Arbitrary Curves of Constant Width

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Both the circle and the Reuleaux triangle are examples of curves of constant width. Such curves, if fitted into a square, can rotate in constant contact with all four sides. Any triangle can serve as a template for a curve of constant width by putting three pairs of arcs of circles around it, centered at each of the three vertices, as shown by this Demonstration.

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Barbier's theorem [1] proves that a curve with constant width 1 has a perimeter of π.

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Contributed by: Ed Pegg Jr (January 2013)
Open content licensed under CC BY-NC-SA


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Reference

[1] Wikipedia, Barbier's theorem.



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