Qualitative measures for initial meshes

This paper reviews geometric measures used to assess the shape of finite elements in two- and three-dimensional meshes. Measures have been normalized and made scale invariant whenever possible. This paper also introduces a Universal Similarity Region that enhances comparisons of triangles and their measures. As a byproduct, the USR provides a dynamic way to compare improved triangular meshes. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.