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Apollonian de Casteljau-type algorithms for complex rational Bézier curves

Publication at Faculty of Mathematics and Physics |
2023

Abstract

We describe a new de Casteljau-type algorithm for complex rational Bezier curves. After proving that these curves exhibit the maximal possible circularity, we construct their points via a de Casteljau-type algorithm over complex numbers.

Consequently, the line segments that correspond to convex linear combinations in affine spaces are replaced by circular arcs. In difference to the algorithm of Sanchez-Reyes (2009), the construction of all the points is governed by (generically complex) roots of the denominator, using one of them for each level.

Moreover, one of the bi-polar coordinates is fixed at each level, independently of the parameter value. A rational curve of the complex degree n admits generically n! distinct de Casteljau-type algorithms, corresponding to the different orderings of the denominator's roots.