3D Mesh Simplification for Freeform Surfacing

Automatic simplification of highly detailed mesh models has been gaining considerable interest in the research field of reverse engineering and rapid prototyping recent years. However, almost all the present simplification algorithms are only focus on the geometry similarity. The triangle quality and the machinability of the mesh are less considered. We have developed a simplification algorithm from the character of freeform surfacing. The algorithm uses iterative edge collapse to simplify models, and use vertex importance value to control the error of the model as it is being simplified. It can rapidly produce faithful approximations of the triangle mesh models. Moreover, the simplified mesh generated by our algorithm is composed of regular shaped and regular sized triangles, which will enhance the model’s machinability greatly.