Intersection of straight line with (lagrange) polynomial

AI Thread Summary
To find the intersection of a straight line with a second-order Lagrange polynomial, one can start by parameterizing both equations. The polynomial can be expressed using Lagrange basis functions, which involve the points x_1, x_2, and x_3. A proposed method involves transforming the polynomial to the unit plane to simplify the intersection calculation before transforming back. The discussion highlights that traditional intersection techniques may not directly apply, and the role of normals in this context remains unclear. Overall, further exploration and research are needed to derive a clear method for this intersection problem.
bigfooted
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Hi,

To calculate the intersection of two straight lines the cross product of the line vectors can be used, i.e. when the lines start in points p and q, and have direction vectors r and s, then if the cross product r x s is nonzero, the intersection point is q+us, and can be found from
p+t\cdot r = q+u\cdot s.
using
t=\frac{(q-p)\times s}{r \times s}


I was wondering how to derive such a relationship for the intersection between a straight line and a second order polynomial.

Specifically, I'm interested in second order Lagrange (and 3rd order Hermite) polynomials:

x=\Psi_1x_1+\Psi_2x_2+\Psi_3x_3,

with

\Psi_i=\prod_{M=1,M ≠ N}^{n}\frac{\xi-\xi_M}{\xi_N-\xi_M}

where \xi=0..1 and x_1 is the starting point, x_2 the midpoint and x_3 the endpoint

My guess is that standard techniques to find the intersection first transform the second order polynomial to the unit plane where the polynomial reduces to a line, then find the intersection and then transform back, but a (quick) search didn't give me anything.
 
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The usual procedure would be to parameterize both of them and look for the intersections. I can't see how the normals would help here.
 
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