In Euclidean geometry, a tangential trapezoid, also called a circumscribed trapezoid, is a trapezoid whose four sides are all tangent to a circle within the trapezoid: the incircle or inscribed circle. It is the special case of a tangential quadrilateral in which at least one pair of opposite sides are parallel. As for other trapezoids, the parallel sides are called the bases and the other two sides the legs. The legs can be equal (see isosceles tangential trapezoid below), but they don't have to be.
If the incircle is tangent to the sides AB and CD at W and Y respectively, then a tangential quadrilateral ABCD is also a trapezoid with parallel sides AB and CD if and only if [1] : Thm. 2
and AD and BC are the parallel sides of a trapezoid if and only if
The formula for the area of a trapezoid can be simplified using Pitot's theorem to get a formula for the area of a tangential trapezoid. If the bases have lengths a, b, and any one of the other two sides has length c, then the area K is given by the formula [2] (This formula can be used only in cases where the bases are parallel.)
The area can be expressed in terms of the tangent lengths e, f, g, h as [3] : p.129
Using the same notations as for the area, the radius in the incircle is [2]
The diameter of the incircle is equal to the height of the tangential trapezoid.
The inradius can also be expressed in terms of the tangent lengths as [3] : p.129
Moreover, if the tangent lengths e, f, g, h emanate respectively from vertices A, B, C, D and AB is parallel to DC, then [1]
If the incircle is tangent to the bases at P, Q, then P, I, Q are collinear, where I is the incenter. [4]
The angles ∠ AID and ∠ BIC in a tangential trapezoid ABCD, with bases AB and DC, are right angles. [4]
The incenter lies on the median (also called the midsegment; that is, the segment connecting the midpoints of the legs). [4]
The median (midsegment) of a tangential trapezoid equals one fourth of the perimeter of the trapezoid. It also equals half the sum of the bases, as in all trapezoids.
If two circles are drawn, each with a diameter coinciding with the legs of a tangential trapezoid, then these two circles are tangent to each other. [5]
A right tangential trapezoid is a tangential trapezoid where two adjacent angles are right angles. If the bases have lengths a, b, then the inradius is [6]
Thus the diameter of the incircle is the harmonic mean of the bases.
The right tangential trapezoid has the area [6]
An isosceles tangential trapezoid is a tangential trapezoid where the legs are equal. Since an isosceles trapezoid is cyclic, an isosceles tangential trapezoid is a bicentric quadrilateral. That is, it has both an incircle and a circumcircle.
If the bases are a, b, then the inradius is given by [7]
To derive this formula was a simple Sangaku problem from Japan. From Pitot's theorem it follows that the lengths of the legs are half the sum of the bases. Since the diameter of the incircle is the square root of the product of the bases, an isosceles tangential trapezoid gives a nice geometric interpretation of the arithmetic mean and geometric mean of the bases as the length of a leg and the diameter of the incircle respectively.
The area K of an isosceles tangential trapezoid with bases a, b is given by [8]
In geometry a quadrilateral is a four-sided polygon, having four edges (sides) and four corners (vertices). The word is derived from the Latin words quadri, a variant of four, and latus, meaning "side". It is also called a tetragon, derived from greek "tetra" meaning "four" and "gon" meaning "corner" or "angle", in analogy to other polygons. Since "gon" means "angle", it is analogously called a quadrangle, or 4-angle. A quadrilateral with vertices , , and is sometimes denoted as .
A triangle is a polygon with three edges and three vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices A, B, and C is denoted .
A right triangle or right-angled triangle (British), or more formally an orthogonal triangle, formerly called a rectangled triangle, is a triangle in which one angle is a right angle, i.e., in which two sides are perpendicular. The relation between the sides and other angles of the right triangle is the basis for trigonometry.
In elementary geometry, two geometric objects are perpendicular if their intersection forms right angles at the point of intersection called a foot. The condition of perpendicularity may be represented graphically using the perpendicular symbol, ⟂. Perpendicular intersections can happen between two lines, between a line and a plane, and between two planes.
In Euclidean geometry, a kite is a quadrilateral with reflection symmetry across a diagonal. Because of this symmetry, a kite has two equal angles and two pairs of adjacent equal-length sides. Kites are also known as deltoids, but the word deltoid may also refer to a deltoid curve, an unrelated geometric object sometimes studied in connection with quadrilaterals. A kite may also be called a dart, particularly if it is not convex.
In Euclidean geometry, a parallelogram is a simple (non-self-intersecting) quadrilateral with two pairs of parallel sides. The opposite or facing sides of a parallelogram are of equal length and the opposite angles of a parallelogram are of equal measure. The congruence of opposite sides and opposite angles is a direct consequence of the Euclidean parallel postulate and neither condition can be proven without appealing to the Euclidean parallel postulate or one of its equivalent formulations.
In geometry, an altitude of a triangle is a line segment through a vertex and perpendicular to a line containing the base. This line containing the opposite side is called the extended base of the altitude. The intersection of the extended base and the altitude is called the foot of the altitude. The length of the altitude, often simply called "the altitude", is the distance between the extended base and the vertex. The process of drawing the altitude from the vertex to the foot is known as dropping the altitude at that vertex. It is a special case of orthogonal projection.
In geometry, the incircle or inscribed circle of a triangle is the largest circle that can be contained in the triangle; it touches the three sides. The center of the incircle is a triangle center called the triangle's incenter.
In Euclidean geometry, a cyclic quadrilateral or inscribed quadrilateral is a quadrilateral whose vertices all lie on a single circle. This circle is called the circumcircle or circumscribed circle, and the vertices are said to be concyclic. The center of the circle and its radius are called the circumcenter and the circumradius respectively. Other names for these quadrilaterals are concyclic quadrilateral and chordal quadrilateral, the latter since the sides of the quadrilateral are chords of the circumcircle. Usually the quadrilateral is assumed to be convex, but there are also crossed cyclic quadrilaterals. The formulas and properties given below are valid in the convex case.
In geometry, a trapezoid in American and Canadian English, or trapezium in British and other forms of English, is a quadrilateral that has at least one pair of parallel sides.
In geometry, the incenter of a triangle is a triangle center, a point defined for any triangle in a way that is independent of the triangle's placement or scale. The incenter may be equivalently defined as the point where the internal angle bisectors of the triangle cross, as the point equidistant from the triangle's sides, as the junction point of the medial axis and innermost point of the grassfire transform of the triangle, and as the center point of the inscribed circle of the triangle.
In Euclidean geometry, an isosceles trapezoid is a convex quadrilateral with a line of symmetry bisecting one pair of opposite sides. It is a special case of a trapezoid. Alternatively, it can be defined as a trapezoid in which both legs and both base angles are of equal measure. Note that a non-rectangular parallelogram is not an isosceles trapezoid because of the second condition, or because it has no line of symmetry. In any isosceles trapezoid, two opposite sides are parallel, and the two other sides are of equal length. The diagonals are also of equal length. The base angles of an isosceles trapezoid are equal in measure.
In geometry, the semiperimeter of a polygon is half its perimeter. Although it has such a simple derivation from the perimeter, the semiperimeter appears frequently enough in formulas for triangles and other figures that it is given a separate name. When the semiperimeter occurs as part of a formula, it is typically denoted by the letter s.
In geometry, the circumscribed circle or circumcircle of a polygon is a circle that passes through all the vertices of the polygon. The center of this circle is called the circumcenter and its radius is called the circumradius.
In Euclidean geometry, a tangential quadrilateral or circumscribed quadrilateral is a convex quadrilateral whose sides all can be tangent to a single circle within the quadrilateral. This circle is called the incircle of the quadrilateral or its inscribed circle, its center is the incenter and its radius is called the inradius. Since these quadrilaterals can be drawn surrounding or circumscribing their incircles, they have also been called circumscribable quadrilaterals, circumscribing quadrilaterals, and circumscriptible quadrilaterals. Tangential quadrilaterals are a special case of tangential polygons.
In Euclidean geometry, a bicentric quadrilateral is a convex quadrilateral that has both an incircle and a circumcircle. The radii and center of these circles are called inradius and circumradius, and incenter and circumcenter respectively. From the definition it follows that bicentric quadrilaterals have all the properties of both tangential quadrilaterals and cyclic quadrilaterals. Other names for these quadrilaterals are chord-tangent quadrilateral and inscribed and circumscribed quadrilateral. It has also rarely been called a double circle quadrilateral and double scribed quadrilateral.
In Euclidean geometry, an ex-tangential quadrilateral is a convex quadrilateral where the extensions of all four sides are tangent to a circle outside the quadrilateral. It has also been called an exscriptible quadrilateral. The circle is called its excircle, its radius the exradius and its center the excenter. The excenter lies at the intersection of six angle bisectors. These are the internal angle bisectors at two opposite vertex angles, the external angle bisectors at the other two vertex angles, and the external angle bisectors at the angles formed where the extensions of opposite sides intersect. The ex-tangential quadrilateral is closely related to the tangential quadrilateral.
In Euclidean geometry, a tangential polygon, also known as a circumscribed polygon, is a convex polygon that contains an inscribed circle. This is a circle that is tangent to each of the polygon's sides. The dual polygon of a tangential polygon is a cyclic polygon, which has a circumscribed circle passing through each of its vertices.
In Euclidean geometry, a right kite is a kite that can be inscribed in a circle. That is, it is a kite with a circumcircle. Thus the right kite is a convex quadrilateral and has two opposite right angles. If there are exactly two right angles, each must be between sides of different lengths. All right kites are bicentric quadrilaterals, since all kites have an incircle. One of the diagonals divides the right kite into two right triangles and is also a diameter of the circumcircle.