Dynamical variables in brachistochrone problem

A. Tan, A. K. Chilvery and M. Dokhanian

Department of Physics, Alabama A & M Universty, Normal, Alabama 35762, U.S.A.

E-mail: arjun.tan@aamu.edu

(Received 12 February 2012, accepted 25 May 2012)

Abstract
The historic Brachistochrone problem is widely discussed in the literature. However, the discussion is primarily limited
to the shape of the curve along which a particle will descend, under gravity, and in the absence of friction, from a point
to another not directly below it, in the shortest amount of time. This study examines the various dynamical variables
associated with this motion, including the velocity, acceleration and jerk vectors, along with kinetic, potential and total
energies, curvature and centripetal force, as the particle undertakes its journey. The quantities are expressed as
functions of the angular parameter. The acceleration and jerk vectors are found to have constant magnitudes and to
rotate counter-clockwise, with the former trailing the latter by 90o. The velocity and centripetal force vectors also rotate
counter-clockwise, but with half the angular velocity, with the former trailing the latter by 90o. This study further
examines how the dynamical variables are affected when kinetic friction is present.

Keywords: Brachistochrone Problem, Dynamical Variables, Jerk vector, Curvature.

Resumen
El problema histórico de la Braquistócrona es ampliamente discutido en la literatura. Sin embargo, la discusión se
limita principalmente a la forma de la curva a lo largo de la cual una partícula descenderá, por gravedad, y en ausencia
de fricción, de un punto a otro no directamente debajo de él, en el menor tiempo posible. Este estudio analiza las
diferentes variables dinámicas asociadas con este movimiento, incluyendo los vectores de velocidad, aceleración y de
jerk, junto con las energías cinética, potencial y energías totales, la curvatura y fuerza centrípeta, como la partícula lleva
a cabo su trayectoria. Las cantidades son expresadas como funciones del parámetro angular. Los vectores de
aceleración y de jerk son encontrados con magnitudes constantes y giran en sentido-antihorario, con la primera final de
la segunda por 90°. La velocidad y los vectores de fuerza centrípeta también giran en sentido-antihorario, pero con la
mitad de la velocidad angular, con la primera final de la segunda por 90°. Este estudio además examina cómo las
variables dinámicas son afectadas cuando la fricción cinética está presente.

Palabras clave: Problema de la Braquistócrona, Variables Dinámicas, Vector Jerk, Curvatura.

PACS: 45.10.Dd, 45.50.-j, 45.50.Dd, 45.40.Aa ISSN 1870-9095

I. INTRODUCTION Among the dynamical variables, we include the jerk,

which is the derivative of the acceleration vector, or the
In 1696, Johann Bernoulli posed the Brachistochrone third derivative of the position vector, with respect to time.
problem as a challenge to the other mathematicians of the The jerk vector has recently been studied in projectile
day: To find the curve along which a particle will descend, motion [4] and motion of charged particles [5]. As by-
under gravity, from a point to another not directly under it, products of the jerk, one obtains the curvature and torsion
in the shortest amount of time. The problem was correctly of the path. If the first three derivatives of the position
solved by his elder brother Jakob Bernoulli, as well as by vector in time, viz., the velocity, acceleration and the jerk
r r r
Newton, Leibniz and L’Hospital, giving the segment of an vectors are v , a and j , respectively, then the curvature κ
inverted cycloid as the answer [1, 2, 3]. It is this historic and torsion τ are given by [5]:
problem which gave rise to the new branch of mathematics
called the Calculus of Variations. Many textbooks have r r
v×a
devoted pages to this famous problem, but invariably, the κ = r3 , (1)
discussion ends abruptly upon finding the curve. In this v
paper, we examine the various dynamical variables
associated with this motion, including the velocity,
acceleration and jerk vectors, along with kinetic, potential and
and total energies, curvature and centripetal force, as the
r r r
(
v o a× j )
particle undertakes its journey. τ = r r2 . (2)
v ×a
Lat. Am. J. Phys. Educ. Vol. 6, No. 2, June 2012 196 http://www.lajpe.org
A. Tan, A.K. Chilvery and M. Dokhanian
The reciprocal of the curvature furnishes the radius of x = A(θ − sin θ ) , (10)
curvature, which in turn, gives the centripetal force.
and
y = A(1 − cos θ ) . (11)
II. THE BRACHISTOCHRONE PROBLEM
Remembering that y is positive downwards, Eqs. (10) and
Consider the problem of a particle descending under gravity (11) are recognized as the parametric equations of an
from a point at the origin (0, 0) to another (x, y) in the x-y inverted cycloid, i.e., a curve traced out by a point on a
plane, not directly under the first (Fig. 1). Determine the circle of radius A rolling under the positive x-axis (Fig. 1).
path along which the particle will slide, without friction, in
the shortest time. For the sake of later convenience, reckon
y to be positive downwards. This is a conservative system,
x
for which the total energy remains constant. Further, if the
particle slides from the rest E = T + V = 0 . In the usual
notions, θ A

1
mv 2 − mgy = 0 . (3)
2
(x, y)
The time of passage between the two points is: y

ds dx 2 + dy 2 1 + y' 2
∫ ∫ ∫ 2g ∫
1 FIGURE 1. Path of descent of particle in minimum time.
τ = dt = = = dx , (4)
v 2 gy y

III. DYNAMICAL VARIABLES IN THE

with y ' = dy / dx . For τ to be minimum, the integrand
BRACHISTOCHRONE PROBLEM

1 + y' 2 Starting from the position vector, the velocity, acceleration

f = f ( y, y ' , x ) = , (5) and jerk vectors can be calculated by successive
y
differentiation of the position vector with respect to time.
We have
must satisfy the Euler-Lagrange equation:
r
r = A(θ − sin θ )xˆ + A(1 − cos θ ) yˆ . (12)
d ⎛ ∂f ⎞ ∂f
⎜ ⎟− =0. (6)
dx ⎜⎝ ∂y' ⎟⎠ ∂y Letting θ = ω t , where ω is the angular velocity of the
rolling circle, one obtains:
When f does not contain x explicitly, the Euler-Lagrange r
equation reduces to Beltrami’s Identity: v = Aω (1 − cos θ )xˆ + Aω sin θyˆ , (13)

r
∂f a = Aω 2 sin θxˆ + Aω 2 cosθyˆ , (14)
f − y' = const. (7)
∂y'
Thus, and
r
1 j = Aω 3 cosθxˆ − Aω 3 sin θyˆ . (15)
= const. (8)
y 1 + y' 2
The magnitudes of the above quantities are:
Squaring and rearranging: r
v = v = 2 Aω 1 − cos θ , (16)
⎡ ⎛ dy ⎞ 2 ⎤
⎢1 + ⎜ ⎟ ⎥ y = 2 A , r
(9) a = a = Aω 2 , (17)
⎢⎣ ⎝ dx ⎠ ⎥⎦

and
where A is another constant. One can verify that the r
following equations constitute the solution to Eq. (9): j = j = Aω 3 . (18)

Lat. Am. J. Phys. Educ. Vol. 6, No. 2, June 2012 197 http://www.lajpe.org
 Dynamical variables in brachistochrone problem
Also, The conservation of total energy yields the value of the
v 2 = 2 A 2ω 2 (1 − cos θ ) , (19) angular velocity of the rolling circle: ω = A / g . In the
above equations, the dynamical quantities are conveniently
and expressed as functions of the angle θ. If the motion spans
v 3 = 2 2 A3ω 3 (1 − cos θ ) , the entire cycloid, then θ runs from 0 to 2π, and the
3/ 2
(20)
duration of the motion is 2π/ω. The horizontal length of the
cycloid is 2πA and depth of the trajectory, midways, at the
We have, further:
lowest point (θ = π), is y = 2A. The angular dependences of
the dynamical variables are shown in Table I.
xˆ yˆ zˆ
r r
v × a = Aω (1 − cos θ ) Aω sin θ 0 (21)
TABLE I. Angular dependence of Dynamical Variables.
Aω sin θ2
Aω cos θ
2
0
= − A2ω 3 (1 − cos θ ) zˆ. Dynamical variable Formula θ-dependence
Abscissa Eq. (10) θ − sin θ
Ordinate Eq. (11) 1 − cos θ
xˆ yˆ zˆ x-component of velocity v x = x& 1 − cos θ
r r
a × j = Aω sin θ
2
Aω cos θ
2
0 (22) y-component of velocity v y = y& sin θ
Aω 3 cos θ − Aω 3 sin θ 0 x-component of acceleration a x = &x& sin θ
= − A ω zˆ.
2 5
y-component of acceleration a y = &y& cos θ
x-component of jerk j x = &x&& cos θ
r r
v × a = A2ω (1 − cos θ ) ,
3
(23) y-component of jerk j y = &y&& − sin θ
r
Speed v= v 1− cosθ
and r
r r r
(
v o a× j = 0. ) (24)
Magnitude of acceleration a= a
r
constant
Magnitude of jerk j= j constant
Eqs. (1), (20) and (23) give the value of the curvature κ and r r
Momentum p = mv 1− cosθ
that of its reciprocal (the radius of curvature) R:
Kinetic energy Eq. (28) 1 − cos θ
1 Potential energy Eq. (29) cos θ − 1
κ= , (25) Total energy E =T+V constant 0
2 2 A 1 − cos θ 1
and Curvature Eq. (25)
1 − cos θ
1
R= = 2 2 A 1 − cos θ . (26) Torsion Eq. (2) 0
κ Radius of curvature Eq. (26)
1− cosθ
Centripetal force Eq. (27)
Eqs. (19) and (26) furnish the value of the centripetal force: 1− cosθ

mv 2 1
F= = mAω 2 1 − cos θ . (27)
Eqs. (17) and (18) indicate that the acceleration and jerk
R 2
vectors possess constant magnitudes throughout the motion.
The speed of the particle, on the other hand, varies, being
Eqs. (2) and (24) indicate that the torsion of the path is
zero at the onset of the motion, reaching a maximum at the
zero. This is to be expected as the motion takes place in a
middle of the cycloid, and becoming zero again at the
vertical plane, and the torsion is rate of turning of the
terminus. The angles the velocity, acceleration and jerk
tangent vector out of the plane.
vectors make with the positive x-axis can conveniently be
The kinetic energy of the particle is obtained from Eq.
expressed in terms of the angle θ. Let the above angles be
(19):
denoted by α, β and γ, respectively. Then, we have:
1
T = mv 2 = mA2ω 2 (1 − cos θ ) . (28)
2 vy sin θ ⎛ θ⎞ π θ
α = tan −1 = tan −1 = tan −1 ⎜ cot ⎟ = − , (30)
Likewise, the potential energy is [from Eq. (12)]: vx 1 − cos θ ⎝ 2⎠ 2 2

V = −mgy = −mgA(1− cos θ ) . (29) ay π

β = tan −1 = tan −1 (cot θ ) = −θ , (31)
ax 2

Lat. Am. J. Phys. Educ. Vol. 6, No. 2, June 2012 198 http://www.lajpe.org
A. Tan, A.K. Chilvery and M. Dokhanian
and 0

jy
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
μ =0

γ = tan −1 = tan −1 (− tan θ ) = −θ . (32) -0.5

jx -1
μ = .1

μ = .2

Since y is positive downwards, the angles are reckoned -1.5

y, A
μ = .3
positive if clockwise. Thus the acceleration and jerk vectors -2

rotate counter-clockwise with θ, with the former trailing the

latter by 90o. The velocity vector, too, rotates counter-
-2.5

clockwise, but with half the angular speed. Also, since the -3

centripetal force is always perpendicular to the velocity, it

-3.5
too, rotates counter-clockwise with the same angular speed, x, A
leading the velocity vector by 90o. The velocity,
FIGURE 3. Brachistochrone trajectories with various coefficients
acceleration and jerk vectors are depicted at intervals of
of kinetic friction.
90os in Fig. 2.

The dynamical variables are conveniently calculated using

j j
Eqs. (33) and (34) following the usual procedure. We have
a
a x r
v = Aω [(− cos θ + μ sin θ )xˆ + (sin θ + μ + μ cos θ ) yˆ ] . (35)
j
a
r
a a v a = Aω 2 [(sin θ + μ cosθ )xˆ + (cosθ − μ sin θ ) yˆ ] . (36)
v
j r
y
j v j = Aω 3 [(cosθ − μ sin θ )xˆ − (sin θ + μ cosθ )yˆ ] . (37)

FIGURE 2. Velocity, acceleration and jerk vectors at intervals of

90o.
r r
[( )
v × a = A 2ω 3 1 − μ 2 cosθ − 1 + μ 2 − 2μ sin θ zˆ . (38) ( ) ]
r r
[( ) ( )
v × a = A 2 ω 3 1 + μ 2 − 1 − μ 2 cos θ + 2 μ sin θ . ] (39)
IV. BRACHISTOCHRONE PROBLEM WITH
KINETIC FRICTION v 2 = 2 A 2ω 2 [(1 + μ 2 )− (1 − μ 2 )cosθ + 2μ sin θ ]. (40)

[( )( ) ]
When kinetic friction is included, the Brachistochrone 3/ 2
problem becomes much more formidable. A closed form of v 3 = 2 2 A 3ω 3 1 + μ 2 − 1 − μ 2 cos θ + 2 μ sin θ . (41)
solution was obtained, but the solution is quite intractable,
and the equation of motion could not be integrated to give 1
κ=
( )− (1 − μ )cosθ + 2μ sin θ
the velocity as a function of position [6]. An approximate . (42)
solution was found, with neglect of the centripetal force [7], 2 2 A 1+ μ 2 2
which was easy to work with. If μ is the coefficient of
kinetic friction, we have, instead of Eqs. (10) and (11) (vide
[7]): a = Aω 2 1 + μ 2 . (43)

x = A[(θ − sin θ ) + μ (1 − cos θ )] , (33)

j = Aω 3 1 + μ 2 . (44)
and

y = A[(1 − cos θ ) + μ (θ + sin θ )] . (34)

R=
κ
1
( )(
= 2 2 A 1 + μ 2 − 1 − μ 2 cos θ + 2 μ sin θ , (45) )
Fig. 3 displays the trajectories given by Eqs. (33) and (34) and
for three values of μ equal to 0.1, 0.2 and 0.3.
F=
mv 2
R
=
1
2
(
mAω 2 1 + μ 2 − 1 − μ 2 cos θ + 2μ sin θ . )( )
(46)

Lat. Am. J. Phys. Educ. Vol. 6, No. 2, June 2012 199 http://www.lajpe.org
 Dynamical variables in brachistochrone problem
The angular dependences of these variables are shown in V. CONCLUSIONS
Table II. All quantities are affected by friction but the
magnitudes of the acceleration and jerk vectors remain The historic Brachistochrone problem has been associated
constants. It is easy to verify that the entries of Table II with the greatest mathematical minds of that time, including
reduce to those of Table I in the absence of friction. the Bernoulli brothers, Newton, Leibniz and L’Hospital, all
of whom can be regarded as founders or co-founders of
Calculus. This problem also gave birth to the new branch of
TABLE II. Angular dependences of Dynamical Variables with mathematics called the Calculus of Variations. Quite
kinetic friction. surprisingly, the discussion of this problem in the literature
is invariably related to finding the shape of the trajectory,
Dynamical variable θ-dependence and the dynamical aspects of the problem are completely
Abscissa (θ − sinθ ) + μ (1 − cosθ ) ignored. It is hoped that this study fills an important void in
Ordinate (1 − cosθ ) + μ (θ + sinθ ) the dynamical aspects of this fascinating problem.
x-component of velocity (1 − cosθ ) + μ sinθ
y-component of velocity sinθ + μ (1 + cosθ )
x-component of acceleration sinθ + μ cosθ
REFERENCES
y-component of acceleration cosθ − μ sinθ
x-component of jerk cosθ − μ sinθ [1] Gardner, M., The Sixth Book of Mathematical Games,
y-component of jerk −(sinθ + μ cosθ ) (University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1984), pp. 130-131.
Speed [2] Boyer, C. B. and Merzbach, U. C., A History of
(1 + μ )2 − (1 − μ )2 cosθ + 2μ sinθ Mathematics, (John Wiley, USA, 1991), pp. 405, 417.
[3] Courant, R. and Robbinds, H., What is Mathematics?
Magnitude of acceleration constant An Elementary Approach to Ideas and Methods, (Oxford
Magnitude of jerk constant University Press, UK, 1996), pp. 381-383.
Momentum
(1 + μ )2 − (1 − μ )2 cosθ + 2μ sinθ [4] Tan, A. and Edwards, M. E., The jerk vector in
projectile motion, Lat. Am. J. Phys. Educ. 5, 344-347
Kinetic energy (1 + μ )2 − (1 − μ )2 cosθ + 2μ sinθ (2011).
Potential energy (cosθ − 1) − μ (θ + sinθ ) [5] Tan, A. and Dokhanian, M., Jerk, curvature and torsion
1 in motion of charged particle under electric and magnetic
Curvature fields, Lat. Am. J. Phys. Educ. 5, 667-670 (2011).
(1 + μ ) − (1 − μ )2 cosθ + 2μ sin θ
2
[6] Ashby, N., Brittin, W. E., Love, W. F. and Wyss, W.,
Torsion 0 Brachistochrone with Coulomb friction, Am. J. Phys. 43,
Radius of curvature
(1 + μ ) − (1 − μ )2 cosθ + 2μ sinθ
2 902-906 (1975).
Centripetal force [7] Weisstein, E. W., CRC Concise Encyclopedia of
(1 + μ )2 − (1 − μ )2 cosθ + 2μ sinθ Mathematics, (Chapman-Hall, USA, 2003), pp. 279-280.

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