More indecomposable polyhedra

We apply combinatorial methods to a geometric problem: the classification of polytopes, in terms of Minkowski decomposability. Various properties of skeletons of polytopes are exhibited, each sufficient to guarantee indecomposability of a significant class of polytopes. We illustrate further the power of these techniques, compared with the traditional method of examining triangular faces, with several applications. In any dimension $d\neq 2$, we show that of all the polytopes with $d^2+\frac{d}{2}$ or fewer edges, only one is decomposable. In 3 dimensions, we complete the classification, in terms of decomposability, of the 260 combinatorial types of polyhedra with 15 or fewer edges.Comment: PDFLaTeX, 21 pages, 6 figure

Algebraic vertices of non-convex polyhedra

In this article we define an algebraic vertex of a generalized polyhedron and show that it is the smallest set of points needed to define the polyhedron. We prove that the indicator function of a generalized polytope $P$ is a linear combination of indicator functions of simplices whose vertices are algebraic vertices of $P$. We also show that the indicator function of any generalized polyhedron is a linear combination, with integer coefficients, of indicator functions of cones with apices at algebraic vertices and line-cones. The concept of an algebraic vertex is closely related to the Fourier--Laplace transform. We show that a point $\mathbf{v}$ is an algebraic vertex of a generalized polyhedron $P$ if and only if the tangent cone of $P$, at $\mathbf{v}$, has non-zero Fourier--Laplace transform.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figure

Computational Geometry Column 42

A compendium of thirty previously published open problems in computational geometry is presented.Comment: 7 pages; 72 reference

Rolling of Coxeter polyhedra along mirrors

The topic of the paper are developments of $n$-dimensional Coxeter polyhedra. We show that the surface of such polyhedron admits a canonical cutting such that each piece can be covered by a Coxeter $(n-1)$-dimensional domain.Comment: 20pages, 15 figure

On Monotone Sequences of Directed Flips, Triangulations of Polyhedra, and Structural Properties of a Directed Flip Graph

This paper studied the geometric and combinatorial aspects of the classical Lawson's flip algorithm in 1972. Let A be a finite set of points in R2, omega be a height function which lifts the vertices of A into R3. Every flip in triangulations of A can be associated with a direction. We first established a relatively obvious relation between monotone sequences of directed flips between triangulations of A and triangulations of the lifted point set of A in R3. We then studied the structural properties of a directed flip graph (a poset) on the set of all triangulations of A. We proved several general properties of this poset which clearly explain when Lawson's algorithm works and why it may fail in general. We further characterised the triangulations which cause failure of Lawson's algorithm, and showed that they must contain redundant interior vertices which are not removable by directed flips. A special case if this result in 3d has been shown by B.Joe in 1989. As an application, we described a simple algorithm to triangulate a special class of 3d non-convex polyhedra. We proved sufficient conditions for the termination of this algorithm and show that it runs in O(n3) time.Comment: 40 pages, 35 figure

The Parma Polyhedra Library: Toward a Complete Set of Numerical Abstractions for the Analysis and Verification of Hardware and Software Systems

Since its inception as a student project in 2001, initially just for the handling (as the name implies) of convex polyhedra, the Parma Polyhedra Library has been continuously improved and extended by joining scrupulous research on the theoretical foundations of (possibly non-convex) numerical abstractions to a total adherence to the best available practices in software development. Even though it is still not fully mature and functionally complete, the Parma Polyhedra Library already offers a combination of functionality, reliability, usability and performance that is not matched by similar, freely available libraries. In this paper, we present the main features of the current version of the library, emphasizing those that distinguish it from other similar libraries and those that are important for applications in the field of analysis and verification of hardware and software systems.Comment: 38 pages, 2 figures, 3 listings, 3 table