Computing the width of a three-dimensional point set: An experimental study

We describe a robust, exact, and efficient implementation of an algorithm that computes the width of a three-dimensional point set. The algorithm is based on efficient solutions to problems that are at the heart of computational geometry: three-dimensional convex hulls, point location in planar graphs, and computing intersections between line segments. The latter two problems have to be solved for planar graphs and segments on the unit sphere, rather than in the two-dimensional plane. The implementation is based on LEDA, and the geometric objects are represented using exact rational arithmetic. Categories and Subject Descriptors: F.2.2 [Nonnumerical Algorithms and Problems]: Geometrical problems and computations; J.6 [Computer-Aided Engineering]: Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM).