Abstract: An electronic data processing pipeline system and method for processing encoded control points representing graphical illustrations. The pipeline comprises a number of separate micro-programmed circuit cards, each of which are programmed to perform a specific processing operation.A command is first sent to a matrix maker card defining a geometrical transformation to be performed on the graphical illustration. The matrix maker card, together with a matrix multiplier card, then calculates a transformation matrix representing the desired transformation.Electronic representations of control data points are then transmitted to the pipeline for processing. These control points are 3D points comprising both the vertices which terminate linear edges of the illustration and the control points corresponding to curved edges of the illustration. Each of the points is encoded to indicate whether it represents a vertex or a control point for a curved edge.