An effective algorithm for computing the asymptotes of an implicit curve (Q6049291)

Generalized asympotes (g-asymptotes for short) of an implicit algebraic curve \(\mathcal{C}\) are algebraic curves of minimal degree that come arbitrarily close to a given infinity branch of \(\mathcal{C}\) at infinity. Of course, they generalize the traditional notion of straight line asymptotes. As an example, consider the cubic curve given by the product of a parabola equation and a line equation plus a constant (so as to make it irreducible). The line is the only traditional asymptote, the parabola a g-asymptote. G-asymptotes capture essential curve properties at infinity and are very useful for visualization. The algorithm of [\textit{A. Blasco} and \textit{S. Pérez-Díaz}, Comput. Aided Geom. Des. 31, No. 7--8, 345--357 (2014; Zbl 1364.14024)] for computing g-asymptotes of a planar curve is based on expensive Puiseux series computations. This article proposes a simpler algorithm that, at its core, requires only the solution of a triangular system of algebraic equations. Since the equations are the vanishing conditions for coefficients of some curve expansion and can be void, it is not clear a priori, how many of them are needed. The necessary computations with algebraic numbers might pose problems that can be alleviated by handling conjugate complex points together. Rather remarkable, extensions to curves in spaces of higher dimension are straightforward. The timing results given in the article should be taken with a grain of salt as they refer to implementations using Maple, a software whose computations in the background cannot be fully controlled. Yet they show a clear tendency in favor of the proposed algorithm which is also conceptually very clear and straightforward to implement.