blog-posts/2026-06-10-11:31-flow-rbp-a-library-for-packing-rectangles-into-two-dimensional-finite-bins.md

   1 author: Andreas
   2 published: 2026-06-10 11:31:00
   3 updated: 2026-06-10 11:31:00
   4 topics: flow-rbp, Rect bin packing, Rust
   5 title: flow-rbp: A library for packing rectangles into two-dimensional finite bins
   6 snippet: flow-rbp is a library for packing rectangles into two-dimensional finite bins using different heuristic methods for placement.
   7
   8 ---
   9
  10 [flow-rbp](https://luflow.net/git-repos/flow-rbp.git) is a library for packing
  11 rectangles into two-dimensional finite bins using different heuristic methods
  12 for placement.
  13
  14 The two-dimensional rectangle bin packing is a classical problem in
  15 combinatorial optimization. In this problem, one is given a sequence of
  16 rectangles `(R1, R2, ... Rn), Ri = (wi, hi)` and the task is to find a packing
  17 of these items into a minimum number of bins of size `(W, H)`. No two
  18 rectangles may intersect or be contained inside one another. This library uses
  19 an algorithm sometimes referred as `The Maximal Rectangles ALgorithm`. This
  20 algorithm stores a list of free rectangles that represents the free area of the
  21 bin.
  22
  23 [flow-texpack](https://luflow.net/git-repos/flow-texpack.git) is a program that
  24 uses [flow-rbp](https://luflow.net/git-repos/flow-rbp.git) to generate texture
  25 atlas.
  26
  27 ### Installing Rust
  28
  29 Install `Rust` from your package manager or by downloading from here:
  30 [https://rust-lang.org/](https://rust-lang.org/).
  31
  32 ### Getting the code
  33
  34 Install `git` from your package manager or by downloading from here:
  35 [https://git-scm.com/install](https://git-scm.com/install). The [git
  36 repository](https://luflow.net/git-repos/flow-rbp.git) can also be browsed
  37 online.
  38
  39 Clone the `git` repository:
  40
  41 ```sh
  42 git clone https://luflow.net/git/flow-rbp.git
  43 ```
  44
  45 ### Usage
  46
  47 Add this to your `Cargo.toml`:
  48
  49 ```
  50 [dependencies]
  51 flow-rbp = { git = "https://luflow.net/git/flow-rbp.git", tag = "v0.1.0" }
  52 ```
  53
  54 Then:
  55
  56 ```rust
  57 use flow_rbp::FreeRectHeuristic;
  58 use flow_rbp::RectsBinPack;
  59
  60 // create a new bin of size 32x32 which allows rotation:
  61 let mut rbp = RectsBinPack::new(32, 32, true).unwrap();
  62
  63 // make sure occupancy is zero:
  64 assert_eq!(rbp.get_occupancy(), 0.0);
  65
  66 // add a few rects that should fit:
  67 assert_eq!(rbp.insert(16, 16, FreeRectHeuristic::BottomLeft).is_some(), true);
  68 assert_eq!(rbp.insert(16, 16, FreeRectHeuristic::BottomLeft).is_some(), true);
  69 assert_eq!(rbp.get_occupancy(), 0.5);
  70 assert_eq!(rbp.insert(16, 16, FreeRectHeuristic::BottomLeft).is_some(), true);
  71 assert_eq!(rbp.insert(16, 16, FreeRectHeuristic::BottomLeft).is_some(), true);
  72 assert_eq!(rbp.get_occupancy(), 1.0);
  73
  74 // this rect will not fit and therefore returns None:
  75 assert_eq!(rbp.insert(1, 1, FreeRectHeuristic::BottomLeft).is_none(), true);
  76
  77 ```
  78
  79 ### License
  80
  81 [flow-rbp](https://luflow.net/git-repos/flow-rbp.git) is licensed under the
  82 zlib license. This license allows you to use `flow-rbp` freely in any software.