Implicit Surface Modelling with Radial Basis Functions
by
Jon Cherrie
Applied Research Associates NZ Ltd
Coauthors: R.K. Beatson (University of Canterbury), J.C. Carr, T.R. Evans, W.R. Fright, B.C. McCallum, T.J. Mitchell

Interpolating incomplete meshes and reconstructing surfaces from point clouds derived from 3D range scanners are difficult problems in computer graphics and Computer Aided Design (CAD). Smoothly blending between surfaces and ensuring surfaces are manufacturable are related problems of equal importance. Implicit modelling of objects with Radial Basis Functions (RBFs) offers a unified approach to solving these problems and offers a compact, mesh-independent surface representation, with further benefits such as reliable calculation of surface normals. We demonstrate that recently developed fast fitting and evaluation techniques make RBFs a practical solution which is applicable to large data sets and complicated objects, previously considered computationally intractable.

Modelling surfaces with Radial Basis Functions

Date received: October 18, 2000