Delaunay Triangulation Project

CS 274: Computational Geometry (Spring 2003)
Delaunay Triangulation Project
Due 5 pm, April 25
(20% of final grade)

Implement a divide-and-conquer algorithm and two incremental insertion algorithms for constructing two-dimensional Delaunay triangulations. Your implementations must use Guibas and Stolfi's quad-edge data structure (with appropriate simplifications, if you wish). You are responsible for reading and understanding the Guibas and Stolfi paper, except Section 3, which may be safely skipped. It's a long paper, so start early.

The purpose of this project is to burn an understanding of Delaunay triangulations and planar subdivision data structures into your brain.

Divide-and-conquer algorithm

Implement the divide-and-conquer algorithm for which Guibas and Stolfi give pseudocode.

Incremental insertion algorithms

Implement the incremental insertion algorithm for which Guibas and Stolfi give pseudocode, using their suboptimal ``walking'' method for point location.

In addition, implement fast point location, based on either conflict lists or a history dag (whichever you prefer). Since you are using an edge-based data structure, rather than a triangle-based data structure, you will need to modify the point location data structure slightly.

Each quad-edge has four Data fields. Two of these are used to reference the vertices of the quad-edge. For point location based on conflict lists, the other two Data fields may be used to reference the lists of uninserted vertices associated with the triangles on each side of the edge. For point location based on a history dag, the other two Data fields may be used to reference the leaves of the dag associated with the triangles on each side of the edge.

For conflict lists, each uninserted vertex should maintain a reference to an oriented edge of the triangle that contains the uninserted vertex. For a history dag, each leaf of the dag should maintain a reference to an oriented edge of the triangle that the leaf represents.

Language

If you write in any language other than C, C++, or Java, you are required to give me very complete instructions on how to compile and run your code. You may also be required to obtain for me an account with which I can run your code. If your submission does not run under Unix, I may need even more help. (On my desk next to my Linux machine, I do have a Windows machine, but I don't know a thing about how to compile code with it.)

Interface

Your program should use the same file formats as the program Triangle. Specifically, it should read a file with the suffix .node, and write a file with the suffix .ele.

An advantage of using these file formats is that I provide test data.

Here are the timing files (GNUzip-compressed): ttimeu10000.node.gz, ttimeu100000.node.gz, and ttimeu1000000.node.gz.
Here are some smaller test files for your pleasure (not compressed): tri.node, 4.node, box.node, spiral.node, flag.node, grid.node, dots.node, ladder.node, and 633.node.

Another advantage is that you (and I) can use my Show Me visualization program (included in the Triangle distribution) to view and print your input and output. You can also use Triangle to check if you're producing correct triangulations. (Note that Triangle uses a triangle-based data structure instead of quad-edges, and its code will probably not be as helpful to you as Guibas and Stolfi's pseudocode in producing your quad-edge-based implementation.)

You should provide command-line switches, an input prompt, or some other easy way to choose between the divide-and-conquer and incremental methods; between slow ``walking point location'' and fast point location; and between randomized insertion and non-randomized insertion. Randomized insertion should use a permutation uniformly selected from all possible permutations. Non-randomized insertion should insert vertices in order as they appear in the input.

Geometric predicates

Insofar as possible, your algorithms should make all their arithmetic decisions based on the results of InCircle and CCW (aka Orient2D) predicates. Rather than writing your own, I suggest you download and blindly use my robust predicates for floating-point inputs.

Borrowed code

You are welcome to use publicly available libraries or implementations of the following, so long as none of them was produced by any of your classmates: sorting, selection, trees, other fundamental non-geometric data structures, command-line switch processing, file reading/writing, and geometric primitives like the InCircle and CCW predicates. You must write the quad-edge implementation and geometric algorithms all by yourself.

Your submission

My preferred submission method is that you email me the secret URL of a file or directory containing all your code, so I can download it at my leisure. Alternatively, you could email me a uuencoded archive of your files. If your code doesn't run under Unix, special arrangements will need to be made.

You should also submit a report (on paper) that includes the following:

Instructions for compiling and running your code. If you use C/C++ and Unix, relatively rudimentary instructions will probably do. Be sure to document how to specify the input file, and how to choose between different algorithms.
Timings for each of your algorithms and point location methods on random points sets (top of this page) of 10,000, 100,000, and 1,000,000 points. (If the ``walking'' method of point location takes longer than ten minutes on large point sets, just note that you couldn't wait for it to terminate.) Time only the randomized versions of the incremental insertion algorithm. Try to exclude all file I/O from your timings if possible. (If using a timer within your program isn't possible, the Unix time command will do, although file I/O time will be included.) Why do you think the fastest algorithm is fastest?
Create an orderly point set, like a square grid whose vertices are given in a structured order. Does failing to randomize the order of the vertices significantly change the running time of the incremental insertion algorithm with the fast point location method?

Prizes

I'll award a $20 gift certificate for Amoeba Records for each of the following.

The fastest divide-and-conquer implementation.
The fastest incremental insertion algorithm (using any point location method).

For the first two awards, I will time the total running time of the program using the Unix time command; hence, I/O time counts. If your program selects its algorithms and point location methods by using an input prompt (rather than command-line switches), you are unlikely to have the fastest timing. If I can't figure out how to time your code (which is quite likely if you're not using Unix), you're not eligible.