Stellar Mesh Simplification Using Probabilistic Optimization

This paper introduces the Stellar Simplification scheme, a fast implementation of the Four–Face Cluster algorithm. In this scheme, a probabilistic optimization heuristic substitutes the priority queue of the original algorithm, which results in a 40% faster algorithm with the same order of distortion. This implementation uses a very concise data structure which consists only of two arrays of integers to represent the surface topology. The method extends naturaly to a progressive and/or multi–resolution computational scheme for combinatorial surfaces.