TSL Docs

Node

Last modified: Oct 29, 2025

Base class for all nodes.

Constructor

new Node(nodeType?)

Parameter	Type	Default Value
nodeType?	`null \| string`	`null`

Constructs a new node.

Accessor Type Modifiers

get type string static

set needsUpdate boolean —

Set this property to true when the node should be regenerated.

Parameter

Parameter	Type	Default Value
value	`boolean`	—

get type string —

The type of the class. The value is usually the constructor name.

Method Type Modifiers

onUpdate (callback: Function, updateType: string) => Node —

Convenient method for defining {@link Node#update}.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
callback	`Function`	—
updateType	`string`	—

Returns

Node

onFrameUpdate (callback: Function) => Node —

Convenient method for defining {@link Node#update}. Similar to {@link Node#onUpdate}, but this method automatically sets the update type to FRAME.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
callback	`Function`	—

Returns

Node

onRenderUpdate (callback: Function) => Node —

Convenient method for defining {@link Node#update}. Similar to {@link Node#onUpdate}, but this method automatically sets the update type to RENDER.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
callback	`Function`	—

Returns

Node

onObjectUpdate (callback: Function) => Node —

Convenient method for defining {@link Node#update}. Similar to {@link Node#onUpdate}, but this method automatically sets the update type to OBJECT.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
callback	`Function`	—

Returns

Node

onReference (callback: Function) => Node —

Convenient method for defining {@link Node#updateReference}.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
callback	`Function`	—

Returns

Node

updateReference () => any —

Nodes might refer to other objects like materials. This method allows to dynamically update the reference to such objects based on a given state (e.g. the current node frame or builder).

Returns

any

isGlobal () => boolean —

By default this method returns the value of the {@link Node#global} flag. This method can be overwritten in derived classes if an analytical way is required to determine the global cache referring to the current shader-stage.

Returns

boolean

getChildren () => Generator<…> —

Generator function that can be used to iterate over the child nodes.

Returns

Generator<any, void, unknown>

Modifiers

generator

dispose () => void —

Calling this method dispatches the dispose event. This event can be used to register event listeners for clean up tasks.

Returns

void

traverse (callback: traverseCallback) => void —

Callback for {@link Node#traverse}.

Can be used to traverse through the node’s hierarchy.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
callback	`traverseCallback`	—

Returns

void

_getChildren (ignores?: Set<…>) => Array<…> —

Returns the child nodes of this node.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
ignores?	`Set<Node>`	`new Set()`

Returns

Array<Object>

getCacheKey (force?: boolean, ignores?: Set<…>) => number —

Returns the cache key for this node.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
force?	`boolean`	`false`
ignores?	`Set<Node>`	`null`

Returns

number

customCacheKey () => number —

Generate a custom cache key for this node.

Returns

number

getScope () => Node —

Returns the references to this node which is by default this.

Returns

Node

getHash () => string —

Returns the hash of the node which is used to identify the node. By default it’s the {@link Node#uuid} however derived node classes might have to overwrite this method depending on their implementation.

Returns

string

getUpdateType () => { NONE: string; FRAME: string; RENDER: string; OBJECT: string; } —

Returns the update type of {@link Node#update}.

Returns

Property	Type	Modifiers
NONE	`string`	`—`
FRAME	`string`	`—`
RENDER	`string`	`—`
OBJECT	`string`	`—`

getUpdateBeforeType () => { NONE: string; FRAME: string; RENDER: string; OBJECT: string; } —

Returns the update type of {@link Node#updateBefore}.

Returns

Property	Type	Modifiers
NONE	`string`	`—`
FRAME	`string`	`—`
RENDER	`string`	`—`
OBJECT	`string`	`—`

getUpdateAfterType () => { NONE: string; FRAME: string; RENDER: string; OBJECT: string; } —

Returns the update type of {@link Node#updateAfter}.

Returns

Property	Type	Modifiers
NONE	`string`	`—`
FRAME	`string`	`—`
RENDER	`string`	`—`
OBJECT	`string`	`—`

getElementType (builder: NodeBuilder) => string —

Certain types are composed of multiple elements. For example a vec3 is composed of three float values. This method returns the type of these elements.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
builder	`NodeBuilder`	—

Returns

string

getMemberType () => string —

Returns the node member type for the given name.

Returns

string

getNodeType (builder: NodeBuilder) => string —

Returns the node’s type.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
builder	`NodeBuilder`	—

Returns

string

getShared (builder: NodeBuilder) => Node —

This method is used during the build process of a node and ensures equal nodes are not built multiple times but just once. For example if attribute( 'uv' ) is used multiple times by the user, the build process makes sure to process just the first node.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
builder	`NodeBuilder`	—

Returns

Node

getArrayCount () => null | number —

Returns the number of elements in the node array.

Returns

null | number

setup (builder: NodeBuilder) => null | Node —

Represents the setup stage which is the first step of the build process, see {@link Node#build} method. This method is often overwritten in derived modules to prepare the node which is used as a node’s output/result. If an output node is prepared, then it must be returned in the return statement of the derived module’s setup function.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
builder	`NodeBuilder`	—

Returns

null | Node

analyze (builder: NodeBuilder, output?: null | Node) => void —

Represents the analyze stage which is the second step of the build process, see {@link Node#build} method. This stage analyzes the node hierarchy and ensures descendent nodes are built.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
builder	`NodeBuilder`	—
output?	`null \| Node`	`null`

Returns

void

generate (builder: NodeBuilder, output?: null | string) => null | string —

Represents the generate stage which is the third step of the build process, see {@link Node#build} method. This state builds the output node and returns the resulting shader string.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
builder	`NodeBuilder`	—
output?	`null \| string`	—

Returns

null | string

updateBefore () => null | boolean —

The method can be implemented to update the node’s internal state before it is used to render an object. The {@link Node#updateBeforeType} property defines how often the update is executed.

Returns

null | boolean

updateAfter () => null | boolean —

The method can be implemented to update the node’s internal state after it was used to render an object. The {@link Node#updateAfterType} property defines how often the update is executed.

Returns

null | boolean

update () => null | boolean —

The method can be implemented to update the node’s internal state when it is used to render an object. The {@link Node#updateType} property defines how often the update is executed.

Returns

null | boolean

before (node: any) => this —

Parameter	Type	Default Value
node	`any`	—

Returns

this

build (builder: NodeBuilder, output?: null | string | Node) => null | string | Node —

This method performs the build of a node. The behavior and return value depend on the current build stage:

setup : Prepares the node and its children for the build process. This process can also create new nodes. Returns the node itself or a variant.
analyze : Analyzes the node hierarchy for optimizations in the code generation stage. Returns null .
generate : Generates the shader code for the node. Returns the generated shader string.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
builder	`NodeBuilder`	—
output?	`null \| string \| Node`	`null`

Returns

null | string | Node

getSerializeChildren () => Generator<…> —

Returns the child nodes as a JSON object.

Returns

Generator<Object, any, any>

serialize (json: Object) => void —

Serializes the node to JSON.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
json	`Object`	—

Returns

void

deserialize (json: Object) => void —

Deserializes the node from the given JSON.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
json	`Object`	—

Returns

void

toJSON (meta: null | Object) => Object —

Serializes the node into the three.js JSON Object/Scene format.

Parameter	Type	Default Value
meta	`null \| Object`	—

Returns

Object

Extends

any