filling circle with hexagons?

Question

I'm trying to find a way to put as much hexagons in a circle as possible. So far the best result I have obtained is by generating hexagons from the center outward in a circular shape. Using Javascript to draw on a canvas, how would you do this?

Answer 1

I would start by centering 1 hexagon in the circle and making sure that fits. Because hexagons stack nicely, you can add a circle of hexagons around it. For each additional hexagon, do the same, making sure you don't overlap hexagons, and that you only check each hexagon once.

This is a breadth-first search problem. It's similar to how Minesweeper determines adjacent empty tiles.