On the reconstruction of three-dimensional complex geological objects using Delaunay triangulation

摘要

In the past four decades, huge amount of geologic data has been accumulated. Now it is time to integrate these geologic data with other sources of data, such as the digital elevation model (DEM) and remote sensing data, to do various analyses, 3D modelling, and real-time interactive visualisation to extract more meaningful results. Reconstruction of 3D geological objects is very important for geological research and mining. Traditional geologic maps that show structures and materials at the earth's surface no longer are sufficient for storing, displaying, and transmitting geoscience information. Fully three-dimensional geologic maps are needed to provide users with geologic information of the quality, accuracy, and detail necessary to solve problems related to natural hazard mitigation, resource management, mineral and petroleum exploration, contaminant dispersion, and other issues. Although some data models and algorithms have been developed, there are few works on reconstruction of real 3D complex geological objects. In this paper, we apply Delaunay triangulation and tetrahedron for 3D reconstruction of geological structures with sudden changes. Since this technique is mainly used for 3D reconstruction of medical objects, follows that we provide a new field of application. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.