Anyone up for a CS/Math/Geometry challenge?

[bryce777]

Here's the problem:
Come up with an efficient algorithm to take a group of randomly placed points and create a simple polygon out of them.

I'll define a simple polygon as a collection of non-intersecting, closed line segments which have no 'holes' in them. So, a square or a pentagon is one, but a triangle with a hole in it isn't. A simple polygon can look like lots of things, though, even a picture of your cat if it is complex enough.

This was a problem I was given the other day, and I thought it was pretty neat, and the solution to it is even neater. I have a decent proof for it, but I need to have it looked at further to know for sure.
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[This message has been edited by bryce777 (edited September 26, 2001).]

[jester22c]

Not sure exaclty what kind of format you're looking for this in, if you're going to use it for programming or just theoretically.

Store a decimal variable in accending order to each point starting with (xmin,ymix) going up to (xmax,ymax). Now you will have a list of points from bottom left to top right. This gives you a simple order to work with. Start with var1 and find point with shortest distance. Now use which ever draw function and set the limits as the coordinates. Now do the same for var2, and so on through the chain.

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[hobbes2112]

This is very much related to a Matlab Demo called the Traveling Salesman. This is in response to a larger piece of work called the Traveling Salesman Problem.

This gets pretty heavy into optimization and neural networks. A quick search on any engine will find you lots of info.

This is one of the cooler sites out there: Traveling Salesman

If you have Matlab, or have access you can run the demo for yourself. I would post the source code, but I think it is copyrighted.

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[CaTaLyST]

i am moving this to the programming forum.

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[Galen of Edgewood]

Originally posted by CaTaLyST:
i am moving this to the programming forum.

Bah! We already have one, CaTaLyST. :P

I'm gonna close this one to let the other one continue.

*click*

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