Estimating differential quantities using polynomial fitting of osculating jets (Q2573847)

Point-wise estimation of differential properties of a smooth manifold is studied. The main objective of the paper is to recast the problem of estimating differential properties to that of fitting local representation of the manifold by a jet which is a truncated Taylor expansion. The advantage in using a jet is that accurate estimates of the coefficients of the jet translate immediately to accurate estimates of differential quantities. Regarding polynomial fitting of differential properties for a surface, the authors' results are closely related to the corresponding result of \textit{D. S. Meek} and \textit{D. J. Walton} [Computer Aided Geom. Des. 17, 521--543 (2000; Zbl 0945.68174)], where a degree two interpolation is used and analyzed. The authors generalize this result for jets of arbitrary degree, under interpolation and approximation. They further claim that perhaps the results proved here are among the first ones providing accurate estimates for differential quantities of order three and more.