Solutions to the lighting problem for zone bodies (Q1916652)

For a convex body \(K \subset \mathbb{R}^n\) let \(b(K)\) be the least integer with the property that \(K\) can be covered by \(b(K)\) homothetic copies of \(K\), strictly smaller than \(K\). If \(K\) is an \(n\)-parallelotope then \(b(K) = 2^n\) and it was conjectured by H. Hadwiger that \(b(K) < 2^n\) for any body \(K\), other than a parallelotope. In the 60's, the author proved that Hadwiger's problem is equivalent to the illumination problem that is \(b(K)\) is equal to the minimum number of directions (i.e. light-sources at infinity) which are necessary to illuminate the boundary of \(K\). By using this equivalence, \textit{H. Martini} [Colloq. Math. Soc. Janos Bolyai 48, 383-481 (1987; Zbl 0634.52007)] proved that \(b(K) \leq 3 \cdot 2^{n - 2}\) for zonotypes and the author, in a joint paper with \textit{P. S. Soltan} [Combinatorica 12, No. 4, 381-388 (1992; Zbl 0768.52004)] extended this result to zonoids. In the present article, the author extends this result to a larger class of bodies, called zone bodies, which is dense in the set of all convex bodies. This new class is defined as follows. \(A\) unit vector \(u\) in \(R^n\) is called a zone vector for a convex body \(K\) if for any support line to \(K\) parallel to \(u\) at least one of the two rays is tangent to \(K\). A zone body is a convex body \(K\) with the property that any unit normal, belonging to the closure of the set of normals to \(K\) at regular points of its boundary, is arbitrary close to the normal of a hyperplane containing \(n - 1\) suitable zone vectors of \(K\).