On Hamiltonian Triangulations in Simple Polygons

An n-vertex simple polygon P is said to have a Hamiltonian Triangulation if it has a triangulation whose dual graph contains a hamiltonian path. Such triangulations are useful in fast rendering engines in Computer Graphics. We give a new characterization of polygons with hamiltonian triangulations and use it to devise O(n log n)-time algorithms to recognize such polygons. We also give efficient algorithms for several related problems.