Approximation order of bivariate spline interpolation (Q1125962)

The author considers the approximation order of certain bivariate polynomial spline Hermite interpolants which are defined for a specific class of triangulations. More precisely, these triangulations are obtained by partitioning a given rectangle into uniform subrectangles, and splitting each such subrectangle into two triangles using the upward diagonal. The spline functions of interest consist of polynomial pieces of total degree \(q\geq4\) over each triangle which fit together with \(C^1\)-continuity. First, specific sets of interpolation points are constructed which guarantee the existence and uniqueness of certain Hermite interpolants in the spline class. Then, for a given function that is sufficiently smooth, approximation orders of the corresponding spline Hermite interpolant and its derivatives are established for the uniform norm. Some remarks concerning data fitting using these spline classes as well as some numerical examples conclude the paper.