TESSELLATIONS

Definitions and methods of creating

them
 What is tessellations?
 Tessellations is when shapes fit together
exactly with no gaps.
 A tessellation is a tilling pattern which covers a
plane in such a way that there are no gaps
between the shapes and no overlaps in the
shapes.
 Basically, a tessellation is a way to tile a floor
(that goes on forever) with shapes so that
there is no overlapping and no gaps..
 Formal Definition of Tessellations
• A tessellation or tiling is the covering of a
surface, often a plane, using one or more
geometric shapes, called tiles, with no
overlaps and no gaps. In mathematics,
tessellation can be generalized to higher
dimensions and a variety of geometries. A
periodic tiling has a repeating pattern.
Wikipedia
 Alternative Definition of Tessellations
• Tessellation
Definition: A tessellation is created when a shape
is repeated over and over again covering a plane
without any gaps or overlaps. Another word for a
tessellation is a tiling.Tessellations - CSUN
California State University, Northridgehttp://ww
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Tesselations › tesselations
Examples of Visuals of Tessellations
 REGULAR TESSELLATIONS:
• REGULAR TESSELLATIONS:
• RULE #1: The tessellation must tile a floor
(that goes on forever) with no overlapping or
gaps.
• RULE #2: The tiles must be regular polygons -
and all the same, e.g., equilateral triangle,
square etc.
• RULE #3: Each vertex must look the same.
Tessellations by squares
Tessellations by triangles
Tessellations by Rectangles
Tessellations by Hexagons
 CONT.
• For shapes to fill the plane without gaps or
overlaps, when arranged around a point they
must have measures that add up to exactly
360 degrees
Illustration of
• The measure of the full
angle around the point
of contact for all the
triangles on the left, i.e.,
the center of the
hexagon is
Not tessellations
 CONT.
 You can find tessellations in every home.
Decorative floor tiles have tessellating
patterns of squares. Brick walls , fireplaces and
wooden decks often display creative
tessellations of rectangles
Creation of Tessellations by Translation
• In the figure on the left,
the tessellation was
formed by moving the
upper part one unit to the
left and one unit down.
• If it is the bottom part
that was transformed, can
you describe the type of
transformation and the
rules used to create the
tessellation.
Alternative Transformations
• Can you identify
alternative methods of
transformations (or
combinations thereof)
that might have been
used to create the
tessellations on the
left?
Tessellations by Reflection
• Can you name the
geometric figure that
has been transformed
by reflection to form
the tessellation on the
left?
• Can you identify and
name the type of Lines
of Reflection used to
create the Tessellation?
Tessellations by Rotation
• In the figure on the left,
the part with a dot is
rotated to form the
tessellation.
• Can you tell the number
of times the original
figure was rotated to
complete the
tessellation?
Tessellations and Symmetry
• In the figure on the left,
can you identify and
name the type of the Line
of Symmetry used to
create the Tessellation?
• Can you name and
describe by colour the
Original Shape that is
transformed by the Line
of Symmetry to create
the Tessellation?
Tessellations and Symmetry
• In the figure on the left,
can you identify and
name the type of the Line
of Symmetry used to
create the Tessellation?
• Can you name and
describe by colour the
Original Shapes that are
transformed by the Line
of Symmetry to create
the Tessellation?
Complex Tessellations
• While some tessellations
are simple and have
clearly visible Lines of
Symmetry that are easy
to identify, others are not.
• The figure on the left is
made of numerous
representations of 3-D
shapes. Can you see the
imaginary Lines of
Symmetry in the figure?
More Complex Tessellations
• Figure (1) is more simple
and has clear Lines of
Symmetry. Can you identify
and name the types of the
Lines of Symmetry
involved?
• Figure (2) is more complex
and has no clear Lines of
Symmetry. Can you identify
and name the types of
transformations involved in
creating it?
The End