Pythagorean-hodograph space curves |
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Authors: | Rida T. Farouki Takis Sakkalis |
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Affiliation: | (1) IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center, P.O. Box 218, 10598 Yorktown Heights, NY, USA;(2) Department of Mathematical Sciences, Oakland University, 48309 Rochester, MI, USA |
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Abstract: | We investigate the properties of polynomial space curvesr(t)={x(t), y(t), z(t)} whose hodographs (derivatives) satisfy the Pythagorean conditionx′2(t)+y′2(t)+z′2(t)≡σ2(t) for some real polynomial σ(t). The algebraic structure of thecomplete set of regular Pythagorean-hodograph curves in ℝ3 is inherently more complicated than that of the corresponding set in ℝ2. We derive a characterization for allcubic Pythagoreanhodograph space curves, in terms of constraints on the Bézier control polygon, and show that such curves correspond geometrically to a family of non-circular helices. Pythagorean-hodograph space curves of higher degree exhibit greater shape flexibility (the quintics, for example, satisfy the general first-order Hermite interpolation problem in ℝ3), but they have no “simple” all-encompassing characterization. We focus on asubset of these higher-order curves that admits a straightforward constructive representation. As distinct from polynomial space curves in general, Pythagorean-hodograph space curves have the following attractive attributes: (i) the arc length of any segment can be determined exactly without numerical quadrature; and (ii) thecanal surfaces based on such curves as spines have precise rational parameterizations. |
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Keywords: | Space curve Pythagorean hodograph helix arc length canal surface |
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