Partial derivatives of Bézier surfaces (Q1908786)

In order to apply differential geometry to surfaces defined by splines, it is imperative to have an algorithm that yields the partial derivatives of the coordinates functions of the surface. The author shows that in the same way as Horner's scheme for the computation of function values can be modified to yield the derivatives with little extra computation effort, so the de Casteljau algorithm for Bézier surfaces can be modified and extended to yield the partial derivatives up to the second order very effectively. The algorithm is described in detail in a form ready to be implemented by any reader.