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Reflecting a point over a flat plane in 3D is not super simple, but relatively simple and I have seen on stackexchange how matrices are used to figure out where the reflected point is projected.

However, throughout this I thought how could this be applied to curved planes like cones, spheres, parabola and more.

For example, say you have a generic line L1 [never intersects the plane with equation ax+by+cz+d=0] and L1 is reflected over said plane, where would L1 be projected to?

Also what would happen if this plane is now curved like a parabola in 3D? Is it possible to derive a single equation for this?

thampel1
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1 Answers1

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Let (P) be the plane with equation

$$ax+by+cz=0$$

(I have dropped the $d$ but it can easily been included).

$N(a,b,c)$ be a normal vector to (P); we will assume WLOG that $\|N\|^2=a^2+b^2+c^2=1$.

Suppose one wants to reflect a surface with equation

$$f(x,y,z)=0\tag{1}$$

for example the sphere with center $(1,0,0)$ and unit radius

$$(x-1)^2+y^2+z^2-1=0\tag{2}$$

The symmetry $X \leftrightarrow X'$ with respect to plane (P) is obtained through the equation (see explanation below):

$$X'=(I_3-2 NN^T)X \ \ \iff \ \ X=(I_3-2 NN^T)X' \tag{3}$$

(because symmetry is involutive ; N is assumed a column vector)

i.e., detailed in terms of coordinates:

$$\begin{pmatrix}x\\ y\\ z \end{pmatrix}=\begin{pmatrix}(1-2a^2)& -2ab&-2ac\\ -2ab&(1-2b^2)&-2bc \\ -2ac&-2bc&(1-2c^2)& \end{pmatrix}\begin{pmatrix}x'\\ y'\\ z'\end{pmatrix}\tag{4}$$

It is enough now to replace $x,y,z$ in (1) by their expressions issued from (4) to get the equations of the symmetric surface.

For example, if you reflect the sphere with equation (2) into vertical plane with equation $x=0$ (meaning that $a=1$, $b=c=0$), you will get $x=-x',y=y',z=z'$, giving:

$$(x'+1)^2+y'^2+z'^2=1$$

Remark: If you want to symmetrize a straight line, consider it classically as the intersection of two planes, and symmetrize separately the equations of two planes using the method just seen.

Explanation of formula (3):

  • the image of $X=N$ is $(I_3-2NN^T)N=N-2N\underbrace{(N^TN)}_{\|N\|^2=1}=-N$ as expected.

  • if $M \perp N$, $(I_3-2NN^T)M=M-2N\underbrace{(N^TM)}_0=M$.


Edit: (following a remark of @mr_e_man):

in fact, one can "mirror" any geometrical object with respect to a circle in 2D or a sphere in 3D using a transformation called "inversion" which is described here. The mirroring property can be seen on the example of the fish "reflected" with respect to his bowl. A circle is in general reflected into a circle. For extended information and references, see there.

Jean Marie
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  • I think the question was not about reflecting a general surface across a plane, but about reflecting an object (such as a line) across a general surface. – mr_e_man Dec 03 '20 at 20:31
  • @mr_e_man You are perfectly right. Frankly, I have misread the question. I must transform my text, in particular by saying that a solution exist for a symmetry wrt to a sphere by composing a symmetry with respect to a plane and "inversion transform" (which transforms a plane into a sphere).. – Jean Marie Dec 03 '20 at 22:09
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    This answer and the matrix in (4) in particular was helpful for me while searching for a way to mirror 3D space on an arbitrary plane. Thanks! – Thomas Perl Mar 12 '23 at 17:15