Computing offsets of NURBS curves and surfaces

This paper presents algorithms for computing offsets of NURBS curves and surfaces. The basic approach consists of four steps: (1) recognition of special curves and surfaces; (2) sampling the offset curve or surface based on bounds on second derivatives; (3) interpolating these points; and (4) removing all unwanted knots using the offset tolerance. The method provides a good handle on error control and results in the fewest number of control points compared to all published work. It also allows one to control the degree and the parametrization of the offset approximation. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.