The Dependence of the Double Pendulums Chaotic Nature upon Its Angle of Release

Name: Lloyd James Candidate Number: 000159-018 Category: Physics Supervisor: Louay El Halabi Word Count: 3740

Abstract.

Dependence upon initial conditions is defined as the degree to which the future state of a system will be impacted by a change in its initial configuration. A double pendulum is a device comprised of one pendulum swinging freely on the end of another. The purpose of this experiment was to investigate the question: How does the dependence upon initial release conditions of a double pendulums motion vary with the angle from which the pendulum is released? This was to be measured by comparing the resulting motion paths when the pendulum was released several times from the same angle, with random, minor deviations in the initial conditions. Executing the experiment required the release of the pendulum a set number of times from a variety of angles and taking photographs of the motion every 0.3 seconds for a total of 5.1 seconds. Each of the resulting 595 photographs required measurements of the two pendulum angles and of the time elapsed. To synchronise the releases from the same angle, a program was coded in C++ that would use the equations of motion of the double pendulum, along with the pendulums measurements, to simulate the first few seconds of motion in a discrete fashion. It would then compute the elapsed time since release for the first photograph. Then, the motion paths of the pendulum for each of the trial releases from each of the release angles could be interpolated, and the average standard deviation between the trials over the 5 second time period could be calculated for each release angle. It was concluded that the dependence upon initial release conditions of the double pendulums motion is constant up to a certain critical angle, which can be calculated based upon the

pendulums measurements. Thereafter, the dependence of its motion upon release angle increases exponentially.

Words: 300

Table of Contents.
1.0 Introduction. ............................................................................................................................................................ 5 1.1 Purpose of Research. ...........................................................................................................................................5 1.2 Background Information Regarding Double Pendulum Motion. ........................................................................5 2.0 Experiment. ............................................................................................................................................................. 7 2.1 Preparation/Setup. ...............................................................................................................................................7 2.2 Photographing Double Pendulum Motion Paths. ................................................................................................ 8 2.3 Measuring Double Pendulum Motion Paths ........................................................................................................9 2.4 Measuring Divergence between Double Pendulum Motion Paths. ................................................................... 10 2.5 Comparing Deviations of Double Pendulum Motion Paths between Release Angles. ..................................... 12 3.0 Analysis. ................................................................................................................................................................ 13 3.1 Analysis. ............................................................................................................................................................ 13 3.1.1 Analysis of Observed Motion Paths. .......................................................................................................... 13 3.1.2 Analysis of Measured Motion Paths .......................................................................................................... 14 3.1.3 Analysis of Standard Deviations between Motion Paths ........................................................................... 18 3.1.4 Analysis of Average Standard Deviation over Time between Motion Paths ............................................. 20 3.2 Evaluation. ........................................................................................................................................................ 21 3.2.1 Release and Recording of Pendulum ......................................................................................................... 21 3.2.2 Measurements of Time and Angle ............................................................................................................. 22 3.2.3 Determination of Standard Deviations ....................................................................................................... 22 4.0 Conclusion. ............................................................................................................................................................ 23 4.1 Conclusion......................................................................................................................................................... 23 4.2. Areas for Further Research............................................................................................................................... 23 5.0 Works Cited ........................................................................................................................................................... 24 Works Cited ................................................................................................................................................................. 24 6.0 Appendices ............................................................................................................................................................ 25 6.1 Deriving Equations of Motion Using Lagrangian Mechanics ........................................................................... 25 6.2 Details of Program Pendulum.exe ................................................................................................................. 29 6.3 Determining Uncertainty Values ....................................................................................................................... 33 6.4 Deriving the Formula for Critical Point ............................................................................................................ 34 6.5 Sample Raw Motion Path Data for 90 and 120 (2 out of 7) Releases ............................................................ 35 6.6 Motion Path Graphs of Arm 1 ........................................................................................................................... 39 6.7 Ratios of Arm 1 to Arm 2 over 2-3 Second Period ........................................................................................... 46 6.8 Standard Deviation of Motion Paths of Arm 1 .................................................................................................. 53

1.0 Introduction.
1.1 Purpose of Research.
A system that experiences chaotic motion is one in which small differences in initial conditions yield greatly diverging outcomes, making the system difficult to predict (Kellert, 1993). A double pendulum, which is essentially one
Arm 1 Arm 2

pendulum attached to the end of another pendulum (Figure 1), is an example of such a system, with its motion path depending strongly upon the release angle (one of its initial conditions). Observation indicates that this dependence is more evident when the angle of release is greater. The pendulum will appear to accelerate and decelerate randomly when the pendulum is released from a higher point, in a way that is not obvious when
Figure 1- Double Pendulum
1 2

the pendulum is released from a lower point. The purpose of the research detailed in this essay was to investigate the question: How does the dependence upon initial release conditions of a double pendulums motion vary with the angle from which the pendulum is released?

1.2 Background Information Regarding Double Pendulum Motion.

It is important to make the distinction that the chaotic nature of the double pendulum is not due to random forces acting on the pendulum (as in Brownian Motion) but is rather an example of deterministic chaos, which occurs in nonlinear systems with only a few degrees of freedom (Gitterman, 2010).
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Due to the forces of constraint acting on the arms of the double pendulum (fixing the arms in circular paths relative to their axes) and the multiple position coordinates necessary to describe the system, it becomes very difficult to create equations of motion for the double pendulum using Newtonian Mechanics. Instead, we must turn to Lagrangian Mechanics. Lagrangian Mechanics are based upon DAlemberts Principle and apply to systems regardless of whether or not they conserve energy or momentum. As well, they allow us to deal only with scalar, rather than vector quantities and to choose any set of generalized coordinates to describe the system (Calkin, 1996). Using Lagrangian Mechanics, the equations of motion for the system can be found by firstly choosing the angles between the pendulum arms and the vertical as generalized coordinates, then by expressing the kinetic and potential energies of the system using these coordinates, their time derivatives, and time. From there, the Lagrangian can be formed and substituted into Lagranges equations and the required differentiations can be performed. This process is detailed in Appendix 1, on page 26. The results of this analysis are the two equations: 62 1 = sin 1 71 1
2

2 2 sin(1 + 2 ) 1 2 sin 1 2

2 =

2 1 sin 1 + 2 sin 2 21 2 7 + 21 cos 1 + 2 + 6 2 2

Note: The angle between the inner pendulum arm and the vertical is 1 , and the angle between the outer arm and the vertical is 2 . 1 , 2 , 1 , and 2 represent their corresponding lengths and masses, respectively. Newtons notation for differentiation is used here, so 2 represents the angular velocity of 2 , and 2 represents the angular acceleration.

2.0 Experiment.
2.1 Preparation/Setup.
The goal of the experiment was to conclude with measurements of the dependence upon initial conditions of the pendulums motion, over different angles. It was decided that if the pendulum was released a number of times from the same angle, the variation in the range of pendulum arm positions that occurred at a specific time after release would potentially provide a measure of how the initial release conditions could impact the subsequent movements of the pendulum arms. Completing this test for each of several different angles would provide the necessary data to answer the research question. It was noticed that for the double pendulum used, the apparent unpredictability of the motion would greatly increase around the release angle of 105, so the angles chosen to provide data were 90 to 120 at increments of 5. In order to track the motion path of the double pendulum, it was fixed to a wall, and highresolution camera was placed adjacent to it, on a tripod at the same level as the center of the double pendulum. The camera took photographs with a resolution of 5184x3456, with the pendulum centered in cameras field of view. To ensure the pendulum was released from a specific angle, a large semi-circular paper scale was placed to one side of the pendulum, and marked with lines radiating out from the center of the pendulum at precise angles to the vertical (Figure 1). The double pendulum was purchased for this experiment from chaoticpendulums.com, and is made of aluminium, with low friction bearings connecting the two arms, and the one arm to the wall. The inner arm (also to be termed Arm 1) is 17.3 cm in length, and 3.8 cm in width, with a mass of 275g. The outer arm (Arm 2) is 16.4 cm in length, and also 3.8cm in width, with a mass of 110g. To allow measurement of the angle between the pendulum

arms and the vertical from a photograph, a straight, visible line was made down the center of each of the pendulums arms (Figure 1). A stopwatch was fixed to the wall next the pendulum, in the cameras view, to provide a time measurement for each photograph of the pendulum. It was assumed that because the camera used can only take photographs every 0.3 seconds, it would be impossible to know with sufficient precision the time of release, unless the release occurred at exactly the same time as the photograph was taken. It was critical however, to know the time of release in order to synchronise the times for each of the trials. As a solution, a short program was coded in C++, called Pendulum.exe that, given the position of the two pendulum arms and the angle of release as input, would use the equations of motion to find the time taken for the pendulum to go from release to the given position. It would achieve this by simulating the motion path in a discrete, rather than continuous fashion (seeing as the equations of motion for the double pendulum cannot be integrated over time). The details of the program can be found in Appendix 2, on page 30.

2.2 Photographing Double Pendulum Motion Paths.

For a single release angle, the double pendulum was released five times from approximately the same location. Just before each release, the wall-mounted stopwatch would be started, and the camera would begin to take photographs continuously every 0.3 seconds. At release, the double pendulum would be as straight as possible so that the angles between each arm and the vertical were equal. Photographs would be taken over a 7 second period, so as not to be in danger of having insufficient photographs for the 5 second period of time with which the motion path would be measured. This process was repeated for each of the 7 determined release angles, resulting in 840 photographs being taken.

2.3 Measuring Double Pendulum Motion Paths

To measure the motion paths, an open-source computer program called ImageJ was used. This program has the function to measure an angle that is drawn onto the photograph. ImageJ was used to measure the angle between each of the two pendulum arms and the vertical for all the photographs up to five seconds from release for each of the trials for each of the release angles (Figure 2). The time
Figure 2 Pendulum Image Processing

shown on the stopwatch for each photograph would also be recorded. A total of 1785 data points were generated through this process. The angles measured for the first photograph taken after release would then be inputted into Pendulum.exe, which would output the time since release. This measured time deviation would then be used to adjust all the times collected from the stopwatch to be synchronised relative to the time of release. The following data table (Figure 3) is an example of the first half of the data that would be collected using ImageJ for three of the five trials for one arm for a single release angle.
Figure 3 Time 1 (s) 0.01s Angle 1() 0.6 Time 2(s) 0.01s Angle 2() 0.6 Time 3(s) 0.01s Angle 3() 0.6 Release Photo. 1 0 0.24 90.0 5.1 0 0.30 90.0 -50.4 0 0.25 90.0 -11.3 Photo. 2 0.55 -81.1 0.62 -32.9 0.57 -72.7 Photo. 3 0.87 17.2 0.88 82.2 0.88 50.0 Photo. 4 1.19 61.2 1.19 4.0 1.20 40.6 Photo. 5 1.45 -69.6 1.56 -65.9 1.47 -74.9 Photo. 6 1.76 -21.8 1.88 53.1 1.78 -5.6 Photo. 7 2.08 79.4 2.14 33.9 2.09 85.5 Photo. 8 2.34 2.7 2.46 -77.2 2.41 -28.3

Note: Determination of uncertainty values is detailed in Appendix 3.

When the measurements were completed for all seven release angles, graphs were compiled using the data. Sine fits were generated in the Logger Pro graphing software to estimate the motion paths of the double pendulum after release. The following (Figure 4) is an example of
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such a graph for the motion paths of arm 1 for the five trials from a 90 release point. Refer to Appendix 6 on page 40 for a complete set of motion path graphs for Arm 1 from all release angles.

2.4 Measuring Divergence between Double Pendulum Motion Paths.

Because the first photograph after the release for each trial varies between 0 and 0.3 seconds, the measured angles and times do not necessarily align from trial to trial, and so cannot be directly compared. The solution required an Excel function to find 9 points between each of the existing data points that fall on the Excel-plotted smooth curves. This vastly increased number of points on the graph allowed all of the points to be shifted as necessary to align with each other, so that given a particular time for one trial, comparative points could be found at a comparative time (within approximately 0.03 seconds) for each of the other trials. This meant that at 160-170 points over a five second period, the standard deviation of the pendulum arm angles at a

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particular time could be found and plotted. The following table (Figure 5) and graph (Figure 6) are an example of these results. Refer to Appendix 8 on page 54 for more complete results. Figure 5: Standard Deviations of Arm 1 Angles between the Five Trials from 90 Release Time (s) 0.01s Standard Deviation of Arm Angles () 1 0.03 4 0.05 9 0.08 13 0.10 18 0.13 22 0.17 23 0.19 25 0.22 22 0.26 18 0.29 15

Note: Determination of uncertainty values is detailed in Appendix 3, on page 34.

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2.5 Comparing Deviations of Double Pendulum Motion Paths between Release Angles.
To compare the deviations among the motion paths between the seven release angles, all the standard deviation measurements over the five second time periods were averaged together, resulting in 7 data points for each double pendulum arm. The two graphs of these sets were then combined together by multiplying all the values for Arm 1 (which had a lower mean averaged deviation) by a calculated value, so that the mean averaged deviation for Arm 1 was the same as the mean averaged deviation for Arm 2. This effectively scaled the graph of Arm 1 to be comparable to the graph of Arm 2. The two graphs were then combined to create an overall representation of the effect of release angle on the pendulums dependence upon its initial release conditions. This is shown, along with its component curves, in Figure 7. The best curve to fit the data is the logistic function, which experiences no change in y-value up to a certain point, then experiences a rapid increase up to another point, after which the increase tapers off. Then there is no further increase.

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3.0 Analysis.
3.1 Analysis.
There are four main aspects of the experiment that can be analysed to produce a unified conclusion: the observed motion paths of the double pendulum, the measured motion paths, the calculated standard deviations between the motion paths, and the averages of these standard deviations. 3.1.1 Analysis of Observed Motion Paths. As previously detailed when discussing the choice of initial release angles, visual observation of the double pendulum in motion reveals that for all release angles up to 105, after release the pendulum will simply swing back and forth in a predictable fashion, and Arm 2 never does a full rotation around its axis. However, from 110 and higher Arm 2 starts to rotate unpredictably around its axis and Arm 1 speeds up and slows down in a random manner. 110.5 was also calculated as the theoretical angle at which a released pendulum would start with enough gravitational potential energy for Arm 2 to be able to rotate 360(refer to Appendix 4, on page 35 for this calculation). From this, a possible physical explanation for the rapid increase in dependence upon initial conditions around 110 emerges. From angles of around 110 and above, the pendulum would have enough energy for its Arm 2 to flip completely over, and this rotation would cause a significant deviation from the typical range of ratios between the two angles. The equations of motion for the double pendulum indicate that the acceleration of the arms is dependent on both the absolute and relative positions of the two pendulum arms. This deviation would therefore cause Arm 1 to experience a different acceleration than it would experience in the same position when released from a different angle, further increasing the

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differences in angle ratio and in angle position. This could result in a feedback loop, rapidly driving initially close pendulum positions further apart. 3.1.2 Analysis of Measured Motion Paths

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Looking at the measurements made of the double pendulums motion paths, over 5 trials from each of 7 different angles, there is a clear trend that emerges. From angles 90 to 105 (Figure 8), all of the motion paths follow a regular (not diverging over time), almost sinusoidal path, and between trials there is very little divergence between the motion paths. At 110 however (Figure 9), the double pendulums motion follows the same path between trials for one period of oscillation, but thereafter the motion paths appear to slowly diverge. Some of the trials have motion paths that are more regular, and some have motion paths that are irregular. At 115 (Figure 10), this divergence of the motion paths of the trials happens considerably sooner, and is considerably more noticeable. These observations of the measured motion paths appear to agree with the analysis of the observed pendulum motion path, where it was found that 110 was the release angle at which chaotic motion became visually evident, and that 110 is the closest angle

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of release to the point at which the pendulum has enough energy to flip Arm 2, which has been hypothesised to be the cause of the chaotic motion. These measurements made of the motion paths can be used to calculate the ratio between the angle of Arm 2 to the angle of Arm 1. When these ratios are found for all points of a specific release angle, and all are combined into a graph of arm angle ratios against time, without regard for which points were done for which trial, the previous conclusions are reinforced. This is verified because for points from release angles below 110 (Figure 11, below), the ratio of the angle of Arm 1 to the angle of Arm 2 stays within a small range from 0.5 0.8. This pattern repeats periodically, broken up by segments where the ratio becomes much greater in magnitude, positive or negative, where the pendulum reaches the bottom of its swing. There, small differences in angle, as between 0.05 and -0.25 can result in atypically large ratios. Also, for points from release angles above 110 (Figure 12), there is a significantly larger spread of angle ratios, at a certain time and over time. This, together with the previous observation, supports the notion that the degree to which the pendulums motion is chaotic depends on the ratio between the two arms. This in turn can be thrown off its normal path by a flipping of the outer arm caused by having a higher release angle. This idea is further supported in Figure 13, where it is shown that from a release angle of 110, there is a period of approximately 1.4 seconds where the ratio of the second angle to the first angle stays within a limited range. However after 1.4 seconds there is a significant increase in the range of these ratios. This explosion in the range of ratios corresponds closely with the point in the graph of the motion paths of the releases from 110 at which the motion paths of the different trials begin to diverge. This divergence can be seen to occur almost exactly 1.4 seconds into the motion. Refer to Appendix 7 on page 47 for graphs of this ratio over time for each of the release angles.
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3.1.3 Analysis of Standard Deviations between Motion Paths

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Analysis of the standard deviations between the motion paths over time reveals little more than has already been determined through analysis of the measured and observed motion paths. What is does show though is that the difference between the pendulum angles oscillates over time, being highest when the pendulum approaches 0 to the vertical and lowest when it approaches its initial release position, or the position opposite to it. This analysis also supports the previous conclusion in that applying a linear fit to the graph shows that the standard deviation between the trials changes little up to 110, and is equally likely to decrease as it is to increase. At and above 110 however, the rate of change of standard deviation increases greatly as the release angle increases. 3.1.4 Analysis of Average Standard Deviation over Time between Motion Paths Analysis of the data represented in Figure 7 shows that there is no initial increase of the dependence upon initial release conditions of the pendulum as the release angle is increased, up to 105. This initial phase corresponds with the group of release angles with which there is no flipping of Arm 2, and hence a small range of ratios between the two angles. Between 105 and 115 there is a rapid increase of the sensitivity as the release angle increases. This period corresponds with the period in which the pendulum experiences flipping of Arm 2. The rapid increase in sensitivity is likely due to the increased release angle and consequent increased kinetic energy causing more flips of Arm 2, and causing the flips to happen sooner. Between 115 and 120 the rate at which the sensitivity increases as the angle increases tapers off. At this point, the sensitivity will be approaching the maximum measurable using this method, because from this release angle, after a few seconds the distribution of the arms would be almost random. It can be seen that for both Arms 1 and 2, there is a dip in the dependence upon initial conditions at the 100 release. This data point represents a significant anomaly, considering that the points

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on either side of it have almost the same value. However it must be the product of random error considering that there is no physical explanation for a simple system to become less chaotic when starting with a greater potential energy.

3.2 Evaluation.
There are three parts to the experiment in which error could have accumulated: the release and recording of the pendulum, the measurement of the angles and of time, and the determination of the standard deviation of the angles between trials at one particular time. 3.2.1 Release and Recording of Pendulum This stage of the experiment is not likely to be a significant source of error. While there was no significant attempt to release the pendulum from exactly the same spot, this lack of attempt was a necessary part of the experiment, at it resulted in slight deviations of the initial release conditions which enabled the later, larger deviations to be measurable. What may have had an effect on the experiment, however, is the range in initial angles that resulted from this. A larger range of angles would have directly affected the result by increasing the standard deviations between the motion paths of the different trials. Considering that no attempt made to keep the range smaller than normal or larger than normal, it is unlikely that range of release angles would be especially large for one particular set of trials. However, such an anomaly could be a possible explanation of the dip in the graph of average standard deviation of motion paths against release angle (Figure 7) identified earlier. The camera used had a high definition and was not moved throughout the experiment, and so was unlikely to be a significant source of error.

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3.2.2 Measurements of Time and Angle Although the angles were measured using computer software, which has a high precision of angle measurement, this is not representative of the actual precision achieved, because the angle must be drawn with a mouse onto the image along a line that is slightly thicker. So, repeated measurements will likely yield slightly different results. The uncertainty on this process was calculated by making measurements on one set of data twice, and using the highest difference between a measurement in one set and a measurement in the other as the uncertainty. (See Appendix 3 for details) The time measurement, recorded with a stopwatch iPhone application, is given to two decimal places, and can be assumed to have an uncertainty equal to one in the lowest decimal place given (0.01 s in this case). 3.2.3 Determination of Standard Deviations The primary issue here was that, because interpolated data points were required to be able to compare the motion paths at approximately the same time, and so a function had to be used that would attempt to draw a smooth curve between all of the data points. While this method certainly provides a good approximation of the motion path, it will be inexact as it will not be able to recognise if the outer arm of the pendulum flips, for example, or it may not be continued to the farthest angle reached by the pendulum during a swing if data points are given just before and then just after reaching the peak angle, at which its kinetic energy is 0. The interpolated points do still capture the motion path for the most part however, so the final result should not be affected significantly.

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4.0 Conclusion.
4.1 Conclusion.
Based on the results achieved by this experiment, it can be concluded that when a double pendulum is released, the degree to which the resulting motion depends upon its initial release conditions is determined by whether the release angle is greater or lower than a specific critical angle. This critical angle is equal to the release angle at which the pendulum has enough starting potential energy to, later in its motion, have enough kinetic energy to experience a 360 rotation of its outer arm. If the release angle is less than this, then the motion of the pendulum will be regular and easily predictable and the ratio of the angle of one arm to the other will be kept tightly within a small range. If the release angle is greater than this critical angle, the pendulum will become chaotic, unpredictably changing velocity, and having the ratio of the one arm to the other vary greatly. Additionally, by equating the kinetic energy required to flip the pendulums second arm with the potential energy of the pendulum when raised to a certain angle, the equation relating a pendulums critical angle and the masses and lengths of that pendulums arms can be found to be (Refer to Appendix 4, on page 35 for detail):

= cos1

2 2 1 1 2 1 1 + 2 1 + 2 2 2

4.2. Areas for Further Research.

There are two points of further research that are important to clarify the results of this experiment. The first course of action should be to ascertain that the dip in the graph of average standard deviation of motion paths against angle (Figure 7) is in fact the result of random error,

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and not the result of some underlying physical factor not being considered here. The second required investigation would be to confirm that the critical angle varies with a change in the masses and lengths of the pendulum arms as predicted by the established formula. This could be confirmed by repeating this experiment multiple times with pendula of different arm lengths and masses, and confirming that each time the critical angle conforms to the formula.

5.0 Works Cited Works Cited

Calkin, M. G. (1996). Lagrangian and Hamiltonian Mechanics. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd. Gitterman, M. (2010). The Chaotic Pendulum. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd. Kellert, S. H. (1993). In the Wake of Chaos: Unpredictable Order in Dynamical Systems. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

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6.0 Appendices
6.1 Deriving Equations of Motion Using Lagrangian Mechanics
Due to the difficulty of using Newtonian Mechanics to find the equations of motion of a double pendulum, it becomes necessary to used Lagrangian Mechanics to determine them. The Lagrangian of the system is defined as the difference between the kinetic and potential energy of the system. = With the double pendulum, the kinetic energy is the sum of the linear kinetic energy of the center of mass of each of the two pendulum arms 1 1 1 1 2 + 2 2 2 2 2 and the rotational kinetic energy around the center of mass of each rod, which is defined as the product of the moment of inertia and half the rotational velocity. 1 2 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 = 1 + 2 = (1 + 2 ) 2 2 2 2 The potential energy, relative to a 0 potential energy level at the axis around which Arm 1 rotates, is defined as the sum of the products of the mass of each pendulum arm, the acceleration due to gravity, and the y axis component of the center of mass of each arm 1 1 + 2 2 Therefore, the Lagrangian can be stated as: 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 2 + 2 2 2 + 1 + 2 1 1 2 2 2 2 2
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Knowing that the linear velocity of a center of mass of a pendulum arm is equal to the product of the distance from that center of mass to the axis of rotation and the rotational velocity of that arm around the axis,

1 1 = = 1 1 ; 2 = = 2

1 1 2 + 2 2 1 2 cos 1 2 ) 2 ( 4

*note: the radical in the above formula is found using the law of cosines on an imagined triangle formed between the axis of rotation, the connection between the two pendulum arms, and the midpoint of the second arm of the pendulum.

that the y components of the position of each center of mass are 1 2 cos 1 ; 2 = 1 cos 1 cos 2 2 2

1 =

and that each pendulum arm, resembling a slender rod with an axis through its midpoint, has a moment of inertia of 1 = 3 1 1 2 ; 2 = 3 2 2 2 , the formula for the Lagrangian can be rewritten as:
2 1 1

1 1 1 1 1 2 2

1 + 2 2

1 1 2 + 2 2 1 2 cos 1 2 ) 2 ( 4

1 1 2 1 1 2 1 2 3 2 cos 2 2

+ =

1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 1 cos 1 2 3 2

2 1 cos 1

1 1 1 1 2 2 2 1 1 2 1 + 2 1 2 + 2 2 1 2 cos 1 2 ) 2 + 1 1 2 1 ( 8 2 4 6

1 1 1 2 + 2 2 2 2 + 1 1 cos 1 + 2 1 cos 1 + 2 2 cos 2 6 2 2

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Knowing that the difference between the time derivative of the partial derivative of the Lagrangian with respect to the time derivative of a generalized coordinate and the partial derivative of the Lagrangian with respect to a generalized coordinate is 0, = 0; =0 1 1 2 2 to find the equations of motion of the double pendulum one can find the required derivatives. 1 1 1 7 1 1 2 1 + 1 1 2 1 = 2 4 3 12 1 1 1

7 7 = 1 1 2 1 = 2 1 12 12 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 = 2 2 1 2 + 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 cos 1 2 ) + 1 1 cos 1 ( 1 1 2 8 2 2 + 2 1 cos 1 1 1 2 = 2 2 1 2 sin( 1 2 ) 1 1 sin 1 2 2 2 1 sin 1 1 = 1 2 sin 1 2 2 2 sin(1 + 2 ) 1 2 sin 1 2

2

7 =0 1 1 2 1 1 1 12 1 = 1 2 sin 1 2 62 = sin 1 71 1 2 2 sin 1 + 2 1 2 sin 1 2 2 2 sin(1 + 2 ) 1 2 sin 1 2

2 2

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1 1 = 2 1 2 + 2 2 1 2 cos 1 2 ) 2 + 2 2 2 2 ( 4 3 2 1 1 = 2 2 1 2 + 2 2 + 1 2 cos 1 + 2 + 2 2 4 3 1 1 = 2 2 1 2 + 2 2 + 1 2 cos 1 + 2 + 2 2 2 4 3 1 21 2 7 = 2 2 2 + 21 cos 1 + 2 + 2 2 2 6 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 = 2 2 1 2 + 2 2 2 + 2 2 1 2 cos 1 + 2 + 2 2 cos 2 2 2 2 8 2 2 1 1 2 = 2 2 1 2 sin 1 + 2 2 2 sin 2 2 2 1 2 = 2 2 2 1 sin 1 + 2 + sin 2 2 1 21 2 7 = 0 2 2 2 + 21 cos 1 + 2 + 2 2 2 2 2 6 1 2 = 2 2 2 1 sin 1 + 2 + sin 2 2 2 1 sin 1 + 2 sin 2 21 2 7 + 21 cos 1 + 2 + 6 2 2
2

2 =

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6.2 Details of Program Pendulum.exe Note: Technical variables and functions are hidden to conserve space.
void Accelerations(); //This function will take the length and mass variables, along with the arm 2 angular velocity, as input. The output will be the angular accelerations of arms 1 and 2. void Calculate(float timestep); //This function will discretely calculate the velocities and positions of the two arms over given timesteps, until the position of the first arm reaches the target value. float angacc1; //Angular acceleration of arm 1 float angacc2; //Angular acceleration of arm 2 float angvel1; //Angular velocity of arm 1 float angvel2; //Angular velocity of arm 2 float ang1; //Angle of arm 1 float ang2; //Angle of arm 2 float mass1; //Mass of arm 1 float mass2; //Mass of arm 2 float length1; //Length of arm 1 float length2; //Length of arm 2 float g = 9.81; //Acceleration due to gravity float targetang1; //The arm 1 angle up to which the simulation and time counting is performed. float targetang2; //The arm 2 angle up to which the simulation and time counting is performed. int main() { system("cls"); mass1 = 0.275; mass2 = 0.110; length1 = 0.173; length2 = 0.164; //Measurements of the pendulum time1reached = false; time2reached = false; finished = false; cout << "Angle 1A: " << endl; cin >> input1; ang1 = atof(input1.c_str()); //Input of the starting angle of arm 1 cout << "Angle 2A: " << endl; cin >> input2; ang2 = atof(input2.c_str()); //Input of the starting angle of arm 2 cout << "Angular Velocity 1A: " << endl; cin >> input3; angvel1 = atof(input3.c_str()); //Input of the starting velocity of arm 1 cout << "Angular Velocity 2A: " << endl; cin >> input4; angvel2 = atof(input4.c_str()); //Input of the starting velocity of arm 2 cout << "Angle 1B: " << endl;

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cin >> input5; targetang1 = atof(input5.c_str()); //Input of the target angle of arm 1 cout << "Angle 2B: " << endl; cin >> input6; targetang2 = atof(input6.c_str()); //Input of the target angle of arm 2 //The below process will simulate the motion path, and measure the time, over three different time steps, which grradually get smaller. //This results in a high precision of the final result. //The program will simulate the motion until at the next time step, the pendulum passes the target angle. //The program will then shrink the time step, and continue this process. prevang1 = ang1; prevang2 = ang2; prevangvel1 = angvel1; prevangvel2 = angvel2; prevangacc1 = 0; prevangacc2 = 0; counter = 0; Calculate(0.05); prevang1 = finalang1 [counter]; prevang2 = finalang2; prevangvel1 = finalangvel1; prevangvel2 = finalangvel2; prevangacc1 = finalangacc1; prevangacc2 = finalangacc2; ang1 = finalang1 [counter]; ang2 = finalang2; angvel1 = finalangvel1; angvel2 = finalangvel2; angacc1 = finalangacc1; angacc2 = finalangacc2; finished = false; time1reached = false; time2reached = false; counter = 1; Calculate(0.01); prevang1 = finalang1 [counter]; prevang2 = finalang2; prevangvel1 = finalangvel1; prevangvel2 = finalangvel2; prevangacc1 = finalangacc1; prevangacc2 = finalangacc2; ang1 = finalang1 [counter]; ang2 = finalang2; angvel1 = finalangvel1; angvel2 = finalangvel2; angacc1 = finalangacc1; angacc2 = finalangacc2; finished = false; time1reached = false; time2reached = false; counter = 2; Calculate(0.002);

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//The result of this process is a measurement of the final velocities of the two arms, and more importantly: // a measurement of the time taken by the pendulum to reach the target angle. system("cls"); cout << "Timestep - 0.05: " << endl << "Final Angle: " << finalang1 [0] << endl << "Final Time: " << angle1time [0] << endl << endl; cout << "Timestep - 0.01: " << endl << "Final Angle: " << finalang1 [1] << endl << "Final Time: " << angle1time [1] << endl << endl; cout << "Timestep - 0.002: " << endl << "Final Angle: " << finalang1 [2] << endl << "Final Time: " << angle1time [2] << endl << endl; cout << "Final Angular Velocity of Angle 1: " << finalangvel1 << endl; cout << "Final Angular Velocity of Angle 2: " << finalangvel2 << endl; system("pause"); return 0; } void Calculate(float timestep) { //This part checks to see if the current angle is larger than the target. if ((targetang1 > ang1)) { larger1 = true; } else { larger1 = false; } if ((targetang2 > ang2)) { larger2 = true; } else { larger2 = false; } for (int step = 0; finished != true; step++) { //This is the calculation of what the positions and velocities of the arms will be in the next time step. ang1 = ang1 + angvel1 * timestep + 0.5 * angacc1 * timestep * timestep; ang2 = ang2 + angvel2 * timestep + 0.5 * angacc2 * timestep * timestep; angvel1 = angvel1 + angacc1 * timestep; angvel2 = angvel2 + angacc2 * timestep; //This is where the function to calculate the accelerations is called. Accelerations(); //Technical functions: if ((larger1 == true)) { if ((time1reached == false)) { if((targetang1 <= ang1)) { angle1time [counter] = step * timestep; finalang1 [counter] = prevang1; finalangvel1 = prevangvel1; finalangacc1 = prevangacc1; finalangvel2 = prevangvel2; time1reached = true; } } }

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else { if ((time1reached == false)) { if((targetang1 >= ang1)) { angle1time [counter] = step * timestep; finalang1 [counter] = prevang1; finalangvel1 = prevangvel1; finalangacc1 = prevangacc1; finalangvel2 = prevangvel2; time1reached = true; } } } if ((larger2 == true)) { if ((time2reached == false)) { if((targetang2 <= ang2)) { angle2time = step * timestep; finalang2 = prevang2; finalangvel2 = prevangvel2; finalangacc2 = prevangacc2; time2reached = true; } } } else { if ((time2reached == false)) { if((targetang2 >= ang2)) { angle2time = step * timestep; finalang2 = prevang2; finalangvel2 = prevangvel2; finalangacc2 = prevangacc2; time2reached = true; } } } if ((time1reached == true)) { finished = true; } prevang1 = ang1; prevang2 = ang2; prevangvel1 = angvel1; prevangvel2 = angvel2; prevangacc1 = angacc1; prevangacc2 = angacc2; } } void Accelerations() { //Derived equation of motion for the acceleration of arm 2

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float dividend = angvel2 * angvel2 * -1 * length1 * sin(ang1 + ang2) - g * sin(ang2); float divisor = 2 * length1 * length1 / length2 + 2 * length1 * cos(ang1 + ang2) + 1.16667 * length2; angacc2 = dividend / divisor; //Derived equation of motion for the acceleration of arm 1 dividend = 6 * mass2 * g * sin(ang1); divisor = 7 * mass1 * length1; float factor1 = dividend / divisor; dividend = -1 * angvel2 * angvel2 * length2 * sin(ang1 + ang2); divisor = g * sin(ang1); float factor2 = dividend / divisor; float factor3 = mass1 / mass2; float factor4 = 2; angacc1 = factor1 * factor2 - factor1 * factor3 - factor1 * factor4; }

6.3 Determining Uncertainty Values

The uncertainty on all time values throughout the experiment is 0.01s. This value corresponds with one of the smallest digit given on the electronic stopwatch. This uncertainty does no change through calculation as no calculations are done on the time itself. The initial uncertainty on the angles measured from the photographs was found to be 0.6. This value was found by doing a set of 34 data points twice, and then looking at the deviations between the first set of measurements and the second. While the average deviation was only 0.2, the largest deviation to occur was 0.6, and consequently it was thought that this would be the best value to represent the uncertainty. When these angle data points are made into the standard deviation between angles, the uncertainty was elevated up to 1. This is because during the calculations for the standard deviation, the only calculation that has an effect on the uncertainty is the addition of two values, both of which have an uncertainty of 0.6

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6.4 Deriving the Formula for Critical Point

It was determined that the critical point of the double pendulum, the point after which the dependence upon initial release conditions increases greatly, is equal to the point at which the double pendulum starts with enough potential energy to be able to have the kinetic energy required to flip arm 2 360. To determine the kinetic energy required to flip arm 2 360, one simply needs to calculate how much potential energy the arm has at a 180 angle to the vertical (at which point arm 2 has enough potential energy to perform a full rotation). This can be measured using the formula: = , where m is the mass of arm 2, and h is equal to the length of arm 2 (seen as the distance between the position of the center of mass of arm 2 at 180 and at 0 is equal to the length of arm 2). In this specific case, the equation is therefore: = 2 2 To determine the initial potential energy of the pendulum when released from a certain angle, the formula = 2 1 1 cos 1 2 1 cos 1 2 2 2 cos 2 (which was found in appendix 1) can be used. Because at release, the angles of the first arm to the vertical and of the second arm to the vertical are equal, this equation reduces to: = cos
1 2 1 2 1 1

1 1 + 2 1 +

2 2 .

At the critical point, the initial potential energy is equal to the required kinetic energy, resulting in:

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cos

1 1 1 1 + 2 1 + 2 2 = 2 2 cos 2 2 = 2 2 1 1 2 1 1 + 2 1 + 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 2 1 1 + 2 1 + 2 2 2

= cos1

Using this formula, the critical point of a double pendulum with the dimensions of the one used in the experiment will be:

= cos1

0.110 0.164 1 1 2 0.275 0.173 + 0.110 0.173 + 2 0.110 0.164 = cos1 0.01804 = cos 1 0.34801 = 110.4 0.0518375

This calculated result corresponds almost exactly with the release angle after which the motion of the double pendulum appears chaotic.

6.5 Sample Raw Motion Path Data for 90 and 120 (2 out of 7) Releases
Motion Path Data for Pendulum When Released from 90 - Arm 1 - Photographs 1 - 9 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Time 1 (s) 0.01s 0.00 0.24 0.55 0.87 1.19 1.45 1.76 2.08 Angle 1() 0.6 90.0 5.1 -81.1 17.2 61.2 -69.6 -21.8 79.4 Time 2(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.30 0.62 0.88 1.19 1.56 1.88 2.14 Angle 2() 0.6 90.0 -50.4 -32.9 82.2 4.0 -65.9 53.1 33.9 Time 3(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.25 0.57 0.88 1.20 1.47 1.78 2.09 Angle 3() 0.6 90.0 -11.3 -72.7 50.0 40.6 -74.9 -5.6 85.5 Time 4(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.19 0.45 0.82 1.09 1.41 1.72 1.98 Angle 4() 0.6 90.0 39.4 -78.5 -0.7 85.2 -31.8 -49.2 68.8 Time 5(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.14 0.40 0.72 1.03 1.35 1.61 1.93 Angle 5() 0.6 90.0 70.3 -52.8 -35.9 83.9 1.50 -79.7 24.3
Photograph

9 2.34 2.7 2.46 -77.2 2.41 -28.3 2.29 16.8 2.19 66.9

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Motion Path Data for Pendulum When Released from 90 - Arm 1 -Photographs 10 - 18 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Time 1 (s) 0.01s 2.71 2.97 3.29 3.56 3.87 4.19 4.51 4.82 Angle 1() 0.6 -79.3 42.5 49.7 -69.1 -12.9 80.5 -14.3 -59.9 Time 2(s) 0.01s 2.80 3.09 3.41 3.67 3.99 4.30 4.62 4.88 Angle 2() 0.6 2.9 79.6 37.8 -45.5 70.6 9.9 -78.0 21.4 Time 3(s) 0.01s 2.67 2.99 3.30 3.57 3.89 4.20 4.57 4.88 Angle 3() 0.6 -58.3 58.1 34.0 -78.2 5.0 73.7 -66.1 -16.7 Time 4(s) 0.01s 2.67 2.98 3.24 3.56 3.88 4.19 4.51 4.82 Angle 4() 0.6 -80.3 31.7 56.0 -71.8 -4.1 79.9 -27.4 -49.5 Time 5(s) 0.01s 2.51 2.82 3.09 3.40 3.72 3.98 4.30 4.61 Angle 5() 0.6 -60.2 -24.8 79.8 -0.9 -75.9 29.7 55.2 -71.4
Photograph

18 5.08 65.1 5.20 61.4 5.15 77.1 5.14 68.5 4.93 -3.7

Motion Path Data for Pendulum When Released from 90 - Arm 2 - Photographs 1 - 9 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Time 1 (s) 0.01s 0.00 0.24 0.55 0.87 1.19 1.45 1.76 2.08 Angle 1() 0.6 90.0 25.8 -123.4 82.5 102.9 -81.0 -84.1 127.3 Time 2(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.30 0.62 0.88 1.19 1.56 1.88 2.14 Angle 2() 0.6 90.0 -104.9 -84.0 93.9 25.2 -113.2 100.6 74.2 Time 3(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.25 0.57 0.88 1.20 1.47 1.78 2.09 Angle 3() 0.6 90.0 -42.4 -115.3 90.7 85.1 -114.4 -18.1 89.3 Time 4(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.19 0.45 0.82 1.09 1.41 1.72 1.98 Angle 4() 0.6 90.0 84.1 -111.4 6.9 92.8 -70.7 -112.5 112.0 Time 5(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.14 0.40 0.72 1.03 1.35 1.61 1.93 Angle 5() 0.6 90.0 102.6 -111.4 -87.5 90.3 22.2 -116.4 78.8
Photograph

9 2.34 -16.8 2.46 -106.8 2.41 -65.4 2.29 45.2 2.19 87.2

Motion Path Data for Pendulum When Released from 90 - Arm 2 - Photographs 10 - 18 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Time 1 (s) 0.01s 2.71 2.97 3.29 3.56 3.87 4.19 4.51 4.82 Angle 1() 0.6 -85.2 97.3 113.4 -99.2 -45.9 121.6 -72.6 -86.5 Time 2(s) 0.01s 2.80 3.09 3.41 3.67 3.99 4.30 4.62 4.88 Angle 2() 0.6 21.9 94.3 75.8 -106.5 111.5 26.2 -102.5 74.8 Time 3(s) 0.01s 2.67 2.99 3.30 3.57 3.89 4.20 4.57 4.88 Angle 3() 0.6 -119.7 113.7 67.5 -101.6 28.3 103.9 -86.1 -71.8 Time 4(s) 0.01s 2.67 2.98 3.24 3.56 3.88 4.19 4.51 4.82 Angle 4() 0.6 -108.0 95.8 92.1 -91.3 -31.4 110.1 -65.1 -98.5 Time 5(s) 0.01s 2.51 2.82 3.09 3.40 3.72 3.98 4.30 4.61 Angle 5() 0.6 -100.6 -86.6 106.3 0.8 -112.2 94.1 91.7 -88.6
Photograph

18 5.08 91.8 5.20 97.1 5.15 117.0 5.14 112.7 4.93 -33.2

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Motion Path Data for Pendulum When Released from 120 - Arm 1 - Photographs 1 - 9 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Time 1 (s) 0.01s 0.00 0.13 0.42 0.74 1.06 1.37 1.63 1.89 Angle 1() 0.6 120.0 104.9 -48.7 -128.6 102.1 57.0 -81.2 44.6 Time 2(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.29 0.62 0.92 1.29 1.71 2.02 2.34 Angle 2() 0.6 120.0 -12.0 -138.9 59.8 77.2 -132.9 -6.9 126.5 Time 3(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.26 0.58 0.84 1.16 1.42 1.74 2.05 Angle 3() 0.6 120.0 22.4 -137.8 -96.6 75.4 116.1 -27.5 -55.9 Time 4(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.29 0.60 0.92 1.18 1.50 1.76 2.08 Angle 4() 0.6 120.0 -14.5 -139.8 33.9 130.7 -35.9 -107.9 34.3 Time 5(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.29 0.61 0.83 1.14 1.50 1.82 2.13 Angle 5() 0.6 120.0 -8.9 -138.0 46.7 128.9 -68.8 -128.2 77.8
Photograph

9 2.21 5.1 2.62 -2.0 2.37 101.3 2.39 114.1 2.45 40.2

Motion Path Data for Pendulum When Released from 120 - Arm 1 - Photographs 10 - 18 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Time 1 (s) 0.01s 2.53 2.79 3.14 3.42 3.68 4.00 4.32 4.58 Angle 1() 0.6 -76.2 53.3 -16.9 -36.4 62.6 -18.3 -26.9 76.9 Time 2(s) 0.01s 2.92 3.23 3.55 3.87 4.24 4.55 4.86 5.18 Angle 2() 0.6 -126.3 -8.3 112.9 -85.0 -10.6 103.0 -40.3 -96.0 Time 3(s) 0.01s 2.63 2.95 3.21 3.53 3.79 4.10 4.42 4.74 Angle 3() 0.6 -6.3 -51.7 93.4 -28.8 -105.1 99.2 64.5 -91.5 Time 4(s) 0.01s 2.66 2.97 3.29 3.55 3.87 4.18 4.45 4.76 Angle 4() 0.6 -20.5 -107.7 21.8 107.5 -76.1 -55.3 122.5 64.0 Time 5(s) 0.01s 2.87 3.19 3.50 3.76 4.13 4.45 4.71 5.03 Angle 5() 0.6 -88.1 85.8 4.6 -111.5 64.8 55.0 -70.2 59.4
Photograph

18 4.89 -41.1 5.44 68.3 5.00 -29.5 5.06 -77.9 5.35 -0.3

Motion Path Data for Pendulum When Released from 120 - Arm 2 - Photographs 1 - 9 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Time 1 (s) 0.01s 0.00 0.13 0.42 0.74 1.06 1.37 1.63 1.89 Angle 1() 0.6 120.0 147.2 -125.7 -22.5 -18.2 177.1 54.3 -100.8 Time 2(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.29 0.62 0.92 1.29 1.71 2.02 2.34 Angle 2() 0.6 120.0 -74.0 -34.3 -17.3 178.5 -41.0 -109.4 -10.7 Time 3(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.26 0.58 0.84 1.16 1.42 1.74 2.05 Angle 3() 0.6 120.0 76.6 -68.0 148.2 31.4 159.7 -120.1 139.5 Time 4(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.29 0.60 0.92 1.18 1.50 1.76 2.08 Angle 4() 0.6 120.0 -77.0 -42.3 -1.3 -93.5 13.4 -178.6 62.5 Time 5(s) 0.01s 0.00 0.29 0.61 0.83 1.14 1.50 1.82 2.13 Angle 5() 0.6 120.0 -69.5 -40.7 -20.5 -81.8 76.1 61.4 -55.7
Photograph

9 2.21 102.6 2.62 86.4 2.37 78.6 2.39 129.1 2.45 -141.3

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Motion Path Data for Pendulum When Released from 120 - Arm 2 - Photographs 10 - 18 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Time 1 (s) 0.01s 2.53 2.79 3.14 3.42 3.68 4.00 4.32 4.58 4.89 Angle 1() 0.6 -84.8 -174.4 80.6 -150.1 44.4 -171.4 85.6 -26.6 -137.1 Time 2(s) 0.01s 2.92 3.23 3.55 3.87 4.24 4.55 4.86 5.18 5.44 Angle 2() 0.6 54.7 -95.4 -3.8 68.1 -175.4 -162.3 -138.8 -81.2 110.7 Time 3(s) 0.01s 2.63 2.95 3.21 3.53 3.79 4.10 4.42 4.74 5.00 Angle 3() 0.6 -88.9 118.6 -0.6 -152.1 36.6 -39.3 41.1 -159.4 -89.6 Time 4(s) 0.01s 2.66 2.97 3.29 3.55 3.87 4.18 4.45 4.76 5.06 Angle 4() 0.6 -101.9 -174.1 118.7 -140.9 -90.0 -49.0 24.1 -13.6 -153.4 Time 5(s) 0.01s 2.87 3.19 3.50 3.76 4.13 4.45 4.71 5.03 5.35 Angle 5() 0.6 -34.8 107.9 139.2 -71.6 65.5 101.1 -138.2 140.9 -13.3
Photograph

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6.6 Motion Path Graphs of Arm 1

Note: Only the motion paths of data collected for Arm 1 of the pendulum are shown here, for brevity and because those motion paths reflect the same pattern as these, the only difference being that they are typically more chaotic than the motion paths for the Arm 1, as Arm 2 experiences a great deal more motion.

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6.7 Ratios of Arm 1 to Arm 2 over 2-3 Second Period

Note: A graph is shown of these ratios for a 2 second period for release angles of 90 105 degrees, as they show the pattern that exists and continues for the remaining time period. A graph is shown for a 3 second period for the remaining graphs as they require this time to demonstrate the more chaotic nature of their motion

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6.8 Standard Deviation of Motion Paths of Arm 1

Note: Graphs of standard deviation are only shown for Arm 1, for brevity and because the Arm 2 graphs show no additional patterns that are not demonstrated in the Arm 1 graphs. The only difference is that the standard deviation is generally higher for Arm 2.

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