Dotpatterns

Dotpatterns are arrangements of discrete circular marks, or dots, arranged on a plane to form a pattern or image. They appear in art, design and printing, and in data visualization. The term covers both decorative motifs and systematic methods for representing variation by dot size or density. Dotpatterns are distinct from line-based patterns in that information is conveyed primarily through point-like marks.

Common construction methods include regular grids with uniform spacing, hexagonal tilings, and jittered or random placements. To control perceived density, dots may vary in size or color; in many cases, the size or density of dots encodes grayscale or color information. Algorithms such as Poisson-disc sampling enforce a minimum distance between dots to avoid overlap and create even textures. Halftoning and stippling are related practices in which tonal or shading information is produced through dot patterns.

Diverse terms describe dotpatterns in different contexts: stippling and pointillism in art; halftone patterns in printing; dot-density patterns in cartography and data visualization; and microdot patterns in security printing. In digital graphics, dotpatterns can be generated procedurally using noise functions or procedural textures.

Applications include graphic design, textiles and wallpaper, packaging, and visualizations such as dot-density maps or treemaps. They are also used as background textures in user interfaces and as anti-counterfeiting features where small, irregular dot patterns are harder to replicate.

Considerations for use include readability at small sizes, color and contrast, and avoiding unintended moiré effects when dots interact with underlying patterns or screens. When designing, the choice of grid, density, and dot sizing determines the overall impression, from uniform and orderly to organic and textured.