ActionScript® 3.0 Reference for the Adobe® Flash® Platform
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flash.geom 

Rectangle  - AS3

Packageflash.geom
Classpublic class Rectangle
InheritanceRectangle Inheritance Object
Subclasses RoundedRectangle

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

A Rectangle object is an area defined by its position, as indicated by its top-left corner point (x, y) and by its width and its height.

The x, y, width, and height properties of the Rectangle class are independent of each other; changing the value of one property has no effect on the others. However, the right and bottom properties are integrally related to those four properties. For example, if you change the value of the right property, the value of the width property changes; if you change the bottom property, the value of the height property changes.

The following methods and properties use Rectangle objects:

  • The applyFilter(), colorTransform(), copyChannel(), copyPixels(), draw(), fillRect(), generateFilterRect(), getColorBoundsRect(), getPixels(), merge(), paletteMap(), pixelDisolve(), setPixels(), and threshold() methods, and the rect property of the BitmapData class
  • The getBounds() and getRect() methods, and the scrollRect and scale9Grid properties of the DisplayObject class
  • The getCharBoundaries() method of the TextField class
  • The pixelBounds property of the Transform class
  • The bounds parameter for the startDrag() method of the Sprite class
  • The printArea parameter of the addPage() method of the PrintJob class

You can use the new Rectangle() constructor to create a Rectangle object.

Note: The Rectangle class does not define a rectangular Shape display object. To draw a rectangular Shape object onscreen, use the drawRect() method of the Graphics class.

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Related API Elements



Public Properties
 PropertyDefined By
  bottom : Number
The sum of the y and height properties.
Rectangle
  bottomRight : Point
The location of the Rectangle object's bottom-right corner, determined by the values of the right and bottom properties.
Rectangle
 Inheritedconstructor : Object
A reference to the class object or constructor function for a given object instance.
Object
  height : Number
The height of the rectangle, in pixels.
Rectangle
  left : Number
The x coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle.
Rectangle
  right : Number
The sum of the x and width properties.
Rectangle
  size : Point
The size of the Rectangle object, expressed as a Point object with the values of the width and height properties.
Rectangle
  top : Number
The y coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle.
Rectangle
  topLeft : Point
The location of the Rectangle object's top-left corner, determined by the x and y coordinates of the point.
Rectangle
  width : Number
The width of the rectangle, in pixels.
Rectangle
  x : Number
The x coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle.
Rectangle
  y : Number
The y coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle.
Rectangle
Public Methods
 MethodDefined By
  
Rectangle(x:Number = 0, y:Number = 0, width:Number = 0, height:Number = 0)
Creates a new Rectangle object with the top-left corner specified by the x and y parameters and with the specified width and height parameters.
Rectangle
  
Returns a new Rectangle object with the same values for the x, y, width, and height properties as the original Rectangle object.
Rectangle
  
Determines whether the specified point is contained within the rectangular region defined by this Rectangle object.
Rectangle
  
Determines whether the specified point is contained within the rectangular region defined by this Rectangle object.
Rectangle
  
Determines whether the Rectangle object specified by the rect parameter is contained within this Rectangle object.
Rectangle
  
copyFrom(sourceRect:Rectangle):void
Copies all of rectangle data from the source Rectangle object into the calling Rectangle object.
Rectangle
  
Determines whether the object specified in the toCompare parameter is equal to this Rectangle object.
Rectangle
 Inherited
Indicates whether an object has a specified property defined.
Object
  
Increases the size of the Rectangle object by the specified amounts, in pixels.
Rectangle
  
Increases the size of the Rectangle object.
Rectangle
  
If the Rectangle object specified in the toIntersect parameter intersects with this Rectangle object, returns the area of intersection as a Rectangle object.
Rectangle
  
Determines whether the object specified in the toIntersect parameter intersects with this Rectangle object.
Rectangle
  
Determines whether or not this Rectangle object is empty.
Rectangle
 Inherited
Indicates whether an instance of the Object class is in the prototype chain of the object specified as the parameter.
Object
  
Adjusts the location of the Rectangle object, as determined by its top-left corner, by the specified amounts.
Rectangle
  
Adjusts the location of the Rectangle object using a Point object as a parameter.
Rectangle
 Inherited
Indicates whether the specified property exists and is enumerable.
Object
  
Sets all of the Rectangle object's properties to 0.
Rectangle
 Inherited
Sets the availability of a dynamic property for loop operations.
Object
  
setTo(xa:Number, ya:Number, widtha:Number, heighta:Number):void
Sets the members of Rectangle to the specified values
Rectangle
 Inherited
Returns the string representation of this object, formatted according to locale-specific conventions.
Object
  
Builds and returns a string that lists the horizontal and vertical positions and the width and height of the Rectangle object.
Rectangle
  
Adds two rectangles together to create a new Rectangle object, by filling in the horizontal and vertical space between the two rectangles.
Rectangle
 Inherited
Returns the primitive value of the specified object.
Object
Property Detail

bottom

property
bottom:Number

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The sum of the y and height properties.

A rectangle image showing location and measurement properties.



Implementation
    public function get bottom():Number
    public function set bottom(value:Number):void

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Related API Elements

bottomRight

property 
bottomRight:Point

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The location of the Rectangle object's bottom-right corner, determined by the values of the right and bottom properties.

A rectangle image showing location and measurement properties.



Implementation
    public function get bottomRight():Point
    public function set bottomRight(value:Point):void

Related API Elements

height

property 
public var height:Number

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The height of the rectangle, in pixels. Changing the height value of a Rectangle object has no effect on the x, y, and width properties.

A rectangle image showing location and measurement properties.

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Related API Elements

left

property 
left:Number

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The x coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle. Changing the left property of a Rectangle object has no effect on the y and height properties. However it does affect the width property, whereas changing the x value does not affect the width property.

The value of the left property is equal to the value of the x property.

A rectangle image showing location and measurement properties.



Implementation
    public function get left():Number
    public function set left(value:Number):void

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Related API Elements

right

property 
right:Number

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The sum of the x and width properties.

A rectangle image showing location and measurement properties.



Implementation
    public function get right():Number
    public function set right(value:Number):void

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size

property 
size:Point

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The size of the Rectangle object, expressed as a Point object with the values of the width and height properties.



Implementation
    public function get size():Point
    public function set size(value:Point):void

Related API Elements

top

property 
top:Number

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The y coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle. Changing the top property of a Rectangle object has no effect on the x and width properties. However it does affect the height property, whereas changing the y value does not affect the height property.

The value of the top property is equal to the value of the y property.

A rectangle image showing location and measurement properties.



Implementation
    public function get top():Number
    public function set top(value:Number):void

More examples

Related API Elements

topLeft

property 
topLeft:Point

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The location of the Rectangle object's top-left corner, determined by the x and y coordinates of the point.

A rectangle image showing location and measurement properties.



Implementation
    public function get topLeft():Point
    public function set topLeft(value:Point):void

Related API Elements

width

property 
public var width:Number

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The width of the rectangle, in pixels. Changing the width value of a Rectangle object has no effect on the x, y, and height properties.

A rectangle image showing location and measurement properties.

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Related API Elements

x

property 
public var x:Number

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The x coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle. Changing the value of the x property of a Rectangle object has no effect on the y, width, and height properties.

The value of the x property is equal to the value of the left property.

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Related API Elements

y

property 
public var y:Number

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

The y coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle. Changing the value of the y property of a Rectangle object has no effect on the x, width, and height properties.

The value of the y property is equal to the value of the top property.

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Constructor Detail

Rectangle

()Constructor
public function Rectangle(x:Number = 0, y:Number = 0, width:Number = 0, height:Number = 0)

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Creates a new Rectangle object with the top-left corner specified by the x and y parameters and with the specified width and height parameters. If you call this function without parameters, a rectangle with x, y, width, and height properties set to 0 is created.

Parameters
x:Number (default = 0) — The x coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle.
 
y:Number (default = 0) — The y coordinate of the top-left corner of the rectangle.
 
width:Number (default = 0) — The width of the rectangle, in pixels.
 
height:Number (default = 0) — The height of the rectangle, in pixels.

Related API Elements

Method Detail

clone

()method
public function clone():Rectangle

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Returns a new Rectangle object with the same values for the x, y, width, and height properties as the original Rectangle object.

Returns
Rectangle — A new Rectangle object with the same values for the x, y, width, and height properties as the original Rectangle object.

Related API Elements

contains

()method 
public function contains(x:Number, y:Number):Boolean

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Determines whether the specified point is contained within the rectangular region defined by this Rectangle object.

Parameters

x:Number — The x coordinate (horizontal position) of the point.
 
y:Number — The y coordinate (vertical position) of the point.

Returns
Boolean — A value of true if the Rectangle object contains the specified point; otherwise false.

Related API Elements

containsPoint

()method 
public function containsPoint(point:Point):Boolean

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Determines whether the specified point is contained within the rectangular region defined by this Rectangle object. This method is similar to the Rectangle.contains() method, except that it takes a Point object as a parameter.

Parameters

point:Point — The point, as represented by its x and y coordinates.

Returns
Boolean — A value of true if the Rectangle object contains the specified point; otherwise false.

Related API Elements

containsRect

()method 
public function containsRect(rect:Rectangle):Boolean

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Determines whether the Rectangle object specified by the rect parameter is contained within this Rectangle object. A Rectangle object is said to contain another if the second Rectangle object falls entirely within the boundaries of the first.

Parameters

rect:Rectangle — The Rectangle object being checked.

Returns
Boolean — A value of true if the Rectangle object that you specify is contained by this Rectangle object; otherwise false.

copyFrom

()method 
public function copyFrom(sourceRect:Rectangle):void

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 11, AIR 3.0, Flash Lite 4

Copies all of rectangle data from the source Rectangle object into the calling Rectangle object.

Parameters

sourceRect:Rectangle — The Rectangle object from which to copy the data.

equals

()method 
public function equals(toCompare:Rectangle):Boolean

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Determines whether the object specified in the toCompare parameter is equal to this Rectangle object. This method compares the x, y, width, and height properties of an object against the same properties of this Rectangle object.

Parameters

toCompare:Rectangle — The rectangle to compare to this Rectangle object.

Returns
Boolean — A value of true if the object has exactly the same values for the x, y, width, and height properties as this Rectangle object; otherwise false.

Related API Elements

inflate

()method 
public function inflate(dx:Number, dy:Number):void

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Increases the size of the Rectangle object by the specified amounts, in pixels. The center point of the Rectangle object stays the same, and its size increases to the left and right by the dx value, and to the top and the bottom by the dy value.

Parameters

dx:Number — The value to be added to the left and the right of the Rectangle object. The following equation is used to calculate the new width and position of the rectangle:
    x -= dx;
    width += 2 * dx;
    
 
dy:Number — The value to be added to the top and the bottom of the Rectangle. The following equation is used to calculate the new height and position of the rectangle:
    y -= dy;
    height += 2 * dy;
    

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Related API Elements

inflatePoint

()method 
public function inflatePoint(point:Point):void

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Increases the size of the Rectangle object. This method is similar to the Rectangle.inflate() method except it takes a Point object as a parameter.

The following two code examples give the same result:

     var rect1:Rectangle = new Rectangle(0,0,2,5);
     rect1.inflate(2,2)
     
     var rect1:Rectangle = new Rectangle(0,0,2,5);
     var pt1:Point = new Point(2,2);
     rect1.inflatePoint(pt1)
     

Parameters

point:Point — The x property of this Point object is used to increase the horizontal dimension of the Rectangle object. The y property is used to increase the vertical dimension of the Rectangle object.

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intersection

()method 
public function intersection(toIntersect:Rectangle):Rectangle

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

If the Rectangle object specified in the toIntersect parameter intersects with this Rectangle object, returns the area of intersection as a Rectangle object. If the rectangles do not intersect, this method returns an empty Rectangle object with its properties set to 0.

The resulting intersection rectangle.

Parameters

toIntersect:Rectangle — The Rectangle object to compare against to see if it intersects with this Rectangle object.

Returns
Rectangle — A Rectangle object that equals the area of intersection. If the rectangles do not intersect, this method returns an empty Rectangle object; that is, a rectangle with its x, y, width, and height properties set to 0.

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intersects

()method 
public function intersects(toIntersect:Rectangle):Boolean

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Determines whether the object specified in the toIntersect parameter intersects with this Rectangle object. This method checks the x, y, width, and height properties of the specified Rectangle object to see if it intersects with this Rectangle object.

Parameters

toIntersect:Rectangle — The Rectangle object to compare against this Rectangle object.

Returns
Boolean — A value of true if the specified object intersects with this Rectangle object; otherwise false.

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isEmpty

()method 
public function isEmpty():Boolean

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Determines whether or not this Rectangle object is empty.

Returns
Boolean — A value of true if the Rectangle object's width or height is less than or equal to 0; otherwise false.

offset

()method 
public function offset(dx:Number, dy:Number):void

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Adjusts the location of the Rectangle object, as determined by its top-left corner, by the specified amounts.

Parameters

dx:Number — Moves the x value of the Rectangle object by this amount.
 
dy:Number — Moves the y value of the Rectangle object by this amount.

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offsetPoint

()method 
public function offsetPoint(point:Point):void

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Adjusts the location of the Rectangle object using a Point object as a parameter. This method is similar to the Rectangle.offset() method, except that it takes a Point object as a parameter.

Parameters

point:Point — A Point object to use to offset this Rectangle object.

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setEmpty

()method 
public function setEmpty():void

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Sets all of the Rectangle object's properties to 0. A Rectangle object is empty if its width or height is less than or equal to 0.

This method sets the values of the x, y, width, and height properties to 0.

Related API Elements

setTo

()method 
public function setTo(xa:Number, ya:Number, widtha:Number, heighta:Number):void

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: Flash Player 11, AIR 3.0, Flash Lite 4

Sets the members of Rectangle to the specified values

Parameters

xa:Number — the values to set the rectangle to.
 
ya:Number
 
widtha:Number
 
heighta:Number

toString

()method 
public function toString():String

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Builds and returns a string that lists the horizontal and vertical positions and the width and height of the Rectangle object.

Returns
String — A string listing the value of each of the following properties of the Rectangle object: x, y, width, and height.

Related API Elements

union

()method 
public function union(toUnion:Rectangle):Rectangle

Language Version: ActionScript 3.0
Runtime Versions: AIR 1.0, Flash Player 9, Flash Lite 4

Adds two rectangles together to create a new Rectangle object, by filling in the horizontal and vertical space between the two rectangles.

The resulting union rectangle.

Note: The union() method ignores rectangles with 0 as the height or width value, such as: var rect2:Rectangle = new Rectangle(300,300,50,0);

Parameters

toUnion:Rectangle — A Rectangle object to add to this Rectangle object.

Returns
Rectangle — A new Rectangle object that is the union of the two rectangles.

More examples

RectangleExample.as

The following example uses the RectangleExample class to create three new Rectangle objects at various x,y coordinates and with various heights and widths and then uses the trace() method to confirm that the Rectangle instances were successfully created. Then a Boolean variable isContained is assigned to the result of the call to the containsRect() method, which determines that the second rectangle does not fully enclose the third rectangle.
package {
    import flash.display.Sprite;
    import flash.geom.Rectangle;

    public class RectangleExample extends Sprite {

        public function RectangleExample() {
            var firstRect:Rectangle = new Rectangle();
            trace(firstRect);  // (x=0, y=0, w=0, h=0)
            var secondRect:Rectangle = new Rectangle(1, 3, 11, 13);
            trace(secondRect); // (x=1, y=3, w=11, h=13)
            var thirdRect:Rectangle = new Rectangle(5, 8, 17, 19);
            trace(thirdRect);  // (x=5, y=8, w=17, h=19)
            var isContained:Boolean = secondRect.containsRect(thirdRect);
            trace(isContained); // false
        }
    }
}