from visual import * # Gyroscope sitting on a pedestal # The analysis is in terms of Lagrangian mechanics. # The Lagrangian variables are polar angle theta, # azimuthal angle phi, and spin angle alpha. scene.width=800 scene.height=800 scene.title='Nutating Gyroscope' Lshaft = 1. # length of gyroscope shaft Rshaft = 0.03 # radius of gyroscope shaft M = 1. # mass of gyroscope (massless shaft) Rrotor = 0.4 # radius of gyroscope rotor Drotor = 0.1 # thickness of gyroscope rotor Dsquare = 1.4*Drotor # thickness of square that turns with rotor I = 0.5*M*Rrotor**2. # moment of inertia of gyroscope hpedestal = Lshaft # height of pedestal wpedestal = 0.1 # width of pedestal tbase = 0.05 # thickness of base wbase = 3.*wpedestal # width of base g = 9.8 Fgrav = vector(0,-M*g,0) top = vector(0,0,0) # top of pedestal theta = pi/3. # initial polar angle of shaft (from vertical) thetadot = 0 # initial rate of change of polar angle alpha = 0 # initial spin angle alphadot = 15 # initial rate of change of spin angle (spin ang. velocity) phi = -pi/2. # initial azimuthal angle phidot = 0 # initial rate of change of azimuthal angle # Comment in following line to get pure precession ##phidot = (-alphadot+sqrt(alphadot**2+2*M*g*r*cos(theta)/I))/cos(theta) pedestal = box(pos=top-vector(0,hpedestal/2.,0), height=hpedestal, length=wpedestal, width=wpedestal, color=(0.4,0.4,0.5)) base = box(pos=top-vector(0,hpedestal+tbase/2.,0), height=tbase, length=wbase, width=wbase, color=pedestal.color) gyro=frame(axis=(sin(theta)*sin(phi),cos(theta),sin(theta)*cos(phi))) shaft = cylinder(axis=(Lshaft,0,0), radius=Rshaft, color=(0,1,0), frame=gyro) rotor = cylinder(pos=(Lshaft/2 - Drotor/2, 0, 0), axis=(Drotor, 0, 0), radius=Rrotor, color=(1,0,0), frame=gyro) trail = curve(radius=Rshaft/8., color=(1,1,0)) scene.autoscale = 0 r = Lshaft/2. dt = 0.0001 t = 0. Nsteps = 20 # number of calculational steps between graphics updates while 1: rate(100) for step in range(Nsteps): # multiple calculation steps for accuracy # Calculate accelerations of the Lagrangian coordinates: atheta = (phidot**2*sin(theta)*cos(theta) -2.*(alphadot+phidot*cos(theta))*phidot*sin(theta) +2.*M*g*r*sin(theta)/I) aphi = 2.*thetadot*(alphadot-phidot*cos(theta))/sin(theta) aalpha = phidot*thetadot*sin(theta)-aphi*cos(theta) # Update velocities of the Lagrangian coordinates: thetadot = thetadot+atheta*dt phidot = phidot+aphi*dt alphadot = alphadot+aalpha*dt # Update Lagrangian coordinates: theta = theta+thetadot*dt phi = phi+phidot*dt alpha = alpha+alphadot*dt gyro.axis = vector(sin(theta)*sin(phi),cos(theta),sin(theta)*cos(phi)) # Display approximate rotation of rotor and shaft: gyro.rotate(angle=alphadot*dt*Nsteps) trail.append(pos=gyro.pos + gyro.axis * Lshaft) t = t+dt*Nsteps