Geometric Insight Into the Dynamics of a Rigid Body Using the Spatial Triangle of Screws

Geometric relationships between the velocity screw and momentum screw are presented, and the dual angle between these two screws is shown to provide important insight into the kinetics of a rigid body. Then the centripetal screw is defined, and the significance of this screw in a study of the dynamics of a rigid body is explained. The dual-Euler equation, which is the dual form of the Newton-Euler equations of motion, is shown to be a spatial triangle. The vertices of the triangle are the centripetal screw, the time rate of change of momentum screw, and the force screw. The sides of the triangles are three dual angles between the three vertices. The spatial triangle provides valuable geometrical insight into the dynamics of a rigid body and is believed to be a meaningful alternative to existing analytical techniques. The authors believe that the work presented in this paper will prove useful in a dynamic analysis of closed-loop spatial mechanisms and multi-rigid body open-chain systems.