Convert Shape into reusable Geometry in WPF

Question

I am trying to convert a System.Windows.Shapes.Shape object into a System.Windows.Media.Geometry object.

With the Geometry object, I am going to render it multiple times with a custom graph control depending on a set of data points. This requires that each instance of the Geometry object has a unique TranslateTransform object.

Now, I am approaching the issue in two different ways, but neither seems to be working correctly. My custom control uses the following code in order to draw the geometry:

//Create an instance of the geometry the shape uses.
Geometry geo = DataPointShape.RenderedGeometry.Clone();
//Apply transformation.
TranslateTransform translation = new TranslateTransform(dataPoint.X, dataPoint.Y);
geo.Transform = translation;
//Create pen and draw geometry.
Pen shapePen = new Pen(DataPointShape.Stroke, DataPointShape.StrokeThickness);
dc.DrawGeometry(DataPointShape.Fill, shapePen, geo);

I have also tried the following alternate code:

//Create an instance of the geometry the shape uses.
Geometry geo = DataPointShape.RenderedGeometry;
//Apply transformation.
TranslateTransform translation = new TranslateTransform(dataPoint.X, dataPoint.Y);
dc.PushTransform(translation);
//Create pen and draw geometry.
Pen shapePen = new Pen(DataPointShape.Stroke, DataPointShape.StrokeThickness);
dc.DrawGeometry(DataPointShape.Fill, shapePen, geo);
dc.Pop(); //Undo translation.

The difference is that the second snippet doesn't clone or modify the Shape.RenderedGeometry property.

Oddly enough, I occasionally can view the geometry used for the data points in the WPF designer. However, the behavior is inconsistent and difficult to figure out how to make the geometry always appear. Also, when I execute my application, the data points never appear with the specified geometry.

EDIT:
I have figured out how to generate the appearance of the geometry. But this only works in design-mode. Execute these steps:

• Rebuild project.
• Go to MainWindow.xaml and click in the custom shape object so that the shape's properties load into Visual Studio's property window. Wait until the property window renders what the shape looks like.
• Modify the data points collection or properties to see the geometry rendered properly.

Here is what I want the control to ultimately look like for now:

How can I convert a Shape object to a Geometry object for rendering multiple times?

Your help is tremendously appreciated!

---

Let me give the full context of my problem, as well as all necessary code to understanding how my control is set up. Hopefully, this might indicate what problems exist in my method of converting the Shape object to a Geometry object.

MainWindow.xaml

<Window x:Class="CustomControls.MainWindow"
    xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
    xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
    xmlns:local="clr-namespace:CustomControls">
<Grid>
    <local:LineGraph>
        <local:LineGraph.DataPointShape>
            <Ellipse Width="10" Height="10" Fill="Red" Stroke="Black" StrokeThickness="1" />
        </local:LineGraph.DataPointShape>
        <local:LineGraph.DataPoints>
            <local:DataPoint X="10" Y="10"/>
            <local:DataPoint X="20" Y="20"/>
            <local:DataPoint X="30" Y="30"/>
            <local:DataPoint X="40" Y="40"/>
        </local:LineGraph.DataPoints>
    </local:LineGraph>
</Grid>

DataPoint.cs
This class just has two DependencyProperties (X & Y) and it gives a notification when any of those properties are changed. This notification is used to trigger a re-render via UIElement.InvalidateVisual().

public class DataPoint : DependencyObject, INotifyPropertyChanged
{
    public static readonly DependencyProperty XProperty = DependencyProperty.Register("XProperty", typeof(double), typeof(DataPoint), new FrameworkPropertyMetadata(0.0d, DataPoint_PropertyChanged));
    public static readonly DependencyProperty YProperty = DependencyProperty.Register("YProperty", typeof(double), typeof(DataPoint), new FrameworkPropertyMetadata(0.0d, DataPoint_PropertyChanged));

    private static void DataPoint_PropertyChanged(DependencyObject sender, DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
    {
        DataPoint dp = (DataPoint)sender;
        dp.RaisePropertyChanged(e.Property.Name);
    }

    public event PropertyChangedEventHandler PropertyChanged;
    protected void RaisePropertyChanged(string name)
    {
        if (PropertyChanged != null)
        {
            PropertyChanged(this, new PropertyChangedEventArgs(name));
        }
    }

    public double X
    {
        get { return (double)GetValue(XProperty); }
        set { SetValue(XProperty, (double)value); }
    }
    public double Y
    {
        get { return (double)GetValue(YProperty); }
        set { SetValue(YProperty, (double)value); }
    }
}

LineGraph.cs
This is the control. It contains the collection of data points and provides mechanisms for re-rendering the data points (useful for WPF designer). Of particular importance is the logic posted above which is inside of the UIElement.OnRender() method.

public class LineGraph : FrameworkElement
{
    public static readonly DependencyProperty DataPointShapeProperty = DependencyProperty.Register("DataPointShapeProperty", typeof(Shape), typeof(LineGraph), new FrameworkPropertyMetadata(default(Shape), FrameworkPropertyMetadataOptions.AffectsRender, DataPointShapeChanged));
    public static readonly DependencyProperty DataPointsProperty = DependencyProperty.Register("DataPointsProperty", typeof(ObservableCollection<DataPoint>), typeof(LineGraph), new FrameworkPropertyMetadata(default(ObservableCollection<DataPoint>), FrameworkPropertyMetadataOptions.AffectsRender, DataPointsChanged));

    private static void DataPointShapeChanged(DependencyObject sender, DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
    {
        LineGraph g = (LineGraph)sender;
        g.InvalidateVisual();
    }

    private static void DataPointsChanged(DependencyObject sender, DependencyPropertyChangedEventArgs e)
    {   //Collection referenced set or unset.
        LineGraph g = (LineGraph)sender;
        INotifyCollectionChanged oldValue = e.OldValue as INotifyCollectionChanged;
        INotifyCollectionChanged newValue = e.NewValue as INotifyCollectionChanged;
        if (oldValue != null)
            oldValue.CollectionChanged -= g.DataPoints_CollectionChanged;
        if (newValue != null)
            newValue.CollectionChanged += g.DataPoints_CollectionChanged;

        //Update the point visuals.
        g.InvalidateVisual();
    }

    private void DataPoints_CollectionChanged(object sender, NotifyCollectionChangedEventArgs e)
    {   //Collection changed (added/removed from).
        if (e.OldItems != null)
            foreach (INotifyPropertyChanged n in e.OldItems)
            {
                n.PropertyChanged -= DataPoint_PropertyChanged;
            }
        if (e.NewItems != null)
            foreach (INotifyPropertyChanged n in e.NewItems)
            {
                n.PropertyChanged += DataPoint_PropertyChanged;
            }

        InvalidateVisual();
    }

    private void DataPoint_PropertyChanged(object sender, PropertyChangedEventArgs e)
    {
        //Re-render the LineGraph when a DataPoint has a property that changes.
        InvalidateVisual();
    }

    public Shape DataPointShape
    {
        get { return (Shape)GetValue(DataPointShapeProperty); }
        set { SetValue(DataPointShapeProperty, (Shape)value); }
    }

    public ObservableCollection<DataPoint> DataPoints
    {
        get { return (ObservableCollection<DataPoint>)GetValue(DataPointsProperty); }
        set { SetValue(DataPointsProperty, (ObservableCollection<DataPoint>)value); }
    }

    public LineGraph()
    {    //Provide instance-specific value for data point collection instead of a shared static instance.
        SetCurrentValue(DataPointsProperty, new ObservableCollection<DataPoint>());
    }

    protected override void OnRender(DrawingContext dc)
    {
        if (DataPointShape != null)
        {
            Pen shapePen = new Pen(DataPointShape.Stroke, DataPointShape.StrokeThickness);
            foreach (DataPoint dp in DataPoints)
            {
                Geometry geo = DataPointShape.RenderedGeometry.Clone();
                TranslateTransform translation = new TranslateTransform(dp.X, dp.Y);
                geo.Transform = translation;
                dc.DrawGeometry(DataPointShape.Fill, shapePen, geo);
            }
        }
    }
}

EDIT 2:
In response to this answer by Peter Duniho, I would like to provide the alternate method to lying to Visual Studio in creating a custom control. For creating the custom control execute these steps:

• Create folder in root of project named Themes
• Create resource dictionary in Themes folder named Generic.xaml
• Create a style in the resource dictionary for the control.
• Apply the style from the control's C# code.

Generic.xaml
Here is an example of for the SimpleGraph described by Peter.

<ResourceDictionary 
    xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
    xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
    xmlns:local="clr-namespace:CustomControls">
    <Style TargetType="local:SimpleGraph" BasedOn="{StaticResource {x:Type ItemsControl}}">
        <Style.Resources>
            <EllipseGeometry x:Key="defaultGraphGeometry" Center="5,5" RadiusX="5" RadiusY="5"/>
        </Style.Resources>
        <Style.Setters>
            <Setter Property="ItemsPanel">
                <Setter.Value>
                    <ItemsPanelTemplate>
                        <Canvas IsItemsHost="True"/>
                    </ItemsPanelTemplate>
                </Setter.Value>
            </Setter>
            <Setter Property="ItemTemplate">
                <Setter.Value>
                    <DataTemplate DataType="{x:Type local:DataPoint}">
                        <Path Fill="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource FindAncestor, AncestorType={x:Type local:SimpleGraph}}, Path=DataPointFill}" 
                                Stroke="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource FindAncestor, AncestorType={x:Type local:SimpleGraph}}, Path=DataPointStroke}" 
                                StrokeThickness="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource FindAncestor, AncestorType={x:Type local:SimpleGraph}}, Path=DataPointStrokeThickness}" 
                                Data="{Binding RelativeSource={RelativeSource FindAncestor, AncestorType={x:Type local:SimpleGraph}}, Path=DataPointGeometry}">
                            <Path.RenderTransform>
                                <TranslateTransform X="{Binding X}" Y="{Binding Y}"/>
                            </Path.RenderTransform>
                        </Path>
                    </DataTemplate>
                </Setter.Value>
            </Setter>
        </Style.Setters>
    </Style>
</ResourceDictionary>

Lastly, apply the style like so in the SimpleGraph constructor:

public SimpleGraph()
{
    DefaultStyleKey = typeof(SimpleGraph);
    DataPointGeometry = (Geometry)FindResource("defaultGraphGeometry");
}

Answer 1

I think that you are probably not approaching this in the best way. Based on the code you posted, it seems that you are trying to do manually things that WPF is reasonably good at handling automatically.

The main tricky part (at least for me…I'm hardly a WPF expert) is that you appear to want to use an actual Shape object as the template for your graph's data point graphics, and I'm not entirely sure of the best way to allow for that template to be replaced programmatically or declaratively without exposing the underlying transformation mechanic that controls the positioning on the graph.

So here's an example that ignores that particular aspect (I will comment on alternatives below), but which I believe otherwise serves your precise needs.

First, I create a custom ItemsControl class (in Visual Studio, I do this by lying and telling VS I want to add a UserControl, which gets me a XAML-based item in the project…I immediately replace "UserControl" with "ItemsControl" in both the .xaml and .xaml.cs files):

XAML:

<ItemsControl x:Class="TestSO28332278SimpleGraphControl.SimpleGraph"
              xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
              xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
              xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006" 
              xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008" 
              xmlns:local="clr-namespace:TestSO28332278SimpleGraphControl"
              mc:Ignorable="d" 
              x:Name="root"
              d:DesignHeight="300" d:DesignWidth="300">

  <ItemsControl.Resources>
    <EllipseGeometry x:Key="defaultGraphGeometry" Center="5,5" RadiusX="5" RadiusY="5" />
  </ItemsControl.Resources>

  <ItemsControl.ItemsPanel>
    <ItemsPanelTemplate>
      <Canvas IsItemsHost="True" />
    </ItemsPanelTemplate>
  </ItemsControl.ItemsPanel>

  <ItemsControl.ItemTemplate>
    <DataTemplate DataType="{x:Type local:DataPoint}">
      <Path Data="{Binding ElementName=root, Path=DataPointGeometry}"
            Fill="Red" Stroke="Black" StrokeThickness="1">
        <Path.RenderTransform>
          <TranslateTransform X="{Binding X}" Y="{Binding Y}"/>
        </Path.RenderTransform>
      </Path>
    </DataTemplate>
  </ItemsControl.ItemTemplate>

</ItemsControl>

C#:

public partial class SimpleGraph : ItemsControl
{
    public Geometry DataPointGeometry
    {
        get { return (Geometry)GetValue(DataPointShapeProperty); }
        set { SetValue(DataPointShapeProperty, value); }
    }

    public static DependencyProperty DataPointShapeProperty = DependencyProperty.Register(
        "DataPointGeometry", typeof(Geometry), typeof(SimpleGraph));

    public SimpleGraph()
    {
        InitializeComponent();

        DataPointGeometry = (Geometry)FindResource("defaultGraphGeometry");
    }
}

The key here is that I have an ItemsControl class with a default ItemTemplate that has a single Path object. That object's geometry is bound to the controls DataPointGeometry property, and its RenderTransform is bound to the data item's X and Y values as offsets for a translation transform.

A simple Canvas is used for the ItemsPanel, as I just need a place to draw things, without any other layout features. Finally, there is a resource defining a default geometry to use, in case the caller doesn't provide one.

And about that caller…

Here is a simple example of how one might use the above:

<Window x:Class="TestSO28332278SimpleGraphControl.MainWindow"
        xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
        xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
        xmlns:local="clr-namespace:TestSO28332278SimpleGraphControl"
        Title="MainWindow" Height="350" Width="525">

  <Window.Resources>
    <PathGeometry x:Key="dataPointGeometry"
                  Figures="M 0.5000,0.0000
                  L 0.6176,0.3382
                  0.9755,0.3455
                  0.6902,0.5618
                  0.7939,0.9045
                  0.5000,0.7000
                  0.2061,0.9045
                  0.3098,0.5618
                  0.0245,0.3455
                  0.3824,0.3382 Z">
      <PathGeometry.Transform>
        <ScaleTransform ScaleX="20" ScaleY="20" />
      </PathGeometry.Transform>
    </PathGeometry>
  </Window.Resources>

  <Grid>
    <Border Margin="3" BorderBrush="Black" BorderThickness="1">
      <local:SimpleGraph Width="450" Height="300" DataPointGeometry="{StaticResource dataPointGeometry}">
        <local:SimpleGraph.Items>
          <local:DataPoint X="10" Y="10" />
          <local:DataPoint X="25" Y="25" />
          <local:DataPoint X="40" Y="40" />
          <local:DataPoint X="55" Y="55" />
        </local:SimpleGraph.Items>
      </local:SimpleGraph>
    </Border>
  </Grid>
</Window>

In the above, the only truly interesting thing is that I declare a PathGeometry resource, and then bind that resource to the control's DataPointGeometry property. This allows the program to provide a custom geometry for the graph.

WPF handles the rest through implicit data binding and templating. If the values of any of the DataPoint objects change, or the data collection itself is modified, the graph will be updated automatically.

Here's what it looks like:

I will note that the above example only allows you to specify the geometry. The other shape attributes are hard-coded in the data template. This seems slightly different from what you asked to do. But note that you have a few alternatives here that should address your need without requiring the reintroduction of all the extra manual-binding/updating code in your example:

1. Simply add other properties, bound to the template Path object in a fashion similar to the DataPointGeometry property. E.g. DataPointFill, DataPointStroke, etc.

2. Go ahead and allow the user to specify a Shape object, and then use the properties of that object to populate specific properties bound to the properties of the template object. This is mainly a convenience to the caller; if anything, it's a bit of added complication in the graph control itself.

3. Go whole-hog and allow the user to specify a Shape object, which you then convert to a template by using XamlWriter to create some XAML for the object, add the necessary Transform element to the XAML and wrap it in a DataTemplate declaration (e.g. by loading the XAML as an in-memory DOM to modify the XAML), and then using XamlReader to then load the XAML as a template which you can then assign to the ItemTemplate property.

Option #3 seems the most complicated to me. So complicated in fact that I did not bother to prototype an example using it…I did a little research and it seems to me that it should work, but I admit that I did not verify for myself that it does. But it would certainly be the gold standard in terms of absolute flexibility for the caller.