Rolling Ball
A figurative rolling ball, which maintains contact with the surfaces to be blended, is used to compute a blend. The following figure illustrates the figurative rolling ball used to blend faces from two stacked blocks.
General blends between wholly disconnected faces are not supported in the Blending Component (they are in the Advanced Blending Component). Blends between faces that are connected by one or more intervening faces are sometimes supported in the Blending Component (refer to the section Remote Blending).
Figure. Rolling Ball
The curve swept out by the rolling balls center is called its spine curve; the two curves of contact are called spring curves. Spring curves are traced by the contact points between the rolling ball and the blend faces. The following figure illustrates the spine curve and a spring curve traced by a rolling ball.
Figure. Spine and Spring Curves
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