Decimation of 2D Scalar Data with Error Control
Daniel R. Schikore, Chandrajit Bajaj · Purdue e-Pubs (Purdue University System) · 1995
Scientific applications frequently use dense scalar data defined over a 2D mesh. Often these meshes are created at a high density in order to capture the high frequency components of sampled data or to ensure an error bound in a physical simulation. We present an algorithm which drastically reduces the number of triangle mesh elements required to represent a mesh of scalar data values, while maintaining that errors at each mesh point will not exceed a user-specified bound. The algorithm deletes vertices and surrounding triangles of the mesh which can be safely removed without violating the error constraint. The hole which is left after removal of a vertex is retriangulated with the goal of minimizing the error introduced into the mesh. Examples using medical data demonstrate the utility of the decimation algorithm. Suggested extensions show that the ideas set forth in this paper may be applied to a wide range of more complex scientific data. Keywords: Computer Graphics, Volume Visuali...