Automatic construction of a cubic B-spline representation for a general curve

This paper describes an algorithm which, when given a digitized curve of general shape, without a direct analytical representation, automatically finds suitable knot points and the cubic B-spline polygon vertices corresponding to that curve. That B-spline polygon is used to regenerate the curve graphically. The method is generally applicable in many fields, including computer aided design, where a need exists to represent arbitrary curves with a given accuracy. In this paper results applied to pictures of archeological vessels are shown, with a discussion of accuracy and compactness of the representation. The algorithm will represent a curve accurately, using less than 10% of the storage required if all the digitized points of the curve were stored.