Shape preserving interpolation by curvature continuous parametric curves

An interpolation scheme for planar curves is described, obtained by patching together parametric cubic segments and straight lines. The scheme has, in general, geometric continuity of order 2 (G² continuity) and is similar in approach to that of [Goodman & Unsworth ′86], but whereas this earlier scheme, when applied to cubics, produces curves with zero curvature at the interpolation points, the corresponding curvature values in this scheme are in general non-zero. The choice of a tangent vector at each interpolation point guarantees that the interpolating curve is local convexity preserving, and in the case of functional data it is single-valued and local monotonicity preserving. The algorithm for generating the cubic curve segments usually requires the solution of two non-linear equations in two unknowns, and lower bounds are obtained on the magnitude of the curvature at the relevant interpolation points in order that this system of equations has a unique solution. Particular attention is given to cubic segments which are adjacent to straight line segments. Two methods for calculating these segments are described, one which preserves G² continuity, and one which only gives G¹ continuity. A number of examples of the application of the scheme are presented.