Geometric approaches to nonplanar quadric surface intersection curves

Quadric surfaces occur frequently in the design of discrete piece parts in mechanical CAD/CAM. Solid modeling systems based on quadric surfaces must be able to represent intersection curves parametrically and in a fashion that allows the underlying surfaces to be partitioned. An algebraic approach originally developed by Levin meets these needs but is numerically sensitive and based on solutions to fourth-degree polynomial equations. In this paper we develop geometric approaches that are robust and efficient, and do not require solutions to polynomials of degree higher than 2.