pyclothoids
A library for clothoid curves in Python
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes, if you need clothoid curves and are comfortable with aging maintenance. The package is stable (no known vulnerabilities, last release April 2025), has reasonable platform coverage via pre-built wheels, and solves a specialized but real problem in engineering and physics. The main caveat is the unclear license—verify it matches your project's requirements before committing. Not recommended if simpler curves will solve your problem.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- pybind11 is listed as a runtime dependency; verify it is installed or included with the wheels for your platform.
- Medium install friction: the package ships as pre-built wheels across macOS, Linux (manylinux and musl), and Windows, but depends on pybind11 at runtime.
- Last release was in April 2025; the repository is active but aging (493 days since last release).
License · maintenance · safety
(unclear) — License status is unclear—no SPDX identifier or raw license text is recorded. Before adopting this package in a commercial or copyleft-sensitive project, verify the actual license terms in the repository.
last release 2025-04-08 (493 days) · last repo commit 2025-05-11 · 57 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 106,770 downloads/mo, #12,640 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install pyclothoids
from pyclothoids import Clothoid
# Create a clothoid curve
clothoid = Clothoid.StandardParams(curvature_start=0.0, curvature_end=0.1, arc_length=10.0)
print(clothoid)- Minimum Python version requirement is unspecified; wheels exist but earlier support is unknown.
- Whether pybind11 must be installed separately or is bundled with the wheels.
- Actual license identifier and terms (SPDX and raw text both missing from metadata).
What it is and what it does
Pyclothoids wraps state-of-the-art numerical algorithms for clothoid curve geometry into a simple, immutable Python API centered on a single Clothoid class. Clothoid curves are spirals with the mathematical property that curvature increases linearly with arc length—a property valuable in physics and engineering but expensive to compute because Cartesian coordinates require Fresnel integral evaluation. The library aims to hide that complexity behind an intuitive interface so you can use clothoids without mastering the underlying numerical methods.
The package is designed for minimalism: the top-level API consists of one class, Clothoid, which is immutable—any transformation returns a new instance rather than modifying the original. This design prevents common errors and keeps the learning curve shallow. The description notes that clothoids are not always well-behaved and recommends considering simpler curves first unless clothoid properties are genuinely required for your problem.
Use it for
- Road and railway design: clothoids are standard in civil engineering for smooth transitions between straight and curved sections.
- Robot path planning: computing smooth, curvature-continuous trajectories for autonomous systems.
- Optical and wave physics: modeling light paths and wave propagation where linear curvature growth is relevant.
- Computer graphics and animation: generating smooth spiral curves for visual effects or motion paths.
- Numerical geometry research: prototyping and experimenting with clothoid-based algorithms without low-level implementation overhead.
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes, if you need clothoid curves and are comfortable with aging maintenance.
The package is stable (no known vulnerabilities, last release April 2025), has reasonable platform coverage via pre-built wheels, and solves a specialized but real problem in engineering and physics. The main caveat is the unclear license—verify it matches your project's requirements before committing. Not recommended if simpler curves will solve your problem.
Install
pyclothoids on PyPI
Before you install
Medium install friction: the package ships as pre-built wheels across macOS, Linux (manylinux and musl), and Windows, but depends on pybind11 at runtime. Last release was in April 2025; the repository is active but aging (493 days since last release).
pybind11 is listed as a runtime dependency; verify it is installed or included with the wheels for your platform.
License in practice
License status is unclear—no SPDX identifier or raw license text is recorded. Before adopting this package in a commercial or copyleft-sensitive project, verify the actual license terms in the repository.
Quickstart
pip install pyclothoids
from pyclothoids import Clothoid
# Create a clothoid curve
clothoid = Clothoid.StandardParams(curvature_start=0.0, curvature_end=0.1, arc_length=10.0)
print(clothoid)Verify before relying
- Minimum Python version requirement is unspecified; wheels exist but earlier support is unknown.
- Whether pybind11 must be installed separately or is bundled with the wheels.
- Actual license identifier and terms (SPDX and raw text both missing from metadata).
Package facts
| License | Not declared unclear |
| Python support | Not specified |
| Install friction | Medium. Platform-specific wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 1 packagepybind11 |
| Maintenance | Aging 493 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 106,770 / month, #12,640 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
Evidence: pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp310-cp310-macosx_10_9_x86_64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp310-cp310-manylinux_2_17_i686.manylinux2014_i686.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp310-cp310-manylinux_2_17_x86_64.manylinux2014_x86_64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_1_i686.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_1_x86_64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp310-cp310-win32.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp310-cp310-win_amd64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp311-cp311-macosx_10_9_x86_64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp311-cp311-manylinux_2_17_i686.manylinux2014_i686.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp311-cp311-manylinux_2_17_x86_64.manylinux2014_x86_64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp311-cp311-musllinux_1_1_i686.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp311-cp311-musllinux_1_1_x86_64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp311-cp311-win32.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp311-cp311-win_amd64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp312-cp312-macosx_10_13_x86_64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp312-cp312-manylinux_2_17_i686.manylinux2014_i686.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp312-cp312-manylinux_2_17_x86_64.manylinux2014_x86_64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp312-cp312-musllinux_1_2_i686.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp312-cp312-musllinux_1_2_x86_64.whl; pyclothoids-0.2.0-cp312-cp312-win32.whl
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