• Potrace - Bitmap tracing
• ImageMagick - Image processing
• FFmpeg - Video processing
• matplotlib - Plotting library

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Transform your visual world into mathematical beauty ✨