Efficient computation of the outer hull of a discrete path

Abstract

We present here a linear time and space algorithm for computing the outer hull of any discrete path encoded by its Freeman chain code. The basic data structure uses an enriched version of the data structure introduced by Brlek, Koskas and Provençal: using quadtrees for representing points in the discrete plane ℤ × ℤ with neighborhood links, deciding path intersection is achievable in linear time and space. By combining the well-known wall follower algorithm for traversing mazes, we obtain the desired result with two passes resulting in a global linear time and space algorithm. As a byproduct, the convex hull is obtained as well.