Skinning-surface generation based on spine-curve control

The skinning method for interpolation over user-defined cross-sectional cur ves is one of the most widely used tools for shape design in computer-aided design. In practice, a spine curve may be used to position and orient the cross-sectional curves in space. The spine curve can also aid in shape cont rol by providing additional constraints, e.g., tangent directions, for surf ace interpolation. This paper takes into account the shape of a spine curve during the skinning process and presents a boolean-sum approach to the rep resentation of the resulting skinned surface. As a result, the resulting sk inned surface is represented by a B-spline or NURBS surface and has a longi tudinal surface shape resembling the spine curve.