To calculate the surface area, the normal approach would be to break the
irregular shape into a large number of rectangles, each of small size (often
very small). Calculate the area of each rectangle, then sum all of those
areas.
This is a standard technique, and while not exact -- such a calculation
never can be exact, unless you have a mathematical formula that describes
the surface, if the rectangles are sufficiently small, the error also will
be small.
Dick
--
Richard Grier, Consultant, Hard & Software 12962 West Louisiana Avenue
Lakewood, CO 80228 303-986-2179 (voice) Homepage:
www.hardandsoftware.net
Author of Visual Basic Programmer's Guide to Serial Communications, 4th
Edition ISBN 1-890422-28-2 (391 pages) published July 2004, Revised July
2006.