Bounding box

Every shape, regardless of its complexity, can be enclosed in a cube whose edges run parallel to the shape's axes. This is called a bounding box. Since the cube orients itself to the geometry and not to the position of the axis system, the center point of the bounding box can, in combination with its dimensions, supply valuable information about the shape's expanse in space. Imagine, for example, a very simple collision detection between geometries since their bounding boxes have to be checked overlapping independently of their polygon count or shape.