External reviewer pass over the literature references. Verified entries against arXiv/DOI/publisher and corrected misattributions that had propagated across the docs. Corrected citations (consistent across all docs): - Bowers-Bowers-Lutz 2026: title was the 2017 paper's -> "Rigidity of Koebe Polyhedra and Inversive Distance Circle Packings" - Liouville theorem: "Springborn 2019" -> Pinkall & Springborn, Geom. Dedicata 214 (2021) - Bobenko-Pinkall-Springborn: "G&T 14 (2010)" -> G&T 19(4) (2015), 2155-2215 - Optimal Cone Singularities: "Crane, Soliman, Ben-Chen, Schroeder" -> Soliman, Slepcev, Crane, ACM TOG 37(4) - Schlaefli formula: "Rivin, Springborn 1999" -> Rivin, Schlenker - Quasiconformal distortion: "Springborn, Veselov" -> Born, Buecking, Springborn (arXiv:1505.01341) - Period matrices: "Bobenko, Buecking 2009" (was Bobenko-Mercat-Schmies' title) -> Bobenko-Mercat-Schmies 2011 + genuine Bobenko-Buecking 2021 - Fabricated entry: "Alexa 2020, DOI 10.1145/3414685.3417840" pointed to an unrelated paper (Pixelor) -> Bunge, Herholz, Kazhdan, Botsch 2020 - Stripe Patterns: "Bonneel et al. 2015" -> Knoeppel, Crane, Pinkall, Schroeder 2015 Equation-number corrections (verified against the PDFs): - Glickenstein 2011 "eq. 4.6" -> "§5.2" (no such equation label exists) - Springborn 2020 "eq. 4.6" -> "§4 variational gradient" - inversive-distance attribution softened to classical inversive distance Other: - DBFEnergy bibliography (separate repo) and convergence half-sentence in novelty-statement.md §3.3 (Bobenko-Buecking 2021) - Status legend (implemented vs planned) at top of references.md - New Phase 12 (decorated DCE & geometric transition, Chain A, near-term) and Phase 13 (canonical tessellations & polyhedral realisation, Chain B capstone) in phases.md + research-track.md; 10c scope-boundary note clarifying infrastructure vs Lutz-specific algorithms Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
38 KiB
Development Roadmap
Legend: ✅ complete · 🔲 planned
Porting / research boundary:
Phases 1–7 are direct ports of the Java original and its dissertation.
From Phase 8 onwards the work goes beyond the scope of the Java library.
Phase 8 (CGAL package) is infrastructure. Phase 9 is porting of remaining Java features.
Phase 10+ is independent research with no direct Java reference implementation.
◼ Porting complete — Phases 1–7
Phase 1 Clausen / Lobachevsky / ImLi₂ special functions ✅
Phase 2 Hyper-ideal geometry (ζ, lᵢⱼ, αᵢⱼ, σᵢ, σᵢⱼ) ✅
Phase 3 CGAL Surface_mesh infrastructure + all three functionals
(Euclidean, Spherical, HyperIdeal)
+ analytical Hessians for Euclidean + Spherical
(HyperIdeal Hessian: symmetric FD — analytic deferred to 9b) ✅
Phase 4 Newton solver (SimplicialLDLT + SparseQR fallback)
+ Mesh I/O (OFF/OBJ/PLY) + example programs ✅ 68 tests
Phase 5 Priority-BFS layout + CLI app + JSON/XML serialisation ✅ 95 tests
Phase 6 Gauss–Bonnet check/enforce, tree-cotree cut graph (2g),
exact hyperbolic trilateration, layout normalisation ✅ 121 tests
Phase 7 MobiusMap, halfedge_uv, Möbius holonomy (SU(1,1)),
period matrix τ∈ℍ + SL(2,ℤ) reduction,
fundamental domain parallelogram + tiling ✅ 176 tests
◼ Infrastructure — Phase 8: CGAL Package
Goal: conformallab++ as a standalone CGAL package, submission-ready, fulfilling all CGAL package conventions with a traits-class design compatible with any CGAL-conforming mesh type.
8a Traits class & concepts
→ include/CGAL/Conformal_map_traits.h
Separates MeshType, KernelType, ScalarType from the algorithm.
Enables use with any CGAL-compatible mesh, not just Surface_mesh.
→ Concept checks via static_assert / CGAL_concept_check
8b Public CGAL header hierarchy
→ include/CGAL/Discrete_conformal_map.h (user-facing entry header)
→ include/CGAL/Conformal_newton_solver.h
→ include/CGAL/Conformal_layout.h
→ include/CGAL/Conformal_cut_graph.h
All existing include/conformallab/*.hpp remain as implementation details.
8c CGAL-style documentation
→ doc/Conformal_map/PackageDescription.txt
→ doc/Conformal_map/fig/ (pipeline diagrams)
→ Doxygen comments on all public concepts and functions
→ User_manual.md + Reference_manual.md
8d CGAL test format
→ test/Conformal_map/CMakeLists.txt (CGAL-style CMake)
Existing GTest tests remain; CGAL-format tests are added alongside.
8e Declarative YAML pipeline
→ Lightweight YAML format for reproducible experiments
(specification in doc/api/cgal-package.md)
→ Validator: checks require/provide tokens before execution
→ CLI integration: conformallab_core --pipeline experiment.yml
◼ Phase 9 — Mixed: remaining Java port + first research extensions
Audit 2026-05-21: Phase 9 was originally framed as "remaining porting", but a closer look at the local Java repository revealed: several Phase-9 items are not in Java at all (
InversiveDistanceFunctionaldoes not exist;HyperIdealFunctional.java:295-298declareshasHessian()=false). The plan below now distinguishes Java-port items from research items. Full research catalogue:research-track.md.
9a — Circle-packing functionals (split 2026-05-19)
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
9a.1 CPEuclideanFunctional (Java port)
→ cp_euclidean_functional.hpp
Java source: CPEuclideanFunctional.java (260 lines)
Mathematical reference: Bobenko-Pinkall-Springborn 2010
Status: 🟡 PR #8 open, 10 tests passing.
9a.2 Inversive-distance functional (RESEARCH, not a port)
→ inversive_distance_functional.hpp
Java source: NONE. Empirically verified.
Mathematical reference: Luo 2004 + Bowers-Stephenson 2004 + Glickenstein 2011
Status: 🟡 PR #8 open, 11 tests passing.
Cross-validation: G_id(0) = G_eu(0) at 1e-10 (Glickenstein §5).
9b — HyperIdeal Hessian (RESEARCH — Java has no Hessian at all)
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
9b Block-FD HyperIdeal Hessian
→ Replace full FD in hyper_ideal_hessian.hpp
Java source: NONE (HyperIdealFunctional.java:295-298 declares
hasHessian()==false; Java has NO Hessian).
Algorithm: per-face 6×6 block, scatter to global sparse matrix.
Status: 🟡 PR #9 open, 7 tests passing, ~96× speed-up measured.
9b-analytic Full analytic HyperIdeal Hessian via Schläfli identity
→ planned, see research-track.md
Mathematical source: Springborn 2020 §4 + Schläfli 1858/60
+ Rivin, Schlenker 1999 "The Schläfli formula in
Einstein manifolds with boundary" (ERA-AMS 5, 18–23)
+ Cho-Kim 1999 + Glickenstein 2011 §4
Algorithm: explicit chain rule through (bᵢ,aₑ) → ℓᵢⱼ → ζ₁₃/ζ₁₄/ζ₁₅ → αᵢⱼ/βᵢ
Includes: short LaTeX correctness note in doc/math/.
Effort: 10–14 days net. Trigger: profiling on V > 5000.
9c — Genus g > 1 fundamental domain (Java port + research extensions)
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
9c 4g-polygon boundary walk (genus g > 1)
→ Extend compute_fundamental_domain() beyond genus 1
Java sources: FundamentalPolygonUtility.java (698 lines)
+ CanonicalFormUtility.java (532 lines)
+ CuttingUtility / SurgeryUtility (~800 lines)
+ SurfaceCurveUtility.java (360 lines, 2026-05-28
scan) — curve operations on the surface (cut-path
tracing / fundamental-domain boundary); supporting
infrastructure for the polygon construction.
Mathematical source: Poincaré 1882 + Sechelmann 2016 §5
Research component: bridging to conformallab++ cut_graph.hpp
+ holonomy infrastructure.
† PRECISION PREREQUISITE: the canonicalisation composes products of
hyperbolic isometry generators, whose entries grow exponentially.
double fails to verify the group relation ∏gᵢ = Id; Java uses
MathContext(50) (RnBig/PnBig/P2Big). Port a LOCALIZED high-precision
substrate (boost::multiprecision::cpp_dec_float_50 or MPFR mpreal)
inside the uniformization module only — NOT the core or the Eigen
solver. See CLAUDE.md Phase-9 note + java-parity.md exception.
Effort: ~2 weeks for fundamental polygon, +2 weeks for surgery
layer, +1 week integration, +~3 days high-precision substrate.
9d — Cone metrics + sphere utilities (Java port + research extension) ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
9d.1 ConesUtility (Java port: unwrapper/ConesUtility.java)
→ cone_singularities.hpp
Fills the "⚠️ data structure only" gap in java-parity.md:
- Detect interior cone vertices (angle deficit ≠ 0)
- BFS path from cone to mesh boundary → cut edge set
- Auto-placement: conjugate gradient on Θ-gradient magnitude
- Quantization: snap cone angles to π/2, π/3, π/6 for
quad / triangle / hexagonal atlas targets
Java reference: unwrapper/ConesUtility.java
Mathematical reference: Troyanov 1991 + Springborn 2020 §3
9d.2 Non-Euclidean cone extensions (RESEARCH, not in Java)
→ extend ConesUtility to HyperIdeal + Spherical modes
Java source: NONE — Java ConesUtility is Euclidean-only.
Mathematical reference:
Bobenko, Lutz 2025 "Decorated Discrete Conformal Equivalence in
Non-Euclidean Geometries" (Discrete & Comput. Geom. 2025,
arXiv:2310.17529) §3 — decorated DCE framework unifying cone
singularities and cusps in hyperbolic + spherical geometry.
Soliman, Slepčev, Crane 2018 "Optimal Cone Singularities
for Conformal Flattening" (ACM TOG 37(4), Art. 105) — L¹-optimal
automatic cone placement; directly applicable to 9d.2 algorithm.
Status: 🔲 planned
9d.3 StereographicUnwrapper + SphereUtility (Java port)
→ stereographic_layout.hpp
Stereographic projection S²→ℂ∪{∞} + Möbius centering for
genus-0 surfaces. Converts spherical DCE output to a flat 2-D atlas.
Java reference: unwrapper/StereographicUnwrapper.java (266 lines)
Note (2026-05-28 visualisation scan): plugin/algorithm/
StereographicTextureProjection.java (88 lines) is the texture
front-end of this same math — no separate item. The supporting
math/CP1 + ComplexUtility.stereographic are deliberately NOT
ported (redundant with std::complex + the existing MobiusMap,
see porting-status.md).
Optional companion: MercatorTextureProjection.java (47 lines) —
a distinct cylindrical conformal display projection; small
nice-to-have for the sphere-visualisation bucket, not required.
9d.4 MobiusCenteringFunctional (Java port, optional upgrade)
→ integrate into layout.hpp normalise_hyperbolic()
Variational Möbius centering via Lorentz geometry:
E = Σ log(-⟨x,p⟩/√(-⟨x,x⟩))
Supplies gradient + Hessian — replaces iterative Fréchet mean.
Java reference: functional/MobiusCenteringFunctional.java
9e — Circle pattern layout (Java port — complement to Phase 9a.1) ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
9e CirclePatternLayout + CirclePatternUtility (Java port)
→ circle_pattern_layout.hpp
Phase 9a.1 ported the CPEuclidean energy + solver; this phase
adds the embedding step (ρ values → actual vertex positions in ℝ²).
- CirclePatternUtility: compute per-face radii ρ via NTR solver
- CirclePatternLayout: embed from ρ values (intersection-angle model)
- CPEuclideanRotation: rotation-invariant CP functional variant
Java references: unwrapper/circlepattern/CirclePattern{Layout,Utility}.java
unwrapper/circlepattern/CPEuclideanRotation.java
Mathematical reference: Bobenko-Springborn 2004 variational principle
+ Bobenko-Hoffmann-Springborn 2006 "Minimal
surfaces from circle patterns" (Discrete &
Comput. Geom. 35, 2006).
9f — Polygon Laplacian (RESEARCH — no Java equivalent) ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
9f Discrete Laplacian on general polygonal meshes
→ polygon_laplacian.hpp
Java source: NONE
Mathematical reference:
Alexa, Wardetzky 2011 "Discrete Laplacians on General Polygonal
Meshes" (ACM SIGGRAPH 2011) — virtual-node construction,
polygon cotangent weights extending the Pinkall-Polthier formula.
Bunge, Herholz, Kazhdan, Botsch 2020 "Polygon Laplacian Made
Simple" (Computer Graphics Forum 39(2), 303–313) — virtual-vertex
construction with error analysis. (DEC alternative: de Goes,
Butts, Desbrun 2020, ACM TOG 39(4).)
Enables: DCE energy evaluation on quad-dominant / Voronoi /
polygon meshes without forced triangulation.
Replaces euclidean_hessian.hpp for non-triangular inputs.
Status: 🔲 planned (pure research, no Java source)
Effort: medium (~2 weeks core + tests; +1 week Newton integration).
9g — Conformal quality measures (Java port — 2026-05-28 scan)
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
9g.1 Quantitative correctness metrics for a computed conformal map
→ conformal_quality.hpp
Lifts the measure math out of the jReality plugin + convergence
layers (the math is GUI-independent). High value / low effort:
these directly strengthen the validation story for the already-
shipped genus-0/1 pipeline (doc/math/validation.md).
- IsothermicityMeasure (113 lines) — pointwise deviation
from conformality (anisotropy of the induced metric).
- DiscreteConformalEquivalencemMeasure (82 lines) — per-edge
length-cross-ratio residual vs. the conformal-equivalence
condition.
- FlippedTriangles (17 lines) — detects inverted /
degenerate triangles in a 2-D layout (embedding-validity check).
- LengthCrossRatio (12 lines) — the discrete conformal
invariant itself (per-edge), shared input for the two measures.
- ConvergenceUtility measures (~110 lines, math/float only — no
Mathematica/jReality deps): getMaxMeanSumCrossRatio
(q=(a·c)/(b·d), qfun=(q+1/q)/2−1), getMaxMeanSumMultiRatio
(per-face product, =1 iff conformal), and
getMaxMeanSumScaleInvariantCircumRadius (R/√A, scale-invariant
mesh-quality). The operational counterpart of LengthCrossRatio.
Java references:
plugin/visualizer/IsothermicityMeasure.java
plugin/visualizer/DiscreteConformalEquivalencemMeasure.java
plugin/visualizer/FlippedTriangles.java
heds/adapter/types/LengthCrossRatio.java
convergence/ConvergenceUtility.java
Mathematical reference: Springborn-Schröder-Pinkall 2008
(length cross-ratio = discrete conformal invariant).
Status: 🔲 planned (Java port; no new theory).
Effort: small (~3 days incl. gradient-free tests). No
dependencies — can land before 9a–9f.
9g.2 Period-matrix convergence study (validation experiment — optional)
→ tests/cgal/test_period_matrix_convergence.cpp (experiment, not
a library feature)
Empirical validation for the already-shipped period_matrix.hpp +
discrete_elliptic_utility.hpp: generate a genus-1 elliptic mesh
with a known analytic τ, then refine / subdivide / add Gaussian
vertex noise and plot |τ_computed − τ_expected| → 0.
Java reference: convergence/* (~1400 lines) — a CLI harness
(joptsimple) that drives the same study. Do NOT port the
harness: it depends on Mathematica via JLink and on jReality's
OBJ reader + LoopLinear subdivision. Port only the *method*:
- subdivision → igl::loop (libigl already available)
- noise → trivial (vᵢ += σ·N(0,1))
- error metric → the 9g.1 quality measures + τ residual
Status: 🔲 optional (raises empirical confidence in genus-1 τ;
no new library surface). Effort: small (~2–3 days).
◼ New research directions — Phases 10d–10g (2026 library scan)
These were identified by a full scan of the Java source tree in 2026. They extend significantly beyond the Java port into new mathematical territory.
10d CircleDomainUnwrapper (Koebe–Andreev–Thurston)
→ circle_domain_unwrapper.hpp
Conformal map of a multiply-connected planar region onto a
canonical disk-with-holes (classical complex-analysis result).
Java reference: unwrapper/CircleDomainUnwrapper.java (570 lines)
Mathematical basis: Koebe–Andreev–Thurston + Beardon–Stephenson 1990
10e Quasi-isothermic maps
→ quasiisothermic.hpp
Generalisation of conformal maps for meshes where exact conformality
is unachievable (high Gaussian curvature, coarse triangulation).
Includes: Delaunay pre-conditioning, discrete Beltrami field,
sin-condition functional, Lawson-correspondence parameterization.
Java references: unwrapper/quasiisothermic/ (~1 200 lines total)
Mathematical basis: Lam 2015 + Bohle–Lam–Pinkall–Reitebuch 2015
10f Koebe polyhedra
→ koebe_polyhedron.hpp
Koebe–Andreev–Thurston theorem: realize every 3-connected planar
graph as a convex polyhedron with edges tangent to the unit sphere.
Connects circle packing with 3-D convex geometry.
Java reference: unwrapper/koebe/KoebePolyhedron.java (321 lines)
Mathematical basis: Koebe 1936 + Thurston 1997 (lecture notes)
10g Cyclic-symmetry functionals
→ cyclic_functional.hpp
Euclidean and hyperbolic DCE functionals reduced to a cyclic-symmetry
quotient — dramatically reduces DOFs for ornamental / symmetric surfaces.
Java references: functional/EuclideanCyclicFunctional.java
functional/HyperbolicCyclicFunctional.java (~530 lines)
◼ Optional / Hypothetical — geometry-central Cross-Comparison
Status: no planned phase — purely exploratory.
These items are not prerequisites for Phase 8–10. They are of interest because geometry-central (Keenan Crane, CMU) is built on the same mathematical foundations as conformallab++ — in particular Springborn 2020 and its direct extension by Gillespie, Springborn & Crane (SIGGRAPH 2021).
The key difference: geometry-central solves the same problem (discrete conformal equivalence) using intrinsic triangulations + Ptolemaic flips, while conformallab++ applies Newton on the original triangulation.
GC-1 [optional, possible now]
Mathematical output comparison
→ load the same test meshes (cathead.obj, brezel.obj, torus_4x4.off) into
both libraries
→ compare UV coordinates, u-vector, residual norm
→ align normalisation conventions (u mean, scaling)
Goal: independent cross-validation of convergence points.
Effort: small Python/C++ comparison script, no library restructuring.
GC-2 [optional, useful after Phase 8]
Intrinsic Delaunay pre-conditioning
→ before the Newton solver: apply geometry-central SignpostIntrinsicTriangulation
to the input
→ Ptolemaic flips pre-condition the Hessian matrix
→ hypothesis: fewer Newton iterations on non-Delaunay inputs
→ implementable as an optional cmake flag: -DWITH_GC_PRECOND=ON
Dependency: geometry-central as an optional external dependency
(header-only parts suffice for the flip algorithm).
GC-3 [hypothetical, Phase 10+ research]
Ptolemaic flip-based solver as an alternative backend
→ instead of Newton: Ptolemaic flips + penultimate-step normalisation
(Gillespie–Springborn–Crane 2021 algorithm)
→ comparison: convergence radius, robustness on pathological meshes,
numerical stability on high-genus surfaces
→ relevant for conformallab++ because the Newton approach can become
unstable on strongly non-Delaunay meshes (e.g. after remeshing).
No implementation planned — conceptual note for Phase 10 research.
Connection to the literature:
The Springborn 2020 paper ("Ideal Hyperbolic Polyhedra and Discrete
Uniformization") is already implemented in conformallab++ as the HyperIdeal
geometry mode (Phase 2/3). The Gillespie–Springborn–Crane
2021 extension — implemented in geometry-central — augments this with
intrinsic triangulations and makes the algorithm robust against
poor input triangulations. Both share the same
mathematical core (discrete conformal equivalence, Gauss–Bonnet,
variational principle of Bobenko–Springborn 2004).
◼ Phase 10 — Genus g ≥ 2 (research with partial Java support)
Most Phase-10 items have partial Java references (utility classes for
forms and homology) but the assembly into a working uniformization
pipeline is research. Full catalogue with primary literature:
research-track.md.
Phase 10 Global uniformization for genus g ≥ 2
10a Discrete holomorphic and harmonic 1-forms
→ Integrate basis 1-forms ωᵢ along b-cycles of the cut graph.
Mathematical reference: Bobenko-Springborn 2004 §6 + Mercat 2001.
Knöppel, Crane, Pinkall, Schröder 2015 "Stripe
Patterns on Surfaces" (ACM SIGGRAPH 2015) —
application of discrete holomorphic 1-forms to
direction field design; provides an independent
C++ reference implementation (geometry-central)
for cross-validating the Phase 10a computation.
Java sources (partial, port-with-research):
CanonicalBasisUtility.java 337 lines (homology basis)
HomologyUtility.java 122 lines
HomotopyUtility.java 57 lines (2026-05-28 scan) —
reconstructs the explicit generator *cycles* (bridge edge +
tree path via HomologyUtility.findCycle). NOT covered by
cut_graph.hpp, which yields only the 2g cut *edges*; the closed
loops are needed to integrate 1-forms along b-cycles.
DualityUtility.java 308 lines
DiscreteHarmonicFormUtility.java 657 lines
DiscreteHolomorphicFormUtility.java 285 lines
Prerequisite — DEC operator layer (2026-05-28 scan, previously
unrecorded): the four utilities above are built on the discrete-
exterior-calculus primitives in heds/dec/ (DEC.java 76 lines,
AbstractDECOperator, DECPairing, DualChain, DualForm — the d / ⋆ /
primal-dual pairing operators). Port this thin operator layer
first; the form utilities assume it exists. Effort: ~3 days.
Effort: ~6 weeks net (1 DEC layer + 4 utility ports + 1 integration).
10b Siegel period matrix Ω ∈ H_g (g×g complex symmetric, Im(Ω) > 0)
→ Ωᵢⱼ = ∫_{bⱼ} ωᵢ
→ Reduction to Siegel fundamental domain via Sp(2g,ℤ).
Mathematical reference: Bobenko-Springborn 2004 + Gottschling 1959.
Bobenko, Mercat, Schmies 2009/2011 "Conformal
Structures / Period Matrices of Polyhedral
Surfaces" (arXiv:0909.1305) + Bobenko, Bücking 2021
"Convergence of discrete period matrices ..."
(Math. Phys. Anal. Geom. 24, Art. 23) — discrete
period matrix Ωᵢⱼ on polyhedral surfaces + convergence.
Bobenko, Lutz 2024 IMRN "Decorated Discrete Conformal
Maps and Convex Polyhedral Cusps" — uniformization
theorem connecting cusps ↔ hyperideal vertices
(bridges Phase 2/3 HyperIdeal geometry to 10b).
Pinkall, Springborn 2021 "A discrete version of
Liouville's theorem on conformal maps"
(Geom. Dedicata 214, 389–398; arXiv:1911.00966) —
proves uniqueness/rigidity of the discrete conformal
structure; justifies that Ω is a conformal invariant.
Java partial reference: DiscreteRiemannUtility.java (186 lines).
Requires: 10a.
Effort: ~1 week net after 10a.
10b' Alternative methods (parallel research track)
→ HyperbolicCyclicFunctional (Java, 530 lines) — completes the
classical three-mode set with hyperbolic energy.
→ Quasi-isothermic parametrisation (Lawson correspondence):
QuasiisothermicUtility.java + SinConditionApplication.java
(~1 200 Java lines combined).
→ MobiusCenteringFunctional (Java, 289 lines) — sphere centering.
→ StereographicUnwrapper (Java, 266 lines) — projects the
spherical layout S²→ℂ via stereographic projection plus a
Möbius centring step. Closes the visualisation gap from
`discrete_conformal_map_spherical()` (currently outputs
Point_3 on S²; many downstream uses want a 2-D atlas).
Effort: small (~3 days).
Each independent; can be tackled in any order.
10c Full uniformization for genus g ≥ 2
→ Embedding as H²/Γ with Γ ⊂ PSL(2,ℝ) a Fuchsian group.
Mathematical reference: Sechelmann 2016 §6 (discrete instance);
Bers 1960 (continuous theory).
Lutz 2023 "Canonical Tessellations of Decorated
Hyperbolic Surfaces" (Geom. Dedicata 217,
arXiv:2206.13461) — canonical Delaunay tessellations
in Penner coordinates; unifies the decorated
framework with the fundamental domain construction.
Bobenko, Lutz 2024 IMRN (arXiv:2305.10988) —
discrete uniformization theorem for decorated
piecewise Euclidean surfaces.
Born, Bücking, Springborn 2015 "Quasiconformal
distortion of projective transformations and discrete
conformal maps" (arXiv:1505.01341) — error estimates for
the discrete-to-smooth conformal approximation;
quantifies how well H²/Γ approximates the smooth
hyperbolic metric.
Java reference: NONE — Java has the polygon + period matrix
pieces but does not assemble them into
a Fuchsian-group representation.
Status: **fully new research.**
Requires: 10a + 10b + Phase 9c.
⚠️ SCOPE BOUNDARY (was 10c delivers vs. was offen bleibt):
10c as scoped here builds the *infrastructure* — Fuchsian-group
representation + H²/Γ embedding on the Sechelmann/Bobenko-Springborn
uniformisation path. The Lutz-SPECIFIC algorithms it references
(canonical Delaunay tessellation in Penner coordinates, Epstein-Penner
convex-hull construction, Weeks-flip extension, polyhedral realisation)
are NOT delivered automatically by reaching 10c — they sit ON TOP of
this infrastructure and are their own implementation effort.
→ that effort is split out as **Phase 13** (Chain B capstone).
10c = runway; Phase 13 = the Lutz algorithms that land on it.
10c' Optional Java-port additions (low priority)
→ KoebePolyhedron.java (321 lines) — Koebe-Andreev-Thurston
circle packings. Adds a fifth DCE method.
Rigidity: Bowers, Bowers, Lutz 2026 "Rigidity of Koebe Polyhedra
and Inversive Distance Circle Packings" (arXiv:2601.22903)
— theoretical uniqueness backing the KAT construction.
→ ElectrostaticSphereFunctional (127 lines) — sphere
distribution baseline.
→ CirclePatternLayout / CirclePatternUtility — face-circle
pattern layouts.
None of these are required for the genus-g uniformization
pipeline; they extend the breadth of methods.
◼ Phase 11+ — Specialised applications (optional, deferred)
Status: out-of-scope for v1.0 but recorded here so that future contributors don't re-discover them. Both items live in the Java repo as plugin sub-packages and would benefit from porting only after Phase 10 is complete (they require the period-matrix and fundamental-domain infrastructure to be in place first).
11a Schottky uniformisation
Java plugin: plugin/schottky/* (~12 Java files, ~3 000 LoC)
Mathematical basis: Schottky group — discrete subgroup
Γ ⊂ PSL(2,ℂ) generated by hyperbolic loxodromic
elements, fundamental domain a sphere with
2g disjoint discs removed.
Use case: "handlebody" uniformisation, complement of
Phase 10c's Fuchsian-group representation
(Schottky represents Riemann surfaces as
quotients of domains in S² rather than of H²).
Requires: Phase 10b (period matrix) + working
Möbius-group machinery from Phase 7.
Effort: very large (4–6 weeks) — significant Java
code, complex-analytic algorithms,
substantial test design.
11b Riemann maps (planar conformal mapping)
Java plugin: plugin/riemannmap/* (~6 Java files, ~1 500 LoC)
Mathematical basis: Riemann mapping theorem — every simply
connected proper subdomain of ℂ is conformally
equivalent to the unit disc. Discrete version
via circle packing or Schwarz-Christoffel-like
formulae.
Use case: Texture mapping of bounded planar regions;
classical conformal mapping for engineering
applications (electrostatics, fluid flow).
Requires: Phase 10b' QuasiisothermicUtility or the
CP-Euclidean machinery from Phase 9a.1
(depending on the chosen discrete-Riemann
algorithm).
Effort: large (3–4 weeks) — smaller than Schottky
but still substantial. Heavy on
visualisation; consider porting only the
algorithmic core.
11c Multiply-connected planar conformal maps (CircleDomainUnwrapper)
Java source: unwrapper/CircleDomainUnwrapper.java (570 LoC)
Mathematical basis: Riemann mapping theorem for multiply-
connected domains — every n-connected planar
region is conformally equivalent to a disk
with (n−1) round holes (Koebe's "general
uniformization theorem", 1909).
Use case: Classical complex-analysis problems —
conformal mapping of an annulus, a torus
slit on a plane, fluid flow around obstacles,
electrostatics with multiple conductors.
**A use-case class conformallab++ does not
currently cover.**
Requires: Phase 10b' QuasiisothermicUtility or the
CP-Euclidean machinery from Phase 9a.1.
Effort: large (~2 weeks).
All three items are tracked here so the project memory is preserved;
none of them are roadmap commitments. See `research-track.md` for the
formal research-versus-port classification before starting any.
◼ Phase 12 — Decorated DCE & geometric transition (RESEARCH, near-term)
Note on ordering: despite the higher number, Phase 12 is near-term and independent of Phases 9c–11. It builds ONLY on already-landed code and is the short path (Chain A) to a first Lutz-adjacent scientific result. It does not require the genus-g≥2 chain (9c/10a/10b/10c) or the holonomy-bug fix — those gate Phase 13 (Chain B), not this.
12 Decorated DCE & geometric transition (no Java parent)
→ Numerical demonstration of the Bobenko-Lutz "master theory":
one discrete conformal invariant, continuously deformable across
Euclidean / spherical / hyperbolic background geometry.
Mathematical reference:
Bobenko, Lutz 2025 "Decorated Discrete Conformal Equivalence in
Non-Euclidean Geometries" (Discrete & Comput. Geom.;
arXiv:2310.17529) §3 — Penner-coordinate decoration unifying the
three background geometries; continuous deformation at fixed
discrete conformal invariant.
Lutz 2024 PhD thesis (depositonce-20357) — full proofs.
Builds on (✅ already landed):
inversive_distance functional (9a.2), hyper_ideal (Springborn 2020),
spherical functional — the decoration is a RE-PARAMETRISATION of
these, not a new solver.
Does NOT require: 9c / 10a / 10b / holonomy-bug fix.
Scope:
1. Decoration layer: per-vertex circle/horocycle radius as Penner
coordinate; map ↔ existing inversive distance I_ij (classical
formula ℓ²=r_i²+r_j²+2r_ir_jη).
2. Transition driver: deform background curvature κ ∈ {+,0,−} while
holding the discrete conformal invariant fixed; solve per geometry.
3. Validation harness producing example galleries.
Acceptance criteria:
- Decoration round-trip I_ij ↔ (r_i,r_j,ℓ) at machine precision.
- At κ=0: bit-for-bit match with existing euclidean/inversive path.
- Gauss-Bonnet per geometry; invariant constant across the κ-transition
to tol (numerical witness of the Bobenko-Lutz master theorem).
- Cross-geometry: one test surface solved in all three backgrounds
shares the invariant.
Effort: medium (functionals exist; reparametrisation + driver + tests).
Status: 🔲 planned (proposed 2026-05-29).
◼ Phase 13 — Decorated canonical tessellations & polyhedral realisation (Chain B capstone)
This is the genus-g≥2 Lutz contribution. It sits ON TOP of the infrastructure built by Phases 9c + 10a + 10b + 10c (see the 10c SCOPE BOUNDARY note above) and implements Lutz's specific algorithms that the 10c "runway" does not deliver by itself.
13 Decorated canonical tessellations + polyhedral realisation (no Java parent)
→ Canonical Delaunay tessellation of a decorated hyperbolic surface
in Penner coordinates, its dual decomposition, and the polyhedral
realisation of the uniformised genus-g≥2 surface.
Mathematical reference:
Lutz 2023 "Canonical Tessellations of Decorated Hyperbolic Surfaces"
(Geom. Dedicata 217; arXiv:2206.13461) — canonical (weighted-
Delaunay-analogue) tessellation + dual; Epstein-Penner convex-hull
construction in Minkowski space; Weeks-flip extension.
Bobenko, Lutz 2024 IMRN (arXiv:2305.10988) — discrete uniformization
theorem for decorated surfaces (cusps ↔ hyperideal vertices).
Lutz 2024 PhD thesis (depositonce-20357) — polyhedral realisation +
complete proofs for 9d.2 / 10b / 10c / 13.
Rigidity backing: Bowers, Bowers, Lutz 2026 (arXiv:2601.22903).
PREREQUISITES (the "given Voraussetzungen" — all must be in place):
✅ cut_graph.hpp (2g seams) — landed
🔲 Phase 9c — 4g-gon fundamental domain
🔲 Phase 10a — holomorphic/harmonic 1-forms
🔲 Phase 10b — Siegel period matrix Ω ∈ H_g
🔲 Phase 10c — Fuchsian-group representation / H²/Γ embedding
🔲 holonomy-bug fix — detail::spherical_holonomy /
detail::hyperbolic_holonomy (+ cpp_dec_float_50 for the
group-relation product ∏gᵢ = Id); see research-track.md §9c.
🟡 Phase 12 — decoration layer (Penner coords) is reused here;
strongly recommended to land Phase 12 first so the Penner-
coordinate machinery already exists.
Scope:
1. Penner-coordinate weighted-Delaunay (canonical) tessellation +
dual decomposition on the H²/Γ embedding from 10c.
2. Epstein-Penner convex-hull construction (Minkowski space) to
obtain the canonical decomposition; Weeks-flip to reach it.
3. Polyhedral realisation of the uniformised surface.
Acceptance criteria:
- Canonical tessellation is unique & flip-stable (Weeks-flip
terminates; result independent of start triangulation).
- Decoration / Penner-coordinate consistency with Phase 12 layer.
- Gauss-Bonnet + holonomy closure ∏[a_i,b_i] = Id (high precision).
- Rigidity witness: Newton finds the unique realisation on the
tangency-case test set (Bowers-Bowers-Lutz 2026).
Effort: very large (depends on the full 9c/10a/10b/10c chain landing
first; the Lutz algorithms themselves ≈ several weeks on top).
Status: 🔲 planned (Chain B capstone; gated on prerequisites above).