FCB Cypher Version 3.0  2008

The FCB Cypher is designed to be a means of communicating a knot structure via a string of text characters and so can be sent via a simple email, forum post or even communicated by spoken word in an unambiguous manner.

Credited to Frank Charles Brown.

The cypher has five parts as in the following example:-

FCB Version 3.x

Overhand Knot

Overhand Stopper knot, ABoK #46

O.I.  3:6

 ebi fbj dci ech fcg gca ddk edg fdl eeo

which is represented by the following diagram:-

The first line refers to the cypher version.

The second line defines the knots common name.

The third line defines knot usage, AKA, and ABoK reference(s).

The fourth line defines the Overs Index.

The fifth line is the cypher text line and comprises a string of sets of three letters, seperated by spaces.

The first two letters denote a position in a two dimensional grid lettered starting from 'a' in the top left hand corner.  The first letter denotes the column and the second letter denotes the row.  Thus cb denotes the cell which is the third column in from the left and the second row down from the top and aa denotes the top left hand cell.

The third letter denotes a tile image from the following table.

To recreate the knot diagram draw the symbol allocated to each code into the cell denoted by the first two letters.

So the code 'aad' would require you to draw the start symbol 'd' into the first cell on the first row.

To read the resultant diagram, the symbols are interpreted as follows:-

a..d denote the Working end  ( East, North, South and West respectively).

e and f are non crossing lines (East West and North South respectively).

g and h denote crossing lines, the solid line is taken to be on top of the other (Over East West and Over North South respectively).

i..l denote curves or arcs (arc NW, arc NE, arc SW and arc SE respectively)

M..p have dual functions,  where they point out of the knot they denote the Standing part (SP W, SP N, SP S, SP E), but where they point into the knot they are used to denote the lines of a loop.

q and r denote a line passing behind a spar (Obscured Line EW and NS ).

Code Examples are given here -  FCB Cypher Examples with diagrams.

A windows program is available to draw a knot diagram and create a cypher string or to load in a cypher file and recreate the diagram.

The Windows program can be downloaded from here  FCBV3.exe

and details of how to use it can be read here