Reducibility of offsets to algebraic curves Original Research Article

Computing offset curves and surfaces is a fundamental operation in many technical applications. This paper discusses some issues that are encountered during the process of designing offsets, especially the problems of their reducibility and rationality (which are closely related). This study is crucial especially for formulating subsequent algorithms when the number and quality of offset components must be revealed. We will formulate new algebraic and geometric conditions on reducibility of offsets and demonstrate how they can be applied. In addition, we will present that our investigations can also serve to better understand the varieties fulfilling the Pythagorean conditions (PH curves/PN surfaces). A certain analogy of the PH condition for parameterized curves (or general parameterized hypersurfaces) will be presented also for implicitly given (not necessarily rational) curves (or hypersurfaces).