Capturing outlines of planar images using Bézier cubics

A technique has been designed for capturing outlines by exploiting the properties of cubic Bezier curves. The planar images are used to extract the outline. The outline is divided into curve segments at high curvature points and each segment is processed independently for piecewise curve approximation. The proposed algorithm avoids the traditional method of least square fitting which is time consuming and presents a simple and efficient approach to find the control points Bezier curves. Recursive segment subdivision is used to keep the approximation error within specified threshold limits. The ideas of interpolation, control point estimation and optimization of approximation curve are used. A comparative study of results is also provided at the end and various benefits of the proposed algorithm like computational efficiency, accurate representation and low approximation error are highlighted. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.