How do I plot a curved plane in 3D stored as patch data in 2D, preserving distances

I have 3D patch data that produces a curved 2D plane in 3D space (vertices and faces data). I'd like to flatten this plane and view the data in 2D, and only need to preserves distance along the plane (not in 3d space). I'm not super familiar with patch dat, any help would be appreciated!

Answer 1

[Pavel Dey]

I think 'patch' will not give you the transformed 2-D data from the vertices and faces. To preserve the planar distance between the points, you will have to use some sort of projection. According to me, distance preserving Map projection techniques will serve the purpose.

If the object has irregular shape then, you will have to take small patches over it and assume it as spherical. From there you can get the 2-D data after transformation.

Hope that helps.