A 3D GIS spatial data model based on conformal geometric algebra

We propose a new Geographic Information System (GIS) three-dimensional (3D) data model based on conformal geometric algebra (CGA). In this approach, geographic objects of different dimensions are mapped to the corresponding basic elements (blades) in Clifford algebra, and the expressions of multi-dimensional objects are unified without losing their geometric meaning. Geometric and topologic computations are also processed in a clear and coordinates-free way. Under the CGA framework, basic geometrics are constructed and expressed by the inner and outer operators. This expression combined geometrics of different dimensions and metric relations. We present the structure of the framework, data structure design, and the data storage, editing and updating mechanisms of the proposed 3D GIS data model. 3D GIS geometric and topological analyses are performed by CGA metric, geometric and topological operators using an object-oriented approach. Demonstrations with 3D residence district data suggest that our 3D data model expresses effectively geometric objects in different dimensions, which supports computation of both geometric and topological relations. The clear and effective expression and computation structure has the potential to support complex 3D GIS analysis, and spatio-temporal analysis.

Algebraic Solution for the Forward Displacement Analysis of the General 6-6 Stewart Mechanism

The solution for the forward displacement analysis（FDA） of the general 6-6 Stewart mechanism（i.e., the connection points of the moving and fixed platforms are not restricted to lying in a plane） has been extensively studied, but the efficiency of the solution remains to be effectively addressed. To this end, an algebraic elimination method is proposed for the FDA of the general 6-6 Stewart mechanism. The kinematic constraint equations are built using conformal geometric algebra（CGA）. The kinematic constraint equations are transformed by a substitution of variables into seven equations with seven unknown variables. According to the characteristic of anti-symmetric matrices, the aforementioned seven equations can be further transformed into seven equations with four unknown variables by a substitution of variables using the Grobner basis. Its elimination weight is increased through changing the degree of one variable, and sixteen equations with four unknown variables can be obtained using the Grobner basis. A 40th-degree univariate polynomial equation is derived by constructing a relatively small-sized 9 × 9 Sylvester resultant matrix. Finally, two numerical examples are employed to verify the proposed method. The results indicate that the proposed method can effectively improve the efficiency of solution and reduce the computational burden because of the small-sized resultant matrix.

Complex brackets and balanced complex 1st-order difference polynomials in 4-dimensional Minkowski space

This paper investigates complex brackets and balanced complex 1st-order difference (BCD) polynomials. Then we propose an algorithm of O(n log n) complexity to check the equality of brackets. It substitutes exponential algorithms before. Also, BCD polynomials have some usages in geometric calculation.