Develop Reference

how to create three-level donut chart in d3.js

I'm using trying to create a multi-level donut chart in d3 version5
This image is drawn by d3 version3. it is working fine in version3. I decided to upgrade d3 to the latest version. now, donut chart is not drawn by d3(also no errors in the console)
D3 version 3 > version 5
Here is the sample dataset I used:
Hint: first value in the array is used storage and second is free storage
{
average: [30.012, 69.988],
minimum: [10, 90],
maximum: [40, 60]
}
Note: Above data is just a sample this is not exact data.
Here is the code I tried:
var width = 300;
var height = 300;
var radius = Math.floor((width / 6) - 2);
var classFn = function(a, b) {
return a === 0 ? classes[b] : 'default';
};
var pie = d3.layout.pie().sort(null);
var arc = d3.svg.arc();
var svg = d3.select(selector).append("svg");
svg.attr("width", width);
svg.attr("height", height);
svg = svg.append("g");
svg.attr("transform", "translate(" + width / 2 + "," + height / 2 + ")");
var gs = svg.selectAll("g").data(d3.values(dataset)).enter().append("g");
var path = gs.selectAll("path");
path = path.data(function(d) {
return pie(d);
});
path.enter().append("path");
path.attr("class", function(d, i, j) {
return classFn(i, j);
})
path.attr("d", function(d, i, j) {
return arc.innerRadius((j === 0 ? 0 : 2) + radius * j).outerRadius(radius * (j + 1))(d);
});
Note: This code is working fine in d3 version3.

2. Update:
I've updated the answer with a better solution. I didn't do this at first, because I didn't grasp you structure. I've updated it to being more D3 idiomatic. Plus it does away with the hack I made in my first update :)
var dataset = {
average: [0, 100],
minimum: [0, 100],
maximum: [0, 100]
}
var width = 300;
var height = 300;
var radius = Math.floor((width / 6) - 2);
var pie = d3.pie().sort(null);
var arc = d3.arc();
var svg = d3.select('body').append("svg");
svg.attr("width", width);
svg.attr("height", height);
svg = svg.append("g");
svg.attr("transform", "translate(" + width / 2 + "," + height / 2 + ")");
var gs = svg.selectAll("g").data(d3.values(dataset)).enter().append("g");
gs.each(function (d, j) {
d3.select(this).selectAll('path')
.data(pie(d)).enter()
.append('path')
.attr("class", function(d, i) {
// return classFn(i);
})
.attr('d', function (d) {
return arc
.innerRadius((j === 0 ? 0 : 2) + radius * j)
.outerRadius(radius * (j + 1))(d);
})
})
The updated code uses the index (here j) that is available when appending the g elements, which corresponds to you original j index. This makes it possible to calculate the radii in the original way.
To achieve this, the arc appending code is wrapped into a .each function that iterates over the g elements, making j available to us.
The class application should work as well, but I've commented it out, as the classFn function doesn't work, since the classes variable is not present.
1. Update:
Besides the original answer, when calculating the arc radii you rely on a j value that is different from D3 v3 and v5. I summise that j is used the index of the d3.values array, so I've cooked up a way to reverse look-up that index based on the input values.
First create a map for reverse mapping data values into their corresponding index:
var dataValueJoinChar = '¤'
var datasetValuesToIndex = d3.values(dataset).reduce((acc, curr, i) => {
acc[`0${dataValueJoinChar}${curr[0]}`] = i
acc[`1${dataValueJoinChar}${curr[1]}`] = i
return acc
}, {})
Then change the last part of your code to:
path = path.data(function(d) {
return pie(d);
}).enter().append("path");
path.attr("class", function(d, i, j) {
return classFn(i, j);
})
path.attr("d", function(d, i, j) {
var orgIndex = datasetValuesToIndex[`${i}${dataValueJoinChar}${d.data}`]
return arc
.innerRadius((orgIndex === 0 ? 0 : 2) + radius * orgIndex)
.outerRadius(radius * (orgIndex + 1))(d);
});
It might not be too pretty, but it's a simple adaption of your code that works.
------- Original answer --------
In D3 v5 pie and arc are found at d3.pie and d3.arc respectively. Therefore, try changing:
var pie = d3.layout.pie().sort(null);
var arc = d3.svg.arc();
To this instead:
var pie = d3.pie().sort(null);
var arc = d3.arc();
Pie API reference: https://github.com/d3/d3-shape/blob/v1.3.4/README.md#pie
Arc API reference: https://github.com/d3/d3-shape/blob/v1.3.4/README.md#arc
If you use a bundler to bundle sub-modules, both are part of the d3-shape module. If not they are both available in the full D3 library.
Hope this helps!

Split an SVG path lengthwise into multiple colours

I have a tree visualisation in which I am trying to display paths between nodes that represent a distribution with multiple classes. I want to split the path lengthwise into multiple colours to represent the frequency of each distribution.
For example: say we have Class A (red) and Class B (black), that each have a frequency of 50. Then I would like a path that is half red and half black between the nodes. The idea is to represent the relative frequencies of the classes, so the frequencies would be normalised.
My current (naive) attempt is to create a separate path for each class and then use an x-offset. It looks like this.
However, as shown in the image, the lines do not maintain an equal distance for the duration of the path.
The relevant segment of code:
linkGroup.append("path").attr("class", "link")
.attr("d", diagonal)
.style("stroke", "red")
.style("stroke-width", 5)
.attr("transform", function(d) {
return "translate(" + -2.5 + "," + 0.0 + ")"; });
linkGroup.append("path").attr("class", "link")
.attr("d", diagonal)
.style("stroke", "black")
.style("stroke-width", 5)
.attr("transform", function(d) {
return "translate(" + 2.5 + "," + 0.0 + ")"; });
It would be great if anyone has some advice.
Thanks!

A possible solution is to calculate the individual paths and fill with the required color.
Using the library svg-path-properties from geoexamples.com you can calculate properties (x,y,tangent) of a path without creating it first like it is done in this SO answer (this does not calculate the tangent).
The code snippet does it for 2 colors but it can be easy generalized for more.
You specify the colors, percentage and width of the stroke with a dictionary
var duoProp = { color: ["red", "black"], percent: 0.30, width: 15 };
percent is the amount color[0] takes from the stroke width.
var duoPath = pathPoints("M30,30C160,30 150,90 250,90S350,210 250,210", 10, duoProp);
duoPath.forEach( (d, i) => {
svg.append("path")
.attr("d", d)
.attr("fill", duoProp.color[i])
.attr("stroke", "none");
});
The pathPoints parameters
path that needs to be stroked, can be generated by d3.line path example from SO answer
var lineGenerator = d3.line().x(d=>d[0]).y(d=>d[1]).curve(d3.curveNatural);
var curvePoints = [[0,0],[0,10],[20,30]];
var duoPath = pathPoints(lineGenerator(curvePoints), 10, duoProp);
path length interval at which to sample (unit pixels). Every 10 pixels gives a good approximation
dictionary with the percent and width of the stroke
It returns an array with the paths to be filled, 1 for each color.
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Document</title>
<script src="https://d3js.org/d3.v5.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://unpkg.com/svg-path-properties#0.4.4/build/path-properties.min.js"></script>
</head>
<body>
<svg id="chart" width="350" height="350"></svg>
<script>
var svg = d3.select("#chart");
function pathPoints(path, stepLength, duoProp) {
var props = spp.svgPathProperties(path);
var length = props.getTotalLength();
var tList = d3.range(0, length, stepLength);
tList.push(length);
var tProps = tList.map(d => props.getPropertiesAtLength(d));
var pFactor = percent => (percent - 0.5) * duoProp.width;
tProps.forEach(p => {
p.x0 = p.x - pFactor(0) * p.tangentY;
p.y0 = p.y + pFactor(0) * p.tangentX;
p.xP = p.x - pFactor(duoProp.percent) * p.tangentY;
p.yP = p.y + pFactor(duoProp.percent) * p.tangentX;
p.x1 = p.x - pFactor(1) * p.tangentY;
p.y1 = p.y + pFactor(1) * p.tangentX;
});
var format1d = d3.format(".1f");
var createPath = (forward, backward) => {
var fp = tProps.map(p => forward(p));
var bp = tProps.map(p => backward(p));
bp.reverse();
return 'M' + fp.concat(bp).map(p => `${format1d(p[0])},${format1d(p[1])}`).join(' ') + 'z';
}
return [createPath(p => [p.x0, p.y0], p => [p.xP, p.yP]), createPath(p => [p.xP, p.yP], p => [p.x1, p.y1])]
}
var duoProp = { color: ["red", "black"], percent: 0.30, width: 15 };
var duoPath = pathPoints("M30,30C160,30 150,90 250,90S350,210 250,210", 10, duoProp);
duoPath.forEach( (d, i) => {
svg.append("path")
.attr("d", d)
.attr("fill", duoProp.color[i])
.attr("stroke", "none");
});
</script>
</body>
</html>

As a quick follow-up to rioV8's excellent answer, I was able to get their code working but needed to generalise it to work with more than two colours. In case someone else has a similar requirement, here is the code:
function pathPoints(path, stepLength, duoProp) {
// get the properties of the path
var props = spp.svgPathProperties(path);
var length = props.getTotalLength();
// build a list of segments to use as approximation points
var tList = d3.range(0, length, stepLength);
tList.push(length);
var tProps = tList.map(function (d) {
return props.getPropertiesAtLength(d);
});
// incorporate the percentage
var pFactor = function pFactor(percent) {
return (percent - 0.5) * duoProp.width;
};
// for each path segment, calculate offset points
tProps.forEach(function (p) {
// create array to store modified points
p.x_arr = [];
p.y_arr = [];
// calculate offset at 0%
p.x_arr.push(p.x - pFactor(0) * p.tangentY);
p.y_arr.push(p.y + pFactor(0) * p.tangentX);
// calculate offset at each specified percent
duoProp.percents.forEach(function(perc) {
p.x_arr.push(p.x - pFactor(perc) * p.tangentY);
p.y_arr.push(p.y + pFactor(perc) * p.tangentX);
});
// calculate offset at 100%
p.x_arr.push(p.x - pFactor(1) * p.tangentY);
p.y_arr.push(p.y + pFactor(1) * p.tangentX);
});
var format1d = d3.format(".1f");
var createPath = function createPath(forward, backward) {
var fp = tProps.map(function (p) {
return forward(p);
});
var bp = tProps.map(function (p) {
return backward(p);
});
bp.reverse();
return 'M' + fp.concat(bp).map(function (p) {
return format1d(p[0]) + "," + format1d(p[1]);
}).join(' ') + 'z';
};
// create a path for each projected point
var paths = [];
for(var i=0; i <= duoProp.percents.length; i++) {
paths.push(createPath(function (p) { return [p.x_arr[i], p.y_arr[i]]; }, function (p) { return [p.x_arr[i+1], p.y_arr[i+1]]; }));
}
return paths;
}
// generate the line
var duoProp = { color: ["red", "blue", "green"], percents: [0.5, 0.7], width: 15 };
var duoPath = pathPoints("M30,30C160,30 150,90 250,90S350,210 250,210", 10, duoProp);
duoPath.forEach( (d, i) => {
svg.append("path")
.attr("d", d)
.attr("fill", duoProp.color[i])
.attr("stroke", "none");
});
Note that the percents array specifies the cumulative percentage of the stroke, not the individual percentages of the width. E.g. in the example above, the red stroke will span 0% to 50% width, the blue stroke 50% to 70% width and the green stroke 70% to 100% width.

How to move along a path but only between two specified path points

This question is about d3 version 3.x and path movements.
Imagine there is a path and a circle element, and I want the circle to follow that path in a transition, but only up to some percentage.
I was asking this before and got a great answer from Gerardo Furtado here: My former question
Still, one question in this regards remains for me, and as I am a beginner, I couldn't find any working solution so far:
How can i trace this path, lets say, from a point at 25% to a point at 50%, and then later from a point at 50% to a point at 60%?
These numbers are just examples, any percentage value should be possible.
I need to avoid that the path movement always starts from position 0, but instead i want to start path movement from the current position the circle has reached already.
Hopefully I could express my question clear enough.
Thank you very much for any insight and help.

Well, I have to agree with LeBeau, and I see that you also do. Since I answered your last question, I just needed to do some minor changes in the function. However, keep his advise in mind for the next times: when asking a question, show us some code you've tried, even if it doesn't work, because it shows effort.
Back to the question.
For this solution, I'll wrap everything inside a function named move, which accepts two arguments, the initial position and the final position (both in percentages):
function move(initialPosition, finalPosition) {
The initial position, as the name implies, set the initial position of the circle along the path. The math is this:
var start = path.node()
.getPointAtLength(path.node().getTotalLength() * initialPosition);
Then, I slightly changed the function from my last answer to accept the initial and final positions:
function translateAlong(path) {
var l = path.getTotalLength() * (finalPosition - initialPosition);
return function() {
return function(t) {
var p = path.getPointAtLength(t * l +
(path.getTotalLength() * initialPosition));
return "translate(" + p.x + "," + p.y + ")";
};
};
}
Here is the demo. Clicking on the button calls move with 0.25 (initial position) and 0.5 (final position) as arguments:
var points = [
[240, 100],
[290, 200],
[340, 50],
[390, 150],
[90, 150],
[140, 50],
[190, 200]
];
var svg = d3.select("body").append("svg")
.attr("width", 500)
.attr("height", 300);
var path = svg.append("path")
.data([points])
.attr("d", d3.svg.line()
.tension(0) // Catmull–Rom
.interpolate("cardinal-closed"));
var color = d3.scale.category10();
var dataPositions = [{
initial: 0.25,
final: 0.5
}, {
initial: 0.5,
final: 0.6
}];
svg.selectAll(".point")
.data(points)
.enter().append("circle")
.attr("r", 4)
.attr("transform", function(d) {
return "translate(" + d + ")";
});
d3.select("button").on("click", function() {
move(0.25, 0.5);
});
function move(initialPosition, finalPosition) {
var start = path.node().getPointAtLength(path.node().getTotalLength() * initialPosition);
var circle = svg.append("circle")
.attr("r", 13)
.attr("fill", function(d, i) {
return color(i)
})
.attr("transform", "translate(" + start.x + "," + start.y + ")");
circle.transition()
.duration(1000)
.attrTween("transform", function() {
return translateAlong(path.node())()
});
function translateAlong(path) {
var l = path.getTotalLength() * (finalPosition - initialPosition);
return function() {
return function(t) {
var p = path.getPointAtLength(t * l +
(path.getTotalLength() * initialPosition));
return "translate(" + p.x + "," + p.y + ")";
};
};
}
}
path {
fill: none;
stroke: #000;
stroke-width: 3px;
}
circle {
stroke: #fff;
stroke-width: 3px;
}
<script src="//d3js.org/d3.v3.min.js"></script>
<button>Move</button>
<br>
PS: The function in this answer does not accept values bigger than 1. But you can try to change it if you need to do more than "one lap" in the path.

Fractal Spirographs: possible rounding errors in javascript

I have been trying to replicate the example present in the link. So I have started out with two circles, one fixed and one rotating. But the rotating circle is drifting away from the stationary circle and some times it is falling into the stationary circle. Can someone please help me fix this. I have created a live demo of code at the following link.Below shared is the complete code.
// takes two points x1,y1,x2,y2 and return r and Θ
function coordinateToPolar(x1,y1,x2,y2){
polar={}
polar.r= Math.sqrt(Math.pow(x2-x1,2)+Math.pow(y2-y1,2))
polar.theta=Math.atan2(y2-y1,x2-x1)
return polar;
}
function degreeToRadians(degree){
return (degree/180)*Math.PI;
}
function radiansToDegrees(rad){
return (rad/Math.PI)*180
}
// takes one point h,k the center of circle and r and Θ
function polarToCoordinate(r,theta,h,k){
point={}
point.x=h+r*Math.cos(theta);
point.y=k+r*Math.sin(theta);
return point;
}
//circle ds
function Circle(r,h,k) {
this.r=r;
this.h=h;
this.k=k;
}
/// Adjusting the geometric center
bufferX=250;
bufferY=250;
svg=d3.select("body").append("svg");
startX=200;
startY=200;
startR=150;
dsCircles=[];
// intiating prevR and lastR to 0
prevR=0;
lastR=0;
for(i=0;i<2;i++){
currR=startR>>(i*1);
dsCircles[i]=new Circle(currR, i==0?bufferX+prevR+currR: bufferX+ prevR+lastR+currR,bufferY+startY)
lastR=currR;
prevR +=currR;
}
svg.selectAll("circles").data(dsCircles).enter().append("circle").attr("id",function(d,i){return "circle"+(i+1)}).attr("r",function(d){ return d.r}).attr("cy",function(d){return d.k}).attr("cx",function(d){ return d.h});
window.setInterval(function interval(){
// static variable initiated only once
if(interval["itr"]==undefined){
// initializing iteration counter to 0
interval.itr=0;
// getting the polar coordinates of the circles with respect to geometric center
interval.theta=coordinateToPolar(dsCircles[0].h,dsCircles[0].k,dsCircles[1].h,dsCircles[1].k).theta;
interval.r=coordinateToPolar(dsCircles[0].h,dsCircles[0].k,dsCircles[1].h,dsCircles[1].k).r;
}
d3.select("#circle2").attr("cx",function(d){
// assigning new center x-coordinate
return polarToCoordinate(interval.r,interval.theta,dsCircles[0].h,dsCircles[0].k).x;
}).attr("cy",function(d){
// assigning new center y-coordinate
return polarToCoordinate(interval.r,interval.theta +.03,dsCircles[0].h,dsCircles[0].k).y;
});
d3.select("#circle2").attr("style",function(d){ return interval.itr%2==0?"stroke:red":"stroke:blue"; })
interval.itr++;
interval.theta +=.003
},10)

Just remove angle shift for cy +.03 here:
attr("cy",function(d){
// assigning new center y-coordinate
return polarToCoordinate(interval.r,interval.theta +.03,

Interesting visualization.
This is not a direct answer to you question because I find your code overly confusing and troubling to debug. You seem to be doing way more math then you need; converting back from forth to different coordinate systems. Also, animating in a setTimeout is not a good practice.
Here's a quick refactor that takes advantage of d3.transition and simplifies the calculations. It also drives the addition of new circles through data.
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<script data-require="d3#4.0.0" data-semver="4.0.0" src="https://d3js.org/d3.v4.min.js"></script>
</head>
<body>
<script>
var width = 500,
height = 500;
var svg = d3.select('body')
.append('svg')
.attr('width', width)
.attr('height', height)
.append('g')
.attr('transform','translate(' + width/2 + ',' + height/2 + ')');
var data = [
{
r: 75,
x: 0,
y: 0,
c: 'black',
d: 0
}, {
r: 50,
x: 0,
y: 0,
c: 'steelblue',
d: 7000
},{
r: 30,
x: 0,
y: 0,
c: 'orange',
d: 5000
},{
r: 20,
x: 0,
y: 0,
c: 'red',
d: 2000
},{
r: 10,
x: 0,
y: 0,
c: 'green',
d: 500
}
];
data.forEach(function(d,i){
if (i === 0) d.pD = null;
else d.pD = data[i-1];
});
svg.selectAll('circle')
.data(data)
.enter()
.append('circle')
.attr('r', function(d){
return d.r;
})
.style('fill', 'none')
.style('stroke', function(d){
return d.c
})
.each(goRound);
function goRound(d,i){
if (!d.pD) return function(t) { }
var self = d3.select(this);
self.transition()
.ease(d3.easeLinear)
.duration(function(d){
return d.d;
})
.tween("go.round", function(){
var inter = d3.interpolate(0, Math.PI * 2);
return function(t) {
d.x = Math.cos(inter(t)) * (d.pD.r + d.r) + d.pD.x;
d.y = Math.sin(inter(t)) * (d.pD.r + d.r) + d.pD.y;
self.attr('cx', d.x);
self.attr('cy', d.y);
};
})
.on('end', goRound);
}
</script>
</body>
</html>

Combining Parent and Nested Data with d3.js

I have a data structure like this (assume that the data structure is non-negotiable):
data = {
segments : [
{x : 20, size : 10, colors : ['#ff0000','#00ff00']},
{x : 40, size : 20, colors : ['#0000ff','#000000']}
]};
Using the d3.js javascript library, I'd like to draw four rectangles, one for each color in both colors arrays. Information from each entry in the segments array is used to draw the rectangles corresponding to each color in its color array. E.g., The red and green rectangles will have a width and height of 10. The resulting html should look like this:
<div id="container">
<svg width="200" height="200">
<g>
<rect x="20" y="20" width="10" height="10" fill="#ff0000"></rect>
<rect x="30" y="30" width="10" height="10" fill="#00ff00"></rect>
</g>
<g>
<rect x="40" y="40" width="20" height="20" fill="#0000ff"></rect>
<rect x="60" y="60" width="20" height="20" fill="#000000"></rect>
</g>
</svg>
</div>
I've come up with some code that accomplishes this, but I found the part about using data from two different levels of nesting in data to be confusing, and I feel that there might be a more idiomatic way to accomplish the same with d3.js. Here's the code (full example at http://jsbin.com/welcome/39650/edit):
function pos(d,i) { return d.x + (i * d.size); } // rect position
function size(d,i) { return d.size; } // rect size
function f(d,i) { return d.color; } // rect color
// add the top-level svg element and size it
vis = d3
.select('#container')
.append('svg')
.attr('width',200)
.attr('height',200);
// add the nested svg elements
var nested = vis
.selectAll('g')
.data(data.segments)
.enter()
.append('g');
// Add a rectangle for each color
nested
.selectAll('rect')
.data(function(d) {
// **** ATTENTION ****
// Is there a more idiomatic, d3-ish way to approach this?
var expanded = [];
for(var i = 0; i < d.colors.length; i++) {
expanded.push({
color : d.colors[i],
x : d.x
size : d.size });
}
return expanded;
})
.enter()
.append('rect')
.attr('x',pos)
.attr('y',pos)
.attr('width',size)
.attr('height',size)
.attr('fill',f);
Is there a better and/or more idiomatic way to access data from two different levels of nesting in a data structure using d3.js?
Edit
Here's the solution I came up with, thanks to meetamit's answer for the closure idea, and using more idiomatic d3.js indentation thanks to nautat's answer:
$(function() {
var
vis = null,
width = 200,
height = 200,
data = {
segments : [
{x : 20, y : 0, size : 10, colors : ['#ff0000','#00ff00']},
{x : 40, y : 0, size : 20, colors : ['#0000ff','#000000']}
]
};
// set the color
function f(d,i) {return d;}
// set the position
function pos(segment) {
return function(d,i) {
return segment.x + (i * segment.size);
};
}
// set the size
function size(segment) {
return function() {
return segment.size;
};
}
// add the top-level svg element and size it
vis = d3.select('#container').append('svg')
.attr('width',width)
.attr('height',height);
// add the nested svg elements
var nested = vis
.selectAll('g')
.data(data.segments)
.enter().append('g');
// Add a rectangle for each color. Size of rectangles is determined
// by the "parent" data object.
nested
.each(function(segment, i) {
var
ps = pos(segment),
sz = size(segment);
var colors = d3.select(this)
.selectAll('rect')
.data(segment.colors)
.enter().append('rect')
.attr('x', ps)
.attr('y',ps)
.attr('width', sz)
.attr('height',sz)
.attr('fill', f);
});
});
Here's the full working example: http://jsbin.com/welcome/42885/edit

You can use closures
var nested = vis
.selectAll('g')
.data(data.segments);
nested.enter()
.append('g')
.each(function(segment, i) {
var colors = d3.select(this)
.selectAll('rect')
.data(segment.colors);
colors.enter()
.append('rect')
.attr('x', function(color, j) { return pos(segment, j); })
// OR: .attr('x', function(color, j) { return segment.x + (j * segment.size); })
.attr('width', function(color, j) { return size(segment); })
.attr('fill', String);
});

You could do something like the following to restructure your data:
newdata = data.segments.map(function(s) {
return s.colors.map(function(d) {
var o = this; // clone 'this' in some manner, for example:
o = ["x", "size"].reduce(function(obj, k) { return(obj[k] = o[k], obj); }, {});
return (o.color = d, o);
}, s);
});
This will transform your input data into:
// newdata:
[
[
{"size":10,"x":20,"color":"#ff0000"},
{"size":10,"x":20,"color":"#00ff00"}],
[
{"size":20,"x":40,"color":"#0000ff"},
{"size":20,"x":40,"color":"#000000"}
]
]
which then can be used in the standard nested data selection pattern:
var nested = vis.selectAll('g')
.data(newdata)
.enter().append('g');
nested.selectAll('rect')
.data(function(d) { return d; })
.enter().append('rect')
.attr('x',pos)
.attr('y',pos)
.attr('width',size)
.attr('height',size)
.attr('fill',f);
BTW, if you'd like to be more d3-idiomatic, I would change the indentation style a bit for the chained methods. Mike proposed to use half indentation every time the selection changes. This helps to make it very clear what selection you are working on. For example in the last code; the variable nested refers to the enter() selection. See the 'selections' chapter in: http://bost.ocks.org/mike/d3/workshop/

I would try to flatten the colors before you actually start creating the elements. If changes to the data occur I would then update this flattened data structure and redraw. The flattened data needs to be stored somewhere to make real d3 transitions possible.
Here is a longer example that worked for me. Yon can see it in action here.
Here is the code:
var data = {
segments : [
{x : 20, size : 10, colors : ['#ff0000','#00ff00']},
{x : 40, size : 20, colors : ['#0000ff','#000000']}
]
};
function pos(d,i) { return d.x + (i * d.size); } // rect position
function size(d,i) { return d.size; } // rect size
function f(d,i) { return d.color; } // rect color
function flatten(data) {
// converts the .colors to a ._colors list
data.segments.forEach( function(s,i) {
var list = s._colors = s._colors || [];
s.colors.forEach( function(c,j) {
var obj = list[j] = list[j] || {}
obj.color = c
obj.x = s.x
obj.size = s.size
});
});
}
function changeRect(chain) {
return chain
.transition()
.attr('x',pos)
.attr('y',pos)
.attr('width',size)
.attr('height',size)
.attr('fill',f)
.style('fill-opacity', 0.5)
}
vis = d3
.select('#container')
.append('svg')
.attr('width',200)
.attr('height',200);
// add the top-level svg element and size it
function update(){
flatten(data);
// add the nested svg elements
var all = vis.selectAll('g')
.data(data.segments)
all.enter().append('g');
all.exit().remove();
// Add a rectangle for each color
var rect = all.selectAll('rect')
.data(function (d) { return d._colors; }, function(d){return d.color;})
changeRect( rect.enter().append('rect') )
changeRect( rect )
rect.exit().remove()
}
function changeLater(time) {
setTimeout(function(){
var ds = data.segments
ds[0].x = 10 + Math.random() * 100;
ds[0].size = 10 + Math.random() * 100;
ds[1].x = 10 + Math.random() * 100;
ds[1].size = 10 + Math.random() * 100;
if(time == 500) ds[0].colors.push("orange")
if(time == 1000) ds[1].colors.push("purple")
if(time == 1500) ds[1].colors.push("yellow")
update()
}, time)
}
update()
changeLater(500)
changeLater(1000)
changeLater(1500)
Important here is the flatten function which does the data conversion and stores/reuses the result as _colors property in the parent data element. Another important line is;
.data(function (d) { return d._colors; }, function(d){return d.color;})
which specifies where to get the data (first parameter) AND what the unique id for each data element is (second parameter). This helps identifying existing colors for transitions, etc.