


@interface SCNGeometry : NSObject


In SceneKit, geometries attached to SCNNode objects form the visible elements of a scene, and SCNMaterial objects attached to a geometry determine its appearance.

Working with Geometry Objects

You control a geometry’s appearance in a scene with nodes and materials. A geometry object provides only the form of a visible object rendered by SceneKit. You specify color and texture for a geometry’s surface, control how it responds to light, and add special effects by attaching materials (for details, see the methods in Managing a Geometry’s Materials). You position and orient a geometry in a scene by attaching it to an SCNNode object. Multiple nodes can reference the same geometry object, allowing it to appear at different positions in a scene.

You can easily copy geometries and change their materials. A geometry object manages the association between immutable vertex data and a mutable assignment of materials. To make a geometry appear more than once in the same scene with a different set of materials, use its inherited copy method. The copy shares the underlying vertex data of the original, but can be assigned materials independently. You can thus make many copies of a geometry without incurring a significant cost to rendering performance.

You can animate a geometry object. The vertex data associated with a geometry is immutable, but SceneKit provides several ways to animate geometry. You can use a SCNMorpher or SCNSkinner object to deform a geometry’s surface, or run animations created in an external 3D authoring tool and loaded from a scene file. You can also use methods in the SCNShadable protocol to add custom GLSL shader programs that alter SceneKit’s rendering of a geometry.

Obtaining a Geometry Object

SceneKit provides several ways to introduce geometry objects to your app:


For further information

Load from a scene file created using external 3D authoring tools

SCNScene, SCNSceneSource

Use and customize SceneKit’s built-in primitive shapes

SCNPlane, SCNBox, SCNSphere, SCNPyramid, SCNCone, SCNCylinder, SCNCapsule, SCNTube, and SCNTorus

Create 3D geometry from 2D text or Bézier curves

SCNText, SCNShape

Create a custom geometry from vertex data

SCNGeometrySource, SCNGeometryElement, geometryWithSources:elements:, Managing Geometry Data


Creating a Geometry Object

+ geometryWithSources:elements:

Creates a new geometry built from the specified geometry sources and elements.

+ geometry

Creates a new geometry object with no content (or default content).

+ geometryWithMDLMesh:

Creates a geometry from the specified Model I/O mesh object.

Managing Geometry Attributes


A name associated with the geometry object.


Methods common to the SCNNode and SCNGeometry classes for measuring location and size.

Managing a Geometry’s Materials


An array of SCNMaterial objects that determine the geometry’s appearance when rendered.


The first material attached to the geometry.

- materialWithName:

Returns the first material attached to the geometry with the specified name.

- insertMaterial:atIndex:

Attaches a material to the geometry at the specified index.

- removeMaterialAtIndex:

Removes a material attached to the geometry.

- replaceMaterialAtIndex:withMaterial:

Replaces a material attached to the geometry with another.

Managing Geometry Data


An array of geometry elements that describe the geometry’s shape.


An array of geometry sources that provide vertex data for the geometry.


The number of geometry elements in the geometry.

- geometryElementAtIndex:

Returns the geometry element at a specified index.

- geometrySourcesForSemantic:

Returns the geometry sources for a specified semantic.

Optimizing Level of Detail


An array of SCNLevelOfDetail objects for managing the geometry’s appearance when viewed from far away.


An alternate resolution for a geometry that SceneKit automatically substitutes to improve rendering performance.

Smoothing and Subdividing Geometry


The number of subdivisions SceneKit uses to smooth the geometry’s surface at render time.


The geometry element identifying which edges of the geometry’s surface should remain sharp after subdivision.


The geometry source specifying the smoothness or sharpness of edges after surface subdivision.

See Also






Built-in Geometry Types

Basic shapes—such as spheres, boxes, and planes—and features for generating 3D objects from 2D text and Bézier curves.