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ROTATION:
A review of useful theorems involving proper
orthogonal matrices referenced to three-
dimensional physical space.
Rebecca M. Brannon

and coauthors to be determi ned

Computati onal Physi cs and Mechani cs


Sandi a Nati onal Laboratori es
Albuquerque, NM 87185-0820
Abstract
Useful and/or little-known theorems involving proper orthogonal matrices
are reviewed. Orthogonal matrices appear in the transformation of tensor compo-
nents from one orthogonal basis to another. The distinction between an orthogonal
direction cosine matrix and a rotation operation is discussed. Among the theorems
and techniques presented are (1) various ways to characterize a rotation including
proper orthogonal tensors, dyadics, Euler angles, axis/angle representations, series
expansions, and quaternions; (2) the Euler-Rodrigues formula for converting axis
and angle to a rotation tensor; (3) the distinction between rotations and reflections,
along with implications for handedness of coordinate systems; (4) non-commu-
tivity of sequential rotations, (5) eigenvalues and eigenvectors of a rotation; (6)
the polar decomposition theorem for expressing a general deformation as a se-
quence of shape and volume changes in combination with pure rotations; (7) mix-
ing rotations in Eulerian hydrocodes or interpolating rotations in discrete field
approximations; (8) Rates of rotation and the difference between spin and vortici-
ty, (9) Random rotations for simulating crystal distributions; (10) The principle of
material frame indifference (PMFI); and (11) a tensor-analysis presentation of
classical rigid body mechanics, including direct notation expressions for momen-
tum and energy and the extremely compact direct notation formulation of Eulers
equations (i.e., Newtons law for rigid bodies). Computer source code is provided
for several rotation-related algorithms.
A draft version of this document is available at
http://www.me.unm.edu/~rmbrann/gobag.html
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Introduction............................................................................................................ 1
Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations.......................................... 4
Motivational discussion: Principal basis ...................................................... 4
Orthonormal basis transformations............................................................... 5
Alternative direction cosine matrix................................................................ 10
Coordinate transformations........................................................................... 10
Rotation operations.............................................................................................. 12
Example: rotation of an angle about the X-axis ........................................ 14
Example: rotation of an angle about the Y-axis. ....................................... 15
Example: rotation of an angle about the Z-axis. ....................................... 16
Where does that negative sign go? ................................................................ 17
Faster way to write down the matrix of a rotation tensor ............................. 17
Specific example: A 90 rotation about the Z-axis......................................... 18
Axis and angle of rotation.................................................................................. 19
Euler-Rodrigues formula ..................................................................................... 20
Computing the rotation tensor given axis and angle............................................ 22
Example.......................................................................................................... 23
Another example ............................................................................................ 24
Another similar example................................................................................ 24
Numerical example (for testing computer codes) .......................................... 26
Alternative way to construct the rotation tensor............................................ 27
Some properties of the axial tensor ............................................................... 28
Argyriss form of the Euler-Rodrigues formula............................................. 30
Corollary to the Euler-Rodrigues formula:
Existence of a preferred basis ........................................................................ 31
Computing axis and angle given the rotation tensor............................................ 32
Finding the principal rotation angle ............................................................. 32
Finding the principal rotation axis................................................................ 33
Method 1 algorithm for axis and angle of rotation ....................................... 36
Example.......................................................................................................... 37
Another example ............................................................................................ 38
Numerical Example (for testing codes).......................................................... 39
Method 2 algorithm for computing axis and angle........................................ 40
Rotations contrasted with reflections .............................................................. 41
Quaternion representation of a rotation........................................................ 43
Shoemakes form [3]...................................................................................... 43
A more structural direct form........................................................................ 43
Relationship between quaternion and axis/angle forms....................................... 44
Dyad form of an invertible linear operator.................................................... 45
SPECIAL CASE: lab basis............................................................................. 45
SPECIAL CASE: rotation .............................................................................. 46
Sequential Rotations ............................................................................................ 47
Sequential rotations about fixed (laboratory) axes. ............................................. 47
EULER ANGLES: Sequential rotations about follower axes.......................... 49
Converting Euler angles to direction cosines. ............................................... 49
Example: ....................................................................................................... 49
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Converting Euler angles to axis and angle.................................................... 50
Series expression for a rotation......................................................................... 51
Spectrum of a rotation......................................................................................... 53
Sanity check ................................................................................................... 54
Polar decomposition............................................................................................ 55
Difficult definition of the deformation gradient .................................................. 55
Intuitive definition of the deformation gradient................................................... 59
Converse problem: interpreting a deformation gradient matrix ................... 61
The Jacobian of the deformation.......................................................................... 62
Invertibility of a deformation............................................................................... 63
Sequential deformations....................................................................................... 63
Matrix analysis version of the polar decomposition theorem.............................. 64
The polar decomposition theorem a hindsight intuitive introduction............. 65
A more rigorous (classical) presentation of the polar decomposition theorem... 68
THEOREM:.................................................................................................... 69
PROOF: ......................................................................................................... 69
Working with the inverse gradient ................................................................. 72
The *FAST* way to do a polar decomposition in two dimensions..................... 73
Mixing or interpolating rotations................................................................... 75
proposal #1: Map and re-compute the polar decomposition................................ 75
proposal #2: Discard the stretch part of a mixed rotation. ............................... 76
Proof: ............................................................................................................. 77
proposal #3: mix the pseudo-rotation-vectors...................................................... 78
proposal #4: mix the quaternions......................................................................... 78
Rates of rotation .................................................................................................... 79
The spin tensor ................................................................................................. 79
The angular velocity vector ................................................................................. 80
Angular velocity in terms of axis and angle of rotation....................................... 81
Difference between vorticity and polar spin. ....................................................... 81
The (commonly mis-stated) Gosiewskis theorem.............................................. 84
Proof of the correct theorem.......................................................................... 85
Rates of sequential rotations................................................................................ 86
Rates of simultaneous rotations ........................................................................... 87
Random Rotations ................................................................................................ 89
Statistical notation................................................................................................ 89
Uniformly random unit vectors the theory...................................................... 90
The expected value of a uniformly random unit vector is zero...................... 90
The distributions of coordinates for uniformly random unit vectors............. 90
Uniformly random unit vectors formalized implementation .......................... 92
Requisite probability theory........................................................................... 92
Application to uniformly random unit normal ............................................... 93
Uniformly random unit vectors faster implementation................................... 94
Uniformly random unit vectors The visualization........................................... 95
Visualizing unit vectors (stereographic projection) ...................................... 95
Equal area mapping applied to uniformly distributed unit vectors............... 99
Uniformly random rotations ................................................................................ 100
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Inadequacy of using uniformly random angle and axis................................. 101
Inadequacy of using uniform Euler angles .................................................... 103
An easy algorithm for generating a uniformly random rotation. ......................... 105
Numerical verification ................................................................................... 105
An alternative algorithm for generating a uniformly random rotation. ............... 108
Shoemakes algorithm for uniformly random rotations....................................... 109
Shoemakes quaternion algorithm for directly computing a uniform rotation 110
Numerically generating a rotation angle....................................................... 111
The expected value of a uniformly random rotation is zero .......................... 112
The connection between the isotropic part of a tensor and the expected value of that
tensor over the set of uniform superimposed rotations............................ 113
SCALARS and INVARIANTS ................................................................................. 117
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI) ................................... 118
What is a superimposed rotation? .................................................................... 118
Reference and Objective/spatial tensors....................................................... 120
True or False: scalars are unaffected by a superimposed rigid rotation. ............. 121
Prelude to PMFI: A philosophical diversion ....................................................... 122
PMFI: a sloppy introduction................................................................................ 123
Translational frame invariance ............................................................................ 124
Rotational invariance. .......................................................................................... 128
Heres a model that satisfies the principle of material frame invariance............. 130
Is frame indifference all you need to make a model good for large deformations? 131
The principle of material frame indifference in general ...................................... 131
Objectivity transformation tables .................................................................. 131
Reference and spatial tensors ........................................................................ 133
Stress and strain measures............................................................................. 135
Example: elasticity......................................................................................... 137
PMFI in rate forms of the constitutive equations................................................. 139
Co-rotational rates (convected, Jaumann, Polar) ................................................. 141
Lie Derivatives and reference configurations...................................................... 143
Alternative to Lie Derivatives in Constitutive models ................................... 145
Frame indifference is only an essential (not final) step....................................... 147
Rigid Body Mechanics ........................................................................................ 149
A simple description of rigid motion................................................................... 151
A relative description of rigid motion.................................................................. 151
Velocity and angular velocity for rigid motion.................................................... 152
Time rate of a vector embedded in a rigid body.................................................. 153
Acceleration for rigid motion............................................................................... 154
Important properties of a rigid body.................................................................... 156
Example: sphere............................................................................................. 157
Example: ellipsoid ......................................................................................... 157
Switching between the second moment and inertia tensor ............................ 158
Center shift for the inertia tensor .................................................................. 158
Moment of inertia about a given axis ............................................................ 159
Explicit matrices for the second moment and inertia tensor ......................... 159
Relationship between the current and initial moments.................................. 160
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Moment center shift theorem ......................................................................... 161
The parallel axis theorem.............................................................................. 162
Linear momentum of a rigid body ....................................................................... 162
Angular momentum of a rigid body..................................................................... 163
Kinetic energy...................................................................................................... 163
NEWTONS EQUATION (balance of linear momentum) ................................. 165
EULERS EQUATION (balance of angular momentum) ................................... 165
REFERENCES ............................................................................................................ 167
APPENDIX A: FORTRAN CODE LISTINGS........................................................... A-1
Testing whether a matrix is a rotation........................................................................ *-1
Converting axis and angle to direction cosines.......................................................... *-2
Converting direction cosines to axis and angle.......................................................... *-3
Converting Euler angles to direction cosines............................................................. *-5
Converting direction cosines to Euler angles............................................................. *-6
Generating a uniformly random unit normal ............................................................. *-7
Generating a uniformly random rigid rotation........................................................... *-8
APPENDIX B: Tensor and vector notation....................................................... B-1
Vectors .................................................................................................................. *-2
Tensors .................................................................................................................. *-3
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Figures
Figure 1.1. A rigid rotation................................................................................... 4
Figure 3.1. Rotation of a vector by a known angle about a known axis . .......... 20
Figure 7.1. Sequential rotation about fixed axes.................................................. 47
Figure 7.2. A different sequence for the rotations................................................ 48
Figure 7.3. Example of Euler Angles. .................................................................. 50
Figure 10.1. Increasingly complex deformations. .................................................. 59
Figure 10.2. The deformation gradient tensor. ....................................................... 60
Figure 10.3. Physically interpreting a deformation gradient matrix. ..................... 62
Figure 10.4. Example of a deformation that is locally invertible, but not globally
invertible. ........................................................................................... 63
Figure 10.5. Visualization of the polar decomposition. ......................................... 66
Figure 13.1. Length-preserving mapping of a circle to a one-dimensional straight line.
95
Figure 13.2. Classical stereographic mapping of a circle to a one-dimensional straight
line...................................................................................................... 96
Figure 13.3. Mapping points on a sphere of radius to a two-dimensional disk. The 2D
disk shown on the right-hand side of the above figure may be regarded as a
distorted view of the sphere as seen looking down the Z-axis. ......... 97
Figure 13.4. Equal area mapping............................................................................ 98
Figure 13.5. Stereographic projections of random unit vectors. ............................ 99
Figure 13.6. Uniform axis and angle do not lead to uniform rotation.................... 101
Figure 13.7. Qualitative reason why a uniformrotation must have a non-uniformrotation
angle. .................................................................................................. 102
Figure 13.8. Uniform Euler angles produce non-uniform rotations....................... 103
Figure 13.9. Uniformly random locations of the three rotated base vectors. ......... 105
Figure 13.10. Numerical measurement of rotation axis and angle........................... 106
Figure 13.11. Distribution for the angle of rotation. ................................................ 107
Figure 15.1. Two deformations involving the same spring stretch for which the faulty
model wrongly predicts different spring forces. ................................ 124
Figure 15.2. Illustration of a rotationally faulty model. ......................................... 128
Figure 16.1. Identifying points within a rigid body. .............................................. 149
Figure 16.2. Effect of choosing a different fixed origin......................................... 150
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Introduction
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ROTATION
Rebecca Brannon
Adjunct Professor, Uni versi ty of New Mexi co
and Seni or Staff, Sandi a Nati onal Laboratori es
Introduction
Thi s rotati on tutori al i s wri tten for engi neers, not mathemati ci ans or phys-
i ci sts. Hence, al l di scussi ons are l i mi ted to ordi nary 3-di mensi onal vectors of
the type di scussed i n rst cal cul us courses, and no proofs are provi ded except
where the proof i tsel f cl ari es a concept.
Thi s document i s an i nformal overvi ew of fundamental theorems and con-
cepts i nvol vi ng rotati on. Physi cal l y, a rotati on i s a reori entati on of a body
wi thout changi ng the bodys si ze or shape. Then the di stance between any two
parti cul ar poi nts i n the body remai n unchanged after the rotati on. As wi l l be
soon seen, a rotati on may be descri bed mathemati cal l y by a speci al ki nd of
orthogonal tensor. By usi ng the speci al ki nd provi so, we are i mpl yi ng that
rotati on tensors are al ways orthogonal , but orthogonal tensors are not neces-
sari l y rotati ons. A matri x i s orthogonal i f and onl y i f
, (0.1)
where i s the i denti ty matri x. I n i ndi ci al form,
(0.2)
where i s the Kronecker del ta,
*
and (as expl ai ned i n the Appendi x B)
repeated i ndi ces are to be summed from 1 to 3. The matri x corresponds to
a rotati on i f i ts determi nant i s equal to .
The topi cs i n thi s tutori al are arranged as fol l ows:
Secti on 1 revi ews how orthogonal direction cosine matrices are used to
transform vector and tensor components from on orthonormal basi s to
another.
Secti on 2 poi nts out the di sti ncti on between rotation and coordinate
transformation. The mai n i dea i s that rotati on i s a matter of perspecti ve.
You can rotate the object you are l ooki ng at, whi l e you stay sti l l , or you can
keep the object fi xed whi l e you rotate yoursel f. I ts i mportant to be aware
of whi ch of these perspecti ves appl i es for your probl em of i nterest.
Secti on 3 descri bes how to convert an axis and angle of rotati on i nto a
* i.e., components of the 33 identity matrix. Thus equals 1 if and 0 if .
Q [ ]
Q [ ]
T
Q [ ] I [ ] =
I [ ]
Q
ki
Q
kj

i j
=

i j

i j
i = j i j
Q [ ]
+1
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rotati on tensor.
Secti on 4 rei terates that a rotati on i s characteri zed by a proper orthogonal
tensor i .e., one havi ng a determi nate equal to +1. Thi s secti on al so
expl ai ns that an orthogonal tensor wi th a determi nate equal to shoul d
be regarded (i n general ) as a rotati on in combination with a refl ecti on.
Secti on 5 presents the representati on of a rotati on i n terms of a uni t
quaternion. Quaterni ons are rather ol d fashi oned predecessors to modern
vectors. The quaterni on needed to descri be rotati on may be regarded as a
poi nt on a four-di mensi onal sphere.
Secti on 6 descri bes how any l i near operator can be expressed as a sum of
three dyads, and thi s resul t i s speci al i zed to rotati ons.
Secti on 7 shows that rotati ons may be expressed as a (non-commuti ng)
sequence of three rotati on operati ons. When defi ni ng a rotati on i n thi s
way, i t i s essenti al to know whether subsequent rotati ons are defi ned
about fi xed axes or fol l ower axes. The fi rst vi ew shows the structure of the
rotati on matri x for sequential rotations applied about the xed
laboratory basis. The next vi ew (Euler angles) shows the rotati on that
resul ts when the sequenti al rotati ons are appl i ed about a tri ad that moves
with the body.
Secti on 8 provi des the seri es expansi on representati on of a rotati on.
Secti on 9 deri ves the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of any rotati on
tensor.
Secti on 10 presents the polar decomposition theorem.
Secti on 11 di scusses possi bl e sol uti ons to the probl em of mixing
rotations i n Eul eri an physi cs codes or i n Lagrangi an codes that remap the
mesh.
Secti on 12 shows how the rate of a rotation tensor i s rel ated to the more
conventi onal angul ar rotati on vector.
Secti on 13 shows how to generate a uni forml y random rotation tensor,
whi ch i s useful for generati ng grai n ori entati ons for mi croscal e
si mul ati ons. We al so di scuss how to fi nd the average of a tensor over al l
possi bl e (uni form) rotati ons of that tensor.
Secti on 15 provi des an el ementary i ntroducti on to the pri nci pl e of
materi al frame i ndi fference, whi ch requi res that materi al consti tuti ve
model s must be i nvari ant under ri gi d rotati on.
Secti on 16 speci al i zes the l aws mechani cs as appl i ed to ri gi d body
mechani cs. By appl yi ng the ful l power of tensor anal ysi s, thi s
presentati on di sti ngui shes i tsel f from the deri vati ons normal l y found i n
el ementary dynami cs textbooks. For exampl e, wi th di rect-notati on tensor
anal ysi s, Eul ers equati ons can be presented i n a si ngl e l i ne.
Appendi x A provi des FORTRAN subroutines that perform most of the
computati ons presented i n thi s report.
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Thi s report presumes that the reader has el ementary knowl -
edge of vector and tensor anal ysi s. The notati on conventi ons used
i n thi s report are summari zed i n Appendi x B.
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Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations
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1. Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations
A ri gi d body i s an i deal i zed col l ecti on of poi nts (conti nuous or di screte) for
whi ch the di stance between any two poi nts i s xed. Consequentl y the angl e
between any two materi al l i ne segments i s al so xed. A ri gi d body i s capabl e
of onl y uni form transl ati on and rotati on. A rotati on i s si mpl y a reori entati on
of a body wi thout di storti on (i .e., wi thout bendi ng or stretchi ng). Thi s secti on
focuses stri ctl y on rotati on, not transl ati on.
*
Let {X,Y,Z} be a xed l aboratory orthogonal coordi nate tri ad, and l et
be an orthogonal embedded tri ad that moves wi th the ri gi d body.
The two tri ads are taken to be i ni ti al l y coi nci dent. The rotati on may be
descri bed mathemati cal l y by the angl es that the embedded tri ad makes wi th
the xed l aboratory tri ad.
M o tiva tio na l d isc ussio n: Princ ip a l b a sis. Most engi neeri ng students even-
tual l y l earn that any symmetri c matri x can be decomposed as
, (1.1)
where i s a di agonal matri x contai ni ng the ei genval ues of , and i s
an orthogonal matri x whose col umns consi st of the correspondi ng ei genvectors
of . Thi s theorem from matri x anal ysi s has an i nterpretati on i n tensor
anal ysi s as a change-of-basi s operati on. As we wi l l soon see, the above matri x
decomposi ti on tel l s us the fol l owi ng:
* To include translation, the laboratory triad is merely reinterpreted as a triad that translates with a
particular (convenient) point in the body, but does not change orientation.
x y z , , { }
Z
X
Y
z
x
y
Z
X
Y
z
x
y

yX

xX

xZ

zZ

zY

yY
Figure 1.1. A rigid rotation. The rotati on of a body may be descri bed by the rotati on
of an embedded tri ad that moves wi th the body. Rotati on may be descri bed by the an-
gl es that the embedded tri ad axes make wi th the ori gi nal l y coi nci dent l aboratory axes.
Thi s gure shows si x of the ni ne possi bl e angl es.
BEFORE ROTATION AFTER ROTATION
A [ ]
A [ ] Q [ ]
T
D [ ] Q [ ] =
D [ ] A [ ] Q [ ]
A [ ]
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Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations
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I f and ,
then (1.2)
where are the ei genval ues and are the orthonormal ei genvectors.
Stated di fferentl y, i f a tensor has components wi th respect to the l abo-
ratory basi s, then i t has components
(1.3)
wi th respect to the pri nci pal basi s. Thi s resul t moti vates the gen-
eral study of changes of basi s. For exampl e, i f are the components of a ten-
sor wi th respect to the l aboratory basi s, then what are the
components wi th respect to some different ?
O rtho no rm a l b a sis tra nsfo rm a tio ns. I n Fi g. 1.1, the angl e that the embed-
ded -axi s makes wi th the xed X-axi s i s denoted , and the angl e that the
embedded -axi s makes wi th the xed Z-axi s i s denoted , and so on. There
are ni ne such angl es, but onl y three are i ndependent, as di scussed bel ow. The
ori entati on of the rotated coordi nate system can be descri bed through the use
of a coordi nate transformation matrix dened
(1.4)
The components of are cal l ed direction cosines. Even though we have
phrased these components i n terms of cosi nes of the angl es between xed and
rotated axes, i ts conceptual l y easi er to recogni ze that the row of con-
tai ns the components of the base vector of the rotated coordi nate system
expressed i n terms of the xed system. We wi l l l ater espouse representi ng the
rotated ori entati on by usi ng a al ternati ve di recti on cosi ne matri x equal to
the transpose of . Hence, the column of contai ns the components of
the rotated base vector. Exampl es wi l l be provi ded soon.
A

A
i j
E

i
E

j
j 1 =
3

i 1 =
3

= A
i j
A
j i
=
A


K
p

K
p

K
K 1 =
3

K
p

K
A

A
i j
E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }

1
0 0
0
2
0
0 0
3
p

1
p

2
p

3
, , { }
A
i j
E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
A

i j
e

1
e

2
e

3
, , { }
x
xX
x
xZ
L [ ]
L [ ]

xX
cos
xY
cos
xZ
cos

yX
cos
yY
cos
yZ
cos

zX
cos
zY
cos
zZ
cos
=
L [ ]
i
th
L [ ]
i
th
Q [ ]
L [ ] i
th
Q [ ]
i
th
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Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations
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Let be the orthonormal set of l aboratory base vectors asso-
ci ated wi th the {X,Y,Z}system. Let be the orthonormal set of l ab-
oratory base vectors associ ated wi th the system. For any two
vectors, and , the vector i nner product (si ngl e dot) can be dened
, (1.5)
where and are the magni tudes of the vectors, and , and i s the
angl e between. Therefore, recogni zi ng that the base vectors have uni t magni -
tude, the di recti on cosi ne matri x may be wri tten
(1.6)
I nstead of usi ng the symbol s as subscri pts, i t i s common practi ce to
i nstead i denti fy the coordi nates by number . Wi th thi s conventi on, the
above equati on becomes
(1.7)
whi ch can be wri tten very compactl y as
, (1.8)
The subscri pts (cal l ed i ndi ces) vary from 1 to 3.
I t wi l l soon be shown that the matri x i s orthogonal ,
*
whi ch means the
i nverse of i s just the transpose of . That i s,
(1.9)
Here, denotes the i denti ty matri x. The above matri x equati on i s wri tten i n
i ndi ci al form as
(1.10)
where i s the Kronecker del ta (equal to 1 i f and 0 i f ).
* This property holds only when both bases are orthonormal. An orthonormal basis is right-handed if
crossing the rst base vector into the second base vector gives the third base vector. Otherwise, if
the third base vector points the opposite way, then the basis is left-handed. The determinate of
will be +1 if both bases have the same handedness, or 1 if the bases have different handedness.
E

X
E

Y
E

Z
, , { }
e

x
e

y
e

z
, , { }
x y z , , { }
u


uv
cos =
u


uv
L [ ]
e

x
E

X
e

x
E

Y
e

x
E

y
E

X
e

y
E

Y
e

y
E

z
E

X
e

z
E

Y
e

z
E

=
x y z , , { }
1 2 3 , , { }
L [ ]
e

1
E

1
e

1
E

2
e

1
E

2
E

2
E

2
E

3
E

1
e

3
E

2
e

3
E

=
L
i j
e

i
E

j
=
L [ ]
L [ ]
L [ ] L [ ]
L [ ] L [ ]
T
L [ ]
T
L [ ] I [ ] = =
I [ ]
L
i k
L
j k
k 1 =
3

L
ki
L
kj
k 1 =
3


i j
= =

i j
i = j i j
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations
7
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Because the l aboratory basi s i s a basi s, we know that there
exi st coefci ents such that any vector can be wri tten as a l i near combi -
nati on of the l ab base vectors. Lets denote the component of wi th
respect to the l aboratory basi s by . Thi s component may be computed by
dotti ng the vector i nto the base vector . Stated mathemati cal l y, there
exi st vector components such that
, where (1.11)
Equati on (1.11) i s true for any vector . As a speci al i nstance, we may con-
si der the vector to be one of the rotated base vectors . Then we know that
each can be expressed as a l i near combi nati on of the l ab base vectors. Lets
denote the component of wi th respect to the l aboratory base vector by
. Then Eq. (1.11) states that each rotated base vector can be expressed
i n the form
, where (1.12)
To remember thi s equati on, note that the rst i ndex on i s the same as the
i ndex on the rotated basi s , and the second i ndex on matches the i ndex
on the l aboratory basi s . Summati on occurs over the repeated i ndex j.
The rotated vectors form a basi s too. Consequentl y, we know
that there exi st coefci ents such that any vector can be wri tten
, where (1.13)
As a speci al case, we may assert the exi stence of coefci ents such that
each l aboratory base vector can be wri tten as a l i near combi nati on of the
rotated basi s:
, where (1.14)
For any vectors, and , we know that the dot product i s commutati ve (i .e.,
). Consequentl y, . Here, the nal
step came from appl yi ng the deni ti on of i n Eq. (1.12)
2
. I n matri x nota-
ti on, thi s says that
. (1.15)
E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
v
j
v

j
th
v

v
j
v

j
th
E

j
v
j
v

v
j
E

j
j 1 =
3

= v
j
v

j
=
v

i
e

i
e

i
j
th
L
i j
e

i
e

i
L
i j
E

j
j 1 =
3

= L
i j
e

i
E

j
=
L
i j
e

i
L
i j
E

j
e

1
e

2
e

3
, , { }
v

j
v

j
e

j
j 1 =
3

= v

j
v

j
=

i j
E

i
E

i

i j
e

j
j 1 =
3

=
i j
E

i
e

j
=
v

=
i j
E

i
e

j
e

j
E

i
L
j i
= = =
L
i j
[ ] L [ ]
T
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations
8
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Now that we know that , we see i n hi ndsi ght that i ts not real l y
necessary to i ntroduce a new set of coefci ents ; the matri x contai ns al l
of the i nformati on needed to express one basi s wi th respect to the other. I n
terms of the coefci ents, Eq. (1.14) becomes
, where (1.16)
As before, the rst i ndex on i s i denti cal to the i ndex on the rotated basi s
, and the second i ndex on matches the i ndex on the l aboratory basi s .
Summati on occurs over the repeated i ndex j.
The coordi nate transformati on matri x i s often used for rel ati ng the
components of vectors wi th respect to di fferent bases. Suppose are
the components of a vector wi th respect to the xed l aboratory basi s.
Then can be wri tten
, where (1.17)
The samevector can al ternati vel y be wri tten as a l i near combi nati on of the
rotated base vectors. I f are the components of the same vector
wi th respect to the rotated coordi nate system, then
, where (1.18)
Equati ons (1.17) and (1.18) must both represent the same vector. We can sub-
sti tute Eq. (1.17)
1
i nto (1.18)
2
to obtai n
(1.19)
I n the l ast step, we have used the property that for any vectors
and and therefore . Observi ng that ,
Eq. (1.19) may be wri tten
. I n matri x form, (1.20)
A si mi l ar procedure of substi tuti ng Eq. (1.18)
1
i nto (1.17)
2
gi ves
(1.21)
Recogni zi ng that , thi s may be wri tten

i j
L
j i
=

i j
L [ ]
L [ ]
E

i
L
j i
e

j
j 1 =
3

= L
j i
e

j
E

i
=
L
j i
e

j
L
j i
E

i
L [ ]
v
1
v
2
v
3
, , { }
v

i
v

v
i
E

i
i 1 =
3

= v
i
v

i
=
v

j
v

1
v

2
v

3
, , { }
v

j
v

j
e

j
j 1 =
3

= v

j
v

j
=
v

j
v

j
v
i
E

i
i 1 =
3

j
v
i
e

j
E

i 1 =
3

= = =
a

=
a

i
e

j
e

j
E

i
= e

j
E

i
L
j i
=
v

j
L
j i
v
i
i 1 =
3

= v

{ } L [ ] v { } =
v
i
v

i
v

j
e

j
j 1 =
3

i
= =
e

j
E

i
L
j i
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations
9
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
. I n matri x form, (1.22)
Not onl y are Eqs. (1.20) and (1.22) i mportant resul ts i n thei r own ri ght, they
al so demonstrate that the matri x must be orthogonal because both matri x
equati ons can be true onl y i f
(1.23)
Al l vector coordi nate transformati ons are i n the form of ei ther Eq. (1.20) or
(1.22). I t can be di fcul t to remember whi ch equati on to use unl ess you use the
fol l owi ng mnemoni c observati on: Note from Eq. (1.8) that the rst subscri pt
on corresponds to the rotated basi s, and the second subscri pt corresponds
to the laboratory basi s. The same rul e appl i es i n the vector coordi nate trans-
formati ons of Eqs. (1.20) and (1.22). The rst subscri pt on al ways matches
the subscri pt on the rotated components and the second subscri pt on
al ways matches the subscri pt on the l ab components, regardl ess of where
these components appear i n the transformati on equati on. The summati on
al ways occurs over the repeated i ndex. Thi s mnemoni c rul e al so appl i es to
coordi nate transformati ons for tensors. Let denote a second-order tensor.
*
Let denote the components wi th respect to the l aboratory basi s. Let
denote the components wi th respect to the rotated basi s. There are two sub-
scri pts on the components, so the matri x wi l l appear twi ce. The mnemoni c
rul e says that the subscri pts on the rotated components must match the rst
subscri pts on the Ls, and the subscri pts on the l aboratory components must
match the second subscri pts on the Ls. Fi nal l y, any subscri pts that appear
twi ce i n a si ngl e term must be summed. Thus, the coordi nate transformati on
rul es for tensors are
, or i n matri x form, (1.24)
and
, or i n matri x form, (1.25)
Note that i s easi er to rst wri te the component form, and then construct the
correspondi ng matri x form. Doi ng i t that way rel i eves you from havi ng to
recal l where the transpose goes.
* We emphasize the tensorial order of a quantity by the number of underlines. For example, is a
scalar, is a vector, is a second-order tensor, etc.
v
i
L
j i
v

j
j 1 =
3

= v { } L [ ]
T
v

{ } =
L [ ]
L [ ]
1
L [ ]
T
=
L
i j
L [ ]
v

{ } L [ ]
v { }
T

s
v

T
i j
T

kl
L [ ]
T

kl
L
ki
L
l j
T
i j
j 1 =
3

i 1 =
3

= T

[ ] L [ ] T [ ] L [ ]
T
=
T
i j
L
ki
L
l j
T
kl
l 1 =
3

k 1 =
3

= T [ ] L [ ]
T
T

[ ] L [ ] =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations
10
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Alte rna tive d ire c tio n c o sine m a trix. There i s no di vi ne l aw that says the
di recti on cosi nes must be arranged i n matri x form as was done i n Eq. (1.8).
Qui te often, they are arranged i n the transpose of the congurati on used for
. I n other words, many peopl e dene an al ternati ve di recti on cosi ne
matri x:
, (1.26)
Thi s i s a perfectl y l egi ti mate al ternati ve, and a mnemoni c rul e sti l l hol ds
except, wi th thi s approach, the rst subscri pt on corresponds to the l abo-
ratory components, and the second subscri pt corresponds to the rotated com-
ponents. Wi th thi s di recti on cosi ne deni ti on, the key resul ts of thi s secti on
may be wri tten
(1.27)
(1.28)
(1.29)
. I n matri x form, (1.30)
. I n matri x form, (1.31)
, or i n matri x form, (1.32)
, or i n matri x form, (1.33)
C o o rd ina te tra nsfo rm a tio ns. The l aboratory coordi nates of a poi nt i n space
are denoted or, usi ng the numbered notati on, . The
coordi nates of that same poi nt wi th respect to the rotated system are denoted
or . Because both coordi nate systems are Cartesi an, these
posi ti on coordinates are i denti cal l y equal to the posi ti on components. Thus,
the above vector transformati on rel ati on al so serve as coordi nate transforma-
L [ ]
Q
i j
E

i
e

j
=
Q
i j
Q [ ]
1
Q [ ]
T
=
e

i
Q
j i
E

j
j 1 =
3

=
E

i
Q
i j
e

j
j 1 =
3

=
v

j
Q
i j
v
i
i 1 =
3

= v

{ } Q [ ]
T
v { } =
v
i
Q
i j
v

j
j 1 =
3

= v { } Q [ ] v

{ } =
T

kl
Q
i k
Q
j l
T
i j
j 1 =
3

i 1 =
3

= T

[ ] Q [ ]
T
T [ ] Q [ ] =
T
i j
Q
i k
Q
j l
T

kl
l 1 =
3

k 1 =
3

= T [ ] Q [ ] T

[ ] Q [ ]
T
=
X Y Z , , { } X
1
X
2
X
3
, , { }
x y z , , { } x
1
x
2
x
3
, , { }
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Orthogonal basis & coordinate transformations
11
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
ti on rel ati ons. Speci cal l y, repl aci ng the lab components by the
lab coordi nates , and repl aci ng the rotated components
by the rotated components , Eqs. (1.30) and (1.31) gi ve
us the coordi nate transformati on rul es:
. I n matri x form, (1.34)
. I n matri x form, (1.35)
v
1
v
2
v
3
, , { }
X
1
X
2
X
3
, , { }
v

1
v

2
v

3
, , { } x
1
x
2
x
3
, , { }
x
j
Q
i j
X
i
i 1 =
3

= x { } Q [ ]
T
X { } =
X
i
Q
i j
x
j
j 1 =
3

= X { } Q [ ] x { } =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rotation operations
12
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
2. Rotation operations
We now i ntroduce a subtl e but i mportant di sti ncti on between coordi nate
transformati ons and rotati on operati ons. I n a coordi nate transformati on, the
same object i s vi ewed from a new perspecti ve. I n Eqs. (1.17) and (1.18), the
same vector i s vi ewed from two di fferent coordi nate systems. Eq. (1.20)
shows how the components of i n each system are rel ated that i s, how one
transforms the components of the si ngl e vector from one system to another.
A si mi l ar-l ooki ng, but fundamental l y di fferent, concept i s that of an opera-
tion that changes one vector to another vector. An operati on can be qui te gen-
eral , but here we l i mi t the di scussi on to ri ght-handed l i near orthogonal
operati ons, whi ch are descri bed through the use of a rotation tensor, . The
equati on
(2.1)
i s a symbol i c way of sayi ng that the rotati on operati on operates on a vector
, gi vi ng a new vector . Because i s a rotati on operati on, the new
vector has the same magni tude as but a di fferent ori entati on. The l abo-
ratory components of are rel ated to the l aboratory components of by
(2.2)
Here, we have two different vectors, and , expressed i n one coordi nate
system. For coordi nate transformati ons, we are deal i ng wi th one vector
expressed i n two coordi nate systems.
I f a rotated tri ad of base vectors i s obtai ned by appl yi ng a rota-
ti on tensor to the l aboratory base vectors , then i ts strai ght-
forward to show that the l aboratory components of the rotati on tensor are
si mpl y the transpose of the associ ated transformati on matri x . Hence, the
l aboratory components of are identical to the components of the al ternati ve
di recti on cosi ne matri x from page 10, whi ch i s a good argument i n favor
. The col umns of the component matri x for contai n the rotated base vec-
tors (wri tten i n terms of the l aboratory basi s). Ordi nari l y the components of a
tensor change upon a change of basi s. Remarkabl y, however, i t turns out that
the components of wi th respect to the rotated basi s are i denti cal to the com-
ponents wi th respect to the l aboratory basi s!
*
Thus,
(2.3)
* Later on, we show that a rotation operation can be viewed in terms of an axis and angle of rotation.
The components of will be unchanged with respect to any basis obtained by rotating the labora-
tory basis by any angle about the same rotation axis as associated with .
v

=
R

w
i
R
i j
w
j
j 1 =
3

=
w

1
e

2
e

3
, , { }
R

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
L [ ]
R

Q [ ]
Q [ ] R

i j
R
i j
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rotation operations
13
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Other i mportant rel ati onshi ps between the rotated basi s and the transforma-
ti on matri x are
A reader has requested (2.4)
some more detailed/intuitive (2.5)
explanation of these (2.6)
equations.
Ill try to expand discussion (2.7)
added in future versions.
-- RMB (2.8)
Note the di sti ncti on between Eqs. (2.4) and (2.8). We have not gotten the sub-
scri pts on acci dental l y reversed! To obtai n Eq. (2.8) from Eq. (2.4), rst
note that the component of wi th respect to the l ab basi s i s obtai ned by
dotti ng i nto . Dotti ng both si des of Eq. (2.4) from the l eft by shows
that the component of wi th respect to the l ab basi s therefore must be
, whi ch i s exactl y what appears i n Eq. (2.4).
Equati on (1.20) i nvol ves a si ngl e vector expressed i n two coordi nate sys-
tems whereas Eq. (2.2) i nvol ves two vectors expressed i n a si ngl e coordi nate
system. I n practi ce, thi s di sti ncti on i s often confusi ng, and i t i s usual l y easi est
to tel l whether you need or by consi deri ng a si mpl e rotati on for whi ch
you know the desi red behavi or (such as a 90rotati on about one of the coordi -
nate axes). I t shoul d make some i ntui ti ve sense that the components of are
just the transpose of the components of , whi ch si nce i s orthogonal ,
are components of the i nverse of . The transformati on matri x repre-
sents how vectors l ook to an observer attached to the rotated system. Thus, i f
the tensor operati on rotates the system, say, 20cl ockwi se, then stati onary
vectors wi l l appear to have rotated 20counterclockwiseto an observer i n the
new system
*
. Thus and are rel ated by rotati ons that are equal i n mag-
ni tude, but opposi te i n di recti on.
* Keep in mind, though, the vector itself is the same no matter what coordinate system is used. Both
the components and the base vectors change under coordinate transformation, but the sum of com-
ponents times base vectors is invariant.
e

i
R

i
=
L
mn
e

m
E

n
Q
mn
=
R
i j
E

i
R

j
L
j i
= =
R

i j
e

i
R

j
L
j i
= =
e

i
L
i j
E

j
j 1 =
3

=
e

i
R
j i
E

j
j 1 =
3

=
R
j i
j
th
e

i
E

j
e

i
E

j
j
th
e

i
R
j i
R

L [ ]
R

L [ ] L [ ]
L [ ] L [ ]
R

L [ ]
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rotation operations
14
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Equati on (2.5) shows that the components of a rotati on tensor are the same
as the di recti on cosi nes of the rotated base vectors the col umns of
si mpl y contai n the rotated basi s! Hence, to be a rotati on, the col umns must
form a ri ght-handed orthonormal tri ad. A routi ne for testi ng whether a matri x
i s a rotati on i s provi ded i n Listing1(Testingwhether a matrix is a rota-
tion) on page A-1.
Exa m p le : rotati on of an angl e about the X-axi s.
For thi s rotati on about X, the axi s remai ns al i gned wi th the X-axi s, so
, , and . The angl e that the rotated -axi s
makes wi th xed Y-axi s i s , so . The angl e that makes wi th
Z i s /2-, so , and so on. Thus, referri ng to Eqs.
(1.4) and (2.6), the transformati on matri x and the rotati on tensor are
(2.9)
Recal l that the matri x i s the same as the matri x . Al so recal l that the
components of posi ti on wi th respect to the l ab system are denoted
or . Li kewi se, the components of that same l ocati on
wi th respect to the rotated system are denoted or . Thus,
Eq. (1.34) becomes
(2.10)
or
R
i j
[ ]
Z
X
Y

Z
X
Y
z
x
y
BEFORE ROTATION AFTER ROTATION
z
y
x
x

xX
cos 1 =
xY
cos 0 =
xZ
cos 0 = y

yY
cos cos = y

yZ
cos 2 ( ) cos sin = =
L
1 0 0
0 cos sin
0 sin cos
= R

[ ]
1 0 0
0 cos sin
0 sin cos
=
R

[ ] Q [ ]
X
1
X
2
X
3
, , { } X Y Z , , { }
x
1
x
2
x
3
, , { } x y z , , { }
x
y
z


' ;


1 0 0
0 cos sin
0 sin cos
X
Y
Z


' ;


=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rotation operations
15
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(2.11)
Rotati ons about a parti cul ar axi s wi l l al ways i nvol ve a submatri x of the form
(2.12)
I f you are ever unsure whether you have pl aced the negati ve si gn on correct
one of the two , an easy way to check i s to veri fy that you get the resul t
when the rotati on angl e exactl y equal s . I n thi s speci al l i mi ti ng case, Eq.
(2.11) becomes
(2.13)
A vi sual i nspecti on of the rotati on sketch for a ni nety degree rotati on reveal s
that the axi s ends up al i gned wi th the axi s (so that ) and the axi s
ends up paral l el to the Y axi s but opposi tel y poi nted (so that ). Thus,
Eq. (2.13) gave the ri ght resul t, whi ch means we pl aced the negati ve si gn cor-
rectl y i n Eq. (2.11). Thi s si mpl e l i mi ti ng case test can be a l i fesaver.
Exa m p le : rotati on of an angl e about the Y-axi s.
Referri ng to Eqs. (1.4) and (2.6), the transformati on matri x and the rotati on
matri x are:
(2.14)
Note the rel ati ve di fference between Eqs. (2.14) and (2.9).
x X =
y cos ( )Y sin ( )Z + =
z sin ( )Y cos ( )Z + =
cos sin
sin cos
sin
90
x X =
y Z =
z Y =
y Z y Z = z
z Y =
90
Z
X
Y

Z
X
Y
z
x
BEFORE ROTATION AFTER ROTATION
z
x
y

y
L
cos 0 sin
0 1 0
sin 0 cos
= R

[ ]
cos 0 sin
0 1 0
sin 0 cos
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rotation operations
16
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Recal l that the matri x i s the same as the matri x . Al so recal l that
the components of posi ti on wi th respect to the l ab system are denoted
or . Li kewi se, the components of that same l ocati on
wi th respect to the rotated system are denoted or . Thus,
Eq. (1.34) becomes
(2.15)
or
(2.16)
For the speci al case of a rotati on, thi s becomes
, (2.17)
whi ch i s consi stent wi th vi sual i nspecti on of the rotati on gure. Namel y, upon
a ni nety degree rotati on, l i ttl e ends up poi nti ng i n the di recti on, l i ttl e
stays equal to bi g , and l i ttl e ends up poi nti ng i n the bi g di recti on. Si nce
these observati ons are consi stent wi th Eq. (2.17), we can feel assured that the
negati ve si gn i n Eq. (2.16) was pl aced i n the correct posi ti on.
Exa m p le : rotati on of an angl e about the Z-axi s.
Referri ng to Eqs. (1.4) and (2.4), the transformati on matri x and the rotati on
matri x are:
R

[ ] Q [ ]
X
1
X
2
X
3
, , { } X Y Z , , { }
x
1
x
2
x
3
, , { } x y z , , { }
x
y
z


' ;


cos 0 sin
0 1 0
sin 0 cos
X
Y
Z


' ;


=
x cos ( ) X sin ( )Z =
y Y =
z sin ( ) X cos ( )Z + =
90
x Z =
y Y =
z X =
x Z y
Y z X
Z
X
Y

Z
X
Y
z
x
y
z
BEFORE ROTATION AFTER ROTATION
x
y
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rotation operations
17
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(2.18)
Note the rel ati ve di fferences between Eqs. (2.18), (2.14) and (2.9).
Whe re d o e s tha t ne g a tive sig n g o ? Note how the negati ve i n front of the
si ne seems to be i n a di fferent rel ati ve spot when we compare equati ons
Eqs. (2.9), (2.14), and (2.18). The proper way to thi nk about the l ocati on of the
negati ve i s not to consi der the submatri x of si nes and cosi nes. I nstead con-
si der the pl acement of the negati ve when movi ng cycl i cal l y ri ght
*
one col umn
and cycl i cal l y up
*
one row from the sol i tary 1 on the di agonal . I n al l cases,
the negati ve i n i s up and ri ght from the 1; the negati ve i n i s cycl i cal l y
down and l eft from the 1. Another (often easi er) way to remember i s to si m-
pl y consi der a si mpl e 90rotati on for whi ch you know the answer and can see
where the negati ve needs to be.
Fa ste r wa y to write d own the m a trix o f a ro ta tio n te nso r. Weve al ready
menti oned that you can construct by computi ng the cosi nes of the angl es
between the l aboratory axes and the embedded axes. Thi s vi ewpoi nt can be
somewhat tedi ous. A better (and equi val ent) procedure i s to si mpl y recogni ze
that the col umns of are gi ven by the rotated basi s when expressed i n
terms of the l ab coordi nates.
Consi der the above exampl e i n whi ch we rotate by an angl e rotati on
about the Z-axi s. The three laboratory base vectors are
, , and (2.19)
* Moving cyclically right from the last column means looping back to the rst column. Similarly,
moving cyclically up from the top row means looping back down to the bottom row.
L
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
= R

[ ]
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
=
L [ ] R

[ ]

X
1
0
0


' ;


= E

Y
0
1
0


' ;


= E

Z
0
0
1


' ;


=

BEFORE ROTATION AFTER ROTATION


E

Y
E

X
e

x
e

y
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rotation operations
18
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Referri ng to the above gure, the rotated base vectors are
(2.20)
(2.21)
(2.22)
or, wri tten as col umn vectors,
, , and (2.23)
These three vectors assembl e together to form the col umns of i n
Eq. (2.18). Thats easy!
Sp e c ific e xa m p le : A 90rotati on about the Z-axi s.
Substi tuti ng i nto Eq. (2.18) gi ves
(2.24)
When wri ti ng down the rotati on matri x for a rotati on of angl e about the Z-
axi s, i t i s often useful to qui ckl y veri fy that your matri x gi ves the desi red
resul t for the speci al case of a 90rotati on. Thi s si mpl e sani ty check i s very
useful for ensuri ng that the negati ve i s pl aced on the correct off-di agonal
si ne component.
e

x
cos E

X
sin E

Y
+ =
e

y
sin E

X
cos E

Y
+ =
e

x
E

Z
=
e

x
cos
sin
0


' ;


= e

y
sin
cos
0


' ;


= e

z
0
0
1


' ;


=
R

Z
X
Y
90
Z
X
Y
z
x
y x
y
z
BEFORE ROTATION AFTER ROTATION
90 =
L
0 1 0
1 0 0
0 0 1
= R

[ ]
0 1 0
1 0 0
0 0 1
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
19
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
3. Axis and angle of rotation
As expl ai ned above, a rotati on may be descri bed by the di recti on cosi nes of
the rotati on or transformati on. These di recti on cosi nes are not al l i ndepen-
dent. Eul ers theorem states that any rotati on may be speci ed by an axi s and
angl e of rotati on. The axi s of rotati on, , i s a uni t vector and the angl e of rota-
ti on, , i s dened by the ri ght hand rul e wi th respect to the axi s . The axi s of
rotati on has two i ndependent components (the thi rd bei ng restri cted to ensure
that =1). Hence, wi th the angl e of rotati on, onl y three numbers are needed
to compl etel y speci fy a rotati on and therefore onl y three of the ni ne di recti on
cosi nes i n Eq. (1.4) are i ndependent.
Because, accordi ng to Eul ers theorem, any rotati on can be descri bed by a
uni t vector and a rotati on angl e , one can permi ssi bl y state that the
pseudo rotati on vector dened ful l y descri bes a rotati on. Thi s i s a
l egal constructi on, but one must be cauti oned that rotati on operati ons do not
commute. Thus, i f you appl y one rotati on fol l owed by a second rotati on, then
the resul t wi l l be di fferent i f you appl y the rotati ons i n the opposi te order.
Thus, even though each i ndi vi dual rotati on can be descri bed through i ndi vi d-
ual pseudo rotati on vectors, and , the pseudo rotati on vector corre-
spondi ng to sequenti al l y appl i ed rotati ons wi l l not general l y equal .
Thi s i ssue i s di scussed i n much greater detai l i n Chapter 7. For the di scussi on
of the present chapter, we wi l l keep the rotati on angl e and the rotati on axi s
cl earl y separated.
a

=
s

1 ( )
s

2 ( )
s

1 ( )
s

2 ( )
+

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Axis and angle of rotation
20
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Euler-Rodrigues formula
Eul ers theorem
*
states that the general di spl acement of a ri gi d body wi th
one poi nt xed i s a rotati on about some axi s that passes through that xed
poi nt. For conveni ence i n thi s secti on, we pl ace our ori gi n at the xed poi nt.
Consi der a rotati on operati on about a (uni t) axi s . Consi der an arbi -
trary posi ti on vector that poi nts from the xed ori gi n to an arbi trary poi nt
on the ri gi d body. Letti ng denote the rotati on angl e, the sketch i n Fi g. 3.1
shows how i s transformed to become a new rotated vector .
The vector shown i n Fi g. 3.1 i s the part of i n the di recti on of , so i t
must be gi ven by
(3.1)
The vector i s dened to be the part of that i s perpendi cul ar to , so i t
must be gi ven by
=
= (3.2)
The vector i s dened to be perpendi cul ar to both and , but wi th the same
magni tude as . Recal l i ng that i s a uni t vector, we therefore concl ude that
=
=
= (3.3)
* one of many!
R

Figure 3.1. Rotation of a vector by a known angle about a known axis .


I n thi s gure, we have i ntroduced some hel per vectors: i s the part of i n the
di recti on of , whi l e i s the perpendi cul ar part. The vector i s si mpl y dened to
be perpendi cul ar to both and as shown.
x

( )a

=
s

( )a

( )
a

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Axis and angle of rotation
21
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
I n the l ast step, we have noted that because i s paral l el to .
Looki ng stri ctl y i n the pl ane of rotati on (ri ght si de of Fi g. 3.1), we note that
the transformed l ocati on of i s gi ven by
=
= (3.4)
From the gure on the l eft si de of Fi g. 3.1, we note that the rotated vector
can be broken i nto two parts as the vector sum of and :
=
= (3.5)
Sl i ght rearrangement gi ves the so-cal l ed Euler-Rodrigues formula:
*
(3.6)
I n the next secti on, we wi l l we wi l l use thi s formul a to extract a di rect nota-
ti on expressi on for the rotati on tensor. Toward thi s end, i t i s useful to recog-
ni ze that the cross product i s l i near wi th respect to . Consequentl y,
there must exi st a tensor cal l ed the axi al tensor such that
(3.7)
Thi s equati on may be wri tten i n (Cartesi an) component form as
(3.8)
where i s the permutati on symbol dened by
(3.9)
El i mi nati ng the common factor of i n Eq. (3.8) gi ves the di rect notati on and
component formul as for the axi al tensor, whi ch we wri te bel ow al ong wi th the
i ndi ci al and matri x expressi ons to ensure cl ari ty:
(3.10)
* In a footnote about this eponymic designation, Goldstein [1], states that Hamel (Theoretische
Mechanik, p. 103) ascribes this theorem to the French mathematician O. Rodrigues (1794-1851),
but Goldstein claims this might be an error, suggesting that Gibbs was the rst to put it in vector
form (Vector Analysis, p. 338). The underlying formula is apparently much older still.
a

= h

cos ( )s

sin ( )t

+
cos ( ) x

( )a

[ ] sin ( ) a

[ ] +
R

+
x

( )a

cos ( ) x

( )a

[ ] sin ( ) a

[ ] + +
R

cos ( ) x

( ) [ ] a

( ) sin ( ) a

[ ] + + =
a

i j k
a
j
x
k
A
i k
x
k
=

i j k

i j k
+1 if i j k=123 231 or 312 , ,
1 if i j k=321 132 or 213 , ,
0 otherwise

'

=
x
k
A

= A
i j

i j k
a
k
= A [ ]
0 a
3
a
2
a
3
0 a
1
a
2
a
1
0
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
22
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The axi al tensor i s skew-symmetri c because the permutati on symbol has the
property that . By the cycl i c property of the permutati on symbol ,
the component i s often wri tten wi th the free i ndex i n the center of the per-
mutati on symbol and the negati ve si gn removed. I n other words, the al terna-
ti ve expressi on, , i s equi val ent to Eq. (3.10).
I nci dental l y, note the fol l owi ng tri gonometri c i denti ty
(3.11)
Al so note the vector i denti ty
, (3.12)
I n the nal step, we used the fact that i s a uni t vector to wri te . By
usi ng the above two i denti ti es, Eq. (3.6) may be wri tten as
(3.13)
Thi s i s the form of the Eul er-Rodri gues i denti ty ci ted by Argyri s [2].
Computing the rotation tensor given axis and angle
Gi ven the (uni t) axi s and angl e , what i s the rotati on tensor? The
answer i s found by si mpl y di fferenti ati ng both si des of the Euler-Rodrigues
formula of Eq. (3.6) by to obtai n
(3.14)
Al ternati vel y, usi ng the tri gonometri c i denti ty ,
Eq. (3.14) can be wri tten as
(3.15)
Here, i s the i denti ty tensor (represented i n Cartesi an coordi nates by the 33
i denti ty matri x). As expl ai ned i n appendi x B, symbol denotes a vector-vec-
tor dyad (often cal l ed the outer product), whi ch i s si mpl y a tensor correspond-
i ng to a 33 Cartesi an matri x wi th components
(3.16)
wri tten out,

i j k

j i k
=
A
i j
A
i j

i kj
a
k
=
cos 1 2sin
2

2
---
,
_
=
a

( ) a

( ) x

( ) a

( ) x

= =
a

=1
R

sin ( ) a

( ) 2sin
2

2
---
,
_
a

( ) ( ) + + =
a

cos I

( ) a

sin A

+ + =
cos 1 2sin
2
2 ( ) =
R

2sin
2

2
---
,
_
a

( ) sin A

+ + =
I

( )
i j
a
i
a
j
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
23
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(3.17)
The tensor i s the skew symmetri c axi al tensor associ ated wi th the axi s .
I n di rect notati on, the tensor i s dened such that for any
vector . I t was shown i n the previ ous secti on that , where the
symbol denotes the thi rd-order al ternati ng tensor.* Expandi ng the opera-
ti on shows that the 33 Cartesi an matri x for i s
(3.18)
Thus, substi tuti ng Eqs. (3.17) and (3.18) i nto (3.14) gi ves the component form
of the Eul er-Rodri gues (tensor) formul a:
(3.19)
Thi s equati on i s coded i n Listing 2 (Converting axis and angle to direc-
tion cosines) on pageA-2. I n mathemati ca, thi s operati on can be dened by
the fol l owi ng functi on
rotationMatrix[axis_, angle_] := Cos[angle] IdentityMatrix[3]
+ (1 - Cos[angle]) Outer[Times, axis, axis]
+ Sin[angle] {{0, -axis[[3]], axis[[2]]}, {axis[[3]], 0, -axis[[1]]},
{-axis[[2]], axis[[1]], 0}};
Exa m p le . Consi der a rotati on of 120 degrees about an axi s that passes
through the poi nt (1,1,1).
The axi s of rotati on i s just a uni t vector that poi nts from the ori gi n to the
poi nt (1,1,1):
(3.20)
* The alternating tensor is a third order tensor with Cartesian components dened as follows:
if ; if ; and for all other .
a

[ ]
a
1
a
1
a
1
a
2
a
1
a
3
a
2
a
1
a
2
a
2
a
2
a
3
a
3
a
1
a
3
a
2
a
3
a
3
=
A

=
u

i j k
=1
i j k 123, 231, or 312 =
i j k
= 1 i j k 321, 132, or 213 =
i j k
=0 i j k

[ ]
0 a
3
a
2
a
3
0 a
1
a
2
a
1
0
=
R

[ ] cos
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
1 cos ( )
a
1
a
1
a
1
a
2
a
1
a
3
a
2
a
1
a
2
a
2
a
2
a
3
a
3
a
1
a
3
a
2
a
3
a
3
sin
0 a
3
a
2
a
3
0 a
1
a
2
a
1
0
+ + =
a

{ }
1
3
-------
1
1
1


' ;


=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
24
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The si ne and cosi ne of the angl e are and .
Thus, usi ng Eq. (3.19),
(3.21)
or
(3.22)
Thi s resul t coul d be obtai ned by usi ng the mathemati ca functi on dened on
page 23. Namel y, rotationMatrix[{1, 1, 1}/Sqrt[3], 120 Degree].
Ano the r e xa m p le . Consi der a rotati on of 180 degrees about an axi s that
passes through the poi nt (1,1,1):
Agai n we have the fol l owi ng uni t vector representi ng the axi s of rotati on:
(3.23)
The si ne and cosi ne of the angl e are and . Thus,
usi ng Eq. (3.19),
(3.24)
Note that thi s rotati on tensor i s symmetri c. I t i s strai ghtforward to prove that
thi s wi l l happen i f and onl y i f the angl e of rotati on i s an i ntegral mul ti pl e of
180 degrees.
Thi s resul t coul d be obtai ned by usi ng the mathemati ca functi on dened on
page 23 by executi ng... rotationMatrix[{1, 1, 1}/Sqrt[3], 180 Degree].
Ano the r sim ila r e xa m p le . Consi der a rotati on of 180 degrees about an axi s
that passes through the poi nt (3,4,12):
We have the fol l owi ng unit vector representi ng the axi s of rotati on:
(3.25)
120 sin 3 2 = 120 cos 1 2 =
R

[ ]
1
2
---
,
_
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
3
2
---
,
_
1 3 1 3 1 3
1 3 1 3 1 3
1 3 1 3 1 3
3
2
-------
0 1 3 1 3
1 3 0 1 3
1 3 1 3 0
+ + =
R

[ ]
0 0 1
1 0 0
0 1 0
=
a

{ }
1
3
-------
1
1
1


' ;


=
180 sin 0 = 180 cos 1 =
R

[ ] 1 ( )
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
2
1 3 1 3 1 3
1 3 1 3 1 3
1 3 1 3 1 3
+
1 3 2 3 2 3
2 3 1 3 2 3
2 3 2 3 1 3
= =
a

{ }
1
13
------
3
4
12


' ;


=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
25
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The si ne and cosi ne of the angl e are and . Thus,
usi ng Eq. (3.19),
(3.26)
Note that thi s rotati on tensor i s symmetri c. As previ ousl y asserted, thi s wi l l
happen i f and onl y i f the angl e of rotati on i s an i ntegral mul ti pl e of 180
degrees.
Thi s resul t coul d be obtai ned by usi ng the mathemati ca functi on dened on
page 23 by executi ng... rotationMatrix[{3, 4, 12}/13, 180 Degree].
180 sin 0 = 180 cos 1 =
R

[ ] 1 ( )
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
2
13 ( )
2
-------------
9 12 36
12 16 48
36 48 144
+
1
13 ( )
2
-------------
151 24 72
24 137 96
72 96 119
= =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
26
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Num e ric a l e xa m p le ( fo r te sting c o m p ute r c o d e s) . Consi der a rotati on of
76about an axi s that passes through the poi nt (1, 3.2, 7).
The axi s of rotati on i s a uni t vector that poi nts from the ori gi n to the poi nt
(1, 3.2, 7), namel y
a={0.128842, 0.412294, 0.901894} (3.27)
The si ne and cosi ne of the angl e are
si n(76)=0.970296
cos(76)=0.241922 (3.28)
Usi ng Eq. (3.19),
(3.29)
or
(3.30)
Thi s resul t coul d be obtai ned by usi ng the mathemati ca functi on dened on
page 23: rotationMatrix[{1, 3.2, 7}/Sqrt[1+3.2^2+7^2], 76 Degree].
R

[ ] 0.241922
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
=
+ 0.758078 ( )
0.0166003 0.0531208 0.116202
0.0531208 0.169987 0.371846
0.116202 0.371846 0.813413
+ 0.970296
0 0.901894 0.412294
0.901894 0 0.128842
0.412294 0.128842 0
R

[ ]
0.254506 0.834834 0.488138
0.915374 0.370785 0.156873
0.311957 0.406903 0.858552
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
27
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Alte rna tive wa y to c o nstruc t the ro ta tio n te nso r. The Eul er-Rodri gues for-
mul a of Eq. (3.14) i s the most el egant means of constructi ng the matri x of the
rotati on tensor, gi ven axi s and angl e. However, you mi ght encounter the fol -
l owi ng al ternati ve al gori thm, whi ch we present here for compl eteness:
(i) Assume the user has suppl i ed the components
of the rotati on axi s uni t vector wi th
respect to the l aboratory basi s. Fi rst
ensure that the rotati on axi s i s a uni t vector by
repl aci ng by .
(ii) Determi ne the smal l est component of . I f thi s com-
ponent i s , then set . Thi s vector wi l l be
l i nearl y i ndependent of , so you can construct a
uni t vector that i s perpendi cul ar to by:
(3.31)
(iii) Construct a thi rd vector that i s ri ght-perpendi cu-
l ar to both and by
(3.32)
(iv) Construct a real uni tary (proper orthogonal ) matri x
whose col umns contai n the vectors :
(3.33)
(v) Then the matri x for the rotati on tensor i s
(3.34)
I n essence, thi s procedure:
(1) constructs the transformati on matri x that temporari l y
transforms to a basi s for whi ch i s i n the 3-di recti on, then
(2) performs the rotati on about thi s new 1-di recti on, and nal l y
(3) transforms back to the l aboratory congurati on.
Al though thi s approach i s perfectl y l egi ti mate, di rect appl i cati on of the Eul er-
Rodri gues formul a seems more el egant due to i ts i nvari ant nature. A major
advantage of the Eul er-Rodri gues formul a i s that one may take i ts rate to
obtai n the materi al ti me deri vati ve as a direct notation functi on of
(see Eq. 12.15).
a
1
a
2
a
3
, , { } a

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
a

a
K
s

K
=
a

---------------- =
c

=
L [ ] b

, , { }
L [ ]
b
1
c
1
a
1
b
2
c
2
a
2
b
3
c
3
a
3
=
R

[ ] L [ ]
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
L [ ]
T
=
L [ ]
a

and a

, , ,
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
28
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
So m e p ro p e rtie s o f the a xia l te nso r. Thi s secti on (whi ch the reader may
ski p wi thout l oss) summari zes several useful formul as i nvol vi ng the axi al ten-
sor that was dened i n Eq. (3.10):
(3.35)
I f the axi al tensor i s known, then the axi al vector can be computed i mmedi -
atel y by
, (3.36a)
(3.36b)
(3.36c)
Thi s operati on may be wri tten i n di rect notati on as
, (3.37)
The i ndi ci al form i s
(3.38)
For many cal cul ati ons, i ts useful to note that
for any vector (3.39)
Taki ng as a speci al case shows that
. (3.40)
The axi al tensor i s skew symmetri c. That i s,
(3.41)
Axi al tensors have i nteresti ng properti es when they are rai sed to vari ous pow-
ers. For exampl e, even though i s skew-symmetri c, i ts square turns out
to be symmetri c.
*
Speci cal l y:
(3.42)
I f appl i ed to an arbi trary vector , thi s l i near operator gi ves the negativepro-
jecti on of onto the pl ane whose normal i s . Repl aci ng by i n
Eq. (3.39) shows that
for any vector (3.43)
* This is a nice counterexample to demonstrate that the square root of a symmetric tensor does not
necessarily have to be symmetric!
A

= A
i j

i j k
a
k
= A [ ]
0 a
3
a
2
a
3
0 a
1
a
2
a
1
0
=
a

a
1
A
32
=
a
2
A
13
=
a
3
A
21
=
a

1
2
---

:A

=
a
i

i j k
A
j k
=
a

= x

=
A

=
A

T
A

=
A

2
A

2
a

=
x

( ) A

2
x

= x

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Axis and angle of rotation
29
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
I f we take the thi rd power of the axi al tensor, we obtai n
(3.44)
or, usi ng Eq. (3.40),
(3.45)
Thus, the cube of the axi al tensor i s just the negati ve of the axi al tensor i tsel f.
Hi gher powers are computed si mi l arl y and al ternate between bei ng skew-
symmetri c axi al tensors and (negati ve or posi ti ve) symmetri c projectors.
Recal l the Eul er-Rodri gues expressi on for the rotati on:
(3.46)
Appl yi ng the above i denti ti es, we note that
(3.47)
Some proofs are most easi l y performed when the 3-di recti on i s al i gned wi th
the rotati on axi s , i n whi ch case
and (3.48)
where and .
A

3
A

2
A

( ) A

( )a

= = =
A

3
A

=
R

cos I

( ) a

sin A

+ + =
R

cos ( ) A

sin a

( ) + = =
a

[ ]
c s 0
s c 0
0 0 1
= A

[ ]
0 1 0
1 0 0
0 0 0
=
c cos = s sin =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
30
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Arg y riss fo rm o f the Eule r- Ro d rig ue s fo rmula . Recal l i ng Eqs. (3.39) and
(3.43), a si mpl er (but computati onal l y l ess efci ent) form for the Eul er-Rod-
ri gues formul a fol l ows from Eq. 3.13:
(3.49)
or
(3.50)
Argyri s [2] i ntroduces a pseudo-rotati on vector dened by
. (3.51)
Usi ng the tri gonometri c i denti ty , Eq. (3.14) can be
wri tten i n terms of thi s pseudo rotati on vector as
(3.52)
Of course, Argyri s emphasi zes the caveats that two successi ve rotati ons can-
not by represented by si mpl y addi ng the pseudo-rotati on vectors. Nonethel ess,
the product i s certai nl y wel l -dened and (i n some i nstances) more conve-
ni ent.
Argyri s i ntroduces a correspondi ng skew-symmetri c tensor associ ated
wi th dened such that
for any vector (3.53)
Compari ng thi s deni ti on wi th Eq. (3.39), we note that
(3.54)
Thus, i n terms of Argyri ss pseudo-rotati on tensor, Eq. (3.49) can be wri tten
(3.55)
We shal l l ater see that thi s expressi on i s most conveni ent when expandi ng the
rotati on tensor wi th respect to the rotati on angl e.
R

sin A

2sin
2

2
---
,
_
A

2
+ + =
R

sin A

1 cos ( ) A

2
+ + =
s

cos 1 2sin
2
2 ( ) =
R

2sin
2

2
---
,
_
a

( ) sin A

+ + =
a

= x

---- =
R

sin

----------- S

1
2
---
sin
2
2 ( )
2 ( )
2
------------------------- S

2
+ + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
31
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Corollary to the Euler-Rodrigues formula:
Existence of a preferred basis
Recal l Eq. (3.19) for the Eul er-Rodri gues expressi on for a rotati on tensor
expressed sol el y i n terms of the angl e and axi s of rotati on:
(3.56)
The above expressi on hol ds no matter what basi s i s used. I f, however, one sets
up a basi s such that the 3-di recti on i s coi nci dent wi th then
and , (3.57)
I n thi s case, the Eul er-Rodri gues formul a si mpl i es to
when the 3-di recti on i s al i gned wi th . (3.58)
I n other words, i t i s al ways possi bl e to set up a basi s such that the component
matri x of the rotati on i s gi ven by the above expressi on. Thi s can be very useful
i n many si tuati ons. For exampl e, we can take the trace of Eq. (3.58) to obtai n
(3.59)
Even though thi s formul a was obtai ned by usi ng the expressi on for i n i ts
preferred basi s, we know that i t hol ds for any basi s because the trace opera-
ti on i s an i nvari ant. Hence, as expl oi ted i n the next secti on, the above formul a
provi des a means of computi ng the angl e of rotati on when onl y the rotati on
matri x i s known.
a

[ ] cos
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
1 cos ( )
a
1
a
1
a
1
a
2
a
1
a
3
a
2
a
1
a
2
a
2
a
2
a
3
a
3
a
1
a
3
a
2
a
3
a
3
sin
0 a
3
a
2
a
3
0 a
1
a
2
a
1
0
+ + =
a

a
1
a
2
0 = = a
3
1 =
R

[ ]
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
= a

trR

1 2 cos + =
R

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Axis and angle of rotation
32
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Computing axis and angle given the rotation tensor.
Now consi der the reverse probl em. Suppose you have the rotati on tensor
and you want the axi s and angl e of rotati on. Actual l y, sayi ng the axi s i s mi s-
l eadi ng. More correctl y, we shoul d say an axi s. After al l , i f the rotati on angl e
i s zero, then the axi s i s arbi trary (theres an i nni te number of sol uti ons). I f a
rotati on angl e i s measured by ri ght-hand-rul e about a rotati on di recti on ,
then an angl e of about wi l l produce the same rotati on tensor. There-
fore, the sol uti on for the axi s and angl e of rotati on i s not uni que. For nonzero
rotati on angl es, there are al ways two sol uti ons. We know that ei ther or
serves equal l y wel l as the rotati on axi s. Wi th one choi ce, the rotati on angl e
ranges from 0 to (pl us or mi nus an i ntegral mul ti pl e of ). For the other
choi ce, the rotati on angl e wi l l range from to (agai n pl us or mi nus an
i ntegral mul ti pl e of ). The principal solution wi l l be the one such that
, measured by ri ght-hand-rul e about . (3.60)
Once thi s pri nci pal sol uti on i s found, then the fami l y of general sol uti ons for
the axi s and angl e of rotati on are of the form
measured by ri ght-hand-rul e about , and
measured by ri ght-hand-rul e about (3.61)
where i s any i nteger.
Find ing the p rinc ip a l ro ta tio n a ng le . Equati on (3.59) gi ves
(3.62)
The i nverse cosi ne has two sol uti ons on the i nterval from 0 to , so si mpl y
knowi ng the cosi ne i s usual l y not sufci ent to determi ne an angl e. However,
the i nverse cosi ne does uni quel y determi ne the principal rotati on angl e of
Eq. (3.60) because that angl e i s requi red to range from 0 to . Thus, the above
expressi on determi nes the principal angl e of rotati on. When usi ng the princi-
pal angl e of rotati on, i t i s essenti al to sel ect the di recti on of the axi s ( or )
consi stentl y. You have to match the pri nci pal rotati on angl e to the pri nci pal
axi s. Matchi ng the pri nci pal rotati on angl e wi th an opposi tel y-ori ented axi s
wi l l gi ve the wrong resul t i f you try to reconstruct the rotati on tensor usi ng
the Eul er-Rodri gues formul a.
R

2
0 2
2
0 a

2m + a

2m a

m
cos
trR

1
2
------------------
1
2
--- R
11
R
22
R
33
1 + + ( ) = =
2

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Axis and angle of rotation
33
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Find ing the p rinc ip a l ro ta tio n a xis. Recal l the Eul er-Rodri gues expressi on
for the rotati on:
(3.63)
Fi rst we are goi ng to show how to i nvert thi s formul a to obtai n as a func-
ti on of . Then we are goi ng to expl ai n why knowi ng only i s not adequate
for deduci ng the principal axi s . Then we wi l l move on to i nvert the above
formul a for as a functi on of , whi ch i n turn gi ves the correct formul a for
the principal axi s.
Recal l i ng that the axi al tensor i s skew-symmetri c, note that the sym-
metri c part of the rotati on (i .e., ) i s gi ven by
(3.64)
sol vi ng for the dyad gi ves
(3.65)
I n the degenerate case of a zero rotati on angl e, we know that and
the rotati on tensor i s just the i denti ty tensor. For thi s speci al case, Eq. (3.65)
i s an i ndetermi nate 0/0 form. However, we know that the rotati on axi s i s arbi -
trary whenever the rotati on angl e i s zero. Hence, i t may be set equal to
wi thout l oss. The remai nder of thi s di scussi on concerns the nontri vi al case of
nonzero rotati on angl es. Recal l from Eq. (3.62) that
(3.66)
Hence, we obtai n an expressi on for the dyad :
(3.67)
Recal l from Eq. (3.17), that
(3.68)
R

cos ( ) I

1 cos ( )a

sin A

+ + =
a

symR

1
2
--- R

T
+ ( )
symR

cos ( ) I

1 cos ( )a

+ =
a

symR

cos ( ) I

1 cos ( )
------------------------------------------ =
cos 1 =
e

1
cos
trR

1
2
------------------ =
a

T
1 trR

( ) I

+ +
3 trR

---------------------------------------------------- =
a

[ ]
a
1
a
1
a
1
a
2
a
1
a
3
a
2
a
1
a
2
a
2
a
2
a
3
a
3
a
1
a
3
a
2
a
3
a
3
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
34
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Hence, any non-zero col umn (or row) of must be paral l el to the rotati on
axi s . Si nce we must sel ect a nonzero col umn, we know that we wi l l be
requi red to compute the magni tude of the col umn. Hence, i t i s computati on-
al l y more efci ent to i gnore the denomi nator i n Eq. (3.67) and si mpl y say that
the rotati on axi s can be obtai ned by normal i zi ng any nonzero col umn (or row)
of the numerator i n Eq. (3.67):
see warning below! (3.69)
WARNING: A key di sadvantage of sol vi ng the dyad for the axi s i s that i t
does not gi ve any i nformati on about the direction of the axi s vector . I f the
pri nci pal i nverse cosi ne i s to be used to nd the rotati on angl e from Eq.
(3.66), then the resul t wi l l be an angl e that ranges from 0 to . Hence, we
must sel ect the di recti on of the axi al vector consi stentl y. After normal i zi ng
a nonzero col umn of Eq. (3.69) to obtai n a trial rotati on axi s , we mi ght be
requi red to change the answer to i n order to be consi stent wi th our
assumpti on that the rotati on angl e l i es between 0 and . Consi der, for exam-
pl e, a rotati on obtai ned by a ri ght-handed rotati on of about the axi s:
(3.70)
We know that about the axi s i s not the pri nci pal sol uti on for the angl e
and axi s of rotati on because does not l i e i n the i nterval from 0 to .
However, Eq. (3.70) i s equi val ent to a rotati on about the di recti on,
and this i s the pri nci pal sol uti on that we seek.
Fi rst, appl yi ng Eq. (3.66) gi ves
, (3.71)
whi ch correctl y corresponds to the pri nci pal rotati on angl e. The expressi on i n
Eq. (3.69) becomes
(3.72)
Normal i zi ng the onl y nonzero col umn gi ves
(3.73)
whi ch i s the wrong resul t. The correct answer for the principal rotati on axi s i s
a

[ ]
a

T
1 trR

( ) I

+ +
a

270 e

3
R

[ ]
0 1 0
1 0 0
0 0 1
=
270 e

3
270 180
90 e

ArcCos
trR

1
2
------------------
,
_
ArcCos 0 ( ) 90 = = =
R

T
1 trR

( )I

+ + [ ]
0 0 0
0 0 0
0 0 2
=
0
0
1


' ;


May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
35
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
, (3.74)
At thi s poi nt, we do not have any cri teri on that i ndi cates that the si gn of
Eq. (3.73) needs to be changed! Hence, attempti ng to nd from onl y the
dyad i s a dead end. Of course, one coul d al ways use the Eul er-Rodri gues
formul a to reconstruct the rotati on tensor usi ng Eq. (3.73). Then the axi s
di recti on coul d be reversed i f the resul t does not equal the ori gi nal rotati on
tensor. Agai n, thi s approach entai l s numeri cal round-off probl ems when try-
i ng to assess equal i ty. We now di scuss a second approach.
We have seen that sol vi ng the dyad for i s not a sati sfactory method
for obtai ni ng the principal rotati on axi s. Bel ow, we di scuss an al ternati ve
method that i nstead nds the axial tensor , from whi ch the pri nci pal rota-
ti on axi s may be found by appl yi ng Eq. (3.36). Agai n recal l the Eul er-Rod-
ri gues expressi on for the rotati on:
(3.75)
Thi s ti me, we wi l l take the skew-symmetric part (i .e., to obtai n
(3.76)
Thus,
(3.77)
Appl yi ng Eq. (3.36) gi ves the pri nci pal rotati on axi s:
(3.78a)
(3.78b)
(3.78c)
The above formul a gi ves the correct answer for the rotati on axi s regardl ess of
whether or not the rotati on angl e i s the principal angl e. When we seek the
principal axi s, then we know that and i t may therefore be computed
by the positive square root i n the fol l owi ng formul a
(3.79)
0
0
1


' ;


a

cos ( ) I

1 cos ( )a

sin A

+ + =
skwR

1
2
--- R

T
( )
skwR

1
2
--- R

T
( ) sin ( ) A

= =
A

1
2 sin ( )
------------------- R

T
( ) =
a
1
1
2 sin ( )
------------------- R
32
R
23
( ) =
a
2
1
2 sin ( )
------------------- R
13
R
31
( ) =
a
3
1
2 sin ( )
------------------- R
21
R
12
( ) =
sin 0 >
sin + 1 cos
2
+ 1
trR

1
2
------------------
,
_
2
= =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
36
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
For the speci al case that Eq. (3.78) becomes an i ndetermi nate 0/0
form. I n thi s case, we know that the rotati on angl e i s ei ther 0 (i n whi ch case
the rotati on axi s i s arbi trary) or the rotati on angl e i s , and the di recti onal
sense of rotati on axi s i s i rrel evant. For thi s speci al case, the method of Eq.
(3.69) may be appl i ed. We note that the rotati on tensor i s symmetri c whenever
the rotati on angl e i s exactl y so the rotati on axi s may be take as the nor-
mal i zati on of any nonzero row of .
M e tho d 1 a lg o rithm fo r a xis a nd a ng le o f ro ta tio n. Gi ven , bel ow we
provi de an al gori thm for ndi ng the pri nci pal axi s and pri nci pal angl e of
rotati on:
STEP 1.Compute the cosi ne of the angl e of rotati on:
(3.80)
STEP 2.Deci de whether the angl e i s an i ntegral mul ti pl e of 180by checki ng
the cosi ne and fol l ow one of these branches:
I f , proceed to step 3.
I f then . Hence, the angl e of rotati on i s 0 and the axi s of
rotati on i s arbi trary (so you can set i t to {1,0,0}or any other conveni ent
uni t vector}. Go to step 6.
I f , then the angl e of rotati on i s 180(= radi ans). To nd the
axi s of rotati on, si mpl y normal i ze any nonzero col umn of . Go to
step 6.
STEP 3.Compute the angl e of rotati on:
(3.81)
Note: i n thi s step, we are forci ng because that i s the
range of the arc-cosi ne functi on on al l computi ng pl atforms. Thi s
restri cti on entai l s no l oss i n general i ty because l arger or negati ve
angl es about some parti cul ar axi s can al ways be expressed as an
angl e between 0 and 180about an oppositely oriented axi s, . The
steps bel ow ensure that we sel ect the axi s ori entati on correctl y.
STEP 4.Compute the si ne of the angl e:
(3.82)
STEP 5.Compute the axi s of rotati on:
(3.83a)
(3.83b)
sin 0 =
180
180
R

+
R

c
1
2
-- - R
11
R
22
R
33
1 + + ( ) =
c 1 t
c 1 = R

=
c 1 =
R

+
ArcCos c ( ) =
0 180 <
a

s + 1 c
2
=
a
1
1
2s
------ R
32
R
23
( ) =
a
2
1
2s
------ R
13
R
31
( ) =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
37
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(3.83c)
(Note: The check i n step 2 guarantees that s wi l l not be zero.)
STEP 6.Stop.
Thi s al gori thm i s coded i n Listing3(Convertingdirection cosinestoaxis
and angle) on page A-3.
Exa m p le . Lets use thi s al gori thm to recover the axi s and angl e of rotati on
from Eq. (3.22). We are gi ven
(3.84)
Fol l ow the steps of the al gori thm:
STEP 1.Compute the cosi ne of the angl e:
(3.85)
STEP 2.Note: ; therefore proceed.
STEP 3.Compute the angl e of rotati on:
(3.86)
STEP 4.Compute the si ne of the angl e:
(3.87)
STEP 5.Compute the axi s of rotati on :
(3.88a)
(3.88b)
(3.88c)
or
(3.89)
a
3
1
2s
------ R
21
R
12
( ) =
R

[ ]
0 0 1
1 0 0
0 1 0
=
c
1
2
-- - 0 0 0 1 + + ( )
1
2
--- = =
c 1 t

1
2
-- -
,
_
acos 120 = =
s 1
1
2
---
,
_
2

3
2
------- = =
a

a
1
1
2 3 2 ( )
---------------------- 1 0 ( ) =
a
2
1
2 3 2 ( )
---------------------- 1 0 ( ) =
a
3
1
2 3 2 ( )
---------------------- 1 0 ( ) =
a

{ }
1
3
-------
1
1
1


' ;


=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
38
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Ano the r e xa m p le . Lets use the al gori thm to recover the axi s and angl e of
rotati on from Eq. (3.24). We are gi ven
(3.90)
STEP 1.Compute the cosi ne of the angl e:
(3.91)
STEP 2.Note that , so the angl e of rotati on i s 180. To fi nd the axi s of
rotati on, we must construct the matri x :
(3.92)
Thus, the axi s of rotati on i s a uni t vector i n the di recti on of {2/3,2/3,2/
3}. I n other words, ={1,1,1}/ . I n thi s parti cul ar case all the col -
umns turned out to be nonzero, but that wont be true i n general . Nor
wi l l they typi cal l y be i denti cal .
R

[ ]
1 3 2 3 2 3
2 3 1 3 2 3
2 3 2 3 1 3
=
c
1
2
-- -
1
3
---
1
3
---
1
3
-- - 1
,
_
1 = =
c 1 =
R

+
R

+ [ ]
1 3 2 3 2 3
2 3 1 3 2 3
2 3 2 3 1 3
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
+
2 3 2 3 2 3
2 3 2 3 2 3
2 3 2 3 2 3
= =
a

{ } 3
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
39
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Num e ric a l Exa m p le ( fo r te sting c o d e s) . Now consi der the numeri cal rota-
ti on tensor of Eq. (3.30):
(3.93)
We wi sh to recover the axi s and angl e of rotati on.
Fol l owi ng the al gori thm:
STEP 1.Compute the cosi ne of the angl e:
(3.94)
STEP 2.Note: ; therefore proceed.
STEP 3.Compute the angl e:
= 1.32645 radi ans = 76 degrees (3.95)
STEP 4.Compute the si ne of the angl e:
(3.96)
STEP 5.Compute the axi s of rotati on:
(3.97a)
(3.97b)
(3.97c)
Agai n, we wi sh to emphasi ze that the sol uti on for the axi s i s uni que onl y
wi thi n a numeri cal si gn. Changi ng the si gn of the axi s and angl e wi l l produce
the same rotati on tensor. I n other words, the combi nati on i s al ways
a second sol uti on.
R

[ ]
0.254506 0.834834 0.488138
0.915374 0.370785 0.156873
0.311957 0.406903 0.858552
=
c
1
2
-- - 0.254506 0.370785 0.858552 1 + + ( ) 0.241992 = =
c 1 t
0.241992 ( ) acos =
s 1 0.241992 ( )
2
0.970296 = =
a
1
1
2 0.970296 ( )
------------------------------ 0.406903 0.156873 ( ) 0.128842 = =
a
2
1
2 0.970296 ( )
------------------------------ 0.488138 0.311957 ( ) ( ) 0.412294 = =
a
3
1
2 0.970296 ( )
------------------------------ 0.915374 0.834834 ( ) ( ) 0.901894 = =
a

, ( )
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Axis and angle of rotation
40
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
M e tho d 2 a lg o rithm fo r c o m p uting a xis a nd a ng le . One di sadvantage of
the above al gori thm i s that speci al treatment requi red when the angl e i s 0 or
degrees. One mi ght expect some numeri cal round-off probl ems when the
angl e i s nearly equal to these speci al cases. The fol l owi ng al ternati ve al go-
ri thm better protects agai nst these round-off errors and has no speci al cases,
but i t i s l ess efci ent. Thi s al gori thm computes the axi s by usi ng Eq. (3.67),
and then assi gns the axi s ori entati on so that the rotati on angl e wi l l range
from 0 to .
STEP 1.Compute the cosi ne of the angl e of rotati on:
(3.98)
STEP 2.Compute the angl e of rotati on:
(3.99)
STEP 3.Construct the matri x
(3.100)
STEP 4.Let be the col umn of the above matri x havi ng the l argest
magni tude.
STEP 5.Compute the axi s of rotati on:
(3.101)
(3.102)
(3.103)
Here,
(3.104)
Here, the si gn functi on i s dened by
(3.105)
Thi s al gori thm i s coded i n Listing3(Convertingdirection cosinestoaxis
and angle) on page A-3.
180
180
c
1
2
--- R
11
R
22
R
33
1 + + ( ) =
ArcCos c ( ) =
R

T
2cI

+
x

a
1
1
x
---sign x
1
R
32
R
23
, ( ) =
a
2
1
x
---sign x
1
R
13
R
31
, ( ) =
a
3
1
x
---sign x
1
R
21
R
12
, ( ) =
x x
1
2
x
2
2
x
3
2
+ +
sign z w , ( )
z if w 0
z if w 0 <

'

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rotations contrasted with reections
41
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
4. Rotations contrasted with reflections
A tensor i s orthogonal (or i dempotent) i f and onl y i f . I n other
words, . Note that . A rotation tensor (al so known as a
proper orthogonal tensor) i s a special kind of orthogonal tensor for whi ch the
determi nate i s posi ti ve. Thus, and . I t i s often wrongl y
cl ai med that i f i s orthogonal wi th a negati ve determi nant, then i t must be a
reecti on. Before we can rebut thi s cl ai m, we need to dene what reection
means. I ntui ti vel y, i f i s a reecti on of , then shoul d be a reecti on of .
Mathemati cal l y, i f , then the operator i s a reecti on i f ;
i .e., a reecti on i s an operati on whose i nverse i s the operati on i tsel f:
. or more compactl y, (4.1)
Thus, a reecti on i s a square root of the i denti ty tensor. There are an i nni te
number of such tensors. Even though the i denti ty i s symmetri c, i ts square root
does not have to be symmetri c. For exampl e,
(4.2)
i s a non-symmetri c reecti on tensor that sati ses Eq. (4.1). Reecti on tensors
are fundamental l y di fferent from orthogonal tensors. A tensor i s a proper
reecti on (or an improper orthogonal tensor) i f and onl y i f i t i s an orthogonal
reecti on wi th a negati ve determi nant:
and (4.3)
To sati sfy the rst two expressi ons, a proper reecti on must be symmet-
ri c. Even i f we seek onl y symmetri c square roots of the i denti ty tensor, there
are sti l l an i nni te number of answers
.
For tensors i n 3D space, however, they
are al l expressi bl e i n two possi bl e forms: (1) reecti ons about the ori gi n
and (2) reecti ons across a pl ane wi th uni t normal for whi ch
. For a reecti on about the ori gi n, al l three ei genval ues of
equal and the operati on resul ts i n si mpl y . For a reecti on across
a pl ane, exactl y one ei genval ue of equal s whi l e the other two equal ,
and resul ts i n , whi ch i s l i ke the mi rror i mage of across
the pl ane perpendi cul ar to . Note that can be wri tten as ,
where i s a proper rotati on of about .
Q

T
Q

=
Q

1
Q

T
= detQ

1 t = R

T
R

= det R

+1 =
Q

2
I

[ ]
2 3 0
1 2 0
0 0 1
=
Y

= Y

T
Y

= detY

1 =
Y

= n

2n

1 +1

2 x n

( )n

2n

(180n)

(180n)
180 n

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Rotations contrasted with reections
42
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Now that we have dened what i s meant by a reecti on, we can state that,
for tensors i n 3D space, any i mproper orthogonal tensor can be wri tten i n
the form , where i s a proper rotati on. Thus any i mproper orthogonal
tensor (i .e., one for whi ch ) can be wri tten as a reecti on across the
ori gi n in combination with a proper rotation.
Q

detQ

1 =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Quaternion representation of a rotation
43
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
5. Quaternion representation of a rotation
Rotati on matri ces have three i ndependent components. Thi s can be readi l y
veri ed by recal l i ng that the matri x i s whol l y determi ned by a uni t axi s of
rotati on (two i ndependent vari abl es) and an angl e of rotati on (the thi rd i nde-
pendent vari abl e). I n thi s secti on we present the representati on of a rotati on
i n terms of a quaterni on.
*
Sho e m a ke s fo rm [3]. Any rotati on operati on may be represented by a
quaterni on , for whi ch the correspondi ng rotati on matri x
may be wri tten i n the form
(5.1)
where the four numbers sati sfy
(5.2)
I n other words, i s a poi nt on a four-di mensi onal hypersphere.
A m o re struc tura l d ire c t fo rm . The matri x i n Eq. (5.1) may be wri tten i n
al ternati vel y as
(5.3)
The correspondi ng di rect notati on i s
where (5.4)
For l ater use, note that
(5.5)
* A quaternion (also known as a hypercomplex number) is the division algebra over the real num-
bers generated by the elements subject to the relations , ,
, and . For our purposes, a quaternion is a four-dimensional vector.
i j k , , i
2
= j
2
=k
2
= 1 i j = j i ( )=k
j k= kj ( )=i ki = i k ( )= j
u
o
i u
1
j u
2
ku
3
+ + +
R

[ ]
1 2 u
2
2
u
3
2
+ ( ) 2u
1
u
2
2u
o
u
3
2u
1
u
3
2u
o
u
2
+
2u
2
u
1
2u
o
u
3
+ 1 2 u
3
2
u
1
2
+ ( ) 2u
2
u
3
2u
o
u
1

2u
3
u
1
2u
o
u
2
2u
3
u
3
2u
o
u
1
+ 1 2 u
1
2
u
2
2
+ ( )
=
u
o
u
1
u
2
u
3
, , , { }
u
1
2
u
2
2
u
3
2
u
o
2
+ + + 1 =
u
o
u
1
u
2
u
3
, , , ( )
R

[ ] 2u
o
2
1 ( )
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
2
u
1
2
u
1
u
2
u
1
u
3
u
2
u
1
u
2
2
u
2
u
3
u
3
u
1
u
3
u
2
u
3
2
2u
o
0 u
3
u
2
u
3
0 u
1

u
2
u
1
0
+ + =
R

2u
o
2
1 ( )I

2u

2u
o

+ =
u

u
1
E

1
u
2
E

2
u
3
E

3
+ +
u

1 u
o
2
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Quaternion representation of a rotation
44
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Relationship between quaternion and axis/angle forms
Note from Eq. (5.4) that
(5.6)
Si nce the trace i s i nvari ant, we al so know from Eq. (3.80) that
(5.7)
Equati ng the l ast two expressi ons gi ves a rel ati onshi p between and :
(5.8)
The axi al vector associ ated wi th i s
(5.9)
We al so know that the axi al vector of i s gi ven by
(5.10)
Equati ng the l ast two equati ons shows that
(5.11)
By vi rtue of Eq. (5.2), we may i ntroduce 4-dimensional spherical coordinates
such that
(5.12)
Eqs. (5.8) and (5.11) therefore i mpl y that
(5.13)
and
i f
( and are both arbi trary i f the angl e of rotati on i s zero) (5.14)
Equati ons (5.12) through (5.14) provi de a means of converti ng from axi s/angl e
to quaterni on form, and vi ce versa. The rotati on angl e may permi ssi bl y
take a ful l range of val ues from to :
I f , then (5.15)
Wi th thi s vi ewpoi nt, a rotati on can be descri bed as a poi nt (uni t quaterni on)
on a four-di mensi onal hypersphere wi th coordi nates .
trR

4u
o
2
1 =
trR

2 cos 1 + =
u
o

cos 2u
o
2
1 =
R

axR

2u
o
u

=
R

axR

sin ( )a

=
sin 2u
o
u

2u
o
1 u
o
2
= =
, , { }
u
o
cos =
u
1
sin sin cos ( ) =
u
2
sin sin sin ( ) =
u
3
sin cos ( ) =


2
--- =
u

2
--- sin
,
_
a

= 0
u

+


2
---

2
---
u
o
u
1
u
2
u
3
, , , ( )
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Dyad form of an invertible linear operator
45
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Wi thout l oss i n general i ty i t i s al ways possi bl e (by changi ng the di recti on
of the rotati on axi s) to presume that the rotati on angl e sati ses .
Thus,
I f , then (5.16)
I n thi s case, a rotati on i s descri bed by a uni t quaterni on l yi ng on a spheri cal
hemispherei n four di mensi onal space. Keep i n mi nd that both vi ewpoi nts are
l egi ti mate, and both gi ve the same uni que rotati ons.
6. Dyad form of an invertible linear operator
Suppose that i s a set of l i nearl y i ndependent vectors. Suppose
that some operator i s known to be l i near and i ts acti on on the b vectors i s
known. Speci cal l y, l et
(6.1)
Si nce the operati on i s known to be l i near, then we know there must exi st a
tensor such that the above expressi on may be wri tten
(6.2)
I f the si x vectors and are known, then the tensor i s
expressi bl e as the fol l owi ng sum of dyads:
(6.3)
Here, are the so-cal l ed dual vectors associ ated wi th the
basi s. Speci cal l y, the dual basi s i s dened by
, (6.4)
where i s the Kronecker del ta. I t fol l ows that
, , and (6.5)
SPEC I AL CASE: la b b a sis. I f the basi s happens to be orthonor-
mal , then the dual basi s i s the same as the basi s. I n parti cul ar, i f
the basi s i s taken to be the l ab basi s , then
, (6.6)
where
(6.7)
sin 0
0 0

2
---
b

1
b

2
b

3
, , { }
f
c

k
f b

k
( ) =
F

k
F

k
=
b

1
b

2
b

3
, , { } c

1
c

2
c

3
, , { } F

k
b

k
=
b

1
b

2
b

3
, , { }
b

1
b

2
b

3
, , { }
b

i
b

j

j
i
=

j
i
b

1
b

2
b

1
b

2
b

3
( )
----------------------------------- = b

2
b

3
b

1
b

2
b

3
( )
----------------------------------- = b

3
b

1
b

1
b

2
b

3
( )
----------------------------------- =
b

1
b

2
b

3
, , { }
b

1
b

2
b

3
, , { }
b

1
b

2
b

3
, , { } E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
F

k
E

k
=
c

k
F

k
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Dyad form of an invertible linear operator
46
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Thi s means that the col umn of wi th respect to the l ab basi s i s gi ven by
the l ab components of . Stated di fferentl y, i f you know how transforms
the three l ab base vectors, then you can i mmedi atel y construct . I mpor-
tantl y, i f are the l ab components of , then Eq. (6.8) may be wri tten
(6.8)
Careful l y note that Eqs. (6.7) and (6.8) express the sameresult i n two di fferent
forms. There i s not a transpose error on the subscri pts of i n Eq. (6.8).
SPEC I AL CASE: ro ta tio n. Now to speci al i ze thi s resul t to rotati on, suppose
that an orthonormal tri ad i s obtai ned by appl yi ng a rotati on to
an orthonormal tri ad . Appl yi ng Eq. 6.3 (noti ng that for
orthonormal tri ads), the dyad representati on of the rotati on i s
, (6.9)
where
(6.10)
Thi s resul t can be used to construct the rotati on rel ati ng two congurati ons.
I f, for exampl e, the edges of a cube are dened by three uni t vectors
and that cube i s rotated to a new ori entati on so that the ori gi nal
three vectors become then the rotati on tensor can be constructed
usi ng Eq. (6.9).
k
th
F

[ ]
c

k
F

[ ]
F
i j
[ ] F

k
F
j k
E

j
=
F
j k
c

1
c

2
c

3
, , { } R

1
b

2
b

3
, , { } b

k
b

k
=
R

k
b

k
=
c

k
R

k
= c

k
R
j k
b

j
=
b

1
b

2
b

3
, , { }
c

1
c

2
c

3
, , { }
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Sequential Rotations
47
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
7. Sequential Rotations
Sequential rotations about fixed (laboratory) axes.
I f a body i s ri gi dl y rotated by a rotati on tensor and then subsequentl y
rotated by another rotati on operati on , then the total overal l rotati on ten-
sor i s gi ven by
(7.1)
Any general rotati on can al ways be descri bed i n terms of three sequential
rotati ons about the xed l aboratory axes through angl es
. These angl es are not equi val ent to Eul er angl es (whi ch are di s-
cussed i n the next secti on).
Fi gure 7.1 shows a si mpl e exampl e of sequenti al l aboratory-referenced
rotati ons i n whi ch a bl ock i s rotated 90about the xed l aboratory Z-axi s and
then 90about the xed X-axi s. Usi ng Eq. (2.18) for the rst rotati on about Z
and Eq. (2.9) for the second rotati on about X, and then combi ni ng them i n
Eq. (7.1), the total rotati on tensor i s
(7.2)
The overal l axi s and angl e of rotati on may be determi ned by usi ng the al go-
ri thm on page 32.
Sequenti al rotati on operati ons do not commute. That i s, as shown i n
Fi g. 7.2, when the rotati on operati ons are appl i ed i n a di fferent order, the nal
ori entati on of the bl ock wi l l general l y be di fferent. Namel y, the rotati on tensor
correspondi ng to Fi g. 7.2 i s
R

1
R

2
R

2
R

1
=
R

X Y Z , , { }

X

Y

Z
, , { }
Figure 7.1. Sequential rotation about xed axes Note how the bl ock rotates rel ati ve to
the xed l aboratory tri ad. The number of dots on opposi te si des of honest di ce al ways sum
to seven (hence, the si de wi th four dots i s opposi te the si de wi th three dots).
rotate 90 about Z rotate 90 about X
...then...
X
Y
Z
X
Y
Z
X
Y
Z
R
i j
[ ]
1 0 0
0 0 1
0 1 0
0 1 0
1 0 0
0 0 1
0 1 0
0 0 1
1 0 0
= =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Sequential Rotations
48
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
, (7.3)
whi ch i s not equal to the rotati on matri x gi ven i n Eq. (7.2). Many wri ters use
thi s counterexampl e as proof that rotati on i s not a vector. The proper concl u-
si on i s si mpl y that sequenti al l y appl i ed rotati on operati ons do not commute.
We have al ready shown that, through the Eul er-Rodri gues formul a, that rota-
ti on can be represented by a vector. The l ack of commutati vi ty of rotati ons
si mpl y proves that the rotati on vector of a sequential rotati on i s not i n general
equal to the sum of the i ndi vi dual rotati on vectors. On the other hand, as di s-
cussed l ater, simultaneously appl i ed rotati ons do commute.
R
i j
[ ]
0 1 0
1 0 0
0 0 1
1 0 0
0 0 1
0 1 0
0 0 1
1 0 0
0 1 0
= =
Figure 7.2. A different sequence for the rotations. Note that the nal ori entati on of the
bl ock does not match that of Fi g. 7.1, whi ch proves that rotati on operati ons do not com-
mute.
rotate 90 about X rotate 90 about Z
...then...
X
Y
Z
X
Y
Z
X
Y
Z
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Sequential Rotations
49
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
EULER ANGLES: Sequential rotations about follower axes.
Eul er angl es are a commonl y used but awkward way to descri be any
general rotati on. Rather than deni ng the rotati on rel ati ve to the xed l abora-
tory axes, Eul er angl es use the embedded tri ad of axes that follow
the materi al as i t rotates. The Eul er angl es are dened [4] as fol -
l ows: Fi rst rotate the embedded tri ad an angl e about the -axi s (thi s causes
and to move to new ori entati ons whi l e remai ns unchanged). Then
rotate the tri ad an angl e about i ts new -axi s (thi s causes and to move
to new ori entati ons whi l e remai ns unchanged). Fi nal l y, rotate the tri ad an
angl e about i ts new -axi s.
C o nve rting Eule r a ng le s to d ire c tio n c o sine s. The matri x of components
of the rotati on tensor with respect to thelaboratory triad i s the product of
the three relative rotati on matri ces as fol l ows
(7.4)
See Listing 4 (Converting Euler angles to direction cosines.) on page
A-5. Unl i ke Eq. (7.1) the above three matri ces are mul ti pl i ed in the order of
operation. Thi s di sti ncti on ari ses because Eul er angl e matri ces are dened
wi th respect to the embedded fol l ower axes whereas Eq. (7.1) i s dened wi th
respect to the xed laboratory axes.
Converti ng a di recti on cosi ne matri x back to Eul er angl es i s more di fcul t
and the sol uti on i snt necessari l y uni que. One sol uti on i s provi ded i n Listing
5 (Converting direction cosines to Euler angles.) on page A-6.
Exa m p le : Consi der the parti cul ar set of Eul er angl es ,
i l l ustrated i n Fi g. 7.3. Eul er angl es are based on rotati ons about the embedded
fol l ower tri ad. Note how Fi g. 7.3 di ffers from Fi g. 7.1 whi ch uses the same set
of rotati on angl es, but referenced to a xed tri ad.
Usi ng Eq. (7.4), the rotati on tensor correspondi ng to Fi g. 7.3 i s
(7.5)
x y z , , { }
, , { }
z
x y z
x y z
x
z
R

R
i j
[ ]
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
1 0 0
0 cos sin
0 sin cos
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
=
, , { }= 90 90 0 , , { }
R
i j
[ ]
0 1 0
1 0 0
0 0 1
1 0 0
0 0 1
0 1 0
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
0 0 1
1 0 0
0 1 0
= =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Sequential Rotations
50
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
C o nve rting Eule r a ng le s to a xis a nd a ng le . To convert from Eul er angl es
to a si ngl e axi s and angl e of rotati on, si mpl y compute the rotati on tensor
usi ng Eq. (7.4), and then use the al gori thm on page 32. For exampl e, the rota-
ti on descri bed i n Fi g. 7.3 gave the to the rotati on tensor of Eq. (7.5), whi ch i s
i denti cal to Eq. (3.84) for whi ch the angl e and axi s were found to be 120and
{1,1,1}/ .
Figure 7.3. Example of Euler Angles. . The nal rotati on i s
qui te di fferent from the one dened wi th respect to the xed l aboratory tri ad.
, , { }= 90 90 0 , , { }
rotate 90 about z rotate 90 about x
...then...
x
y
z
y
x
z
z
x
y
3
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Series expression for a rotation
51
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
8. Series expression for a rotation
Recal l Eq. (3.55), whi ch i s Argyri ss versi on of the Eul er-Rodi gues formul a:
(8.1)
Thi s expressi on i s val i d for arbi trari l y l arge rotati on angl es. Thi s secti on i s
devoted to expandi ng the above expressi on wi th respect to the rotati on angl e.
Keep i n mi nd that Argyri ss pseudo-tensor i s dened
, (8.2)
where . Thus, when formi ng expansi ons, i t i s i mportant to keep
i n mi nd that i tsel f i s proporti onal to (and therefore rst order wi th respect
to) the rotati on angl e . Usi ng the i ndi ci al expressi on for , we note that
=
=
=
=
= (8.3)
I n other words,
(8.4)
Dotti ng both si des by gi ves
(8.5)
Now recal l that, for any vector ,
(8.6)
Thi s hol ds for any vector , so we are al l owed to consi der the case i n whi ch
i s the rotati on axi s i tsel f. Thus
(8.7)
Consequentl y, Eq. (8.5) becomes
(8.8)
Conti nui ng i n thi s manner, we nd
R

sin

----------- S

1
2
---
sin
2
2 ( )
2 ( )
2
------------------------- S

2
+ + =
S

=
A
i j

i j k
a
k
=
S

2
( )
i j
A
i p
A
pj
=

i pk
a
k
( )
pj s
a
s
( )

i pk

pj s
( )a
k
a
s

kj

i s

ks

i j
( )a
k
a
s
a
i
a
j
a
s
a
s

i j

a
i
a
j

i j

2
a

=
A

3
A

( )a

=
x

=
x

=
A

3
A

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Series expression for a rotation
52
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
, , , ,
, , , , etc. (8.9)
I n other words, al l odd powers of are equal to and al l even powers of
are equal to . Recal l i ng that , thi s means that
, , , ,
, , , , etc. (8.10)
These expressi ons wi l l prove useful as we expand the rotati on tensor wi th
respect to the rotati on angl e.
The rst-order expansi on of Eq. (8.1) for smal l rotati on angl es i s
(8.11)
The second order expansi on i s
(8.12)
I n fact, Argyri s shows that the i nni te seri es expansi on i s
(8.13)
More compactl y,
(8.14)
Thi s resul t may be deduced by arguments based on Li es group theory as i s
done i n quantum mechani cs, but Argyri s ri ghtl y asks why use a steam ham-
mer to crack a nut?
Though i ntri gui ng and i ntoxi cati ngl y compact, the above resul t i s fraught
wi th hi dden pi tfal l s that l i mi t i ts useful ness. I denti ti es that appl y for expo-
nenti al s of scal ars do not general i ze for exponenti al s of tensors. For exampl e,
unl ess and commute! (8.15)
The above statement i s expressi ng the known fact that, gi ven two rotati ons,
and , the sequential rotati on i s not general l y equal
to unl ess both rotati ons share the same axi s of rotati on.
A

4
A

2
= A

6
A

2
= A

8
A

2
= A

10
A

2
=
A

3
A

= A

5
A

= A

7
A

= A

9
A

=
A

t A

2
t S

=
S

2
S

2
= S

4
S

2
= S

6
S

2
= S

10

8
S

2
=
S

2
S

= S

4
S

= S

6
S

= S

8
S

=
R

O
2
( ) + + =
R

1
2
---
S

2
O
3
( ) + + + =
R

1
2!
---- -
S

2
1
3!
-----
S

1
n!
-----
S

n
+ + + + + + =
R

e
S
S

exp = =
e
S

2
e
S

1
e
S

2
S

1
+
e
S

1
e
S

2
S

1
S

2
R

1
e
S

1
= R

2
e
S

2
= R

2
R

1
R

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Spectrum of a rotation
53
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
9. Spectrum of a rotation
The ei genprobl em for a rotati on tensor requi res determi nati on of al l ei gen-
vectors and ei genval ues for whi ch
(9.1)
Suppose we set up a preferred basi s for whi ch the 3-di recti on i s
al i gned wi th the axi s of rotati on . Then the correspondi ng components of
are
wi th respect to basi s (9.2)
From thi s, we i mmedi atel y see that i s an ei genvector wi th associ ated
ei genval ue . For the remai ni ng ei genpai rs, we focus on the upper
submatri x. The characteri sti c equati on for thi s submatri x i s
(9.3)
Appl yi ng the quadrati c formul a gi ves a compl ex-conjugate pai r of sol uti ons:
(9.4)
where . The correspondi ng ei genvectors are . Thus, the spec-
trum of the rotati on tensor i s:
I t can be readi l y veri ed that the rotati on tensor can be reconstructed by
, (9.5)
where the superposed bar denotes the conjugate. Furthermore, noti ng that
and , the above equati on may be wri tten
. (9.6)
Table 9.1: Spectrum of a rotation tensor
ei genval ue ei genvector
(= )
p

=
b

1
b

2
b

3
, , { }
a

[ ]
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
= b

1
b

2
b

3
=a

, , { }
p

=
1 = 2 2

2
2 cos ( ) 1 + 0 =
cos i sin t e
i t
= =
i 1 i t 1 , { }

1
e
i
=
p

1
1
2
-------
i b

1
b

2
+ ( ) =

2
e
i
=
p

2
1
2
-------
i b

1
b

2
+ ( ) =

3
1 = p

3
b

3
= a


1
p

1
p

1
( )
2
p

2
p

2
( )
3
p

3
p

3
( ) + + =

2

1
= p

2
p

1
=
R

2Re
1
p

1
p

1
( ) [ ]
3
p

3
p

3
( ) + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Spectrum of a rotation
54
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
I nci dental l y, for any nonzero rotati on angl e, the ei genval ues are di sti nct
and the ei genvectors and are therefore uni que to wi thi n a compl ex
mul ti pl e even though i t mi ght appear otherwi se i n l i ght of the fol l owi ng obser-
vati on. Let be an arbi trary real rotati on about . Then, because and
share the same rotati on axi s, we know that they commute:
(9.7)
Let be an ei genvector of wi th ei genval ue . Dotti ng both si des of
Eq. (9.7) from the ri ght by gi ves
(9.8)
or
(9.9)
Thi s proves that i s an ei genvector of correspondi ng to the
ei genval ue . Stated di fferentl y, the choi ce of base vectors and i s arbi -
trary so l ong as they are orthonormal and orthogonal to the rotati on axi s .
Sa nity c he c k . We know from el ementary matri x anal ysi s [cf., Ref. 5] that the
number of l i nearl y i ndependent ei genvectors must be no greater than the
al gebrai c mul ti pl i ci ty of the ei genval ue. So l ong as , we know that the
ei genval ues are al l di sti nct. I n thi s case, there can be onl y onesinglel i nearl y
i ndependent ei genvector associ ated wi th each ei genvector. I f i s an ei genvec-
tor, then Eq. (9.9) states that i s al so an ei genvector associ ated wi th the
same ei genval ue. Thus, Eq. (9.9) makes i t appear that there are an i nni te
number of l i nearl y i ndependent ei genvectors associ ated wi th the compl ex
ei genval ues. When a vector i s real , then i s general l y l i nearl y i ndepen-
dent of . However, the ei genvector i s compl ex, so thi s property does not
hol d. We need to demonstrate that and are l i nearl y dependent for al l
rotati ons about the rotati on axi s . Denoti ng the rotati on angl e for by
by , i ts strai ghtforward to demonstrate that , where
. I n other words, and di ffer onl y by a (possi bl y
compl ex) scal ar mul ti pl e, whi ch proves that they are i ndeed l i nearl y depen-
dent.
p

1
p

2
Q

=
p

( ) p

( ) p

=
R

( ) Q

( ) Q

( ) Q

( ) = = =
Q

1
b

2
a

sin 0
p

q Q

=
e
i q
e
i q
or 1 , , { } = Q

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Polar decomposition
55
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
10. Polar decomposition
A speci al tensor cal l ed the deformati on gradi ent pl ays a pi votal rol e i n
the el d of conti nuum mechani cs [6, 7]. Thi s tensor carri es al l i nformati on
about the deformation of a materi al el ement from i ts known reference state to
i ts current spati al state. The pol ar decomposi ti on theorem uni quel y quanti -
es how any general deformati on can be vi ewed as a combi nati on of materi al
re-ori entati on (i.e. rotati on), materi al di storti on (i.e. a change i n shape), and
materi al di l ati on (i.e. a change i n si ze).
Difficult definition of the deformation gradient
I n thi s secti on, we provi de the mathemati cal l y ri gorous deni ti on of the
term deformati on gradi ent normal l y found i n textbooks. Later, we provi de a
more i ntui ti ve (l ess ri gorous) deni ti on.
Suppose that the l ocati on of each materi al parti cl e i n a body i s known at
some reference state (usual l y ti me zero). Thi s reference posi ti on i s regarded as
the name of the parti cl e. For exampl e, when we say poi nt , we mean the
parti cl e whose reference posi ti on i s .
The compl ete deformati on of the body may be descri bed by a mappi ng func-
ti on such that the deformed l ocati on of the poi nt i s gi ven by
(10.1)
The moti on of a body i s a sequence of deformed states over ti me. Hence, the
moti on of a body i s descri bed by al l owi ng the above mappi ng functi on to addi -
ti onal l y vary wi th ti me:
(10.2)
The deformati on gradi ent tensor i s mathemati cal l y dened to be the gradi -
ent of the mappi ng functi on:
(10.3)
Whi l e thi s deni ti on i s ri gorousl y preci se, i t offers vi rtual l y no i ntui ti ve
i nsi ght i nto the real meani ng of i nformati on contai ned i n a matri x of com-
ponents. I f someone showed you a deformati on gradi ent matri x, woul d you be
abl e to i nterpret i t physi cal l y? Probabl y not i f you onl y understand i t by the
above deni ti on.
F

( ) =
x

t , ( ) =
F

-------- = F
i j
x
i
X
j
---------- = F [ ]
x
1
X
1
----------
x
1
X
2
----------
x
1
X
3
----------
x
2
X
1
----------
x
2
X
2
----------
x
2
X
3
----------
x
3
X
1
----------
x
3
X
2
----------
x
3
X
3
----------
=
F
i j
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
56
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
One way to begi n to gai n i nsi ght i nto thi s deni ti on i s to consi der some
si mpl e speci al i zed mappi ng functi ons. Suppose that denotes the i ni ti al
l ocati on of a parti cl e of i nterest. We want to gai n better understandi ng of
where that parti cl e transl ates and how materi al i n the vi ci ni ty of that parti cl e
deforms. Then i t makes sense to consi der a Tayl or seri es expansi on of the
mappi ng functi on, centered about the parti cl e . Namel y, to second-order
accuracy, the mappi ng functi on near the parti cl e can be approxi mated by
+
+
+ (10.4)
The rst term i n thi s expansi on, , i s the deformed l ocati on of the
parti cl e , so i t makes sense to denote thi s quanti ty by si mpl y :
(10.5)
Recal l i ng Eq. (10.3), the deri vati ve i n the second term of the above expan-
si on i s the val ue of the deformati on gradi ent tensor eval uated at the parti cl e
of i nterest. Hence, i t makes sense for us to denote thi s deri vati ve by a more
compact symbol ,
(10.6)
We i ncl uded the thi rd term i n the expansi on of Eq. (10.4) merel y to emphasi ze
that we coul d conti nue the expansi on to as hi gh an order of accuracy as we
desi re so l ong as the mappi ng functi on i s adequatel y smooth. However, i n the
anal ysi s of general non-l i near mappi ngs, you are unl i kel y to ever encounter
expansi ons that go beyond rst order. Usi ng our more compact notati on
dened i n Eqs. (10.5) and (10.6), the rst-order mappi ng expansi on i n the
nei ghborhood of a parti cl e can be wri tten
(10.7)
Expressi ons l i ke thi s are si mi l ar to wri ti ng a rst order expansi on of a hi ghl y
non-l i near functi on centered about a parti cul ar poi nt of i nterest. What you get
i s an equati on of a strai ght l i ne that passes through the functi on at that poi nt
and whi ch i s tangent to the curve at that poi nt. Anyone good mathemati ci an
wi l l tel l you that the key to sol vi ng or i nterpreti ng a nonl i near equati on i s to
X

p ( )
X

p ( )
x

t , ( ) = X

p ( )
t , ( )
X

t , ( )
X

----------------------
evaluated at
X

p ( )
=
X

p ( )
( )
1
2
---

2
X

t , ( )
X

------------------------
evaluated at
X

p ( )
=
: X

p ( )
( ) X

p ( )
( )

p ( )
t , ( )
X

p ( )
x

p ( )
x

p ( )
X

p ( )
t , ( )
F

p ( )
X

t , ( )
X

----------------------
evaluated at
X

p ( )
=

p ( )
x

p ( )
F

p ( )
X

p ( )
( ) + +
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
57
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
rst understand linear functi ons -- thats because al l functi ons can be
regarded as an ensembl e of l i near l i ne segments (the more you use, the better
the approxi mati on, and i n the l i mi t of an i nni te number of l i ne segments, the
techni que becomes known by the name calculus!)
Si nce understandi ng l i near functi ons (strai ght l i nes) i s an essenti al rst
step to understandi ng non-l i near functi ons, one mi ght suspect that a good
pl ace to begi n understandi ng general non-l i near mappi ngs i s to rst study l i n-
ear mappi ngs of the form
(10.8)
I f the tensor equal s the i denti ty tensor, then thi s mappi ng descri bes a
pure ri gi d transl ati on. I f the tensor i s a rotati on tensor, then thi s map-
pi ng descri bes transl ati on i n combi nati on wi th rotati on. I f the tensor i s
not orthogonal , then thi s mappi ng i s capabl e of descri bi ng si mul taneous
transl ati on, rotati on, and shape change.
We shoul d make amends for our sl oppy termi nol ogy. Above, we sai d that a
strai ght l i ne i n the pl ane can be descri bed through a linear functi on. Most
peopl e woul d say that a l i near functi on i s expressi bl e i n the form .
A careful mathemati ci an wi l l tel l you that thi s functi on i s not l i near -- i t i s
afne. A l i near functi on must sati sfy the property that
for al l scal ars . I f thi s con-
di ti on must hol d for al l choi ces of the scal ars and , then i t must hol d for
the parti cul ar choi ce . Thus, i f a functi on i s l i near then i t must
have the property that . The functi on does not sati sfy
thi s property i f i s nonzero, so thi s functi on must not be l i near! A trul y l i near
functi on must be expressi bl e as for some scal ar . An afne functi on
i s si mpl y a l i near functi on pl us some constant.
The functi on i n Eq. (10.8) i s not linear -- i t i s afne. However, we can
al ways rewri te thi s equati on i n the form . Thus,
the relativedeformed posi ti on vector can al ways be expressed as a l i n-
ear functi on of the relativei ni ti al posi ti on vector . For thi s reason, i t
i s sufci ent for us to study the very speci al i zed case of linear mappi ng func-
ti ons:
(10.9)
We have al ready expl ai ned why a general mappi ng can be l ocal l y approxi -
mated by a l i near mappi ng so l ong as the posi ti on vectors are dened relative
to the local poi nt of i nterest. The hal l mark of a nonlinear mappi ng i s that the
l ocal deformati on gradi ent tensor vari es wi th posi ti on. Thi s i s si mi l ar to the
fact that the l ocal sl ope of a tangent l i ne vari es wi th posi ti on al ong the non-
l i near curve. I f, as a very speci al i zed case, the deformati on gradi ent tensor
does not vary wi th posi ti on, then the mappi ng i s sai d to be homogenous. As
x

p ( )
F

p ( )
X

p ( )
( ) +
F

p ( )
F

p ( )
F

p ( )
y mx b + =
y x ( )
y
1
x
1

2
x
2
+ ( )
1
y x
1
( )
2
y x
2
( ) + =
1
x
1

2
x
2
, , , { }

1

2

1

2
0 = =
y 0 ( ) 0 = y mx b + =
b
y mx = x
x

p ( )
F

p ( )
X

p ( )
( ) =
x

p ( )

p ( )

=
F

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Polar decomposition
58
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
wi l l be expl ai ned bel ow, a homogenous mappi ng has the property that i ni ti al l y
strai ght l i nes deform to strai ght l i nes, and at pl anes deform to at pl anes.
Consequentl y, cubes wi l l al ways deform to paral l el epi peds. Si nce inhomoge-
nous deformati ons can be regarded as locally l i near, we concl ude that inni-
tesimal cubes i n general mappi ngs wi l l deform to innitesimal
paral l el epi peds, but the si ze, ori entati on, and di storti on l evel of these
deformed paral l el epi peds wi l l vary i n space. These i deas are i l l ustrated i n Fi g.
10.1.
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
59
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Intuitive definition of the deformation gradient
To better understand the deformati on gradi ent, i magi ne a smal l cube-
shaped el ement of materi al whose si des are al i gned wi th the reference basi s
. Upon deformati on, the cube deforms to a paral l el epi ped. I f the
deformati on i s 2-di mensi onal , then a square deforms to a paral l el ogram, as
Initial Conguration
Pure
Homogeneous
Deformation
General (mapping)
Deformation
Rotation
Figure 10.1. I ncreasingly complex deformations. The si mpl est deformati on, rotati on,
does not i nvol ve any l ength changes -- cubes remai n cubes of exactl y the same si ze but of
di fferent ori entati on. The next easi est deformati on i s homogenous deformati on where
the changes i n shape and ori entati on are the same everywhere throughout the body -- al l
reference cubes deform to paral l el epi peds of the same shape and ori entati on. For the most
general (i nhomogeneous) deformati on, i nni tesi mal cubes sti l l deform to paral l el epi peds,
but the ori entati on and di storti on of these paral l el epi peds vari es i n space.
E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
60
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
sketched i n Fi g.10.2. The vectors on the si des of the el ement deform to new
vectors . These so-cal l ed convected base vectors are not gener-
al l y orthogonal nor of uni t l ength.
Wi th a bi t of thought, one recogni zes that an i ntui ti ve (non-ri gorous) de-
ni ti on of the deformati on gradi ent tensor states that col umns of the l ab
component matri x si mpl y contai n the l ab components of the convected
vectors. We wri te thi s statement symbol i cal l y as
. (10.10)
I n di rect notati on, thi s may be expressed by a sum of dyads:
*
. (10.11)
Consi der, for exampl e, that the deformati on shown i n Fi g. 10.2, whi ch occurs
i n the pl ane so that poi nts out of the page. Knowi ng that and are of
uni t l ength, we can use a rul er to measure the vectors i n Fi g. 10.2 to obtai n
* Here, two vectors written side by side are multiplied dyadically so that . There-
fore, the dyad is represented by a matrix whose components are all zero except that the
rst column has the same components as the lab components of the vector.
g

1
g

2
g

3
, , { }
F

2
E

1
g

1
g

2
Figure 10.2. The deformation gradient tensor. A cube deforms to a paral l el epi ped.
Thi s deformati on i s shown i n the pl ane for si mpl i ci ty. For pl anar deformati ons,
squares deform to paral l el ograms; of course, the out-of-pl ane thi ckness i s al l owed to
change as wel l . Note that thi s deformati on i nvol ves a si gni cant amount of counter-
cl ockwi se rotati on.
becomes
becomes
(out of page) becomes ,
whi ch sti l l poi nts out of the
page for 2D deformati ons, but
i snt necessari l y sti l l of uni t
l ength; i.e., the out of pl ane
thi ckness can change.
E

1
g

1
E

2
g

2
E

3
g

3
F

F [ ]
g

1
g

2
g

3
, , { }
F [ ] g

1
{ } g

2
{ } g

3
{ } [ ] =
a

[ ]
i j
a
i
b
j
=
g

1
E

1
3 3
g

1
F

1
E

1
g

2
E

2
g

3
E

3
+ + =
E

3
E

1
E

2
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
61
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n

(10.12)
I n addi ti on to the deformati on shown i n Fi g. 10.2, l ets further suppose that
the out-of-pl ane thi ckness of the materi al i ncreases by a factor of 3 so that
(10.13)
The deformati on gradi ent matri x* correspondi ng to Fi g. 10.2 i s constructed by
assembl i ng these three vectors i nto the col umns of :
(10.14)
C o nve rse p ro b le m : inte rp re ting a d e fo rm a tio n g ra d ie nt m a trix. The
i ntui ti ve deni ti on of the deformati on gradi ent may be appl i ed i n reverse.
Suppose, for exampl e, that the deformati on gradi ent matri x i s known to be
(10.15)
From thi s, we woul d i denti fy the three deformed base vectors by the col umns
of thi s matri x. Namel y,
, , (10.16)
I n basi s notati on, these woul d be wri tten
, , (10.17)
These vectors dene si des of a deformed paral l el epi ped as drawn i n Fi g. 10.3.
Not shown i n that gure i s the fact that , meani ng that thi s defor-
mati on has reduced the out-of-pl ane thi ckness by 20%.
* with respect to the lab basis .
g

1
0.62 ( ) E

1
0.59 ( ) E

2
+ g

1
{ }
0.62
0.59
0


' ;


=
g

2
0.71 ( )E

1
0.13 ( )E

2
+ g

2
{ }
0.71
0.13
0


' ;


=
g

3
3.0 ( ) E

3
= g

3
{ }
0
0
3.0


' ;


=
E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
F [ ]
F [ ]
0.62 0.71 0
0.59 0.13 0
0 0 3.0
=
F [ ]
1.0 1.0 0
0 2.0 0
0 0 0.8
=
g

1
{ }
1.0
0
0


' ;


= g

2
{ }
1.0
2.0
0


' ;


= g

3
{ }
0
0
0.8


' ;


=
g

1
E

1
= g

2
E

1
2E

2
+ = g

3
0.8 ( ) E

3
=
g

3
= 0.8 ( )E

3
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
62
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
I mportantl y, the i ntui ti ve deni ti on of the deformati on gradi ent appl i es
onl y to homogeneous deformati ons i n whi ch al l materi al el ements wi thi n the
body deform i n exactl y the same way. Thi s means that the val ue of i s the
same for every poi nt i n the body. For general i nhomogeneous deformati ons,
each materi al poi nt can have i ts own di fferent deformati on gradi ent tensor .
I n thi s case, the i ntui ti ve deni ti on of the deformati on gradi ent must be
appl i ed to each innitesimal materi al el ement.
The Jacobian of the deformation
A materi al el ement that deforms accordi ng to a deformati on gradi ent
general l y changes from a reference vol ume to a current vol ume . The
Jacobi an of the deformati on i s denoted and i s dened to equal the rati o
(10.18)
I t can be shown that
(10.19)
For exampl e, for the deformati on shown i n Fi g. 10.2, the Jacobi an i s obtai ned
by taki ng the determi nant of the matri x i n Eq. (10.14):
(10.20)
whi ch means that the materi al el ement has i ncreased i n vol ume by 43%.
Al though the el ement appears to be smal l er i n si ze i n Fi g. 10.2, the overal l
vol ume has i ncreased because of the l arge out-of-the-page expansi on.
E

2
E

1
F

1
g

2
Figure 10.3. Physically interpreting a deformation gradient matrix.
F

dV
o
dV
J
J
dV
dV
o
----------- =
J det F

=
J det
0.62 0.71 0
0.59 0.13 0
0 0 3.0
1.43 = =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
63
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Invertibility of a deformation
I n order for the deformati on to make physi cal sense, the mappi ng functi on
must be one-to-one, meani ng that any two di sti nct poi nts must
deform to two di sti nct poi nts they must not map to the same l ocati on (oth-
erwi se, the materi al wi l l have i nterpenetrated i tsel f, whi ch i s physi cal l y unde-
si rabl e). Li kewi se, a si ngl e materi al poi nt must not map to two di fferent
poi nts such behavi or woul d i mpl y the generati on of new free surfaces.
*
A
deformati on i s cal l ed gl obal l y i nverti bl e i f i ts mappi ng functi on i s one-to-one.
A deformati on i s l ocal l y i nverti bl e i f and onl y i f
the deformati on gradi ent i s i nverti bl e. I n other
words, the Jacobi an must be nonzero: . Gl obal
i nverti bi l i ty i mpl i es l ocal i nverti bi l i ty, but not vi ce
versa (see Fi g. 10.4). Thi s i s why many numeri cal
methods requi re speci al treatment to prevent
materi al i nterpenetrati on.
For physi cal l y real deformati ons, both the i ni -
ti al and the deformed vol umes i n Eq. (10.18) must
be posi ti ve. Hence, the condi ti on of l ocal i nverti bi l -
i ty may be repl aced by the more restri cti ve condi ti on,
(10.21)
Sequential deformations
I f a materi al el ement i s deformed by a deformati on gradi ent, , fol l owed
by a second deformati on gradi ent , then the total deformati on gradi ent i s
gi ven by
(10.22)
Note that the tensors appear i n the composi ti on i n reverse order of appl i ca-
ti on. Any di fferenti al materi al vector i n the reference congurati on
deforms to a new vector i n the spati al congurati on by the operati on
. (10.23)
I f i s gi ven by Eq. (10.22), then rst acts on and then acts on
. Thi s i s why the sequenti al deformati on gradi ents appear i n reverse
order of appl i cati on.
* which would be desirable if one wishes to model, say, void nucleation or the formation of cracks. In
that case, the one-to-one condition would be relaxed.
X

t , ( )
interpenetration
Figure 10.4. Exampleof a de-
formation that is locally in-
vertible, but not globally
invertible.
region
F

J 0
J 0 >
F

1
F

2
F

2
F

1
=
dX

dx

dx

dX

=
F

1
dX

2
F

1
dX

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Polar decomposition
64
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Matrix analysis version of the polar decomposition theorem
An i mportant theorem from matri x anal ysi s states that any square matri x
can be decomposed i nto the fol l owi ng form
, (10.24)
where and are proper orthogonal and i s di agonal . The above
equati on may be wri tten as
, (10.25)
where
(10.26)
(10.27)
(10.28)
Note that i s orthogonal , whi l e and are symmetri c tensors whose
ei genval ues are gi ven by the di agonal components of .
I n i ndi ci al form,
, (10.29)
where
(10.30)
(10.31)
(10.32)
Mul ti pl yi ng these equati ons by the l aboratory basi s dyads gi ves
, (10.33)
where and are symmetri c tensors havi ng the same ei genval ues. Fur-
thermore, the ei genvectors of and are respecti vel y
and
Then the dyad representati on of the rotati on tensor i s
(10.34)
These concl usi ons wi l l now be presented di rectl y from the tensor anal ysi s per-
specti ve.
F [ ]
F [ ] S [ ] D [ ] T [ ]
T
=
S [ ] T [ ] D [ ]
F [ ] R [ ] U [ ] V [ ] R [ ] = =
R [ ] S [ ] T [ ]
T
=
U [ ] T [ ] D [ ] T [ ]
T
=
V [ ] S [ ] D [ ] S [ ]
T
=
R [ ] U [ ] V [ ]
D [ ]
F
i j
R
i k
U
kj
V
i k
R
kj
= =
R
i j
S
i k
T
j k
=
U
i j
T
i m
T
j n
D
mn
=
V
i j
S
i m
S
j n
D
mn
=
F

= =
U

m
U
T
i m
E

i
=

m
V
S
i m
E

i
=
R

k
V

k
U
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
65
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The polar decomposition theorem a hindsight intuitive
introduction
The essenti al i dea behi nd the pol ar decomposi ti on theorem i s i l l ustrated i n
Fi g. 10.5 where we have shown that the deformati on from Fi g. 10.2 can be
decomposed i nto a sequence of two separate steps:
A stretch fol l owed by a rotati on , so that . Thi s i s the top
path i n Fi g. 10.5. The tensor i s cal l ed the ri ght stretch because i t
appears on the ri ght i n the expressi on .
Al ternati vel y, the deformati on may be decomposed i n si mi l ar steps appl i ed i n
the opposi te order:
A rotati on fol l owed by a stretch , so that . Thi s i s the
bottom path i n Fi g. 10.5. The tensor i s cal l ed the l eft stretch.
I n Fi g. 10.2, a ci rcumscri bed square and an i nscri bed shaded ci rcl e
*
have
been pai nted onto the deformi ng materi al to hel p i l l ustrate the meani ng of
the term stretch. A stretch i s a speci al type of deformati on for whi ch the
deformati on gradi ent i s both symmetri c and positive denite. So a stretch i s
any deformati on for whi ch . For any pure stretch, there al ways exi sts
three di recti ons (the ei genvectors of the stretch tensor) al ong whi ch i n whi ch
the materi al i s stretched or compressed, but not rotated. Materi al bers that
are ori gi nal l y al i gned wi th the pri nci pal stretch di recti ons may change l ength,
but they do not change ori entati on under a pure stretch. The pol ar decomposi -
ti on theorem says that any general deformati on can be decomposed i nto a
pure stretch i n combi nati on wi th a ri gi d rotati on.
The di recti ons marked are the pri nci pal stretch di recti ons for the ri ght
stretch . They change l ength but dont change ori entati on duri ng the appl i -
cati on of . The di recti ons marked are the pri nci pal stretch di recti ons for
the l eft stretch . They change l ength but dont change ori entati on duri ng the
appl i cati on of .
I nci dental l y, note that
(10.35)
* which would be a sphere for 3D deformations
F

=
U

=
V

=I

k
U
U

k
V
V

k
V
R

k
U
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
66
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
F

1
V

2
V

2
U

1
U
E

1
E

2
g

1
g

2
Figure 10.5. Visualization of the polar decomposition. Thi s gure shows that the samede-
formati on from Fi g. 10.2 can be vi sual i zed as two di fferent paths, each of whi ch i nvol ves
an i ntermedi ate congurati on. The upper path rst compresses the materi al by a fac-
tor of i n the di recti on of the vector l abel ed and then rotates countercl ockwi se by .
The same deformati on i s achi eved on the bottom path by rotati ng by and then compress-
i ng by a factor of i n the di recti on of the vector l abel ed . Note that i s obtai ned by
rotati ng by . I n these gures, we have pai nted a ci rcl e (or sphere i n 3D) on the ref-
erence cube to show how i t deforms i nto an el l i pse (or el l i psoi d i n 3D). The vectors and
l i e on the major axes of the el l i pse.
F

1 2

1
U
60
60
1 2

1
V

1
V

1
U
60

k
U

k
V
Compress the
material by half
along the ellipse
1-axis.
then rotate
the material
counterclockwise
by 60 degrees.
First rotate
the material
counterclockwise
by 60 degrees.
Then compress the
material by half
along the ellipse
1-axis.
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
67
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Thi s secti on has been cal l ed a hi ndsi ght i ntroducti on because the pri nci -
pal di recti ons of the stretch are not normal l y known a priori. Fi ndi ng these
di recti ons i s a key task for the pol ar decomposi ti on theorem.
I n Fi g. 10.5, the orthonormal tri ad of vectors , , and (whi ch
poi nts out of the page for pl anar deformati ons) are the pri nci pal di recti ons of
the ri ght stretch . These pri nci pal stretch vectors do not change ori entati on
duri ng the appl i cati on of . They change di recti on onl y upon appl i cati on of
the rotati on. Note that other materi al bers whi ch are not al i gned wi th pri nci -
pal di recti ons of general l y do change ori entati on even before the rotati on i s
appl i ed. Thus, the rotati on tensor descri bes overall materi al reori entati on, but
not the reori entati on of i ndi vi dual materi al bers.
A vi sual i nspecti on of Fi g. 10.5 shows that materi al bers ori gi nal l y i n the
di recti on of appear to change l ength by a factor of about for that par-
ti cul ar exampl e. The bers i n the di recti on of do not appear to change
l ength. Stated di fferentl y, the rati o of thei r deformed l ength to thei r unde-
formed l ength i s 1. I f we suppose that the out-of-pl ane thi ckness i ncreases by
a factor of 3, then bers i n the di recti on of wi l l change l ength by a factor of
3. The matri x for i s di agonal i n the pri nci pal stretch basi s. The components
are the rati os of deformed l ength to undeformed l ength. Thus,
with respect to the triad (10.36)
I n order to express thi s stretch tensor i n terms of the referencebasi s we must
perform a coordi nate transformati on. To do thi s, rst we use a rul er to mea-
sure the components of each of the wi th respect to the reference basi s
to obtai n:
, (10.37)
These arrays are assembl ed i nto col umns to form the di recti on cosi ne matri x
from Eq. (1.26):
(10.38)
Appl yi ng Eq. (1.33) gi ves us the components of wi th respect to the reference
basi s:

1
U

2
U

3
U
U

1
U
1 2

2
U

3
U
U

[ ]
1
2
---
0 0
0 1 0
0 0 3
=

k
U

k
U
E

1
U
{ }
0.6
0.8
0


' ;


=

2
U
{ }
0.8
0.6
0


' ;


=

3
U
{ }
0
0
1


' ;


=
Q [ ]
Q
i j
[ ] E

j
U
[ ]

1
U
{ }

2
U
{ }

3
U
{ } [ ]
0.6 0.8 0
0.8 0.6 0
0 0 1
= = =
U

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Polar decomposition
68
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
= with respect to the reference triad (10.39)
Thi s tensor i s symmetri c. I t i s al so posi ti ve deni te. I t i s therefore a stretch
tensor.
To construct the rotati on tensor, we woul d use a protractor to measure the
angl e through whi ch the el l i pse i n Fi g. (10.5) has rotated. The resul t appears
to be about and, because the deformati on i s pl anar, the axi s of rotati on i s
i n the di recti on. Hence, the rotati on tensor must be
with respect to the reference triad (10.40)
Mul ti pl yi ng the above two tensors gi ves
= with respect to the reference triad, (10.41)
whi ch i s the same as the matri x deri ved di rectl y i n Eq. (10.14). Thus, we have
demonstrated that the decomposi ti on i nto a stretch fol l owed by a rotati on does
i ndeed exi st for the sampl e deformati on i n Fi g. 10.5.
Thi s secti on was l abel ed hi ndsi ght because we produced the pri nci pal
stretch di recti ons by serendi pi ty (i.e., out of thi n ai r) and then we demon-
strated that they di d i ndeed permi t the decomposi ti on i nto stretch fol l owed by
rotati on.
The next secti on presents the pol ar decomposi ti on i n a more cl assi cal man-
ner.
A more rigorous (classical) presentation of the polar
U

[ ]
0.6 0.8 0
0.8 0.6 0
0 0 1
1
2
---
0 0
0 1 0
0 0 3
0.6 0.8 0
0.8 0.6 0
0 0 1
T
=
0.82 0.24 0
0.24 0.68 0
0 0 3.0
E

k
60
E

3
R

60 cos 60 sin 0
60 sin 60 cos 0
0 0 1
= E

k
F

[ ] R

[ ]
60 cos 60 sin 0
60 sin 60 cos 0
0 0 1
0.82 0.24 0
0.24 0.68 0
0 0 3.0
= =
0.618 7.09 0.
0.590 0.132 0.
0. 0. 3.
E

k
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
69
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
decomposition theorem
THEO REM : For each i nverti bl e tensor there exi sts a uni que orthogonal ten-
sor , a uni que symmetri c posi ti ve deni te ri ght stretch , and a uni que
symmetri c posi ti ve deni te l eft stretch such that
(10.42)
WARNI NG: the descri ptors symmetri c and posi ti ve defi ni te are
requirements, not consequences. Keep i n mi nd that a stretch must be both
symmetri c and posi ti ve defi ni te a tensor can be symmetri c wi thout
bei ng posi ti ve defi ni te. I t i s depressi ngl y common for researchers to
erroneousl y decl are a deformati on gradi ent to be a stretch si mpl y because
i t i s symmetri c. However, i f onl y symmetry were tested, the rotati on
matri x of Eq. (3.24) woul d be wrongl y i denti fi ed as a stretch. Checki ng
symmetry i s not enough to decl are a symmetri c matri x to be a stretch
one must al so prove posi ti ve defi ni teness! I t can be shown that the
deformati on gradi ent i s symmetri c i f and onl y i f the rotati on angl e i s
an i ntegral mul ti pl e of .
COMMENT: The determi nant of wi l l have the same si gn as the
determi nant of . Hence, the orthogonal tensor wi l l be a proper
rotati on i f and onl y i f . We are i nterested i n second-order tensors
i n 3D space so that i s a matri x. I f the determi nant of i s
negati ve, then we can al ways perform the pol ar decomposi ti on of ,
whi ch has a posi ti ve determi nant i n 3D space. Thus, wi thout l oss i n
general i ty, we may assume that the orthogonal tensor i n Eq. (10.42) i s
a proper rotati on.
PRO O F: I t i s i mportant to understand the ow of the fol l owi ng proof. The
pol ar decomposi ti on theorem has the fol l owi ng structure:
GIVEN: i s i nverti bl e
THEN: there exi st tensors , , and such that
(i) ,
(ii) and are symmetri c
(iii) and are posi ti ve defi ni te
(iv) i s orthogonal (i.e.,
F

= =
F

180
R

det F

0 >
F

[ ] 3 3 F

= =
U

1
R

T
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
70
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Corollary: , , and are uni que. They are the onl y tensors that sati sfy
al l of the condi ti ons (i) through (iv).
To prove the theorem, we wi l l rst assume that , , and do i ndeed exi st.
We wi l l then deri ve expl i ci t formul as for them as functi ons of . Si nce such
formul as wi l l have been deri ved on the premisethat , , and exi st, we
wi l l need to then veri fy sati sfacti on of al l of the condi ti ons (i) through (iv)
l i sted above. Assume for now that the decomposi ti on (i) does i ndeed
exi st. Then , where we have used the properti es that
(iii) i s symmetri c and (iv) i s orthogonal . Consequentl y the product
must equal , and the stretch must be gi ven by
, where (10.43)
The hel per tensor i s posi ti ve deni te because
=
> 0 for al l nonzero vectors (10.44)
Of course the magni tude of any vector i s non-negati ve, and therefore
. Our asserti on that i s a stronger condi ti on. To
rul e out the possi bi l i ty that , we must recal l that (by premi se)
i s i nverti bl e and therefore can never be zero for any nonzero . Note
that the hel per tensor i s symmetri c. I t i s therefore di agonal i n i ts pri nci pal
basi s. By ndi ng the ei genval ues and ei genvectors of , we may wri te
wi th respect to the pri nci pal tri ad
where each ei genval ue i s stri ctl y posi ti ve. (10.45)
I n basi s notati on,
, where each (10.46)
U

=R

T
=U

T
R

T
=U

T
F

2
U

1 2 /
= C

T
F

T
F

( ) F

( ) = =
F

( )
2
u

( )
2
0 F

( )
2
0 >
F

( ) =0 F

i
C
C

[ ]

1
0 0
0
2
0
0 0
3
=

i
C

i
C

1
C

1
C

2

2
C

2
C

3

3
C

3
C
+ + =
i
0 >
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
71
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
We must be very careful when deni ng the meani ng of the square root
i n Eq. (10.43). A posi ti ve deni te and symmetri c matri x general l y has an
innitenumber of square roots, of whi ch at l east 8 are symmetri c and onl y one
i s both symmetri c and posi ti ve deni te.
*
To ensure that our Eq. (10.43)
denes a uniquestretch , we demand that the square root must be
i nterpreted as the uni que posi ti ve deni te square root. Namel y, the ri ght
stretch tensor i s gi ven by
,
where and (10.47)
I n matri x notati on,
wi th respect to the pri nci pal tri ad
where (10.48)
I n practi ce, thi s resul t i s phrased i n terms of the l aboratory basi s as
wi th respect to the l ab tri ad
where and (10.49)
The col umn of the transformati on matri x contai ns the l ab components
of the ei genvector. There i s onl y one square root of that i s both symmet-
ri c and posi ti ve deni te. Hence, the stretch dened i n Eq. (10.48) i s the only
stretch that sati ses the premi se of the theorem, so we have proved that i f
exi sts, then i t i s uni que. Once i s known, the rotati on tensor can be found by
(10.50)
Thi s i s a si ngl e val ued operati on. Hence, uni queness of guarantees uni que-
ness of . The tensor i s i ndeed orthogonal because
(10.51)
By si mi l ar arguments, the l eft stretch must be gi ven by
, where (10.52)
* To understand the reason for these statements, consider the following symmetric and nonsymmetric
square roots of the identity matrix: , , , ,
C

1 2 /
3 3
2 2
1 0
0 1
1 0
0 1
+1 0
0 1
0 1
1 0
2 3
1 2
U

1 2 /
U

1
U

1
U

2

2
U

2
U

3

3
U

3
U
+ + =

i
+
i

i
U

1
C
=
U

[ ] + C

1 2 /
[ ]

1
0 0
0
2
0
0 0
3
= =

i
C

i
+
i

[ ] Q [ ]

1
0 0
0
2
0
0 0
3
Q [ ]
T
= E

i
+
i
Q
i j

i
C
E

j
=
i
th
Q [ ]

i
C
C

1
=
U

T
R

1
F

T
F

1
U

1
U

2
U

1
I

= = =
V

+B

1 2 /
= B

T

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
72
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
As before, to ensure that wi l l be a proper stretch, must be taken to be
the uni que symmetri c and posi ti ve-deni te square root. Once i s known, an
orthogonal tensor can be found by
(10.53)
So far, we have proved exi stence of stretches, and , and rotati ons, and
, such that
(10.54)
Al l that remai ns i s to prove that the orthogonal tensor from the l eft stretch i s
the same as the orthogonal tensor from the ri ght stretch. I n other words, we
must prove that . Appl yi ng the deni ti on of the l eft stretch, we know
that from whi ch i t fol l ows
that . Substi tuti ng thi s resul t back i nto Eq. (10.54), shows
that and therefore
. (10.55)
Wo rk ing with the inve rse g ra d ie nt. For some appl i cati ons (such as si mpl e
shear), i t i s easi er to work wi th the inverse of the deformati on gradi ent. I n
such cases, the stretches may be computed by
and (10.56)
Si nce , the rotati on can be computed by
and (10.57)
A good exampl e of a si tuati on where you woul d work wi th the i nverse gradi ent
i s i n ni te el ement cal cul ati ons. I n a Lagrangi an cal cul ati on, the nodes move
wi th the materi al . Consequentl y, the reference posi ti on of each node i s con-
stant throughout ti me for a Lagrangi an code. The current posi ti on of a node
vari es i n ti me. From a computati onal standpoi nt, i t i s often easi er to use the
el ement shape functi ons to compute the gradi ent of wi th respect to . Thi s
gradi ent i s the i nverse deformati on gradi ent:
(10.58)
Equati ons (10.56) and (10.57) show that i t i s not necessary to i nvert Eq.
(10.58) i n order to perform a pol ar decomposi ti on.
V

1 2 /
V

1
F

=
U

= =
R

=
U

2
F

T
F

( )
T
V

T
V

2
R

= = =
U

T
V

=
R

T
I

=
R

=
U

1
F

T
( )
1 2 /
= V

T
F

1
( )
1 2 /
=
R

T
=
R

T
U

= R

T
=
X

1
X

-------- =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
73
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The *FAST* way to do a polar decomposition in two
dimensions
For pl anar deformati ons, the deformati on gradi ent tensor i s of the form
, where (10.59)
We cl ai m by serendi pi ty
*
that the pol ar decomposi ti on can be performed
rapi dl y by the fol l owi ng formul a:
, and (10.60)
where
(10.61)
Beware! You must dene and separately i n order to uni quel y deter-
mi ne the rotati on angl e. I t i s certai nl y true that
, not enough! (10.62)
Thi s rel ati on does not uniquely dene the rotati on angl e because there are
al ways twoangl es i n the range from 0 to that sati sfy the above equati on.
By contrast there i s onl y one angl e i n the range from 0 to that sati ses
Eq. (10.61).
* Its easy to verify that our formulas yield an orthogonal [R] and a symmetric [U]. It is straightfor-
ward, but tedious, to also prove that our formula gives a positive denite [U] matrix. This property
is essential in order to conrm the validity of our serendipitous formulas.
F [ ]
F
11
F
12
0
F
21
F
22
0
0 0 F
33
= F
33
0 >
R [ ]
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
= U [ ] R [ ]
T
F [ ] =
cos
F
11
F
22
+
F
11
F
22
+ ( )
2
F
21
F
12
( )
2
+
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- =
sin
F
21
F
12

F
11
F
22
+ ( )
2
F
21
F
12
( )
2
+
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- =
cos sin
tan F
21
F
12
( ) F
11
F
22
+ ( ) =
2
2
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Polar decomposition
74
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
For computer appl i cati ons, the fol l owi ng codi ng wi l l very rapi dl y perform a
pl anar pol ar decomposi ti on:
c = f(1,1)+f(2,2)
s = f(2,1)-f(1,2)
d = sqrt(c*c + s*s)
c = c/d
s = s/d
R(1,1)=c
R(2,2)=c
R(1,2)=-s
R(2,1)=s
U(1,1)=c*F(1,1)+s*F(2,1)
U(1,2)=c*F(1,2)+s*F(2,2)
U(2,1)=c*F(2,1)-s*F(1,1)
U(2,2)=c*F(2,2)-s*F(1,2)
R(3,3)=1.
R(1,3)=0.
R(2,3)=0.
R(3,1)=0.
R(3,2)=0.
U(3,3)=F(3,3)
U(1,3)=0.
U(2,3)=0.
U(3,1)=0.
U(3,2)=0.
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Mixing or interpolating rotations
75
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
11. Mixing or interpolating rotations
Eul eri an physi cs codes (or Lagrangi an codes that remap quanti ti es) must
routi nel y handl e the task of mi xi ng two or more materi al s i n a computati onal
cel l and assi gni ng reasonabl e homogeni zed val ues for the el d vari abl es of the
mi xture. I n the absence of speci c arguments to the contrary, el d vari abl es
are typi cal l y mi xed by si mpl e mass or vol ume averagi ng. Thi s approach, how-
ever, can be unsati sfactory when mi xi ng rotati on tensors because the sum of
two orthogonal tensors i s not i tsel f general l y orthogonal . A si mi l ar probl em
occurs when attempti ng to i nterpol ate between two rotati ons i n a di screte rep-
resentati on of a el d.
Code archi tects are faced wi th an i nteresti ng si tuati on: shoul d they al l ow
the mi xed val ue of orthogonal tensors to be nonorthogonal , or shoul d they
devel op a rul e for forcing the mi xed rotati on to be orthogonal . Surpri si ngl y,
there are some arguments i n favor of al l owi ng a mi xture of rotati ons to not be
a rotati on i tsel f (the l i ne of reasoni ng i s that, stati sti cal l y speaki ng, averages
shoul dnt be expected to be representati ve of the thi ngs bei ng averaged
*
).
However, subrouti nes that requi re a rotati on often presume that the rotati on
suppl i ed wi l l i ndeed be orthogonal , and therefore, one needs a rul e for mi xi ng
rotati ons that wi l l al ways gi ve an orthogonal resul t.
Bel ow we l i st possi bl e sol uti ons to thi s probl em, starti ng wi th what we
bel i eve wi l l gi ve the best resul ts, and worki ng down to l ess vi abl e sol uti ons.
proposal #1: Map and re-compute the polar decomposition
The initial posi ti on vector may be regarded as a el d i n i ts own ri ght. I n
terms of the mappi ng functi on of Eq. (10.1), i t i s gi ven by
(11.1)
The vector may be advected just l i ke any other el d. Thi s i s parti cul arl y
easy to do si nce the Lagrangian ti me rate of i s al ways zero. Thus, the val ue
of at a Lagrangian tracer parti cl e or at a Lagrangian mesh poi nt remai ns
xed over ti me. For Lagrangi an ni te el ement cal cul ati ons, the val ue of at
any poi nt may al ways be determi ned by usi ng the shape functi ons. When i t
i s determi ned that the mesh shoul d be moved i n a non-Lagrangi an manner
(as for remeshi ng or for ALE cal cul ati ons), the val ue of can be mapped to
the new l ocati ons of the nodes just as any other vari abl e woul d be mapped to
the nodes.
* For example, the average location of a point in a body (i.e., its centroid) need not be a point that is
actually in the body. More colorfully, the Surgeon General should allocate research funding based
on a composite average human being who has one breast and one testicle even though there is no
one who ts this description!
X


1
x

( ) =
X

p
X

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Mixing or interpolating rotations
76
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
I n short, the el d for i s very easy to moni tor for al l ti me. To determi ne
the pol ar rotati on and stretch, we recommend recomputi ng the inversedefor-
mati on gradi ent tensor by taki ng the spati al gradi ent of the el d. Namel y,
(11.2)
One coul d al ways i nvert thi s matri x to obtai n the new deformati on gradi ent,
but that woul d entai l unnecessary computati onal cost. I t i s much more ef-
ci ent to work di rectl y wi th . Recal l that
(11.3)
Noti ng that , taki ng the i nverse gi ves
(11.4)
The stretch can be obtai ned di rectl y from by
(11.5)
and then the rotati on i s obtai ned di rectl y from Eq. (11.4) as
(11.6)
The above boxed cal cul ati ons are fai rl y easy to perform si nce woul d be
al ready avai l abl e. Wi th thi s approach, i t i s never necessary to i nvert a non-
symmetri c matri x. For pl anar cal cul ati ons, the shortcut of Eq. (10.59) can al so
be appropri atel y modi ed to work di rectl y wi th .
proposal #2: Discard the stretch part of a mixed rotation.
A second techni que for di rectl y mappi ng/mi xi ng rotati ons woul d be to go
ahead and average the rotati on tensors to obtai n a new tensor that i s not
orthogonal , but whi ch i s probabl y nearl y orthogonal . We woul d then project
the nonorthogonal tensor to the nearest orthogonal tensor. Thi s woul d
i nvol ve a mi ni mi zati on cal cul ati on. Namel y, gi ven a tensor (the nonorthog-
onal mi xed rotati on), nd the tensor such that and i s
mi ni mi zed. The di fcul ty here i s that, to our knowl edge, thi s mi ni mi zati on
probl em has no known sol uti on. I suspect that the pol ar rotati on tensor cor-
X

1
X

-------- = F
i j
1
X
i
x
j
---------- = F [ ]
1
X
1
x
1
----------
X
1
x
2
----------
X
1
x
3
----------
X
2
x
1
----------
X
2
x
2
----------
X
2
x
3
----------
X
3
x
1
----------
X
3
x
2
----------
X
3
x
3
----------
=
F

1
F

= =
R

1
R

T
=
F

1
U

1
R

T
R

T
V

1
= =
U

1
U

1
F

T
( )
1 2 /
=
R

T
U

=
F

1
F

1
F

T
R

= R

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Mixing or interpolating rotations
77
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
respondi ng to the tensor i s the sol uti on to thi s mi ni mi zati on probl em. I f so,
then thi s proposal suggests that the orthogonal tensors be mi xed and the
pol ar decomposi ti on shoul d be appl i ed to the resul ti ng (general l y non-orthogo-
nal ) mi xture.
Consi der an i ni ti al tensor that i s al most (but not qui te) orthogonal . Spe-
ci cal l y, suppose that the l argest ei genval ue of i s si gni cantl y
smal l er than uni ty. Then the associ ated pol ar rotati on tensor i s approxi matel y
(11.7)
I f the above formul a i s appl i ed recursi vel y to obtai n i ncreasi ngl y better esti -
mates for the rotati on, then quadrati cal l y to the nearest orthogonal matri x i n
tensor space. Typi cal l y, one i terati on wi l l sufce. Of course, i f the process con-
verges, then i t converges to an orthogonal resul t. However, we are not certai n
whether or not the converged resul t wi l l necessari l y equal the actual rotati on
tensor associ ated wi th the ORI GI NAL F tensor.
Pro o f:* . Our goal i s to nd the orthogonal tensor that i s cl osest to a gi ven
(nearl y orthogonal ) tensor .
The proof begi ns wi th at Tayl or expansi on:
(11.8)
The substi tuti on yi el ds
(11.9)
The above expansi on was for scal ar arguments, but i t al so extends to any sym-
metri c tensor . I n parti cul ar, i f we pi ck the exponent , we get
(11.10)
Lets turn our attenti on to the pol ar decomposi ti on of :
(11.11)
Dene
(11.12)
Therefore
(11.13)
We know that
* This proof follows the basic ideas communicated in an email to me from Glynne Casteel, though he
used the SVD decomposition from matrix analysis. Our presentation recognizes that such a decom-
position is equivalent to the polar decomposition.
F

T
F

1
2
-- - F

3I

T
F

[ ]
R

1 x ( )
a
1 ax O x
2
( ) + =
x 1 y =
y
a
1 a 1 y ( ) O 1 y ( )
2
+ =
Y

a 1 2 =
Y

1 2 /
I

1
2
--- I

( ) O I

( )
2
+ + =
F

=
C

T
F

2
= =
U

1
F

T
F

( )
1 2 /
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Mixing or interpolating rotations
78
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(11.14)
I f the ei genval ues of are cl ose to uni ty (i .e., i f i s very nearl y orthogonal ),
then the ei genval ues of are al so cl ose to uni ty. By Tayl or expansi on,
(11.15)
Putti ng thi s i nto Eq. (11.14) shows that, to second order,
(11.16)
proposal #3: mix the pseudo-rotation-vectors
Another strategy for mi xi ng rotati on tensors i s to use a conventi onal mass
or vol ume average of the rotati on vectors and to then convert the average rota-
ti on vector back i nto a rotati on tensor. The al gori thm i s as fol l ows:
STEP 1.For each rotati on tensor i n the mi xture, use the techni que
descri bed on page 32 to compute the rotati on vector .
STEP 2.Use ordi nary vol ume or mass averagi ng to compute the average
rotati on vector.
STEP 3.Use Eq. (3.14) to construct the associ ated mi xture rotati on tensor .
The above scheme for averagi ng rotati ons basi cal l y assumes that al l the i ndi -
vi dual rotati ons are appl i ed si mul taneousl y, as di scussed on page 87. The fact
that angl e and axi s are not uni que coul d cause probl ems wi th thi s method.
proposal #4: mix the quaternions
Si mi l ar to the precedi ng proposal , the quaterni ons for each rotati on coul d
be computed and i nterpreted as poi nts on a four-di mensi onal uni t sphere. The
normal i zed vector sum of the rotati on quaterni ons woul d probabl y do a decent
job at assi gni ng a mi xed rotati on.
R

1
F

1 2 /
= =
U

1 2 /
I

1
2
-- - I

( ) + I

1
2
--- I

T
F

( ) +
3
2
--- I

1
2
--- F

T
F

= =
R

1
2
-- - F

3I

T
F

[ ]
R

(k)
r

(k)
R

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Rates of rotation
79
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
12. Rates of rotation
The spin tensor
Consi der a vector that i s embedded i n the ri gi dl y rotati ng body. Let
denote the i ni ti al posi ti on of . Then
(12.1)
Suppose that the rotati on of the body i s constantl y changi ng. Then .
Note that i s not a functi on of ti me (i t i s si mpl y the initial posi ti on, whi ch i s
forever constant). Thus, the ti me rate of the embedded vector i s
(12.2)
From Eq (12.1), we know that . Substi tuti ng thi s resul t
i n Eq (12.2) gi ves
(12.3)
where the second-order tensor i s cal l ed the spin tensor
*
and i s dened
(12.4)
For l ater use, may be expressed i n terms of by
(12.5)
Consi der the orthogonal i ty condi ti on
(12.6)
Taki ng the ti me rate gi ves:
(12.7)
Substi tuti ng Eq. (12.5) i nto Eq. (12.7) and i mposi ng Eq. (12.6) shows that
(12.8)
I n other words, the spi n tensor i s skew-symmetri c. Consequentl y, as di scussed
i n the next secti on, i t has an associ ated axi al vector whi ch i s dened such
that Eq. (12.3) becomes
(12.9)
* If the rotation tensor is the polar rotation, the spin is called the polar spin.
b

=
R

=R

t ( )
b

=
b

1
b

T
b

= =
b

T

R

=
R

T
I

=
R

T
R

T
+ 0

T
+ 0

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rates of rotation
80
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The angular velocity vector
Just as rotati ons are associ ated wi th an axi s and angl e of rotati on, a spi n
tensor al so has an associ ated angul ar vel oci ty vector, whi ch i s gi ven by the
so-cal l ed axi al or dual vector:
, or (12.10)
The operati on i s reversi bl e. Gi ven the angul ar vel oci ty vector, the associ ated
angul ar vel oci ty tensor i s computed by.
or (12.11)
The expl i ci t rel ati onshi ps are
, , (12.12)
The matri x rel ati onshi p i s
(12.13)
Dotti ng the spi n tensor onto an arbi trary vector i s equi val ent to crossi ng
the angul ar vel oci ty vector i nto . That i s,
(12.14)
As a matter of fact, the angul ar vel oci ty vector was constructed speci cal l y so
that thi s rel ati onshi p woul d hol d.
Fi nal questi on: what rel ati onshi p, i f any, does the angul ar vel oci ty vector
have wi th the angul ar rotati on vector? I f the rotati on axi s i s hel d xed,
then . However, i f the axi s of rotati on i s a functi on of ti me, the rel a-
ti onshi p between the rotati on vector and the angul ar vel oci ty vector i s hi ghl y
nonl i near due to the presence of cori ol i s-type terms, as di scussed i n the next
secti on.

1
2
---

=
i
1
2
---

i j k

j k

1
2
---

j i k

j k
= =

=
i j

i j k

k

i kj

k
= =

1
=
23
=
32

2
=
31
=
13

3
=
12
=
21

[ ]
0
3

2

3
0
1

2

1
0
=

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rates of rotation
81
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Angular velocity in terms of axis and angle of rotation
Taki ng the ti me rate of Eq. (3.14) gi ves as
(12.15)
where and . The transpose of Eq. (3.14) i s
(12.16)
After much si mpl i cati on,* the spi n ( ) i s gi ven by
(12.17)
where
, and (12.18)
Taki ng the axi al vector of Eq. (12.17) gi ves the angul ar vel oci ty vector as
(12.19)
Difference between vorticity and polar spin.
I n conti nuum mechani cs, the vel oci ty gradi ent tensor i s the spati al
deri vati ve of the vel oci ty el d. Thus, i f i s vel oci ty and i s the spati al posi -
ti on vector, then
(12.20)
The so-cal l ed rate of deformati on tensor i s dened to equal the symmetri c
part of the vel oci ty gradi ent:
(12.21)
The vorti ci ty tensor i s dened to be the skew-symmetri c part of the
vel oci ty gradi ent tensor:
(12.22)
The vorti ci ty vector i s the axi al vector associ ated wi th :
(12.23)
Wri tten out i n Cartesi an components,
* It is critical to note that and therefore .
R

s I

( ) c

1 c ( ) a

+ [ ] s

+ =
c cos s sin
R

T
c I

( ) a

+ + =

T

a

1 = a

0 =

c 1 c ( ) a

[ ] sA

+ + =
A

= A

c 1 c ( ) a

( ) sa

+ + =
L

L
i j
v
i
x
j
-------- =
D

D
i j
1
2
--- L
i j
L
j i
+ ( )
1
2
---
v
i
x
j
--------
v
j
x
i
-------- +
,
_
= =
W

W
i j
1
2
--- L
i j
L
j i
( )
1
2
---
v
i
x
j
--------
v
j
x
i
--------
,
_
= =
w

1
2
---

:W

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rates of rotation
82
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(12.24)
A fundamental theorem from conti nuum mechani cs states that the vel oci ty
gradi ent i s rel ated to the deformati on gradi ent tensor by
(12.25)
Recal l the pol ar decomposi ti on:
, (12.26)
where i s the orthogonal rotati on tensor and i s the symmetri c posi ti ve
deni te l eft stretch. Substi tuti ng Eq. (12.26) i nto (12.25) and noti ng that
gi ves
(12.27)
where the pol ar spi n i s dened
, (12.28)
The pol ar angul ar vel oci ty vector i s dened
(12.29)
The purpose of the remai nder of thi s secti on i s to summari ze Di eness deri va-
ti on [8] of the di fference between and . The transpose of Eq. (12.27) i s
(12.30)
Post mul ti pl yi ng Eq. (12.27) by gi ves
(12.31)
Taki ng the skew-symmetri c part of both si des gi ves
(12.32)
where
(12.33)
and
w
1
1
2
---
v
3
x
2
-------- -
v
2
x
3
---------
,
_
=
w
2
1
2
---
v
1
x
3
-------- -
v
3
x
1
---------
,
_
=
w
3
1
2
---
v
2
x
1
-------- -
v
1
x
2
---------
,
_
=
F

1
=
F

=
R

+ =
D

+ V

1
V

1
+ =

1
2
---

=
w

1
V

=
V

+ V

+ =
Z

+ =
Z


May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rates of rotation
83
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(12.34)
We are i nterested i n the di fference between the vorti ci ty and the pol ar spi n. I n
other words, we seek to sol ve Eq. (12.32) for the tensor . The tensor i s
skew-symmetri c, so there exi sts an axi al vector such that
(12.35)
Si mi l arl y, there exi sts an axi al vector such that
(12.36)
Thus, the component form of Eq. (12.32) can be wri tten
(12.37)
Mul ti pl yi ng both si des by and usi ng the i denti ty gi ves
(12.38)
Noti ng that and , thi s
becomes
(12.39)
or, el i mi nati ng al l Kronecker del tas,
(12.40)
Thi s may be wri tten i n di rect notati on as
(12.41)
Recal l i ng Eq. (12.34), we note that and therefore the above equa-
ti on may be i nverted to gi ve
(12.42)
From thi s we see that the pol ar spi n equal s the vorti ci ty i f and onl y i f .
Recal l i ng Eq. (12.33), thi s wi l l occur i f and onl y i f and commute,* whi ch
i mpl i es that there must exi st a tri ad of orthonormal vectors that are pri nci pal
di recti ons of both and . Thi s i s natural l y the case for ri gi d moti on where
and . Another (l ess tri vi al ) way for and to commute occurs
when the pri nci pal di recti ons of remai n constant throughout al l ti me. I n
thi s case both the vorti ci ty and the spi n are zero. Fi nal l y, note that
where a pri me denotes the devi atori c part.
Thi s i denti ty i mpl i es that there i s a di fference between the vorti ci ty and spi n
onl y i f the deformati on i nvol ves di storti on i sotropi c expansi on or contrac-
ti on has no i nuence on the di sti ncti on between vorti ci ty and spi n. For thi s
* i.e, if and only if .
H

H
i j

i kj
h
k
=
z

Z
i j

i kj
z
k
=

i kj
z
k
V
i m

mpj
h
p

i qn
h
q
V
nj
+ =

i rj

i rj

i kj
2
rk
=
2
rk
z
k

i rj
V
i m

mpj
h
p

i rj

i qn
h
q
V
nj
+ =

i rj

mpj

i m

rp

i p

rm
+ =
i rj

i qn

rq

j n

rn

j q
+ =
2
rk
z
k

i m

rp

i p

rm
+ ( )V
i m
h
p

rq

j n

rn

j q
+ ( )h
q
V
nj
+ =
2z
r
V
mm
h
r
V
pr
h
p
+ ( ) h
r
V
j j
h
j
V
rj
+ ( ) + =
z

trV

( )I

+ [ ] h

=
h

trV

( ) I

+ [ ]
1
z

+ =
z

=
D

= D

=
D

=0

=I

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rates of rotation
84
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
reason, Di enes [8] consi dered si mpl e shear as a counterexampl e to demon-
strate that the Jaumann stress rate (based on vorti ci ty) predi cts anomal ous
osci l l atory shear stresses when used wi th a constant modul us hypoel asti c con-
sti tuti ve l aw. The pol ar rate predi cts an i ntui ti ve monotoni cal l y-i ncreasi ng
shear stress.
The (commonly mis-stated) Gosiewskis theorem
I n thi s secti on we prove the fol l owi ng theorem:
If is a unit material fiber that is instantaneously coincident with a
principal direction of the rate of deformation , then its instantaneous
rate of rotation is given by the vorticity; i.e., at this instant, .
Thi s theorem i s often mi si nterpreted to mean that the pri nci pal di recti ons of
rotate accordi ng to the vorti ci ty . To the contrary, i t i s onl y the material
bers paral l el to the pri nci pal di recti ons of that rotate accordi ng to the vor-
ti ci ty. These materi al bers do not general l y remai n al i gned wi th the pri nci pal
di recti ons of . Hence, the above theorem (1) appl i es onl y to materi al bers
and (2) onl y at the i nstant when they pass over pri nci pal di recti ons of
any ti me thereafter, they rotate at a speed that i s not rel ated to the vorti ci ty.
Before proceedi ng wi th the proof of the correct theorem, l ets rst provi de a
counterexampl e that di scredi ts the common fal se i nterpretati on. We wi sh to
prove that the pri nci pal di recti ons of do not rotate accordi ng to the vorti c-
i ty. To do thi s, we use si mpl e shear as a counterexampl e. For thi s canoni cal
moti on, the vorti ci ty i s a nonzero constant tensor, but the tensor i s al so con-
stant, so i ts pri nci pal di recti ons cant possi bl y rotate. Under si mpl e shear, the
deformati on gradi ent i s of the form
(12.43)
where i s a ti me-varyi ng measure of the amount of shear. The correspondi ng
rate of deformati on and vorti ci ty tensors are
and (12.44)
Note that the pri nci pal di recti ons of the rate of deformati on are ,
and whi ch never changewith time. Accordi ng to the mi si n-
terpretati on of Gosi ewski s theorem, thi s woul d be possi bl e onl y i f the vorti ci ty
were zero, whi ch i s fal se. Thi s compl etes the proof that does not govern the
rotati on rate of the pri nci pal di recti ons of .
d

=
D

[ ]
1 2 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
=

[ ]
0 0
0 0
0 0 0
= W

[ ]
0 0
0 0
0 0 0
=
D

1 1 0 , , { }
1 1 0 , , { } 0 0 1 , , { }
W

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Rates of rotation
85
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Pro o f o f the c o rre c t the o re m . For cl ari ty, we consi der a homogenous defor-
mati on el d. Let denote a materi al ber. By thi s, we mean that there exi sts
a materi al vector i n the reference congurati on such that
(12.45)
The reference materi al ber i s xed i n ti me, so taki ng rates gi ves
(12.46)
From conti nuum mechani cs, we know that , where i s the sym-
metri c part of the vel oci ty gradi ent. Therefore, the above equati on becomes
(12.47)
Decomposi ng i nto i ts symmetri c part pl us i ts skew-symmetri c part
gi ves
(12.48)
Thi s rel ati onshi p hol ds for any materi al ber . We wi sh to determi ne what
part of i s caused by change i n l ength and what part i s caused by change i n
ori entati on. Towards thi s end, we wri te
where (12.49)
where f i s the magni tude of dened by
, (12.50)
and i s a uni t vector i n the di recti on of . I n other words, and
(12.51)
Taki ng rates of the above three equati ons, we note that
(12.52)
(12.53)
(12.54)
Hence, Eq. (12.48) may be wri tten
(12.55)
Dotti ng both si des by gi ves
, where (12.56)
Here, we have noted that because i s skew symmetri c. Sub-
sti tuti ng Eq. (12.56) back i nto Eq. (12.55) and di vi di ng by gi ves
f

o
f

o
=
f

o
=
F

= L

=
L

+ =
f

f n

=
f

f f

f =
n

1 =
f

f n

+ =
f

f
------------ =
n

0 =
f

f n

+ f D

f W

+ =
n

f D
nn
= D
nn
n

0 = W

f
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rates of rotation
86
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(12.57)
The above boxed equati ons hol d for any materi al ber regardl ess of i ts
i nstantaneous ori entati on.
I f the materi al ber happens to i nstantaneousl y coi nci de wi th a pri nci pal
di recti on of then at this instant, and therefore
. Consequentl y, at this instant in time, the rst two
terms i n Eq. (12.57) cancel l eavi ng onl y , whi ch proves the theorem
that the vorti ci ty governs the angul ar vel oci ty of materi al bers at the
moment when they are coi nci dent wi th a pri nci pal di recti on of . Thi s speci al
theorem seems of l i ttl e practi cal use si nce the same materi al ber wi l l not be
rotati ng accordi ng to the vorti ci ty an i nstant l ater. We have i ncl uded the theo-
rem here onl y for the purpose of di sprovi ng i ts common mi s-i nterpretati on.
Rates of sequential rotations
Consi der three rotati ons, about the X-axi s, about the Y-axi s, and
about the Z-axi s. I f these rotati ons are appl i ed sequenti al l y (i .e., the rst
fol l owed by the second and then the thi rd), we know that the total rotati on i s
gi ven by
(12.58)
Conversel y, we al so know that for any rotati on , there exi st three rotati ons
about the l aboratory axes such that Eq. (12.58) hol ds.
I f the three axi s rotati ons are known for al l ti me, how i s the spi n tensor
( ) rel ated to the i ndi vi dual spi n tensors for each of the axi s rota-
ti ons?
The ti me rate of Eq. (12.58) gi ves
(12.59)
Substi tuti ng Eq. (12.5) for and maki ng anal ogous substi tuti ons for
shows that
(12.60)
Thus, i n thi s formul ati on, we can see that the spi n tensor al so depends on the
order of appl i cati on of the sequenti al l y appl i ed rotati on tensors. I n the l i mi t of
innitesimally small rotati ons (but not necessari l y smal l rotati on rates), each
of the are approxi matel y equal to the i denti ty tensor and we obtai n the
resul t that
(12.61)
Thus, for i nni tesi mal sequenti al rotati ons,
n

D
nn
n

+ =
f

=
D
nn
n

= =
n

=
D

1
R

2
R

3
R

3
R

2
R

1
=
R

1
R

2
and R

3
, , { }

T

R

3
R

2
R

1
R

3
R

2
R

1
R

3
R

2
R

1
+ + =
R

3
R

2
R

3
T
R

3
R

1
R

2
T
R

1
T
+ + =
R

1
+ + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rates of rotation
87
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(12.62)
For the special casethat the rotati on axi s of each i s constant, we have
(12.63)
Even for thi s speci al case where each rotati on axi s i s constant, the rotati on
axi s of the total rotati on i s not necessari l y constant because i t may be vari ed
by changi ng the i ndi vi dual rotati on rates . Thi s resul t moti -
vates the study of simultaneously appl i ed rotati ons.
Rates of simultaneous rotations
Consi der the rotati on i l l ustrated i n Fi g. 7.3. By vi sual i nspecti on, the rota-
ti on axi s passes through the poi nt (1,1,1), and the rotati on angl e i s . One
coul d i magi ne di rectl y rotati ng the body about the axi s so that rotati ons woul d
be si mul taneousl y occurri ng about al l axes. For a rotati on that i s appl i ed
di rectl y from zero angl e to nal angl e wi thout changi ng the axi s of rotati on,
the angul ar vel oci ty vector i s
(12.64)
wri ti ng the axi s as , thi s equati on becomes
(12.65)
where
(12.66)
Once the rotati on i s compl ete, the nal rotati on tensor i s gi ven by the Eul er-
Rodri gues formul a, Eq. (3.14). I n vi ew of Eq. (12.65), thi s nal rotated congu-
rati on can be vi sual i zed as the si mul taneous appl i cati on of three rotati ons
about the three coordi nate axes wi th the respecti ve rotati on angl es gi ven by
. (12.67)
Thus, for the rotati on i n Fi g. 7.3, the si mul taneousl y appl i ed angl es of rota-
ti on about each coordi nate axi s are .
Conversel y, gi ven the rotati on angl es , the total rotati on vector
i s gi ven by
(12.68)
I mportantl y, note that i s not equi val ent to . I n other words, i t i s not
admi ssi bl e to add an i ntegral mul ti pl e of to a coordi nate rotati on angl e.
Referri ng to Eq. (12.66), the i ndi vi dual coordi nate angl es must al ways be l ess
than or equal to the total rotati on angl e. Furthermore, i t i s i mportant to real -
i ze that
(12.69)

1
+ + =
R


1
a

1

2
a

2

3
a

3
+ + =

1

2
and
3
, , { }
120

=
a

a
1
e

1
a
2
e

2
a
3
e

3
+ + =


1
e

1

2
e

2

3
e

3
+ + =

k
a
k

k
a
k

120 3 69.28 =

1

2

3
, , { }
a


1
e

1

2
e

2

3
e

3
+ + =

k

k
2 +
2

k

k

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Rates of rotation
88
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Equal i ty hol ds onl y i f the total rotati on axi s never changes wi th ti me.
I n practi ce, angul ar vel oci ty general l y changes i n both magni tude and ori -
entati on. Hence rotati ons are not general l y achi eved by rotati ons about a con-
stant axi s. Neverthel ess, gi ven any rotati on tensor , there al ways exi st a
rotati on axi s and angl e regardl ess of whether the rotati on was actual l y
achi eved di rectl y through the axi s and angl e of rotati on. There are corre-
spondi ng coordi nate rotati on angl es .
For si mul taneous rotati ons about the coordi nate axes, the rel ati onshi p
(12.70)
al ways hol ds, but because the magni tudes of the angul ar vel oci ti es may vary,
the total axi s of rotati on general l y vari es wi th ti me and i s not coi nci dent wi th
the di recti on of the angul ar vel oci ty vector.
To nd the total rotati on axi s, the total rotati on tensor i s rst found by
sol vi ng Eq (12.4) as a di fferenti al equati on. Once the total rotati on i s found,
the angl e and axi s of rotati on may be determi ned vi a Eqs. (3.86) and (3.83).
Hence, the axi s and angl e of rotati on are al ways wel l -dened, and they may be
decomposed i nto coordi nate rotati ons, but they are rel ated to the angul ar
vel oci ty i n a hi ghl y-nonl i near way.
The pri nci pal poi nt of thi s secti on i s to show that i t is possi bl e to dene
rotati on vectors, but they are of l i mi ted use because thei r ti me rates are not
rel ated to the angul ar vel oci ty i n a strai ghtforward way.
R

1

2

3
, , { }


1
e

1

2
e

2

3
e

3
+ + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
89
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
13. Random Rotations
For probl ems at the mesoscopi c scal e where, for exampl e, crystal ani sot-
ropy i s model ed, si mul ati ons often requi re a means of randoml y assi gni ng a
rotati on of the crystal from i ts uni t cel l reference ori entati on to the actual ori -
entati on [10]. For a macroscopi cal l y i sotropi c materi al of uni form grai n si ze, a
uni forml y-random di stri buti on of grai n ori entati ons i s desi red. Thi s secti on
di scusses how to achi eve such a di stri buti on.
Statistical notation
We wi l l use the notati on to denote the di stri buti on functi on for any
conti nuousl y random scal ar vari abl e . The di stri buti on functi on i s dened
such that the probabi l i ty that i s gi ven by
(13.1)
The correspondi ng cumul ati ve di stri buti on i s denoted and i s dened
(13.2)
Thus, i s the probabi l i ty that .
We wi l l l et denote joi nt di stri buti ons for two vari abl es and .
The joi nt di stri buti on i s dened such that the probabi l i ty that and
i s
(13.3)
Fi nal l y, i f i s a random vector i n 3D space, then the di stri buti on functi on
i s dened such that the probabi l i ty that l i es i n a regi on of space i s
, (13.4)
where i s the vol ume el ement. Any vector can be al ternati vel y expressed
i n terms of, say, spheri cal coordi nates . Thus, there exi sts a joi nt di stri -
buti on functi on . I mportantl y,
i n general . (13.5)
p

( )

a b < <
p

( ) d
a
b

( )
g

s ( ) p

( ) d

s

=
g

s ( ) s <
p
,
, ( )

1

1
< <

1

1
< <
p
,
, ( ) d d

p
x

( ) x

B
p
x

( ) V d
B

dV x

r , ,
p
r , ,
( )
p
x

( ) p
r , ,
r , , ( )
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
90
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Uniformly random unit vectors the theory
Before consi deri ng the case of a random rotati on, rst consi der how to ran-
doml y sel ect a uni t vector such that no uni t vector ori entati on i s more l i kel y
than any other. Uni t vectors may be regarded as poi nts on the uni t sphere.
Therefore a uni t vector i s compl etel y speci ed by the spheri cal coordi nates
and (not to be confused wi th Eul er angl es of the same symbol s):
(13.6)
We want any poi nt on the uni t sphere to be equal l y l i kel y we seek a uniform
di stri buti on. Hence, the di stri buti on functi on must equal the i nverse of
the area of the uni t sphere: .
The e xp e c te d va lue o f a unifo rm ly ra nd o m unit ve c to r is ze ro . The
expected val ue of a randoml y generated uni t vector i s dened by
, (13.7)
where i s the di stri buti on functi on. For a uni form di stri buti on, we have
(13.8)
so
(13.9)
Here i s a neat tri ck for eval uati ng thi s i ntegral : just appl y the di vergence the-
orem to convert thi s area i ntegral i nto a vol ume i ntegral . The i ntegrand
becomes the gradi ent of , whi ch i s zero. Thus
The d istrib utio ns o f c o o rd ina te s fo r unifo rm ly ra nd o m unit ve c to rs.
Recal l that the di stri buti on densi ty of a uni forml y random uni t vector i s
si mpl y . Now we seek to convert thi s di stri buti on functi on
i nto the i ndi vi dual di stri buti on functi ons for the two spheri cal coordi nates
deni ng the uni t vector as a poi nt on a uni t sphere.
Let represent a patch of area on the uni t sphere. Then the probabi l i ty
that the uni t normal wi l l l i e wi thi n that patch i s
(13.10)
n

sin cos e

1
sin sin e

2
cos e

3
+ + =
p
n

( )
p
n

( ) 1 4 =
n

p n

( ) A d
A
sphere

p n

( )
p n

( )
1
A
sphere
----------------
1
4
------ = =
n

1
4
------ n

A d
A
sphere

1
n

p
n

( ) 1 4 ( ) =

p
n

( ) A d

1
4
------ A d

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
91
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
For numeri cal i mpl ementati on, we need to convert the di stri buti on
i nto a joi nt di stri buti on for and . The area el ement i n Eq. (13.10) i s
. Thus, the probabi l i ty that a uni t normal corresponds to a
poi nt on the uni t sphere for whi ch and i s
(13.11)
The di stri buti on for i s determi ned by i ntegrati ng over al l
possi bl e val ues of (i.e., for to ). The functi on i s dened such
that the probabi l i ty that wi l l l i e i n an i nterval between and i s
(13.12)
Si mi l arl y, noti ng that ranges from to , the di stri buti on for i s
dened so that the probabi l i ty that a uni t normal corresponds to i s
(13.13)
The l ast two resul ts show that
and (13.14)
we note that
, (13.15)
whi ch veri es that and are independent random vari abl es. The key
resul ts of thi s secti on are the two boxed equati ons. The di stri buti on i s uni form
over the uni t sphere, but the di stri buti on for i s nonuniform. The functi on i s
a si ne, whi ch expresses the fact that l i nes of constant on the uni t sphere are
l onger near the equator than near the pol es. Hence, a uni forml y di stri buted
popul ati on of poi nts on the uni t sphere wi l l have more poi nts near the equator
than near the pol es.
p
n

( )

dA sin d d =

1

2
< <
1

2
< <
1
4
------ sin d d

( ) p
n

( )
=0 2 p

( )

1

2
p

( ) d

1
4
------ sin d d

0
2

1
2
--- sin d

= =
0 p

( )

1

2
< <
p

( ) d

1
4
------ sin d d
0

11

1
2
------ d

11

= =
p

( )
1
2
--- sin = p

( )
1
2
------ =
p
n

( ) dA p

( )q

( ) d d =

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Uniformly random unit vectors formalized implementation
Now we have the di stri buti ons and that correspond to a uni form
di stri buti on on the uni t sphere, but we need a procedure for sampling a poi nt
on the uni t sphere. Pseudo random number generators conventi onal l y provi de
a random number uni forml y di stri buted i n the i nterval [0,1), but we need a
sampl e that i s governed by a di fferent nonuni form di stri buti on. Thi s secti on
summari zes the standard theory for converti ng a random number on [0,1) to a
sampl e from any desi red nonuni form di stri buti on.
Re q uisite p ro b a b ility the o ry. Consi der any nonuni form di stri buti on on
the i nterval [ , ). We seek a mappi ng functi on such that wi l l
have the desi red di stri buti on whenever has a uni form di stri buti on on
[0,1). We wi l l further requi re the functi on to have a correspondence such
that and . Lets rst dene the cumulative distribution:
. (13.16)
The densi ty functi on i s nonnegati ve, so the cumul ati ve di stri buti on
functi on must be a nondecreasi ng functi on of , and therefore i t has an
i nverse except possi bl y at di screte poi nts. I n other words, may permi ssi -
bl y contai n di screte bounded jumps.
The di stri buti on functi on i s dened such that the probabi l i ty that wi l l
l i e between and i s
(13.17)
Si nce i s uni forml y di stri buted on the i nterval [0,1), the probabi l i ty that
i s
(13.18)
Because we are seeki ng an i nverti bl e mappi ng functi on, these l ast two proba-
bi l i ti es must be equal :
(13.19)
Thi s must hol d for any val ues of and . Lets take and . Recal l
that we have requi red the poi nt to map to the poi nt Therefore
, and Eq. (13.19) i mpl i es
(13.20)
p ( ) q ( )
p x ( )
a b x f r ( ) = x
p x ( ) r
f
f 0 ( ) a = f 1 ( ) b =
g
x
s ( ) p
x
x ( ) dx

s

p
x
( )
g
x
s ( ) s
g
x
1
p x
x
1
x
2
p
x
x ( ) dx
x
1
x
2

p
x
x ( ) dx
f r
1
( )
f r
2
( )

g
x
f r
2
( ) ( ) g
x
f r
1
( ) ( ) = =
r
r
1
r r
2
< <
r d
r
1
r
2

r
2
r
1
=
g
x
f r
2
( ) ( ) g
x
f r
1
( ) ( ) r
2
r
1
=
r
1
r
2
r
1
=0 r
2
=r
r=0 x=a
f 0 ( ) a =
g
x
f r ( ) ( ) g
x
a ( ) r =
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Recal l i ng that for al l , we note that , and the above
equati on becomes
, (13.21)
or
(13.22)
I n summary, i f has a uni form di stri buti on on [0,1), then wi l l have the
di stri buti on on the i nterval [a,b).
Ap p lic a tio n to unifo rm ly ra nd o m unit no rm a l. Consi der the di stri buti on of
Eq. (13.14):
(13.23)
Thi s di stri buti on i s understood to be zero outsi de the i nterval . Appl y-
i ng Eq. (13.16),
(13.24)
Putti ng and sol vi ng for gi ves
(13.25)
Thus, appl yi ng Eq. (13.22), the mappi ng functi on i s
(13.26)
I n the numeri cal i mpl ementati on, thi s equati on i s appl i ed by cal l i ng a pseudo
random number generator to obtai n a sampl e number that i s uni forml y di s-
tri buted on the i nterval [0,1). Eq. (13.26) converts i nto the sampl e angl e
whi ch i s di stri buted on [0, ) accordi ng to Eq. (13.14):
(13.27)
A si mi l ar anal ysi s for gi ves
, (13.28)
where i s another (pseudo) random number on the i nterval [0,1). Once the
sampl e real i zati ons of and are known, the uni forml y random uni t normal
i s constructed by appl yi ng Eq. (13.6):
(13.29)
These boxed equati ons are i mpl emented i n Listing6(Generatinga uni-
formly random unit normal) on page A-7.
p x ( )=0 x a < g
x
a ( )=0
g
x
f r ( ) ( ) r =
f r ( ) g
x
1
r ( ) =
r f r ( )
p
x
x ( )
p

( )
1
2
-- - sin =
0 < <
g

s ( )
1
2
-- - sin d
0
s

1
2
--- s ( ) cos 1 [ ] =
g

s ( )=r s
g

1
r ( ) ArcCos 1 2r [ ] =
f r ( ) ArcCos 1 2r [ ] =
r
r

ArcCos 1 2r [ ] =

2R =
R

n

sin cos e

1
sin sin e

2
cos e

3
+ + =
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Uniformly random unit vectors faster implementation
The techni ques outl i ned i n the precedi ng secti on fol l owed cl assi cal meth-
ods of probabi l i ty theory. Speci cal l y, a uni forml y random uni t vector was gen-
erated by rst sampl i ng two random numbers and , each uni forml y
di stri buted on the i nterval [0,1). Then Eqs. (13.27) through (13.29) were
appl i ed to construct the uni forml y random uni t vector. Unfortunatel y, numeri -
cal i mpl ementati ons of that procedure requi res cal l i ng tri gonometri c i ntri nsi c
functi ons, whi ch can be expensi ve.
I n thi s secti on we descri be a much more strai ghtforward way to generate a
uni forml y random uni t vector, and thi s method i s general l y faster than the
method of the precedi ng secti on so l ong as the computers pseudo random
number generator i s wel l -opti mi zed. The i dea behi nd the al ternati ve al go-
ri thm i s to rst generate a (non-uni t) vector usi ng a uni form di stri buti on
i nsi de the uni t sphere. Then thi s vector i s si mpl y normal i zed to a uni t vector
by appl yi ng the formul a
(13.30)
Generati ng the vector from a uni forml y di stri buted sampl e space i nsi de the
uni t sphere i s al gori thmi cal l y tri vi al . Fi rst, three pseudo random numbers,
on the i nterval [0,1) are generated. Then, a scal ar
i s computed. I f , the three random numbers must be di scarded and a new
set of three random numbers i s generated. Thi s process conti nues unti l a set
of three random numbers i s generated for whi ch , i n whi ch case, the uni t
vector i s then gi ven by Eq. (13.30).
R r
r

---------------- =
r

r
1
r
2
r
3
, , { } r
1
2
r
2
2
r
3
2
+ + =
1 >
1
n

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Uniformly random unit vectors The visualization
V isua lizing unit ve c to rs ( ste re o g ra p hic p ro je c tio n) . A uni t vector may
be regarded as a poi nt on the uni t sphere. For vi sual i zati on, poi nts on the uni t
sphere must be mapped to the pl ane (thi s sheet of paper). Any such mappi ng
i s cal l ed a stereographi c projecti on. The most common projecti on i s what you
woul d get i f you were to take a photograph of a sphere. The surface of the
sphere maps to the pl anar surface of the photo. Two photos of the sphere
(showi ng the front and the rear) woul d be needed for thi s type of stereographi c
projecti on. There are numerous al ternati ve ways to dene the projecti on, and
the best choi ce depends on the appl i cati on. We wi l l see that an area preserv-
i ng projecti on i s the most natural choi ce for vi sual i zi ng stati sti cal di stri bu-
ti ons (or any other quanti ty dened per-area on the sphere).
Before di scussi ng the sphere-pl ane probl em, rst consi der the si mpl er
ci rcl e-l i ne probl em of vi sual i zi ng poi nts on a si mpl e ci rcl e dened by the equa-
ti on . Thi s ci rcl e i s a one-di mensi onal enti ty exi sti ng i n two
di mensi ons. As sketched i n Fi g. 13.1, we can sni p the ci rcl e at the poi nt
and then unwrap or atten i t i nto a l i ne. Thi s i s an easy mappi ng to
vi sual i ze because both the ci rcl e and the l i ne are Eucl i dean spaces (both the
ci rcl e and the l i ne can be formed by a stri p of paper).
n

x
2
y
2
+ R
2
=
0 1 , ( )
Figure 13.1. Length-preserving mapping of a circle to a one-dimensional straight
line. The pol ar coordi nate maps to a l i near coordi nate , whi ch i s just the arc
l ength. Note that the l ower hemi sphere maps to a di sconti nuous regi on dened by
. The mappi ng i s one-to-one everywhere except that the poi nt maps
to both and .
s
s R 2 > 0 1 , ( )
s=1 s= 1
R

s=R
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I n crystal l ography, a di fferent ki nd of stereographi c projecti on (shown i n
Fi g. 13.2) i s commonl y used. The di sadvantage of thi s ki nd of projecti on i s that
arc l ength i s no preserved. Thus, i f a cl assi cal stereographi c projecti on i s used,
a di stri buti on that i s uni form on the ci rcl e wi l l map to a di stri buti on that i s
non-uni form on the l i ne.
Now consi der the much harder sphere-pl ane probl em. Mappi ng the surface
of a sphereto the pl ane dened by thi s sheet of paper must i nvol ve area di stor-
ti on si nce the surface of a sphere i s non-Eucl i dean. I n other words, an area
el ement on the sphere wi l l map to an area el ement on the pl ane, but the two
el ements wi l l general l y have di fferent aspect rati os. I magi ne i ntroduci ng a
ti ny hol e at the south pol e of a racquetbal l . I n order to bend the racquetbal l
i nto the pl ane, the area el ements that were ori gi nal l y near the south pol e
woul d have to be si gni cantl y di storted. Unl i ke the ci rcl e-l i ne mappi ng of
Fi g. 13.1 (whi ch i nvol ved zero change i n arc l ength), the sphere-pl ane map-
pi ng necessari l y i nvol ves aspect rati o di storti on. However, as we soon show, i t
i s possi bl e to dene a stereographi c projecti on such that the magni tude of the
area i s preserved despi te the fact that the shapeof the area el ement necessar-
i l y changes.
The l eft si de of Fi g. 13.3 shows the conventi onal (photographi c) renderi ng
of the sphere as seen when l ooki ng down the axi s passi ng through
the rst octant. I n such an i l l ustrati on, the sphere l ooks l i ke a sphere, whi ch
i s aestheti cal l y appeal i ng i n most si tuati ons. However, when i l l ustrati ng sta-
ti sti cal di stri buti ons on a sphere, i t i s more useful to empl oy an area-preserv-
ing mappi ng of the sphere to the two di mensi onal pl ane. I n thi s way, a
Figure 13.2. Classical stereographic mapping of a circle to a one-dimensional
straight line. The pol ar coordi nate maps to a l i near coordi nate , whi ch i s de-
ned by where a l i ne from the south pol e to the poi nt i ntersects the equator pl ane.
Note that the upper semi ci rcl e maps to poi nts for whi ch and poi nts on the l ow-
er semi ci rcl e map to poi nts for whi ch .

R <
R >
=R 2 ( ) tan

R
1 1 1 , , { }
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probabi l i ty functi on dened on the surface of the sphere wi l l have the same
val ue when mapped to the 2D pl ane. Wi th equal -area mappi ng, a uni form di s-
tri buti on on the sphere wi l l map to a uni form di stri buti on on the pl ane any
cl usteri ng i n the 2D map wi l l correspond to real cl usters on the sphere.
We are ul ti matel y i nterested i n mappi ng a unit sphere to the pl ane, but
l ets deri ve the equati ons for a sphere of radi us , and then l ater set .
Equati ng the area el ements shown i n Fi g. 13.3 gi ves
(13.31)
For our mappi ng, we choose , so that Eq. (13.31) becomes an ordi -
nary di fferenti al equati on,
, (13.32)
whi ch i s easi l y sol ved (subject to when ) to gi ve as a functi on of .
Speci cal l y,
Equal area mapping: I f a poi nt on a sphere has spheri cal
coordi nates , then the (uni t Jacobi an) mapped poi nt
on the 2D di sk has polar coordi nates
and (13.33)
As shown i n Fi g. 13.4, a sampl e poi nt on the equator of the sphere
(i.e., a poi nt for whi ch ) wi l l map to a radi us . Al l poi nts i n the
upper hemi sphere have mapped radi al coordi nates smal l er than . As
seen by the graph i n Fi g. 13.4, poi nts i n the upper hemi sphere have a mapped
X Y
Z

dA=R
2
sin ( )dd
Poi nt (R,,)
y
x
Poi nt(r,)

dA=rdrd
Figure 13.3. Mapping points on a sphere of radius to a two-dimensional disk.
The2D disk shown on theright-hand sideof theaboveguremay beregarded as a
distorted view of the sphere as seen looking down the Z-axis.
R
r
R R=1
R
2
sin ( )dd rdrd =
=
R
2
sin ( )d rdr =
r=0 =0 r
R , , { }
= r R 2 1 cos ( )
= 2 r= 2R
2R
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radi al coordi nate that i s roughly equal to the spheri cal arc l ength . The
equal area mappi ng i s wel l -dened for the l arger val ues of i n the l ower
hemi sphere (shown i n grey i n Fi g. 13.4). The south pol e ( ) maps to the
outer boundary of the di sk where . To preserve area, poi nts mapped
from the l ower hemi sphere requi re a greater amount of di storti on (i.e., i s
si gni cantl y di fferent from ).
r R

=
r=2R
r
R
X Y
Z


y
x
Z
Figure 13.4. Equal area mapping. The upper-l eft graph of vs. shows that
for poi nts i n the upper-hemi sphere. The l ower-l eft pl ot shows a si de-
vi ew of the sphere to i l l ustrate how the coordi nate maps to the di sk radi al
coordi nate . The upper-ri ght sketch shows a conventi onal 3D renderi ng of
the sphere as seen down the axi s. The l ower-ri ght pl ot i s the equal
area mappi ng of the sphere as seen down the Z-axi s. The rel ati ve si zes of the
pl ots are shown to correct scal e (i .e, the di sk has twi ce the radi us of the sphere.
r
r R

r
1 1 1 , , { }
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
r
R
---

r=2R
r= 2R

r
r= 2R
r=2R
R
r=2R r= 2R
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Eq ua l a re a m a p p ing a p p lie d to unifo rm ly d istrib ute d unit ve c to rs. Fi g-
ure 13.5(a) shows a pl ot of uni forml y random uni t vectors di spl ayed usi ng the
equal area stereographi c projecti on. Because the mappi ng preserves the rel a-
ti ve magni tudes of area el ements, a uni form di stri buti on of poi nts on the
sphere corresponds to a uni form di stri buti on of poi nts on the stereographi c
projecti on di sk.
By contrast, Fi g. 13.5(b) shows that merel y normal i zi ng a vector sampl ed
uni forml y from the uni t cuberesul ts i n a nonuniform di stri buti on of normal -
i zed vectors on the sphere the cl usteri ng reects over-sampl i ng the corners
of the cube.
Figure 13.5. Stereographic projections of random unit vectors. (a) a uniformly random
uni t vector di stri buti on found by normal i zi ng a uni form sampl i ng of poi nts i nsi de the
sphere. (b) a non-uniformset of uni t vectors resul ti ng from normal i zi ng a uni form sampl i ng
of poi nts i nsi de a uni t cube.
(a) (b)
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Uniformly random rotations
I n thi s secti on, we di scuss several methods for generati ng a uni forml y ran-
dom rotati on. Fi rst we need a deni ti on of uni formi ty. Let denote an arbi -
trary uni t reference vector. The sample vector generated from a random
rotati on i s dened
(13.34)
The rotati on tensor i s uni forml y di stri buted i f and onl y i f i s uni forml y
di stri buted for any reference di recti on . Equi val entl y [3], a rotati on tensor
i s uni forml y di stri buted i f and onl y i f and have the same di s-
tri buti on as for any xed rotati on .
I n upcomi ng secti ons, we rst demonstrate that a uni form rotati on can not
be obtai ned by usi ng a uni form angl e and axi s of rotati on. We wi l l nd that
uni form rotati ons requi re the di stri buti on for the angl e to be bi ased toward
.
Next we show that uni form Eul er angl es does not gi ve a uni form rotati on
ei ther. To obtai n a uni form rotati on usi ng Eul er angl es, the di stri buti on for
the second Eul er angl e must be bi ased toward .
We wi l l present the computati onal l y si mpl est al gori thm weve found for
generati ng a uni form rotati on. Namel y, we generate two uni forml y random
uni t vectors, use Gram-Schmi dt techni que to orthonormal i ze them. A thi rd
uni t vector i s formed by a ri ght-hand cross product of the orthonormal pai r,
and the rotati on tensor i s constructed by pl aci ng the three orthonormal i zed
vectors i nto col umns of the rotati on tensor. The pri nci pal unsavory feature of
thi s al gori thm i s that we have yet to nd a proof that i t resul ts i n a uni form
rotati on. As engi neers, however, we have tested thi s al gori thm by generati ng
tens of thousands of i nstances rotati ons wi th thi s method, and we have veri -
ed by computi ng the resul ti ng axi s and angl e that the di stri buti on does
i ndeed agree exactl y wi th the known di stri buti on requi red to obtai n a uni form
rotati on.
After gi vi ng the si mpl e al gori thm, we present some other more computa-
ti onal l y awkward but ri gorousl y proved al gori thms for computi ng uni -
form rotati ons.
Fi nal l y, we ni sh up thi s secti on by showi ng how to average a tensor over
al l possi bl e uni form ori entati ons.
N

180
90
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I na d e q ua c y o f using unifo rm ly ra nd o m a ng le a nd a xis. A uni forml y
random rotati on tensor must have an expected val ue of so that the rotated
sampl e vector i s equal l y l i kel y to poi nt i n any di recti on. As di scussed by
Shoemake [3], one woul d think that a uni forml y random rotati on axi s wi th a
uni forml y random rotati on angl e woul d al so correspond to a uni forml y ran-
dom rotati on tensor (computed vi a Eq. 3.14). However, as shown i n the
numeri cal experi ment of Fi g. 13.6, such a scheme make the rotated sampl e
vectors cl uster about thei r ori gi nal ori entati on, and the rotati on i s therefore
not uni form. As a matter of fact, the expected val ue of the rotati on turns out to
be , whi ch i s not zero as requi red for a uni form rotati on.
To create Fi g. 13.6, we generated roughl y random rotati ons by taki ng
the axi s and angl e to be uni form. The rotati on tensor i tsel f was then con-
structed by appl yi ng the Eul er-Rodri gues formul a of Eq. (3.14):
(13.35)
The sampl e poi nts pl otted i n Fi g. 13.6 show the rotated l ocati ons ,
, and , respecti vel y as seen usi ng equal area projecti on of the
sphere when vi ewed down the base vector (see Eq. 13.33). I n al l cases, the
rotated l ocati on of tends to cl uster about i tsel f!
0

6
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
Rotated location of E
1
Rotated location of E
2
Rotated location of E
3
E

1
E

2
E

1
E

2
E

1
E

2
Figure 13.6. Uniform axis and angle do not lead to uniform rotation. Roughl y random
rotati ons were generated usi ng uni form axi s and angl e. For each sampl e rotati on, the rotat-
ed base vector, , was computed and (regardi ng i t as a poi nt on the uni t sphere) mapped
to the pl ane vi a equal -area mappi ng. The whi te ci rcl e demarks the boundary between the
upper and l ower hemi spheres [See Fi g. 13.4]. The above dot pl ots show that the rotated posi -
ti ons of the three base vectors tend to cl uster about thei r ori gi nal ori entati ons.
10
4
R

10
4
a

cos I

( ) a

sin A

+ + =
R

2
R

3
E

k
E

k
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n
To better understand why a uni form rotati on must not have a uni form
rotati on angl e, consi der any reference vector . I f the rotati on axi s i s uni -
forml y di stri buted, then a si gni cant fracti on
*
of the rotati on tensors wi l l
have a rotati on axi s that forms an angl e wi th of l ess than . As i ndi -
cated i n Fi g. 13.7, these pol ar axes wi l l always produce a sampl e vector
that l i es i n the upper hemi sphere cl osest to . These pol ar axes are
i ncapabl e of produci ng rotated sampl e poi nts i n the l ower hemi sphere.
Onl y equatori al rotati on axes that l i e farther than from can possi-
bly generate poi nts i n the l ower hemi sphere. Bi asi ng the rotati on angl e
toward al l ows the equatori al axes to produce a compensati ng number of
sampl e poi nts i n the l ower hemi sphere. We wi l l l ater show that the rotati on
angl e has a probabi l i ty densi ty functi on gi ven by
for rotati on angl es rangi ng from to .
for rotati on angl es rangi ng from to . (13.36)
whi ch i s mi ni mum at and maxi mum at .
* roughly 21% ( )
N

=1 1 2
N

45
R

axis closer
than 45 to the
reference point
axis farther
than 45 from the
reference point
Figure 13.7. Qualitativereason why a uniformrotation must havea non-uniformrota-
tion angle. Suppose that the rotati on axi s forms an angl e smal l er than wi th the ref-
erence vector . Then regardl ess of the di stri buti on for the rotati on angl e, the rotated
sampl e vector wi l l l i e i n the upper hemi sphere cl osest to . Onl y axes farther
than away from the reference vector even have the capabi l i ty of produci ng sampl e
poi nts i n the l ower hemi sphere. Consequentl y, the rotati on angl e must be bi ased to-
wards to al l ow the equatori al axes to generate enough sampl e poi nts i n the l ower
hemi sphere to bal ance those i n the upper hemi sphere.
45
N

45
180
N

45 N

180

( )
1

---sin
2

2
--- =
p

( )
2

---sin
2

2
--- = 0
0 180
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
103
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
I na d e q ua c y o f using unifo rm Eule r a ng le s. As menti oned i n the precedi ng
secti on, a uni forml y random rotati on tensor must have an expected val ue of
zero. Thi s i s a necessary, but not sufci ent condi ti on for uni formi ty. Suppose
that you generate three uni forml y random Eul er angl es and then
construct the rotati on tensor by appl yi ng Eq. (7.4),
(13.37)
We cl ai m that the resul ti ng rotati on tensor wi l l not be uniformly random.
A rotati on i s deemed uni forml y random i f the di stri buti on for i s uni -
form for any uni t vector . The sampl e poi nts pl otted i n Fi g. 13.8 show the
rotated l ocati ons , , and correspondi ng to sampl e
poi nts generated usi ng uni form Eul er angl es. I n thi s case, the expected val ue
, , { }
R
i j
[ ]
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
1 0 0
0 cos sin
0 sin cos
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
=
2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
Figure 13.8. Uniform Euler angles produce non-uniform rotations. The top three vi ews
show equal area projecti ons of the rotated vectors , , and respecti vel y
as seen when vi ewi ng the sphere down the axi s. The bottom three vi ews show the
same rotated base vectors as seen when vi ewi ng down the axi s.
R

1
R

2
R

3
E

2
E

1
E

3
Rotated location of E
1
Rotated location of E
2
Rotated location of E
3
E

1
E

3
E

1
E

3
E

1
E

2
E

1
E

2
E

1
E

2
R

1
R

2
R

3
10
4
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
104
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
of the rotated vectors (and therefore the expected val ue of the rotati on tensor)
are zero. Thi s i s a necessary, but not sufci ent condi ti on for uni formi ty. The
uni form-Eul er-angl e scheme sti l l produces cl usteri ng. The two upper-l eft pl ots
i n Fi g. 13.8 show that the rotated l ocati ons of and coul d vi sual l y
appear to be uni form i f onl y the poi nts correspondi ng to the upper hemi sphere
were pl otted. Onl y seemi ngl y mi nor cl usteri ng at the equator woul d be detect-
abl e.
*
The cl usteri ng i s more cl earl y vi si bl e when vi ewi ng the uni t sphere
down the axi s (l ower-l eft two pl ots i n Fi g. 13.8). The rotated vector
tends to cl uster about .
Wi thout proof, we cl ai m that the correct di stri buti ons for the Eul er angl es
needed to produce a trul y uni form rotati on are
on
on
on (13.38)
Note that the di stri buti ons for and are uni form, but the di stri buti on
for must be bi ased toward val ues of .
* This clustering could be easily missed if any other (non-area-preserving) form of stereographic pro-
jection were used.
E

1
E

2
E

2
R

3
t
p

( )
1
2
------ = < <
p

( )
1
2
-- - sin = 0 < <
p

( )
1
2
------ = < <

90
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
105
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R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
An easy algorithm for generating a uniformly random
rotation.
Any rotati on tensor can be dened by how i t transforms the three l abo-
ratory base vectors, . Upon a ri gi d rotati on, thi s tri ad becomes
. Then the rotati on tensor i s , meani ng
that the col umns of the component matri x are the rotated base vectors:
(13.39)
To generate a uni forml y random rotati on tensor , we set to be a uni -
forml y random uni t vector [constructed vi a Eqs. (13.27), (13.28), and (13.29)].
We then construct a second uni forml y random vector and subtract away i ts
part i n the di recti on of . I n other words, we compute as fol l ows:
, where (13.40)
The thi rd rotated uni t vector i s gi ven by the ri ght-hand cross product:
(13.41)
Wi th the three rotated base vectors known, the uni forml y random rotati on
i s gi ven by Eq. (13.39). The numeri cal i mpl ementati on of thi s techni que i s
gi ven i n Li sti ng 7 (Generati ng a uni forml y random ri gi d rotati on.) on
page A-8. Numeri cal experi mentati on (bel ow) i ndi cates that the above al go-
ri thm does yi el d a uni forml y random rotati on, but we sti l l seek a proof.
Num e ric a l ve rific a tio n. To check the above scheme, we wrote a test code to
generate i nstances of random rotati ons. Fi gure 13.9 shows dot pl ots of the
uni forml y random l ocati ons of the vectors.
R

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
e

1
e

2
e

3
, , { } R

1
E

1
e

2
E

2
e

3
E

3
+ + =
R

[ ] e

1
{ } e

2
{ } e

3
{ } [ ] =
R

1
m

1
e

2
e

1
( )e

1
=
e

3
e

1
e

2
=
R

10
4
R

-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
E

1
E

2
E

1
E

2
E

1
E

2
Figure 13.9. Uniformly random locations of the three rotated base vectors. Each dot repre-
sents one sampl e poi nt on the uni t sphere, projected to the ci rcl e vi a equal area mappi ng
(Hence, because the dots appear to be di stri buted wi thout bi as i n thi s pi cture, then they
woul d al so appear evenl y di stri buted on the uni t sphere.)
Rotated location of E
1
Rotated location of E
2
Rotated location of E
3
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
106
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Fi g. 13.9 shows an equal area projecti on of the uni t sphere, as dened on
page 13.33. Thi s mappi ng ensures that a uni form di stri buti on on the sphere
wi l l correspond to a uni form di stri buti on of dots i n our 2D vi sual i zati on. Fi g-
ure 13.9 may be qualitatively i nterpreted as vi ews of the sphere l ooki ng down
the axi s. On al l three pl ots, the di recti on poi nts to the ri ght, the
di recti on poi nts up, and the di recti on poi nts out of the page. The three dot
pl ots show the rotated vectors , , and , respecti vel y as poi nts on the
uni t sphere. The fact that al l three dot pl ots show a uni form di stri buti on of
poi nts heuri sti cal l y demonstrates that the al gori thm does i ndeed produce a
uni form rotati on.
Gi ven that the rotati on tensor i s generated by the uni form di stri buti on
al gori thm on page 105, we shoul d be abl e to infer the di stri buti ons for the
rotati on axi s and angl e. Usi ng the al gori thm on page 105 to generate uni -
forml y random rotati ons (as i n Fi g. 13.9), we cal l ed the routi ne DC2AA (on
page 3). I n thi s way, we experi mental l y measured the di stri buti ons for axi s
and angl e that are shown i n Fi gure 13.10.
x
3
E

1
E

2
E

3
e

1
e

2
e

3
10
4
Figure 13.10. Numerical measurement of rotation axis and angle. The l eft si de
(a) shows a dot pl ot of the rotati on axi s. The graph (b) i s the cumul ati ve di stri bu-
ti on for the rotati on angl e. The graph (c) i s the cumul ati ve di stri buti on for the
vari abl e . r sin ( ) =
-2 -1 1 2
-2
-1
1
2
0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
(a)
(c)
p

( )

0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1


0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1 p
r
r ( ) where r=
1

--- sin ( )
r
(b)
E

1
E

2
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
107
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Fi gure 13.10 suggests that the rotati on
axi s i s di stri buted uni forml y. The rotati on
angl e cl earl y i s not uni form. As previ ousl y
expl ai ned, the rotati on angl e must be bi ased
toward val ues of . We l ater prove that a
uni form rotati on must have a di stri buti on for
the rotati on angl e gi ven by
for , (13.42)
whi ch i s pl otted i n Fi g. 13.11. Note that the
rotati on angl e i s wei ghted toward , as
expected.
Wi thout l oss i n general i ty, the rotati on angl e may be al ternati vel y taken to
be al ways posi ti ve (as i s presumed i n the routi ne DC2AA), i n whi ch case the
di stri buti on i s
for (13.43)
Thi s means that the cumulative distribution function must be gi ven by
(13.44)
Consequentl y, the quanti ty must be uni forml y di stri buted on the
i nterval from 0 to 1, whi ch i s veri ed i n the numeri cal experi ment of
Fi g. 13.10. Thi s numeri cal observati on further conrms (wi thout proof) that
the al gori thm on page 105 does i ndeed correspond to a uni form rotati on.
Si nce we know that
(13.45)
i s uni forml y di stri buted on the i nterval from 0 to 1, then we know we can gen-
erate a representati ve sampl i ng of the rotati on angl e by generati ng a number
that i s uni forml y random on the i nterval from 0 to 1, and then the rotati on
angl e woul d then be obtai ned by sol vi ng Eq. (13.45) for .
-1 -0.5 0.5 1
0.05
0.1
0.15
0.2
0.25
0.3
p

( )

---
Figure 13.11. Distribution for the
angle of rotation.

180
p

( )
1

---sin
2

2
--- = , [ ]
180 t
p

( )
2

---sin
2

2
--- = 0 , [ ]
g

( ) p

( ) d
0

--- sin ( ) = =
sin ( )
r sin ( ) =
r

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
108
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
An alternative algorithm for generating a uniformly random
rotation.
The above method for generati ng a uni forml y random rotati on si mpl y
requi red appl yi ng Gram-Schmi dt orthogonal i zati on to two uni forml y random
uni t vectors, wi th the thi rd uni t vector bei ng gi ven by a cross product. The
resul ti ng ri ght-handed orthogonal set of uni t vectors was then assembl ed to
form col umns of a rotati on matri x. Al gori thmi cal l y thi s i s a tri vi al proce-
dure so l ong as a functi on i s al ready avai l abl e to generate a uni forml y random
uni t vector. The onl y (mi nor) numeri cal i ssue i s that the second vector must be
re-generated i f i t i s paral l el (or nearl y paral l el ) to the rst vector.
An al ternati ve al gori thm begi ns i n the same manner by generati ng a uni -
forml y random uni t vector . I f the l aboratory component of i s the
smal l est (or ti ed for smal l est), then we know that the l ab base vector wi l l
be l i nearl y i ndependent of (i .e, ). Consequentl y, we can con-
struct a vector that i s perpendi cul ar to by the formul a
(13.46)
A thi rd uni t vector can be created by
(13.47)
The two uni t vectors and form a pl ane perpendi cul ar to . I f i s a ran-
dom number on the i nterval [0,1), then the vector
(13.48)
i s uni forml y random i n the pl ane perpendi cul ar to . The uni forml y random
rotati on tensor woul d then be constructed by
, where (13.49)
We thi nk that the previ ous al gori thm was much si mpl er, both conceptual l y
and numeri cal l y.
3 3
n

1
k
th
n

1
E

k
n

1
n

1
E

k
0
m

1
m

k
n

1
E

k
n

1
( )
E

k
n

1
E

k
n

1
( )
-------------------------------------------------- =
t

1
m

=
m

1
R
n

2
2R ( ) cos m

2R ( ) sin t

+ =
n

1
R

[ ] n

1
{ } n

2
{ } n

3
{ } [ ] = n

3
n

1
n
2
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
109
D
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A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Shoemakes algorithm for uniformly random rotations.
Recal l that a rotati on tensor may al ways be expressed i n terms of a poi nt
l yi ng on the surface of a sphere i n four-di mensi onal space:
where (13.50)
The surface area of the 4D uni t hypersphere i s . Therefore, for a uni form
di stri buti on on the 4D hypersphere, the joi nt di stri buti on functi on must be
dened such that
(13.51)
The symbol denotes the four-di mensi onal vector . By vi rtue
of Eq. (5.2), we may i ntroduce 4-di mensi onal spheri cal coordi nates
such that
(13.52)
The area el ement on the 4D uni t hypersphere i s
(13.53)
Noti ng that and range from 0 to and ranges from 0 to , the surface
area of the enti re 4D uni t hypersphere i s . For a uni form di stri buti on on
the 4D hypersphere, the joi nt di stri buti on functi on for the spheri cal coordi -
nates must be dened such that
(13.54)
Hence, substi tuti ng Eqs. (13.51) and (13.53) i nto Eq. (13.54),
(13.55)
By symmetry, the joi nt di stri buti on shoul d be separabl e. Therefore
(13.56)
Compari ng the above two equati ons, we concl ude
(13.57)
(13.58)
u
o
u
1
u
2
u
3
, , , ( )
R

2u
o
2
1 ( )I

2u

2u
o

+ =
u

u
1
E

1
u
2
E

2
u
o
E

3
+ +
2
2
p
u
u ( )
1
2
2
--------- =
u u
o
u
1
u
2
u
3
, , , { }
, , { }
u
o
cos =
u
1
sin sin cos ( ) =
u
2
sin sin sin ( ) =
u
3
sin cos ( ) =
dA sin sin
2
( )ddd =
2
2
2
p
u
u ( )dA p
, ,
, , ( )ddd =
p
, ,
, , ( )
sin sin
2
( )
2
2
----------------------------- =
p
, ,
, , ( ) p

( ) p

( ) p

( ) =
p

( )
2

---sin
2
( ) =
p

( )
1
2
-- - sin =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
110
D
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A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(13.59)
We have assi gned the coefci ents so that the i ntegral s of each of the di stri bu-
ti on functi ons over the ful l range of thei r arguments wi l l equal uni ty, as
requi red for any di stri buti on functi on.
Recal l i ng that the rotati on angl e equal s , the densi ty functi on for the
rotati on angl e must be gi ven by
(13.60)
The above di stri buti on corresponds to
(13.61)
Wi thout l oss i n general i ty i t i s al ways possi bl e (by changi ng the di recti on
of the rotati on axi s) to presume that the rotati on angl e sati ses , i n
whi ch case,
, and (13.62)
I n thi s case, a rotati on i s descri bed by a uni t quaterni on l yi ng on a spheri cal
hemispherei n four di mensi onal space (so the factor of i n Eq. 13.55 woul d
become and al l of the subsequent arguments woul d go through unchanged
to ul ti matel y l ead to Eq. 13.62).
Sho e m a ke s q ua te rnio n a lg o rithm fo r d ire c tly c o m p uting a unifo rm
ro ta tio n. Shoemake cl ai ms that the fol l owi ng al gori thm wi l l resul t i n a uni -
form rotati on:
STEP 1.Generate three i ndependent random numbers that are
uni forml y di stri buted between 0 and 1.
STEP 2.Compute two uni forml y di stri buted angl es, and
, and thei r si nes and cosi nes, .
STEP 3.Compute and .
STEP 4.Compute the uni t quaterni on wi th components
,
, , (13.63)
STEP 5.Compute the rotati on by appl yi ng Eq. (13.50):
where (13.64)
p

( )
1
2
------ =
2

( )
1
2
-- - p

2
---
,
_
1

---sin
2

2
---
,
_
= =

sin 0
0 p

( )
2

---sin
2

2
---
,
_
=
2
2

2
X
0
X
1
X
2
, , { }

1
2X
1
=

2
2X
2
= s
1
c
1
s
2
c
2
, , ,
r
1
1 X
o
= r
2
X
o
=
u
o
c
2
r
2
=
u
1
s
1
r
1
= u
2
c
1
r
1
= u
3
s
2
r
2
=
R

2u
o
2
1 ( )I

2u

2u
o

+ =
u

u
1
E

1
u
2
E

2
u
3
E

3
+ +
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
111
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Shoemakes al gori thm has been veri ed by us and i s gi ven i n the routi ne
cal l ed RNDC i n Li sti ng 7 (Generati ng a uni forml y random ri gi d rota-
ti on.) on page A-8.
Num e ric a lly g e ne ra ting a ro ta tio n a ng le . The functi on needed to convert
from a pseudo-random number on [0,1) to a rotati on angl e wi th di stri buti on of
Eq. (13.43) i s determi ned by appl yi ng Eq. (13.16):
(13.65)
Setti ng gi ves
(13.66)
I f i s uni forml y di stri buted on the i nterval from 0 to 1, then i s di stri buted
accordi ng from 0 to accordi ng to Eq. (13.43), and vi ce versa. Fi g. 13.10(b)
veri es the converse statement. Speci cal l y, we generated random rota-
ti ons, and for each rotati on, we used the functi on on page 3 to compute the
rotati on angl e . Fi g. 13.10(b) shows that the cumul ati ve di stri buti on for
i s l i near, i ndi cati ng that i s uni form.
Unfortunatel y, Eq. (13.66) cannot be sol ved to gi ve as an anal yti cal func-
ti on of , so we woul d need to use a numeri cal root sol ver to obtai n the sampl e
val ue of . Listing 6(Generating a uniformly randomunit normal) on
page A-7coul d be used to generate a uni forml y random rotati on axi s . The
correspondi ng rotati on tensor can be constructed by usi ng the Eul er-Rod-
ri gues formul a from Eq. (3.14):
(13.67)
Thi s random rotati on wi l l be uni forml y di stri buted i n the sense that any refer-
ence poi nt wi l l map to a uni forml y di stri buted sampl e poi nt . The
above scheme for computi ng the random rotati on i s equi val ent to but l ess
efci ent than to the method descri bed on page 100. The advantage of thi s
formul ati on i s that the anal yti cal expressi ons for the densi ty functi ons are
better sui ted for computi ng expected val ues.
g ( ) p

( ) d

sin

--------------------- =
g ( ) r =
sin r =
r
10
4

r sin ( ) = r

cos I

( ) a

sin

+ =
N

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Random Rotations
112
D
R
A
F
T
R
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b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The e xp e c te d va lue o f a unifo rm ly ra nd o m ro ta tio n is ze ro .
We can wri te the rotati on axi s i n terms of spheri cal coordi nates as
(13.68)
I f the rotati on axi s i s uni forml y di stri buted, then the di stri buti on functi ons for
and are
and (13.69)
Let be any uni t vector. We wi sh to determi ne whether the di stri buti on for
i s uni form. We can al ways set up a basi s such that . Then
=
+
+ (13.70)
Lets veri fy that the di stri buti ons of Eqs. (13.42) and (13.69) correspond to a
zero expected val ue of :
(13.71)
Performi ng thi s i ntegral does i ndeed show that the di stri buti on has a zero
expected val ue. Thi s i s a necessary (not sufci ent*) condi ti on for to be
uni forml y di stri buted on the uni t sphere. To prove that i s uni forml y
di stri buted, we wri te
(13.72)
The di stri buti ons of Eqs. (13.42) and (13.69) correspond to a uni form di stri bu-
ti on for the rotati on i f and onl y i f the coordi nates are uni forml y
di stri buted on the uni t sphere. Thus
, (13.73)
whi ch i s i ndeed the di stri buti on i mpl i ed by Eqs. (13.42) and (13.69).
* Uniform Euler angles will produce a non-uniform distribution of that nevertheless has a
zero expected value.
a

sin cos e

1
sin e

2
+ ( ) cos e

3
+ =

p

( )
1
2
---
sin = p

( )
1
2
------ =
N

3
N

=
R

cos e

3
a

cos ( ) a

cos sin sin cos e

2
sin e

1
+ ( ) ( ) + + =
e

1
sin ( ) cos ( ) cos ( ) 1 cos ( ) sin ( ) sin ( ) sin ( ) + [ ]
e

2
sin ( ) sin ( ) cos ( ) 1 cos ( ) sin ( ) sin ( ) cos ( ) [ ]
e

3
cos
2
cos ( )sin
2
+ [ ]
R

E R

[ ] R

3
( ) p

( ) p

( ) p

( ) ( ) ( ) d d d
0
2 ( )

=
R

n
1
e

1
n
2
e

2
n
3
e

3
+ + =
n
1
n
2
n
3
, , ( )
p
n

( )
1
4
------ =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
113
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The c o nne c tio n b e twe e n the iso tro p ic p a rt o f a te nso r a nd the
e xp e c te d va lue o f tha t te nso r ove r the se t o f unifo rm sup e rim p o se d
ro ta tio ns. Let be some known tensor and l et denote a second tensor that
i s generated by superi mposi ng a rotati on on the rst tensor:
(13.74)
I f i s uni forml y random, then (wi thout proof) the expected val ue of i s
(13.75)
I n other words, the expected val ue of a tensor over al l possi bl e uni form rota-
ti ons of that tensor i s just the isotropic part of that tensor. Thi s resul t al so
hol ds for hi gher-order tensors as wel l . I n general , ndi ng the i sotropi c part of
a tensor i s the same as projecti ng that tensor to the space of i sotropi c tensors.
For exampl e, a second-order tensor i s i sotropi c i f and onl y i f
or for al l rotati ons . (13.76)
Wri ti ng thi s deni ti on i n component form eventual l y reveal s that any i sotro-
pi c tensor (i n 3D space) must be si mpl y proporti onal to the i denti ty tensor .
Therefore, the i denti ty tensor must be a basis for the space of i sotropi c second-
order tensors referenced to 3D physi cal space. By referenced to 3D physi cal
space we si mpl y mean that the tensor i s expressi bl e i n terms of a
matri x. Because al l i sotropi c matri ces are expressi bl e as some scal ar
ti mes one matri x (the i denti ty matri x), the space of i sotropi c second-order ten-
sors referenced to 3D physi cal space must be one-di mensi onal . A 3D second-
order tensor i s projected to i ts one-di mensi onal i sotropi c space by appl yi ng the
fol l owi ng projecti on operati on:
for 3D tensors (13.77)
Here, the denotes the i nner product, whi ch for second-order tensors i s
dened . The hat over the i denti ty tensor denotes normal i za-
ti on of the i denti ty tensor. Speci cal l y:
(13.78)
Noti ng that i s the same thi ng as , Eq. (13.77), becomes the tradi ti onal
expressi on for the i sotropi c part of a 3D second-order tensor:
for 3D tensors (13.79)
We have emphasi zed that thi s resul t hol ds for second-order tensors referenced
to three-dimensional physi cal space. To see why thi s i s i mportant, consi der
two-dimensional space. A 2D second-order tensor i s expressi bl e i n terms of a
matri x and the tensor i s i sotropi c i f and onl y i f
S

T
S

=
R

E S

[ ]
1
3
--- trS

( ) I

=
A

T
A

= R
pi
R
qj
A
pq
A
i j
= R

3 3
3 3
isoS

*I

( ) I

= 2
nd
-order
*
A

*B

A
i j
B
i j
=
I

*I

--------------
I

3
------- = =
S

*I

trS

isoS

1
3
---
trS

( ) I

= 2
nd
-order
2 2
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
114
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
for al l (13.80)
Anal yzi ng thi s deni ti on reveal s that the onl y restri cti ons that need to be
pl aced on the components of are
and (13.81)
Therefore, any i sotropi c tensor i n two-dimensions i s expressi bl e i n the form
for some scal ars and . (13.82)
I n other words, any i sotropi c tensor i n two-dimensions can al ways be wri tten
as a l i near combi nati on of the 2D i denti ty tensor and the 2D al ternati ng
tensor (dened such that i s zero i f , +1 i f , and i f ).
Thus, the space of i sotropi c tensors i n two-dimensions i s two di mensi onal . The
matri x expressi ons for the two base tensors are
and (13.83)
Thi s basi s i s al ready orthogonal . The normal i zed basi s i s
and (13.84)
Here, the * operator i s the 2D i nner product, dened by
where repeated i ndi ces are summed from 1 to 2.
The projecti on of a 2D second-order tensor to i ts i sotropi c part i s
obtai ned by the projecti on operati on
for 2D tensors (13.85)
Expandi ng thi s out i n component form gi ves
for 2D tensors (13.86)
Thi s formul a i s si gni cantl y di fferent from the correspondi ng operati on for 3D
tensors!
The techni ques descri bed so far for second-order tensors general i ze si mi -
l arl y to hi gher-order tensors. For exampl e, a 3D thi rd-order tensor i s i sotro-
pi c i f and onl y i f
for al l rotati ons . (13.87)
cos sin
sin cos
A
11
A
12
A
21
A
22
cos sin
sin cos
A
11
A
12
A
21
A
22
=
A [ ]
A
11
A
22
= A
12
A
21
=



I


i j
i = j i j 12 = 1 i j 21 =
I

[ ]
1 0
0 1
=

[ ]
0 1
1 0
=
I

*I

--------------
I

2
------- = =

-------------

2
------- = =
A

*B

A
i j
B
i j
=
S

isoS

*I

( ) I

( )

+ = 2
nd
-order
isoS

[ ]
1
2
---
S
11
S
22
+ ( )
1
2
---
S
12
S
21
( )
1
2
---
S
21
S
12
( )
1
2
---
S
11
S
22
+ ( )
= 2
nd
-order
A

R
pi
R
qj
R
sk
A
pqs
A
i j k
= R

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Random Rotations
115
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
I t turns out that thi s condi ti on can be sati sed i f and onl y i f i s proporti onal
to the thi rd-order al ternati ng tensor. Therefore, the i sotropi c part of a thi rd-
order tensor i s obtai ned by the projecti on operati on
, (13.88)
where * i s now the thi rd-order i nner product ( ) and
(13.89)
As before, the i sotropi c part of a thi rd order tensor i s i denti cal to the expected
val ue of that tensor over the set of uni form superi mposed rotati ons. Thus, the
expected val ue of a 3D thi rd-order tensor over a uni forml y random rotati on i s
gi ven by
(13.90)
Conti nui ng i n thi s same vei n, the expected val ue of a fourth-order tensor over
uni form rotati ons i s gi ven by the i sotropi c part of the tensor:
(13.91)
Agai n, to compute the i sotropi c part, we must project the tensor to the space of
i sotropi c fourth-order tensors. I t turns out that an i sotropi c 3D fourth-order
tensor i s al ways expressi bl e as a l i near combi nati on of three i sotropi c base
tensors havi ng components gi ven by
, , and (13.92)
These three tensors form a basi s for i sotropi c 3D fourth-order tensors. How-
ever, the basi s i s not orthonormal i zed, as i t must be i f we wi sh to dene the
projecti on operati on i s the usual way. An al ternati ve orthogonal set of base-
tensors for the space of i sotropi c 4th-order tensors i s
(13.93)
A

iso

,
_

=
A

*B

A
i j k
B
i j k
=

-------------

6
------- = =
E

iso

1
6
---
mnp

mnp
( )
i j k
e

i
e

j
e

k
= =
E C

isoC

=
i j kl

i j

kl

i k

j l

i l

j k
P
i j kl
I
1
3
---
i j

kl
=
P
i j kl
SD
1
2
---
i k

j l

i l

j k
+ ( )
1
3
---
i j

kl
=
P
i j kl
A
1
2
---
i k

j l

i l

j k
( ) =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Random Rotations
116
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The tensors i n thi s al ternati ve basi s are projectors themsel ves. When
acts on a second-order tensor, the resul t i s the i sotropi c part of that tensor.
When acts on a second-order tensor, the resul t i s the symmetri c-devi a-
tori c part of that tensor. When acts on a tensor, the resul t i s the anti -
symmetri c part of that tensor.
We note that
(13.94)
Therefore, the i sotropi c part of a fourth-order tensor i s obtai ned by
(13.95)
P
i j kl
I
P
i j kl
SD
P
i j kl
A
P
i j kl
I
P
i j kl
I
1 =
P
i j kl
SD
P
i j kl
SD
5 =
P
i j kl
A
P
i j kl
A
3 =
C
i j kl
isoC

,
_
i j kl
C
pqrs
P
pqrs
I
( )P
i j kl
I
C
pqrs
P
pqrs
SD
( )P
i j kl
SD
5
-------------------------------------------------
C
pqrs
P
pqrs
A
( )P
i j kl
A
3
------------------------------------------------- + + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
SCALARS and INVARIANTS
117
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
14. SCALARS and INVARIANTS
An i nvari ant i s somethi ng that remai ns unchanged upon a change of basi s.
The components of a vector are NOT i nvari ant because those components
change when we change the basi s. However, the sum of components ti mes
base vectors wi l l remai n unchanged upon a change of basi s. Thus, i n thi s
sense, vectors such as vel oci ty and el ectri c el d are i nvari ant -- these physi cal
quanti ti es themsel ves do not change si mpl y because we change our own ori en-
tati on from whi ch we vi ew them. I f the i nvari ant i s a singlenumber (such as
temperature or mass densi ty), then i t i s usual l y cal l ed a scalar. The term sca-
lar invariant i s typi cal l y used to denote a si ngl e number i nvari ant that i s
obtai ned by some operati on appl i ed to a di recti onal quanti ty. For exampl e, the
magni tude of a vector i s a scal ar i nvari ant of the vector. The trace of a tensor
i s a scal ar i nvari ant of that tensor. A scal ar i nvari ant i s a real -val ued functi on
of the components of a vector or tensor that wi l l gi ve the same resul t regard-
l ess of what basi s i s used. For exampl e, the trace of a tensor i s typi cal l y
dened
(14.1)
To prove that thi s i s a scal ar i nvari ant, we must prove that i t gi ves the same
resul t regardl ess of the basi s used.
Rebecca: provide this proof
I n Chapter 2, we di scussed the di sti ncti on between
1. l eavi ng physi cal quanti ti es al one whi l e we reori ent ourselves.
2. l eavi ng our ori entati on fi xed, whi l e we reori ent the physi cal pl ane.
For the rst si tuati on, al l scal ar i nvari ants wi l l be the same before and after
we reori ent oursel ves. For the second si tuati on, scal ar i nvari ants of most of
the physi cal quanti ti es (e.g., thei r magni tudes) wi l l remai n unchanged, but
some of the scal ar i nvari ants mi ght actual l y change. A good exampl e, i s the
trace of the rotati on tensor. I f we have a rotati on tensor and take i ts trace i n
two di fferent orthonormal bases, the resul t wi l l be the same. However, i f we
have a rotati on tensor i n one physi cal system, and we create a second physi cal
system by addi ng addi ti onal rotati on to the rst one, then the rotati on tensor
for the second system wi l l be di fferent from that of the rst. I n parti cul ar, i f
both systems share the same rotati on axi s, then the rotati on angl e for the sec-
ond system wi l l be l arger than the rotati on angl e for the rst system by an
amount equal to our superi mposed rotati on.
A

A
i i
i 1 =
3

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
118
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
15. The principle of material frame indifference
(PMFI)
What is a superimposed rotation?
Suppose that you have worked extremel y hard to deri ve the mappi ng func-
ti on, stretch, rotati on, and other ki nemati c properti es for a parti cul ar moti on
such as uni axi al strai n or si mpl e shear. Suppose that you al so appl i ed mate-
ri al model s so that you now know al l the appl i ed stresses needed to obtai n thi s
parti cul ar deformed state. Now suppose that you were supposed to have
deri ved the resul ts for a deformati on i denti cal to the deformati on that you
anal yzed, except rotated. I s there any way to easi l y convert your resul ts, or do
you have to start over from scratch?
The starti ng deformati on for whi ch you have al ready suffered through
obtai ni ng the ki nemati c and mechani cs sol uti on i s cal l ed the duci al defor-
mati on. I n physi cs, the word duci al means regarded or empl oyed as a
standard of reference for measurement or cal cul ati on. When anal yzi ng the
duci al deformati on, the standard of reference i s the undeformed state. Now
we ask: what i f we seek to anal yze a new deformati on where the reference con-
gurati on i s sti l l the undeformed reference, but the deformati on i s now gi ven
by the duci al deformati on subjected to an addi ti onal rotati on?
star deformation:
SIMPLE SHEAR with
fiducial deformation:
SIMPLE SHEAR
superimposed rotation Q
2
1
where tan
1
=
with axis parallel to
3-direction
R

(star)
Q

(fiducial)
=
F

(fiducial)
1 2 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
= R

(fiducial)
cos sin 0
sin cos 0
0 0 1
=
U

(fiducial)
R

(fiducial)
( )
T
F

(fiducial)
=
F

(star)
Q

(fiducial)
=
U

(star)
U

(fiducial)
=
V

(fiducial)
F

(fiducial)
R

(fiducial)
( )
T
=
V

(star)
Q

(fiducial)
Q

T
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
119
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Thi s addi ti onal rotati on that i s appl i ed to the duci al deformati on i s cal l ed a
superi mposed rotati on. As i ndi cated i n the above gure, the resul ts from the
duci al anal ysi s can be i mmedi atel y modi ed to permi t the superi mposed
rotati on. Speci cal l y, the star deformati on that resul ts from superi mposi ng
the rotati on on top of the duci al deformati on i s i mmedi atel y seen
to be . Li kewi se, the rotati on tensor must be obtai ned by appl yi ng
the superi mposed rotati on on top of the duci al rotati on so that
the rotati on resul ti ng from these two sequenti al l y appl i ed deformati ons must
be gi ven by .
Thi ngs get confusi ng when we l ook at the stretch tensors. Recal l that the
right stretch i s the stretch appl i ed i n the undeformed reference congura-
ti on. Now recal l that a superi mposed rotati on corresponds to an al terati on of
the duci al physi cal system by addi ng addi ti onal rotati on. The key i s that
both the duci al system and the rotated system have the same i ni ti al states.
Thus, for exampl e, i f i s the initial ori entati on of some materi al ber, then
that i ni ti al ori entati on i s the same for both the duci al system and the one
that i ncl udes superi mposed rotati on.
(15.1)
The ri ght stretch tensor i s si mi l ar. Recal l that the pol ar decomposi ti on
can be i nterpreted physi cal l y as a pure stretch followed by a
pure rotati on . Si nce the superi mposed rotati on i s appl i ed after the i ni ti al
stretch, we see that the i ni ti al stretch must be the same for both the star
and duci al systems:
(15.2)
By contrast, the ri ght stretch tensor i n the pol ar decomposi ti on
i s i nterpreted physi cal l y as a stretch that takes pl ace after the rotati on i s
appl i ed. For the two systems, we have
(15.3)
and
(15.4)
Recal l i ng that and , we can rewri te
Eq. (15.3) as
(15.5)
Thus putti ng Eq. (15.4) i nto (15.5) and sol vi ng for gi ves
(15.6)
Q

(fiducial)
Q

(fiducial)

(fiducial)
Q

(fiducial)

(star)
N

(fiducial)
=
F

= U

(star)
U

(fiducial)
=
V

=
F

(star)
V

(star)
R

(star)
=
F

(fiducial)
V

(fiducial)
R

(fiducial)
=
R

(star)
Q

(fiducial)
= F

(star)
Q

(fiducial)
=
Q

(fiducial)
V

(star)
Q

(fiducial)
=
V

(star)
V

(star)
Q

(fiducial)
Q

T
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
120
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Thus, the ri ght stretch tensor transforms under a superi mposed ri gi d rotati on
i n a manner that l ooks qui te si mi l ar to the component transformati on formul a
associ ated wi th a basi s change (see, for exampl e, Eq. 1.32). The fact that some
tensors transform i n a manner l i ke a basi s transform whi l e others dont i s a
key feature that di sti ngui shes superi mposed rotati on from si mpl e reori enta-
ti on of the observer. Some books speak of the pri nci pl e of materi al frame i ndi f-
ference by speaki ng of an orthogonal change of frame. I ts i mportant to real i ze
that the change of frame i s appl i ed after the physi cal state has been esta-
bi shed. The way to thi nk about thi s vi ewpoi nt i s that two observers are i ni -
ti al l y i denti cal l y ori ented, but they adopt di fferent ori entati ons as the
physi cal system undergoes i ts process. Then both observers record identical
component matri ces for al l of the initial vectors and tensors, whi l e they
observe rel ati vel y rotated components for the current or spatial vectors
and tensors.
Reference and Objective/spatial tensors
A reference tensor (i ncl udi ng zeroth and rst order tensors i .e., scal ars
and vectors) i s one that i s unchanged by a superi mposed rotati on. Exampl es
i ncl ude, as di scussed above, the i ni ti al ori entati on of a vector, the ri ght stretch
tensor, etc. That i s,
I f , then the scal ar i s a reference scal ar (15.7)
I f , then the vector i s a reference vector (15.8)
I f , then the tensor i s a reference tensor (15.9)
and so on.
An objectiveor spatial tensor i s one whose transformati on under a super-
i mposed rotati on has the same form as the transformati on under an orthogo-
nal basi s rotati on.
I f , then the scal ar i s a spati al (objecti ve) scal ar (15.10)
I f , then the vector i s a spati al (objecti ve) vector (15.11)
I f , then the tensor i s a spati al (objecti ve) tensor (15.12)
Fi rst note that, i f a scal ar i s objecti ve, then i t i s al so a reference scal ar. The
vast majori ty of scal ars are objecti ve, but (as di scussed bel ow) some are not.
Note that Eq. (15.12) can be wri tten i n component form as
I f , then the tensor i s a spati al (objecti ve) tensor (15.13)
s
(star)
s
(fiducial)
= s
v

(star)
v

(fiducial)
= v

(star)
T

(fiducial)
= T

s
(star)
s
(fiducial)
= s
v

(star)
Q

(fiducial)
= v

(star)
Q

(fiducial)
Q

T
= T

T
i j
(star)
Q
i m
Q
j n
T
mn
(fiducial)
= T

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
121
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
For hi gher-order tensors, i ts easi est to dene the objecti vi ty (spati al ten-
sor) property usi ng a notati on l i ke thi s. Consi der, for exampl e, a thi rd order
tensor :
I f , then the tensor i s a spati al (objecti ve) tensor. (15.14)
An al ternati ve way to thi nk about an objecti ve tensor i s that the star tensor
i s the same as the duci al tensor i f al l of the base vectors used i n the basi s
expansi on of the tensor are changed from to . I n other words,
I f , then i s a spati al (objecti ve) tensor (15.15)
Thi s resul t suggests that i t mi ght be useful to empl oy two di fferent orthonor-
mal bases when worki ng physi cal probl ems.
Reference tensors are most natural l y expressed i n terms of the basi s (15.16)
Objecti ve/spati al tensors are most natural l y expressed i n terms of a basi s (15.17)
True or False: scalars are unaffected by a superimposed
rigid rotation.
The answer i s fal se. Understandi ng the reason for thi s answer i s an i mpor-
tant step towards understandi ng why the pri nci pl e of materi al frame i ndi ffer-
ence (PMFI ) i s a concept di sti nct from the rul es governi ng orthogonal
coordi nate transformati ons. As di scussed i n Secti on 14, a scal ar i s somethi ng
whose val ue i s unchanged upon a basi s rotati on. Most physi cal scal ars are
objecti ve. However, not al l scal ars wi l l be unchanged upon a superi mposed
rotati on. A good counterexampl e i s the trace of the rotati on tensor di scussed
i n Secti on 14 -- that quanti ty i s a scal ar i nvari ant, but i t i s nei ther a reference
nor objecti ve scal ar.
As a rul e of thumb, reference tensors are quanti ti es whose deni ti on i s
cl osel y coupl ed to the initial state (whi ch, recal l , i s the same for both the du-
ci al and star states). Objecti ve/spati al tensors are quanti ti es whose deni -
ti on i s most physi cal l y meani ngful i n the current state. Some quanti ti es, such
as the deformati on gradi ent tensor or the trace of the rotati on, are nei ther ref-
erence nor spati al these enti ti es typi cal l y carry i nformati on that coupl es
the i ni ti al state to the current state.
The natural basi s for reference tensors i s the basi s, whi l e the natural
basi s for spati al tensors i s the basi s. For tensors that are nei ther refer-
ence nor spati al , the natural basi s i s often a two-poi nt or mi xed basi s. The
natural basi s for the deformati on gradi ent i s , whereas the natural basi s
for the transposeof the deformati on gradi ent i s . The concept of a natural
basi s i s useful for doubl e-checki ng anal yti cal work because any operati on that
i nvol ves the dot product of wi th i s so rare that i t serves as a red ag
that an error mi ght exi st. I f, for exampl e, your anal ysi s resul ts i n the appear-
ance of , you shoul d be worri ed because, i n terms of the natural basi s,

i j k
(star)
Q
i m
Q
j n
Q
knp

mnp
(fiducial)
=

i
Q

(star)

i j k
(fiducial)
Q

i
( ) Q

i
( ) Q

i
( ) =

i
e

i
Q

i

E

i
E

i
e

i
e

i
e

i
E

j
E

j
e

i
e

i
E

j
F

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
122
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(15.18)
Expandi ng thi s out i nvol ves the dot product , whi ch i nvol ves base vec-
tors from two di fferent systems. Thi s suggests that an error must have
creeped i nto your work. You mi ght have i ntended to wri te, say, or
, both of whi ch i nvol ve dot products of the same class of base vector.
These are subtl e concepts that a practi ci ng engi neer can get by wi thout ever
knowi ng they just serve as another i tem i n ones bag of tri cks that i s some-
ti mes useful for spotti ng errors.
Prelude to PMFI: A philosophical diversion
The study of physi cs often i nvol ves i ntui ti vel y si mpl e concepts stated i n a
very obtuse but ul ti matel y more useful mathemati cal form. Swi tchi ng
from i mpreci se Engl i sh (or other l anguage) to mathemati cs i s essenti al for any
advanced anal ysi s. Unfortunatel y, however, the ori gi nal chi l di shl y si mpl e
obvi ousness of the ori gi nal concept often becomes l ost i n the process. Consi der,
for exampl e, the mathemati cal l y preci se statement of conservati on of mass:
, (15.19)
where i s the mass densi ty, i s the di vergence operator, and i s the
materi al vel oci ty. I ts easy to forget that thi s sti l ted equati on i s just an obtuse
way of expressi ng the i ntui ti ve concept that What comes in must go out
or stay there.
I ntui ti vel y si mpl e concepts often become qui te obtuse when cast i n mathe-
mati cal form. The mathemati cal form i s nonethel ess essenti al to ensure
adherence to the pri nci pl e. Materi al frame i ndi fference i s no excepti on. I ts
preci se statement i s somewhat daunti ng, but i ts basi c meani ng i s real l y qui te
si mpl e. I n the subsequent secti ons, we are goi ng to di scuss several moti va-
ti onal exampl es to i ntroduce the basi c i dea of PMFI .
F

F
i j
e

i
E

j
( ) F
mn
e

m
E

n
( ) =
E

j
e

T
F

+ 0 =
( ) v

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
123
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
PMFI: a sloppy introduction
The pri nci pl e of materi al frame i ndi fference i mposes a physi cal l y i ntui ti ve
constrai nt on materi al consti tuti ve l aws. I f you appl y the consti tuti ve l aw for
some parti cul ar deformati on, whi ch we shal l cal l the duci al deformati on,
then you get a certai n predi cti on for the stress tensor . Suppose that you
compute the predi cti on of the consti tuti ve l aw for a different starred defor-
mati on that i s i denti cal to the duci al deformati on except that i t addi ti onal l y
has ri gi d rotati on and transl ati on. I ntui ti vel y, you woul d expect that the
stress for the starred deformati on shoul d be exactl y the same as the stress for
the duci al deformati on except rotated al ong wi th the materi al . The pri nci pl e
of materi al frame i ndi fference (PMFI ) i s the obtuse and often confusi ng math-
emati cal expressi on of thi s i ntui ti vel y si mpl e physi cal concept. We wi l l l ater
see that model s vi ol ati ng PMFI can usual l y be corrected by si mpl y changi ng
the model s i ndependent vari abl es.

=
F

Fiducial deformation
(same as ducial except
rigidly rotated and translated)
Calling constitutive subroutines gives
a ducial stress .

Calling constitutive subroutines gives


a prediction for the star stress .

The principle of material frame


indifference says that this star stress
should be the same as the ducial
stress except rotated. Namely, PMFI
demands that the constitutive routines

T
=
should predict
Starred deformation
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
124
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Translational frame invariance
I n thi s secti on, we are goi ng to show a si mpl e and obvi ousl y awed model
that i s not frame i ndi fferent. The i dea here i s to pretend that you have pro-
grammed your model i nto a dumb computer that i s capabl e of only appl yi ng
the model l i teral l y the computer does not assess val i di ty of the model . Any
rati onal human bei ng woul d have no probl em di scerni ng the intended mean-
i ng of the awed model . The poi nt of thi s secti on i s that the computer (whi ch
al ways appl i es the model exactl y as you program i t) wi l l get the wrong resul t.
Before l ooki ng at materi al consti tuti ve equati ons, l ets consi der a model for
a l i near spri ng: The force i n the spri ng equal s a spri ng constant ti mes
change i n l ength of spri ng.
(15.20)
Suppose that we wi sh to general i ze thi s model so that i t appl i es i n vector
form. Then we mi ght i ntroduce the fol l owi ng vari abl es:
= current l ocati on of the ti p of the spri ng.
= ori gi nal (unstressed) l ocati on of the ti p of the spri ng. (15.21)
An undergraduate physi cs student mi ght be tempted to propose
(vi ol ates PMFI ) (15.22)
Thi s model vi ol ates i nvari ance under ri gi d transl ati on because in its literal
sense, i t does not account for the possi bi l i ty that the tail of the spri ng mi ght
move. I f we were to i mpl ement Eq. (15.22) on a dumb computer, the resul ti ng
program woul d wrongl y predi ct a larger spri ng force for the star deformati on
i n Fi g. 15.1 than for the duci al deformati on, even though both deformati ons
i nvol ve the same amount of spri ng stretch.
f k

f k =
x

o
f

k x

o
( ) =
x

o
x

undeformed
Fiducial deformation
undeformed
Starred deformation
Figure 15.1. Two deformations involving the same spring stretch for which the faulty
model wrongly predicts different spring forces. On the l eft i s a deformati on i n whi ch the
tai l of the spri ng does not move. On the ri ght i s a deformati on that i s i denti cal to the du-
ci al deformati on except that the spri ng i s al so ri gi dl y transl ated. The model of Eq. (15.22)
predi cts the wrong answer because i t does not i ncl ude the posi ti on of the tail
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
125
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
As human bei ngs, we know intuitively that the deformati on on the ri ght
si de of Fi g. 15.1 shoul d i nvol ve the same spri ng force si nce i t i nvol ves the
same amount of spri ng el ongati on. However, a computer program usi ng
Eq. (15.1) has no i ntui ti on i t just gi ves us the wrong answer.* For (Gal i l ean)
i nvari ance under transl ati on, our spri ng model must have the property that i t
wi l l predi ct exactl y the same force whenever we ri gi dl y transl ate the spri ng i n
space. Thi s i s an i ntui ti vel y si mpl e concept. I ts mathemati cal expressi on,
however, i s l ess obvi ous. The i dea here i s that we compare two deformati ons:
Fiducial deformation: stretch the spri ng by some known amount.
Starred deformation: stretch the spri ng by the same amount and al so
transl ate i t by an amount .
Both scenari os i nvol ve the same starti ng l ocati on, so i s the same i n both
cases. Let denote the deformed l ocati on of the ti p for the duci al deforma-
ti on. Let denote the deformed l ocati on of the ti p for the starred deforma-
ti on. Denoti ng the amount of transl ati on by , we note that the l ocati on of the
spri ng ti p for the starred deformati on i s gi ven by
(15.23)
Both scenari os i nvol ve the same starting congurati on, so for the starred
deformati on i s the same as for the duci al deformati on. I t i s common prac-
ti ce to denote al l vari abl es used i n the starred deformati on vari abl e by an
asteri sk. Hence,
(15.24)
The pri nci pl e of i nvari ance under transl ati on says that both scenari os are
supposed to involve the same spring force. Thus, we requi re that our spri ng
model shoul d predi ct to be the same for both the starred and duci al defor-
mati ons:
(15.25)
We demand that thi s condi ti on shoul d hol d no matter how much transl ati on
we use. To demonstrate that Eq. (15.22) vi ol ates transl ati onal frame i nvari -
ance, we si mpl y appl y i t i n both scenari os:
For the duci al deformati on, (15.26)
For starred deformati on, the spri ng model predi cts
(15.27)
To check whether or not thi s predi cti on for agrees wi th the desi red resul t
gi ven i n Eq. (15.25), we substi tute Eqs. (15.23) and (15.24) i nto Eq. (15.27) to
obtai n
* a trillion times per second!
c

o
x

+ =
x

o
x

o
x

o
=
f

desired
f

=
f

k x

o
( ) =
f

predicted
k x

o
( ) =
f

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
126
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(15.28)
We want our spri ng model to gi ve the correct answer for both the duci al and
starred deformati ons. However, the onl y way that wi l l equal
i s i f the transl ati on i s zero. Thus, our undergraduate spri ng model of
Eq. (15.22) shoul d be appl i ed onl y under the restri cti on of zero spri ng transl a-
ti on. For general moti ons, i t vi ol ates the pri nci pl e of transl ati onal frame i ndi f-
ference.
The above di scussi on captures the avor of i nvari ance deri vati ons. We
have sel ected a si mpl e and obvi ousl y wrong spri ng equati on to permi t you to
better understand the preci se (but sti l ted and often non-i ntui ti ve) proof that
the model i s wrong. Fl aws i n real -l i fe model s are not al ways so i ntui ti vel y
apparent, and the abstract mathemati cal anal ysi s mi ght be the onl y sensi bl e
way to veri fy transl ati onal frame i ndi fference.
To summari ze, anal ysi s of transl ati onal frame i ndi fference goes as fol l ows:
Use ki nemati cs and/or careful appl i cati on of defi ni ti ons to deduce how the
i ndependent vari abl es i n the transl ated starred deformati on must be
rel ated to those of the fi duci al deformati on. For our spri ng model , for
exampl e, we asserted that . Keep i n mi nd: superi mposi ng
transl ati on affects onl y the deformed state we do not i mpose a
transl ati on on the i ni ti al state. Thats why we stated that to
refl ect the fact that both deformati ons started from the same i ni ti al
condi ti on. The fact that the fi duci al and starred deformati ons have the
same i ni ti al state i s the key di fference that di sti ngui shes frame
i nvari ance from coordi nate i nvari ance.
*
I f the model i s wri tten i n rate
form, then the ki nemati cal condi ti on that rel ates the starred vel oci ty to
the fi duci al vel oci ty woul d be .
Appl y the pri nci pl e of materi al frame i ndi fference to deci de how the
dependent vari abl es for the starred deformati on shoul d be rel ated to those
of the fi duci al deformati on. For our spri ng model , we asserted the physical
condi ti on that the spri ng force shoul d be unchanged by ri gi d transl ati on
( ).
Appl y the materi al consti tuti ve model for both the fi duci al and starred
deformati ons. The model i s transl ati onal l y i nvari ant i f consi stency of the
fi duci al and starred model predi cti ons requi res no restri cti ons on the
frame transl ati on vector . For our undergraduate spri ng model , we
* The principle of translational coordinate invariance says that we should be able to translate the ori-
gin to a new location without affecting the prediction of the model. If the origin were moved by an
amount , then, would become and would become . Conse-
quently, , thereby demonstrating that the model would give the same answer for
spring force even if the origin were to be moved. Thus, our spring model does satisfy translational
coordinate invariance even though it violates translational frame invariance.
f

predicted
k x

o
+ ( ) f

desired
kc

+ = =
f

predicted
f

desired
c

+ =
x

o
=
C

o
x

o
x

o
C

= x

=
x

o
x

o
=
v

+ =
f

=f

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
127
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
proved that the fi duci al and starred spri ng forces were consi stent onl y i f
, whi ch therefore proved that the model was not transl ati onal l y frame
i nvari ant. To be transl ati onal l y i nvari ant, the fi duci al force needed to be
equal to the starred force regardless of the value of .
Agai n, keep i n mi nd that we knew intuitively that somethi ng was wrong wi th
Eq. (15.22) just by consi deri ng Fi g. 15.1. The hard part was proving it mathe-
matically! Frame i ndi fference anal ysi s i s real l y al l about enforci ng what we
i ntui ti vel y know shoul d be true. The probl em i s that our dumb computers onl y
do what we tel l them to do they l ack i ntui ti on, so we must be very careful
when devel opi ng our numeri cal model s.
c

=0

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
128
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Rotational invariance.
To sati sfy translation i nvari ance, a masters-l evel student mi ght propose a
new i mproved versi on of Eq. (15.22). Namel y,
better, but sti l l bad (15.29)
Here, i s the vector poi nti ng from the tai l of the spri ng to the ti p of the
spri ng. Si nce thi s vector represents the di fference between two poi nts on the
spri ng, i t wi l l be i nvari ant under a superi mposed transl ati on. Thus, under
transl ati on, . We agai n have the restri cti on that and . I f
Eq. (15.29) i s assumed true, then the equati on i s al so true
wi thout havi ng to i mpose any assumpti ons about the transl ati on vector .
Consequentl y, Eq. (15.29) i s translationally frame i nvari ant.
Unfortunatel y, the spri ng model of Eq. (15.29) sti l l has probl ems because i t
i s not rotationallyframe i nvari ant. To understand the i ssue, consi der Fi g. 15.2
where we show the same amount of spri ng el ongati on, but a di fferent amount
of spri ng rotati on. For conveni ence, we arti ci al l y sel ected a rotati on that
woul d make the vector poi nt strai ght down. I f we were to bl i ndl y pro-
gram Eq. (15.29) i nto a dumb computer, then i t woul d predi ct that the force i n
the spri ng i s ori ented verti cal l y. As human bei ngs, we know intuitively that
thi s i s an absurd resul t the force i n the spri ng shoul d poi nt al ong the axi s of
the spri ng for both the duci al and starred deformati ons.
f

k L

o
( ) =
L

=L

=f

= L

o
f

k L

o
( ) =
c

o
L

fiducial deformation
undeformed
Figure 15.2. I llustration of a rotationally faulty model. On the l eft i s a deformati on i n
whi ch the ori entati on of the spri ng remai ns xed. On the ri ght i s a deformati on i n whi ch
the spri ng experi ences the sameelongation but i t i s al so rotated. To be rotati onal l y con-
si stent wi th the duci al deformati on, the starred force vector needs to be the same
as the duci al except rotated wi th the spri ng. For the pi cture on the ri ght, we con-
tri ved the amount of rotati on so that the vector woul d poi nt strai ght down. That
means our faul ty masters-l evel spri ng equati on predi cts a spri ng force that i s verti cal
i nstead of l i ned up wi th the spri ng the way i t shoul d be!
f

o
L

s
t
a
r
r
e
d

d
e
f
o
r
m
a
t
i
o
n
undeformed
L

desired
f

predicted
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
129
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Fol l owi ng the same sort of l ogi c as we used for transl ati onal i nvari ance, we
wi l l now prove mathematically that Eq. (15.29) i s not rotati onal l y i nvari ant.
The i dea i s to agai n to check whether or not the predi cti ons of the model for
the starred rotated deformati on are physi cal l y consi stent wi th the predi cti on
i n the duci al deformati on. Agai n consi der two scenari os:
ducial deformation: stretch the spri ng wi thout rotati on
starred deformation: appl y the same deformati on as the duci al
deformati on, but al so ri gi dl y rotate the
spri ng.
Both scenari os i nvol ve the same starti ng l ength vector. Thus,
(15.30)
Let denote the deformed l ength vector for the duci al deformati on. Let
denote the deformed l ength vector for the starred deformati on. Let
denote the rotati on tensor. Then si mpl e ki nemati cs reveal s that
(15.31)
The pri nci pl e of i nvari ance under rotati on i mposes the i ntui ti vel y obvi ous
requi rement that the spri ng force predi cted for the starred deformati on
shoul d be the same as the duci al force except rotated wi th the materi al .
Stated di fferentl y, the force i n the spri ng shoul d form the same angl e relative
to the spri ng for both scenari os. Some authors woul d state thi s property by
sayi ng that, under ri gi d rotati on, the force co-rotates wi th the spri ng. Math-
emati cal l y, thi s requi rement i s expressed by asserti ng that
(15.32)
To demonstrate that Eq. (15.29) vi ol ates rotati onal frame i nvari ance, we wi l l
appl y i t i n both scenari os and demonstrate that . The
spri ng model says that and therefore Eq. (15.32) becomes
(15.33)
For the starred (rotated) deformati on, the spri ng model predi cts
. Hence, substi tuti ng Eqs. (15.30) and (15.31) gi ves
For the starred deformati on, (15.34)
To sati sfy rotati onal frame i ndi fference, must be the same as
. However, subtracti ng Eqs. (15.33) from (15.34) gi ves
(15.35)
L

o
=
L

=
f

desired
Q

=
f

predicted
f

desired

k L

o
( ) =
f

desired
k Q

o
( ) =
f

predicted
k L

( ) =
f

predicted
k Q

o
( ) =
f

predicted
f

desired
f

predicted
f

desired
k Q

o
L

o
( ) =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
130
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The onl y way that the above resul t wi l l equal zero (as requi red for rotati onal
frame i nvari ance) i s i f the rotati on tensor equal s the i denti ty tensor. I n other
words, there must be no rotati on. We therefore concl ude that the our masters-
l evel spri ng model vi ol ates rotati onal frame i nvari ance. We desi re our spri ng
model to gi ve the correct answer for both the duci al and the starred scenar-
i os, so we now l ook i nto a Ph.D. modi cati on of the spri ng model .
Heres a model that satisfies the principle of material frame
invariance.
To sati sfy both transl ati onal and rotati onal i nvari ance, a Ph.D-l evel stu-
dent mi ght propose a more i mproved versi on of Eq. (15.29). Namel y,
,
where , and (15.36)
To prove that thi s equati on i s i ndeed both transl ati onal l y and rotati onal l y
i nvari ant, we agai n consi der how the predi cti on woul d change i f we were to
consi der a starred deformati on that superi mposes a ri gi d transl ati on and
rotati on on the deformi ng materi al . Keep i n mi nd that the onl y di fference
between the duci al and starred deformati ons i s a ri gi d moti on. Therefore,
l engths are the same i n both cases. Hence, . Of course, as before,
the i ni ti al state i s the same for both cases, so . Consequentl y,
. (15.37)
Under a ri gi d moti on, the starred l ength vector i s gi ven by .
Thus, the starred uni t vector i s rel ated to the un-starred uni t vector by a
si mpl e rotati on
(15.38)
As before, we requi re that the force for the starred deformati on shoul d be
rel ated to the duci al force by
(15.39)
I f we appl y the i mproved spri ng model of Eq. (15.36) to the starred defor-
mati on, we obtai n
(15.40)
I n l i ght of Eqs. (15.37) and (15.38), we concl ude that thi s new spri ng model i s
frame i ndi fferent because we nal l y have consi stent resul ts. Namel y,
(15.41)
f

kn

=
L

o
n

---------- =
L

=
L

o
=

=
L

=
f

desired
Q

kQ

= =
f

predicted
k

=
f

predicted
f

desired
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
131
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Is frame indifference all you need to make a model good for
large deformations?
A poi nt of cauti on i s i n order here. For some reason, many peopl e thi nk
that sati sfacti on of frame i ndi fference guarantees good performance of a
model under l arge deformati ons. Thi s i s fal se. Frame i ndi fference merel y
demands that the predi cti ons for the duci al and starred deformati ons shoul d
be consistent wi th each other. There i s no guarantee that the duci al predi c-
ti on i s any good i n the rst pl ace!
A practi ci ng engi neer mi ght wel l reject our Ph.D students beauti ful l y
frame i ndi fferent spri ng model i f the spri ng bei ng model l ed i s actual l y nonl i n-
ear. Frame i ndi fferent model s are everywhere, but ones that accuratel y
descri be a materi al s nonl i near l arge di storti on response are rare i ndeed.
The principle of material frame indifference in general
When you want to test a materi al consti tuti ve equati on for frame i ndi ffer-
ence, you must rst note what vari abl es are i nvol ved i n the consti tuti ve equa-
ti on. You must use physi cal reasoni ng to assert how those quanti ti es are
supposed tochange upon a superi mposed ri gi d moti on. Then you must demon-
strate that the consti tuti ve model gi ves consi stent resul ts wi th and wi thout
superi mposed moti on. Thi s sel f-consi stency must be achi eved wi thout i mpos-
i ng any condi ti ons on the superi mposed ri gi d moti on or on the rateof the ri gi d
moti on. We have i l l ustrated these concepts i n the si mpl e setti ng of a spri ng
model where the nature of the probl ems was qui te obvi ous. When getti ng i nto
real materi al consti tuti ve l aws, the i ssues are not so obvi ous and one must
then rel y excl usi vel y on the mathemati cs.
O b je c tivity tra nsfo rm a tio n ta b le s. By now, you have l i kel y real i zed that
testi ng for frame i ndi fference requi res that you know ki nemati cs wel l enough
to determi ne how a vari abl e wi l l change from i ts duci al val ue to i ts starred
val ue i n response to a superi mposed ri gi d moti on. Such changes are cal l ed
objectivity transformations, and i t i s a good i dea for you to si mpl y mai ntai n
an ongoi ng tabl e of such rel ati onshi ps.
For exampl e, under general rotati on and transl ati on, the posi ti on vector
i n the starred congurati on i s rel ated to the posi ti on vector i n the du-
ci al congurati on by
, (15.42)
where i s the ri gi d rotati on and i s the ri gi d transl ati on.
When we di scussed the spri ng exampl e, recal l that the initial spri ng vector
was the same for both the starred and duci al deformati ons. They both
started from the same i ni ti al congurati on onl y the starred deformati on
suffered addi ti onal rotati on and transl ati on. Thi s i s one exampl e of the fact
x

+ =
Q

o
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
132
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
that some vectors wi l l not change at al l under ri gi d moti on. For conti nuous
moti ons, the i ni ti al posi ti on vector i s the same for both the duci al and
starred deformati ons. Thus, si nce both the duci al and starred deformati ons
begi n from the same i ni ti al congurati on, we concl ude that
(15.43)
The deformati on gradi ent for the duci al deformati on i s dened as usual by
(15.44)
Li kewi se, the deformati on gradi ent for the starred deformati on i s dened by
(15.45)
Appl yi ng the chai n rul e,
(15.46)
From Eq. (15.42), we know that
, (15.47)
where we have used the fact that and are ri gi d rotati on and transl ati on
vectors and they consequentl y are the same throughout space they do not
vary wi th .
From Eq. (15.43), we know that
(15.48)
Thus, substi tuti ng Eqs. (15.44), (15.47) and (15.48) i nto Eq. (15.46) gi ves
(15.49)
Thi s unsurpri si ng resul t says that the starred deformati on gradi ent i s
obtai ned by operati ng on the duci al deformati on gradi ent by the rotati on ten-
sor.
The ri ght Cauchy-Green tensor i s dened for the duci al deformati on by
(15.50)
The ri ght Cauchy-Green tensor for the starred deformati on i s
(15.51)
X

=
F

-------- =
F


----------- =
F

----------
x

--------
X


----------- =
x

----------
Q

+ ( )
x

-------------------------------- Q

= =
Q


----------- I

=
F

=
C

T
F

=
C

T
F

=
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The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
133
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Substi tuti ng Eq. (15.49) i nto (15.51) and recal l i ng that i s orthogonal
reveal s that
(15.52)
The duci al and starred deformati ons have the same stretches before rotati on
i s appl i ed. Hence, i t shoul d not be surpri si ng that the duci al and starred
deformati ons have the same ri ght Cauchy-Green tensors because thi s tensor
i s a measure of the materi al stretchi ng beforeany materi al rotati on i s appl i ed.
By contrast, consi der the l eft Cauchy-Green tensor:
(15.53)
For the starred deformati on, we have
(15.54)
Substi tuti ng Eq. (15.49) i nto (15.54) reveal s that
(15.55)
The boxed equati ons wi thi n thi s secti on requi red a fai r amount of effort to
deri ve, and these resul ts are often needed when performi ng frame i ndi fference
cal cul ati ons. Therefore, i t i s hi ghl y recommended that you create and conti nu-
al l y expand your own tabl e of so-cal l ed objecti vi ty transformati ons that
show how a quanti ty i n the starred congurati on i s rel ated to the duci al
deformati on. One such tabl e i s avai l abl e i n the nomencl ature l i st at
http://www.me.unm.edu/~rmbrann/gobag.html.
A key l esson here i s that the starred quanti ti es change i n di fferent ways
dependi ng on thei r physi cal deni ti ons. Some tensors dont change at al l ,
whi l e others co-rotate wi th the superi mposed rotati on. The fact that tensors
change i n di fferent ways dependi ng on thei r physi cal deni ti ons i s a key fea-
ture that di sti ngui shes objecti vi ty transformati ons from ordi nary basi s trans-
formati ons. For a basi s transformati on, tensors themsel ves do not change, and
thei r matri x of tensor components wi l l transform i n exactl y the same way
regardl ess of the physi cal meani ng of the tensor. For an objecti vi ty transfor-
mati on, the physi cal meani ng of the tensor i s i mportant.
Re fe re nc e a nd sp a tia l te nso rs. Referri ng to Eq. (15.52), note that the ri ght
stretch tensor i s the same i n both the duci al and starred congurati ons:
(15.56)
by contrast, referri ng to Eq. (15.55), the l eft stretch changes accordi ng to
(15.57)
Q

=
B

T
=
B

T
=
B

T
=
U

=
V

T
=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
134
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Any tensor such as or that i s the same for both the duci al and starred
congurati ons i s referred to as a reference tensor. Any tensor that trans-
forms accordi ng to
(15.58)
i s cal l ed a spatial tensor. The term objective tensor i s al so used. Thus, for
exampl e, and are spati al tensors. I f are the components of the du-
ci al tensor wi th respect to the l aboratory basi s , then the
starred tensor has the same components except referenced to a rotated
basi s, . I n thi s sense, a spati al tensor i s one that co-rotates
under a superi mposed rotati on. By contrast, a reference tensor remai ns
unchanged.
Many tensors are nei ther reference nor spati al tensors. For exampl e, the
transformati on resul t of Eq. (15.49) does not match the structure of ei ther
Eq. (15.56) or (15.57). Consequentl y, the deformati on gradi ent i s nei ther spa-
ti al nor referenti al .
A vector (such as the i ni ti al posi ti on vector ) that i s unaffected by super-
i mposed rotati on i s cal l ed a reference vector. On the other hand, a vector i s
spatial i f i t transforms accordi ng to
(15.59)
Consi der a vector that connects two materi al poi nts:
(15.60)
I n the starred congurati on, thi s materi al vector becomes
(15.61)
or, usi ng Eq. (15.42),
(15.62)
Usi ng Eq. (15.60), we concl ude that
(15.63)
Thus, thi s sort of materi al ber i s a spatial vector i t co-rotates wi th the
materi al .
Consi der di spl acement , whi ch i s dened by
(15.64)
For the starred deformati on,
(15.65)
U

T
=
B

B
i j
B

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
B

k
Q

k
=
X

=
x

2
x

1
=
x

( )

2
x

1
=
x

( )

2
c

1
c

+ ( ) + =
x

( )

=
u

=
u

+ Q

( ) X

+ + = = =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
135
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Thus, di spl acement i s neither a reference vector nor a spati al vector. Agai n, we
want to emphasi ze that rel ati onshi ps l i ke the boxed equati ons above are
tedi ous to deri ve. You shoul d add objecti vi ty transformati ons to your own per-
sonal col l ecti on for future use duri ng frame i ndi fference anal yses.
You can al so dene reference and spati al scalars. Many researchers mi s-
takenl y jump to the concl usi on that scal ars are unaffected by superi mposed
rotati ons. Thi s i s fal se, as we now wi l l show. Consi der the pol ar rotati on tensor
(15.66)
I n the starred congurati on,
(15.67)
Usi ng Eqs. (15.49) and (15.56),
. (15.68)
Thus, substi tuti ng Eq. (15.66) gi ves
(15.69)
whi ch shows that i s nei ther spati al nor objecti ve. Now l ets consi der the
rotati on angl e associ ated wi th . Based on the Eul er-Rodri gues formul a,
the cosi ne of the rotati on angl e i s gi ven by
(15.70)
Under superi mposed rotati on,
(15.71)
From thi s, we concl ude that
(15.72)
Thi s proves that not al l scal ars are unaffected by superi mposed ri gi d rotati on.
As wi th tensors and vectors, the physi cal deni ti on of the scal ar must be con-
si dered i n deci di ng objecti vi ty.
Stre ss a nd stra in m e a sure s. The most common choi ce for a stress measure
i s the Cauchy stress , whi ch i s dened such that the force on an area el e-
ment i s gi ven by . I n thi s deni ti on, the normal to the patch of
area i s a spati al vector, so i t sati ses
(15.73)
R

1
=
R

1
=
R

1
=
R

=
R

cos
1
2
--- traceR

1 ( ) =

cos
1
2
--- traceR

1 ( )
1
2
--- trace Q

( ) 1 ( ) = =

dA

dA
n

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
136
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The pri nci pl e of materi al frame i ndi fference says that, upon a ri gi d rotati on,
the tracti on (force per uni t area) shoul d co-rotate wi th the materi al . Conse-
quentl y, the Cauchy stress must be a spati al tensor:
(15.74)
The Cauchy stress measure i s not the onl y stress measure used i n the l i tera-
ture. Many researchers empl oy the second Piola-Kirchhoff stress (PK2) ten-
sor, dened by
, (15.75)
where i s the Jacobi an of the deformati on,
(15.76)
Upon a superi mposed rotati on,
(15.77)
Al so
(15.78)
Substi tuti ng the objecti vi ty transformati on rel ati ons for , and reveal s
that
(15.79)
Thus, thesecond Piola Kirchhoff (PK2) stress is a referencestress tensor i t i s
unaffected by a superi mposed ri gi d moti on.
The Cauchy stress i s sai d to be conjugate to the symmetri c part of the
vel oci ty gradi ent because the stress power per uni t mass i s gi ven by
(15.80)
The symmetri c part of the vel oci ty gradi ent can be shown to be a spati al ten-
sor; i .e.,
(15.81)
The mass densi ty i s a reference scal ar (i .e., i t i s unchanged by superi mposed
rotati on). Note that thi s does not mean that the mass densi ty i s equal to i ts
i ni ti al val ue i t onl y means that i t i s unaffected by superi mposed ri gi d
rotati on. i s i tsel f a reference scal ar. By usi ng the deni ti on of the second
Pi ol a-Ki rchhoff (PK2) stress, i t can be shown that there exi sts a strai n that
i s conjugate to the PK2 stress i n the sense that
(15.82)

T
=
s

J F

T
=
J
J det F

=
J

det F

det Q

( ) det Q

( )det F

( ) J = = = =
s

J

F

T
=
J F

P
s
1

---

:D

=
D

T
=

o
P
s

P
s
1

---s

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
137
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Speci cal l y, thi s speci al strai n cal l ed the Lagrange strai n i s dened
(15.83)
Recal l i ng that i s a reference tensor, we i mmedi atel y see that i s al so a ref-
erence tensor. That i s,
(15.84)
Many researchers el ect to phrase thei r consti tuti ve equati ons i n terms of the
Lagrange strai n and the PK2 stress because they are both reference tensors,
and the pri nci pl e of materi al frame i ndi fference i s therefore automati cal l y sat-
i sed. The pri nci pl e of materi al frame i ndi fference has i ts most dramati c
i mpact on consti tuti ve model s that use spati al tensors.
Exa m p le : e la stic ity. I n i ts most general sense, a materi al i s usual l y sai d to
be el asti c i f the stress i n the materi al depends onl y on the deformati on of the
materi al . Thi s deni ti on i s actual l y a sl oppy because i t mi ght vi ol ates frame
i ndi fference when taken l i teral l y. Speci cal l y, l et denote Cauchy stress and
l et denote the deformati on gradi ent tensor. Accordi ng to the above sl oppy
deni ti on of el asti ci ty, the consti tuti ve l aw may be wri tten
(15.85)
where i s the consti tuti ve functi on. Physi cal l y, we know that appl i cati on of a
superi mposed ri gi d moti on should change the stress to
(15.86)
Furthermore, when we have a deformati on and we appl y a superi mposed
rotati on , then the new deformati on gradi ent i s
(15.87)
When appl i ed under a superi mposed ri gi d moti on, the consti tuti ve l aw of
Eq. (15.85) gi ves
(15.88)
or
(15.89)
The pri nci pl e of materi al frame i ndi fference demands that both Eq. (15.85)
and (15.89) must be true. Thus, we may substi tute Eq. (15.85) i nto (15.89) to
obtai n
,
whi ch must hol d for al l rotati ons and deformati ons (15.90)

1
2
-- - C

( ) =
C

f F

( ) =
f

T
=
F

f F

( ) =
Q

T
f Q

( ) =
Q

f F

( ) Q

T
f Q

( ) =
Q

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
138
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The above equati on represents a restri cti on on admi ssi bl e forms for the func-
ti on . Any proposed el asti c consti tuti ve equati on must sati sfy the above
restri cti on.
Consi der the fol l owi ng speci al case: many authors assume that stress can
be wri tten as a functi on of spati al strai n:
(15.91)
The term spati al i s used to descri be any tensor that transforms accordi ng to
(15.92)
upon a superi mposed ri gi d rotati on . Referri ng to Eq. (15.86), we note that
Cauchy stress i s a spati al tensor. Eq. (15.87) shows that the deformati on gra-
di ent i s not a spati al tensor. I f our strai n measure i s spati al , then we know
that
(15.93)
Eq. (15.91) sati ses frame i ndi fference onl y i f
(15.94)
I n other words,
(15.95)
To be consi stent wi th Eq. (15.91), thi s i mpl i es that
whi ch must hol d for al l rotati ons and spati al strai ns (15.96)
The above equati on i mposes a very restri cti ve admi ssi bi l i ty constrai nt on the
consti tuti ve functi on . I n parti cul ar, the above restri cti on can be sati sed
onl y i f the materi al i s i sotropi c! To see why thi s i s so, l ets suppose to the con-
trary that the materi al i s ani sotropi c such that i t i s very sti ff i n the 1-di recti on
and very compl i ant i n the 2-di recti on. Now consi der a duci al strai n that i s
uni axi al i n the 1-di recti on. Thi s wi l l produce a very l arge stress i n the 1-di rec-
ti on because the materi al i s sti ff i n that di recti on. I f we were to appl y the
same magni tude of strai n i n the 2-di recti on, we woul d not expect as l arge of a
stress. However, the constrai nt of Eq. (15.96) does not permi t thi s desi red
behavi or. I f represents a rotati on of 90 degrees about the 3-di recti on, then
i s the same as our duci al strai n except that i t i s now appl i ed i n
the 2-di recti on. Note that represents the stress for our duci al strai n and
represents the stress for our rotated strai n. Equati on (15.96)
says that the stress for the rotated strai n shoul d be i denti cal to the stress for
the duci al strai n except that i t must be rotated by 90 degrees. Consequentl y,
Eq. (15.96) does not permi t the magni tude of stress to be smal l er for strai ns
poi nti ng i n the 2-di recti on.
f

( ) =
A

T
=
Q

T
=

( ) =
Q

T
g Q

T
( ) =
Q

( ) Q

T
g Q

T
( ) =
Q

T

g

( )
g Q

T
( )
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
139
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
I f your materi al i s i sotropi c, then PMFI permi ts you to use a consti tuti ve
model of the form i n Eq. (15.91). However, i f you are model l i ng an ani sotropi c
materi al , then PMFI tel l s you that your consti tuti ve equati on cannot be
expressed i n the form i n Eq. (15.91). How do we use thi s i nformati on? The
proper concl usi on i s that, for ani sotropi c medi a, a spati al consti tuti ve equa-
ti on must depend on more than just the spati al strai n. I f, for exampl e, your
materi al i s transversel y i sotropi c, then PMFI wi l l permi t you to propose a con-
sti tuti ve model of the form
, (15.97)
where i s the axi s of transverse symmetry. By i ncl udi ng the materi al di rec-
ti on as an i ndependent vari abl e i n the consti tuti ve model , you wi l l be abl e to
assert that , whi ch i n turn permi ts the ani sotropi c sti ffnesses to
rotate wi th the materi al upon superi mposed deformati on.
PMFI in rate forms of the constitutive equations
For the purpose of i l l ustrati on, l ets revi si t a consti tuti ve l aw of the fol l ow-
i ng form
(15.98)
Taki ng the ti me rate of both si des gi ves
, where (15.99)
For sati sfyi ng PMFI , we have al ready asserted that the materi al must be i so-
tropi c. Hence, the sti ffness must be i sotropi c. As l ong as thi s i s true, the
consti tuti ve equati on dened by Eq. (15.99) wi l l sati sfy frame i ndi fference
because i t was deri ved by di fferenti ati ng a frame i ndi fferent equati on.
For el asti ci ty probl ems, i t i s common (though we bel i eve i nadvi sabl e) to
empl oy a si mi l ar-l ooki ng but fundamental l y different consti tuti ve equati on
(15.100)
where the strai n rate has been repl aced by the stretchi ng tensor , whi ch i s
just the symmetri c part of the vel oci ty gradi ent:
, where (15.101)
We wi l l show that Eq. (15.100) vi ol ates PMFI , so i t i s common practi ce to pro-
pose modi fyi ng i t as fol l ows:
, (15.102)

, ( ) =
n

( ) =

i j
E
i j kl

kl
= E
i j kl
g

( )

kl
--------------
E
i j kl

g D

( ) =
D

1
2
---
L

T
+ ( ) = L
i j
x
j

v
i
=

g D

( ) =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
140
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
where denotes a speci al co-rotati onal rate that effectively eliminates the
part of the stress rate caused by rotation as di scussed bel ow
A fundamental theorem from conti nuum mechani cs states that the vel oci ty
gradi ent tensor i s rel ated to the deformati on gradi ent tensor by
(15.103)
Under a superi mposed rotati on , recal l that
(15.104)
The starred vel oci ty gradi ent i s
(15.105)
For conveni ence, we i ntroduce an angul ar rate of rotati on tensor associ ated
wi th the rate of superi mposed rotati on. Speci cal l y we dene
(15.106)
Because i s a rotati on, the tensor i s skew-symmetri c:
(15.107)
Usi ng thi s tensor, we nd that the starred vel oci ty gradi ent of Eq. (15.105)
si mpl i es to
(15.108)
The presence of means that the vel oci ty gradi ent i s not a spati al tensor.
However, si nce i s skew-symmetri c, we note that the stretchi ng tensor
i s a spati al tensor:
(15.109)
Recal l that the Cauchy stress i s a spati al tensor:
(15.110)
We are now goi ng to prove that thi s i mpl i es that the rateof the Cauchy stress
i s not a spati al tensor. The ti me rate of the starred stress i s found by di fferen-
ti ati ng Eq. (15.110) to gi ve
(15.111)
Wi th the substi tuti on , thi s becomes
(15.112)

1
=
Q

=
L

1
Q

+ ( ) F

1
Q

T
( ) = =

T
=
Q

=
L

T
+ =

symL

=
D

T
=

T
=

T
Q

T
Q

T
+ + =
Q

T
Q

T
+ + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
141
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Usi ng Eq. (15.111) and recal l i ng that the angul ar rotati on tensor i s skew-sym-
metri c, we nd that the starred stress ratei s rel ated to the duci al stress rate
i n the fol l owi ng compl i cated way:
(15.113)
Note that
(15.114)
Therefore the Cauchy stress rate i s not spati al . Thi s means that the proposed
consti tuti ve equati on i n Eq. (15.100) vi ol ates PMFI .
Co-rotational rates (convected, Jaumann, Polar)
To recti fy the probl em wi th Eq. (15.100), i t i s conventi onal to propose an
al ternati ve consti tuti ve equati on of the form
, (15.115)
where denotes a so-cal l ed co-rotati onal rate dened by
(15.116)
I n thi s equati on, the tensor may be sel ected to be any conveni ent physi cal
quanti ty so l ong as i t transforms under superi mposed rotati on so that
(15.117)
Referri ng to Eq. (15.108), one possi bl e choi ce for i s
thi s corresponds to the convected rate (15.118)
Thi s i s not the onl y choi ce. We coul d al ternati vel y take the co-rotati onal tensor
to be the vorti ci ty tensor:
thi s corresponds to the Jaumann rate (15.119)
We coul d sel ect the co-rotati onal tensor to equal the pol ar spi n
thi s corresponds to the Pol ar rate (15.120)
Regardl ess of the choi ce for the co-rotati onal tensor, so l ong as Eq. (15.116)
hol ds, you can demonstrate that
(15.121)
I n other words, the co-rotati onal rate i s a spati al tensor. Consequentl y,
Eq. (15.115) sati ses PMFI so l ong as the consti tuti ve functi on i s i sotropi c.

+ =

g D

( ) =

T
=

T
+ =

1
2
--- L

T
( ) = =

T
= =

T
=
g
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Keep i n mi nd that the choi ce for the co-rotati on tensor (i .e., convected, Jau-
mann, pol ar, or somethi ng el se) i s not uni que. As l ong as your choi ce sati ses
Eq. (15.117), then your consti tuti ve model wi l l be frame i nvari ant. However,
other physi cal arguments besides i nvari ance may l ead you to prefer one co-
rotati on tensor over another. For exampl e, Di enes [8] demonstrated qui te el e-
gantl y that the Jaumann rate predi cts physi cal l y anomal ous osci l l atory stress
when used wi th constant i sotropi c el asti c modul i i n si mpl e shear, so he recom-
mended the use of the Pol ar rate. However, Brannon [11] demonstrated that
the pol ar rate i s i ncapabl e of adequatel y descri bi ng the di storti on of di recti ons
of materi al ani sotropy, so she cauti ousl y recommended the convected rate
(except cast as a Li e deri vati ve see page 143).
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
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Lie Derivatives and reference configurations
Let denote any tensor that transforms under a ri gi d superi mposed rota-
ti on accordi ng to
(15.122)
Two parti cul ar choi ces for the tensor are qui te common:
convected: , where i s the deformati on gradi ent tensor.
polar: , where i s the pol ar rotati on tensor.
Note that both of these choi ces transform accordi ng to Eq. (15.122), as
requi red.
Consi der any spati al tensor . Dene an overbar operati on as
(15.123)
To understand the reason for the transpose, note that the tensor can be
wri tten i n basi s notati on as
(15.124)
where two vectors wri tten si de-by-si de are mul ti pl i ed dyadi cal l y, and the base
vectors need not be orthonormal . Operati ng from the l eft by and from the
ri ght by gi ves
(15.125)
I n wri ti ng the l ast form, we have noted that i s the same thi ng as
. We i ntroduce a set of hel per vectors dened
, (15.126)
then Eq. (15.125) becomes
(15.127)
Thi s resul t shows that the components of wi th respect to the basi s are
i denti cal to the components of wi th respect to the basi s. I n a very l oose
sense, i s an undi storted versi on of . For exampl e, when , the
undi storti on operati on takes away materi al di storti on. When the ten-
sor i s a proper rotati on, then both the and bases may be sel ected to be
orthonormal . I n thi s case, i s an un-rotated versi on of . I n thi s case, the
operati on takes away materi al rotati on.
Recal l that we assumed that i s a spati al tensor. Hence, i t transforms
accordi ng to
(15.128)
G

=
G

= F

= R

1
A

T
=
A

A
i j
g

i
g

j
=
G

1
G

T
A

A
i j
G

1
g

i
( ) g

j
G

T
( ) A
i j
G

1
g

i
( ) G

1
g

j
( ) = =
g

j
G

1
g

i
G

1
g

i

A

A
i j
g

i
g

j
=
A

k
A

k
A

=
G

1
G

k
g

k
A

1
A

T
=
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I n l i ght of the assumpti on of Eq. (15.122), barred tensor i s easi l y veri ed
to be a reference tensor, meani ng that i ts val ue i s unaffected by a superi m-
posed ri gi d rotati on:
(15.129)
To descri be the rate of the di storti on tensor , we wi l l dene
(15.130)
By usi ng our assumpti on of Eq. (15.122), i t i s strai ghtforward to prove that
(15.131)
We wi sh to take rates of . To do thi s, we need the fol l owi ng hel per i denti ty
for the rate of an i nverse:
*
(15.132)
Usi ng thi s, you can show that
, (15.133a)
where (15.133b)
To i nterpret thi s equati on physi cal l y, rst l ets i nvert Eq. (15.126) to obtai n the
spati al basi s i n terms of the reference basi s:
, (15.134)
I f the reference basi s i s constant, then taki ng rates gi ves
(15.135)
Thus, the convected deri vati ve i n Eq. (15.133b) i s seen to equal the ordi -
nary deri vati ve mi nus those parts of the ordi nary deri vati ve that ari se
from rates of the base vectors. Recal l i ng that we are regardi ng the as a
di storti on (or rotati on i f i t i s orthogonal ), we i nterpret the convected deri va-
ti ve to be the part of the rate that i s not caused by the di storti on (or rotati on).
From a model l i ng perspecti ve, thi s woul d be the part of the rate caused by
materi al consti tuti ve response, not just by materi al reori entati on.
I mportantl y, note that Eq. (15.133a) may be wri tten
(15.136)
* Note the similarity of this identity with the scalar equation, .
A

=
G

T
+ =
A

d
dt
------
1
x
---
,
_
x x
2
x
1
( )x x
1
( ) = =
d
dt
------G

1
G

1
G

1
=
A

1
A

T
=
A

T
=
g

i
g

i
g

i
G

i

g

i
g

i
G

i
= =
A

k
G

=
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Thi s equati on says that the ordinary rate of the bared tensor i s the same as
the bar operati on acti ng on the co-rotati onal rate. Whenever there exi sts a
tensor such that the co-rotati on tensor i s expressi bl e i n the form of Eq.
(15.130), then the co-rotati onal rate i s cal l ed a Lie derivative and you wi l l
usual l y see i t wri tten i n books i n the form
(15.137)
Alte rna tive to Lie De riva tive s in C o nstitutive m o d e ls. For a mathemati -
cal l y l i mber reader, the precedi ng di scussi on of Li e deri vati ves probabl y di d
shed some l i ght on the physi cal meani ng of a convected deri vati ve. However,
the use of such strange ti me deri vati ves i s forei gn to many readers. Further-
more, usi ng convected deri vati ves i n numeri cal computati ons can be qui te
cumbersome and someti mes i nefci ent. Consi der, for exampl e, the l i near ver-
si on of Eq. (15.115):
, (i n i ndi ci al form, ) (15.138)
where i s the fourth-order tangent sti ffness tensor. I n order for thi s equati on
to be general i zed to ani sotropi c materi al s, the dependence on i n
Eq. (15.115) must be appended to al so i ncl ude dependence on materi al ori en-
tati on. I n other words, upon a superi mposed ri gi d rotati on, not must
change, the materi al sti ffness tensor must al so change. Speci cal l y, to sati sfy
PMFI , we must have
(15.139)
Recal l i ng Eq. (15.121) and (15.109), both and are spati al tensors. Thus,
to sati sfy PMFI , the sti ffness tensor must transform under superi mposed
rotati on such that
(15.140)
I n other words, the sti ffness components must be referenced to a basi s that
rotates wi th the materi al . Computi ng the rotated sti ffnesses can be qui te
expensi ve. An al ternati ve and equi val ent techni que i s to l eave the sti ffnesses
unchanged and i nstead unrotate the stress and strai n rate. Then, once the
consti tuti ve model i s appl i ed i n thi s unrotated frame, the nal resul t may be
rotated back to the spati al frame. Thi s qual i tati ve proposal i s deri ved i n math-
emati cal detai l bel ow i n terms of our general i zed di storti on/rotati on tensor
and i ts associ ated bar operati on dened i n Eq. (15.123).
Barri ng both si des of Eq. (15.115) and appl yi ng Eq. (15.136) gi ves
, or i n the l i near case, (15.141)
G

d
dt
------ G

1
A

T
( ) G

T
=

: D

i j
E
i j kl
D
kl
=
E

: D

E
i j kl

Q
i p
Q
j q
Q
kr
Q
l s
E
pqrs
=
G

g D

( ) =

: D

=
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We can al ways dene a new consti tuti ve functi on that depends i mpl i ci tl y on
such that
(15.142)
Hence, we may wri te the consti tuti ve equati on as
(15.143)
I n the l i near case, appl yi ng the deni ti on of the bar operati on to Eq. (15.141)
shows that
, where (15.144)
Here we have the ordinary rate of an undi storted/unrotated stress bei ng a
functi on of the undi storted/unrotated stretchi ng. Thi s formul ati on has sev-
eral advantages:
The stress rate i s an ordi nary rate, not a convected rate, and i t i s therefore
easi er to i ntegrate over ti me.
After a numeri cal consti tuti ve model has been devel oped to gi ve good
answers for zero-rotati on probl ems, i t can be i mmedi atel y general i zed to
permi t rotati ons by si mpl y havi ng the host code perform the bar
operati on on al l of the arguments to the consti tuti ve model before cal l i ng
the model . Upon return, the host code then unbars the resul ts.
When expressed i n terms of the barred reference confi gurati on, the
consti tuti ve Eq. (15.143) i s not restri cted to i sotropy. For the l i near case,
the bar sti ffness i s often regarded as an unchangi ng fourth-order tensor,
and the fourth-order transformati on operati on therefore becomes
unnecessary when worki ng excl usi vel y i n the barred space.
The two most common choi ces for the bar transformati on tensor are
from the pol ar decomposi ti on, i n whi ch case, usi ng the Li e
deri vati ve i n the unrotated confi gurati on i s roughl y equi val ent to usi ng
pol ar rates i n a spati al formul ati on.
from the deformati on gradi ent, i n whi ch case, usi ng the Li e
deri vati ve i n the un-convected confi gurati on i s equi val ent to usi ng
convected coordi nates. A key di sadvantage i s that thi s formul ati on may
requi re speci al attenti on to materi al nonl i neari ty to avoi d i nstabi l i ti es i n
compressi on.
When you consi der thermodynami cs, the Cauchy stress measure i s typi cal l y
abandoned i n favor of the Ki rchhoff stress , dened to equal the Cauchy
stress ti mes the Jacobi an of the deformati on. So the thermodynami cal l y pref-
erabl e form for the consti tuti ve l aw i s
(15.145)
g
G

g D

( ) g D

( ) =

g D

( ) =

: D

= E
i j kl
G
i p
1
G
i q
1
G
i r
1
G
i s
1
E
pqrs
=
G

=
G

h D

( ) =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
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I f we choose , then equal s the second Pi ol a Ki rchhoff (PK2) stress
and equal s the ordi nary rate of Lagrange strai n. I f we choose , then
i s the unrotated Ki rchhoff stress and i s the unrotated symmetri c part of
the vel oci ty gradi ent.
*
Frame indifference is only an essential (not final) step
I ts i mportant to keep i n mi nd that frame i ndi fference i s onl y a necessary
property that must hol d for any general consti tuti ve model . Sati sfyi ng PMFI
i s not sufcient to ensure that the consti tuti ve model wi l l perform wel l under
l arge materi al di storti ons. Di fferent consti tuti ve l aws can predi ct wi del y vary-
i ng and someti mes absurd resul ts even i f they sati sfy PMFI .
Recal l from Eq. (15.116) that a co-rotati onal stress rate i s general l y
expressi bl e i n the fol l owi ng form:
(15.146)
For the pol ar rate, the tensor i s equal to the skew-symmetri c pol ar spi n .
For the Jaumann rate, i s the vorti ci ty . I t i s strai ghtforward (but not
tri vi al ) to demonstrate that both rates are equi val ent whenever materi al di s-
torti on i s smal l . By thi s, we mean that the two rates are nearl y equi val ent
whenever the materi al has not si gni cantl y changed shapeeven i f l arge size
and/or orientation changes have occurred. Mathemati cal l y, a moti on i nvol ves
smal l di storti ons i f the pri nci pal stretches are al l nearl y equal to each other.
For probl ems wi th smal l materi al di storti on, al l co-rotati onal rates predi ct
approxi matel y the same answer, so i t makes sense to use the one that i s com-
putati onal l y l east expensi ve. For probl ems wi th l arge materi al di storti on,
however, speci al care must be taken to handl e the materi al nonl i neari ty.
To demonstrate that sati sfacti on of PMFI i s not enough to obtai n sensi bl e
consti tuti ve model predi cti ons, Di enes [8] consi dered the predi cti on under
si mpl e shear of si mpl e i sotropi c l i near el asti c consti tuti ve l aw
, where i s i sotropi c and constant. (15.147)
Regardl ess of whi ch objecti ve rate i s used, the above equati on sati ses PMFI .
However, Di enes demonstrated that the J aumann rate predi cts anomal ous
osci l l atory shear stresses whereas the Pol ar rate predi cts i ntui ti vel y more
appeal i ng monotoni cal l y i ncreasi ng shear stress. The Jaumann rate performs
so poorl y because, for si mpl e shear, the vorti ci ty i s constant throughout
ti me, so the Jaumann rate basi cal l y assumes that a materi al el ement tumbl es
and tumbl e throughout ti me. Si mpl y drawi ng a si ngl e materi al el ement as i t
deforms throughout ti me demonstrates that thi s thi nki ng i s awed. Fi bers
* For general motions, there does not exist any strain tensor such that . I dont know if a
similar statement holds in the unrotated conguration.
G

T
=

: D

= E

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


The principle of material frame indifference (PMFI)
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that were ori gi nal l y perpendi cul ar to the shear pl ane eventual l y rotate
approxi matel y i nto the shear pl ane. Fi bers i n the shear pl ane never rotate
at al l . Unl i ke the vorti ci ty, the pol ar spi n captures thi s effect i t equal s
the vorti ci ty at rst, but i t approaches zero as ti me i ncreases. As a rul e, al l of
the objecti ve rates are equi val ent whenever materi al di storti on i s smal l . For
smal l di storti ons, the materi al does not si gni cantl y change shape, but may
permi ssi bl y change si ze and ori entati on.
Di enes deni tel y demonstrated that the Jaumann rate was bad i n the
thi s context of si mpl e shear wi th i sotropi c l i near el asti ci ty. However, the fact
that the pol ar rate was l ess bad does not mean that the pol ar rate was cor-
rect. Brannon [11] demonstrated that even the pol ar rate gi ves i ncorrect pre-
di cti ons when appl i ed to di storti on of a ber-domi nant composi te materi al .
The heart of the i ssue i s not whi ch rate you use. The key to good consti tuti ve
model l i ng i s to handl e materi al nonl i neari ty properl y. The natural rate i s the
one that makes the nonl i near consti tuti ve model as si mpl e i n structure as pos-
si bl e.
When i mpl ementi ng l arge di storti on capabi l i ty i nto a code, i t i s essenti al to
permi t the consti tuti ve equati ons to retai n control of the nonl i near materi al
response. Mi ni mal l y, al l materi al model s must sati sfy PMFI . One way to sat-
i sfy thi s requi rement i s for the host code to al ways work i n the unrotated ref-
erence congurati on. Beyond that, the treatment of l arge materi al di storti on
shoul d be retai ned i n the real m of the consti tuti ve model . We do not bel i eve
that there i s one magi cal strai n measure or fabul ous co-rotati onal rate that
wi l l serve al l materi al s wel l thats why the treatment of l arge materi al di s-
torti on must remai n the responsi bi l i ty of the materi al model . The host code
shoul d be responsi bl e for PMFI by al ways worki ng i n an unrotated congura-
ti on.
90

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Rigid Body Mechanics
149
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16. Rigid Body Mechanics
The mechani cs of ri gi d bodi es can be found i n any good dynami cs textbook
[e.g., References 4, 12]. However, very few textbooks present the theory i n a
form that i s opti mi zed for readers who are al ready fami l i ar wi th advanced
tensor anal ysi s. Consequentl y, such books often provi de deri vati ons i n very
awkward component forms. Here we present the theory for readers who
al ready know tensor anal ysi s as i t appl i es to conti nuum mechani cs.
A body i s consi dered ri gi d i f the di stance between any two poi nts i n the
body remai ns unchanged. Thi s, of course, i mpl i es that the angl es between any
two l i nes i n the body al so remai ns unchanged.
Let denote a xed ori gi n. Let denote a transl ati ng ori gi n that di ffers
from the xed ori gi n by a vector . As sketched bel ow, l et be the initial
posi ti on of a parti cl e wi th respect to . Let be the current posi ti on of the
same parti cl e wi th respect to the xed ori gi n . Fi nal l y, l et denote the cur-
rent posi ti on of the parti cl e wi th respect to the movi ng ori gi n .
O
o
O
k

O
o
x

O
o
r

O
O
o
O
u

Figure 16.1. I dentifying points within a rigid body. The posi ti on vector i denti es the
initial l ocati on of the grey parti cl e. The posi ti on vectors and both poi nt the current
l ocati on of the same parti cl e.
X

Initial
configuration
configuration
after rotation
about the fixed
origin.
Final
configuration
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
150
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The posi ti on vectors and are dened to poi nt from the xed ori gi n
to the parti cl e i n questi on. Consequentl y, and are both ori gi n-dependent
vectors they wi l l change i f a di fferent xed ori gi n i s used. By contrast, the
di spl acement vector i s dened to poi nt from the i ni ti al l ocati on of a parti cl e
to the current l ocati on of the same parti cl e. Consequentl y, the di spl acement
vector i s unaffected by the choi ce of ori gi n. Any vector wi th thi s property i s
cal l ed a free vector.
Fi g. 16.1 shows how a ri gi d moti on may be regarded as a rotati on about
the xed ori gi n fol l owed by a ri gi d transl ati on . Thi s concl usi on fol l ows
di rectl y from the requi rement that the di stances between any two poi nts must
remai n xed. Fi g. 16.2 demonstrates that the transl ati on vector depends on
the choi ce of xed ori gi n. Therefore, much l i ke posi ti on vectors, the transl ati on
vector i s an ori gi n-dependent vector, not a free vector. By contrast, the rota-
ti on tensor i s the same regardl ess of the choi ce of ori gi n. Thus, i s a free
tensor.
X

O
o
X

O
o
u

O
o
Figure 16.2. Effect of choosing a different xed origin. Thi s sketch
shows the same ri gi d moti on descri bed i n terms of two di fferent choi ces
for the xed ori gi n. Changi ng the xed ori gi n has no effect on the rota-
ti on tensor, but i t does affect the transl ati on vector.
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
151
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A simple description of rigid motion
Under the assumpti on of ri gi d moti on, the parti cl es current posi ti on
must be expressi bl e i n the form of a rotati on pl us a transl ati on
(16.1)
where i s a rotati on tensor and i s a transl ati on vector, both of whi ch
depend on ti me but not posi ti on. I n short hand, we i ndi cate thi s dependence
as
(16.2)
(16.3)
As menti oned earl i er, one di sadvantage of thi s descri pti on of rotati on i s that i t
contai ns the ori gi n-dependent (and therefore physi cal l y non-i ntui ti ve) di s-
pl acement vector .
A relative description of rigid motion
For ri gi d moti on probl ems, there i s often a speci al poi nt i n the body for
whi ch the compl ete moti on i s known (or there i s a poi nt for whi ch the com-
pl ete moti on can be rel ati vel y easi l y computed). Thi s speci al poi nt mi ght be
the l ocati on of a hi nge on a ri gi d roboti c arm. Al ternati vel y, the speci al poi nt
mi ght be the center of mass of the body. We wi l l l ater show that the posi ti on of
the center of mass i s governed by the l i near momentum equati on, whi ch
depends onl y on the net force on the ri gi d body. Consequentl y, theposition of
thebodys center of mass is relatively easy to track over time, maki ng i t a good
choi ce for use as a reference poi nt.
A real physi cal body occupi es onl y a ni te amount of space. We wi l l speak
of the virtual body as the extensi on of the ri gi d body to i ncl ude al l poi nts i n
space. Suppose, for exampl e, that the real ri gi d body i s a spheri cal shel l . The
centroi d of thi s body l i es at the sphere center, whi ch i s not part of the physi cal
body, but i t i s part of the vi rtual body. Poi nts i n the i nni te vi rtual body move
accordi ng to Eq. (16.1). Namel y
(16.4)
Let denote some particular conveni ent poi nt i n the vi rtual body. Let
denote the current posi ti on of the reference poi nt. Later on, i t wi l l become
evi dent that a very good choi ce for the reference parti cl e i s the bodys center of
mass, . Another common choi ce for the reference parti cl e i s any parti cl e
(such as the hi nge poi nt on a ri gi d roboti c arm) for whi ch the posi ti on vector of
the reference poi nt i s known for al l ti me.
Equati on (16.4) hol ds for all poi nts on the ri gi d body, so i t must al so hol d
for the reference poi nt:
x

+ =
R

t ( ) =

t ( ) =

+ =
X

c
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
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A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(16.5)
Subtracti ng Eq. (16.5) from (16.1) gi ves
(16.6)
I n thi s manner, we have separated a ri gi d moti on i nto two di sti nct compo-
nents: The moti on of a si ngl e reference parti cl e and moti on of al l other
parti cl es relative to the reference particle. I n al l of the fol l owi ng di scussi ons,
we wi l l presume that the reference parti cl e i s Lagrangian i n other words, i t
al ways corresponds to the same physi cal poi nt on the body so that the ti me
rate of wi l l be zero.
Velocity and angular velocity for rigid motion
Taki ng the reference poi nt to be the center of mass, recal l that ri gi d moti on
may be descri bed by
(16.7)
i n whi ch
and (16.8)
are two known functi ons of ti me. I n other words, the moti on of a ri gi d body i s
compl etel y descri bed by speci fyi ng the posi ti on of the center of mass as a
functi on of ti me and the rotati on tensor as a functi on of ti me. For probl ems
i n mechani cs, the set of forces acti ng on the body are known, and the resul ti ng
moti on i s desi red.
I mportantl y, the ori gi n from whi ch i s measured i s xed, so the materi al
vel oci ty i s dened by
(16.9)
or
(16.10)
Noti ng that , thi s may be wri tten as
, (16.11)
where
(16.12)
The angul ar vel oci ty vector i s dened to equal the axi al vector associ ated
wi th the spi n tensor . I n other words, i t i s dened such that
x

+ =
x


( ) =
X

c
R

c
( ) + =
R

t ( ) = x

c
x

c
t ( ) =
x

c
R

c
t ( ) R

t ( ) , { }
x

t
-------
,
_
X

c
R

c
( ) + =
X

c
R

T
x

c
( ) =
x

c
( ) + =

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153
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F
T
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e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
for any vector (16.13)
I n di rect notati on, thi s i mpl i es that the angul ar rotati on tensor i s rel ated to
the angul ar rotati on vector by
(16.14)
I n i ndi ci al notati on, thi s i s wri tten
(16.15)
Thus, the component matri x of can be constructed from the angul ar vel oci ty
vector
(16.16)
Conversel y, i f the angul ar rotati on tensor i s known, then the angul ar vel oc-
i ty vector can be computed by
(16.17)
or, wri tten out expl i ci tl y (recal l i ng that i s skew symmetri c),
(16.18)
(16.19)
(16.20)
As menti oned earl i er, axi al tensors are dened so that they are rel ated to thei r
axi al vectors by the i mportant i denti ty
for any vector (16.21)
Thus, appl yi ng thi s i denti ty to Eq. (16.11) gi ves
, (16.22)
whi ch i s the form of the vel oci ty ci ted i n most el ementary dynami cs textbooks.
Time rate of a vector embedded in a rigid body
Dene an embedded vector to be one that poi nts from one di sti nct poi nt
to a second poi nt embedded i n a ri gi d body:
(16.23)

= u

i j

i j k

k
k 1 =
3

[ ]
0
3

2

3
0
1

2

1
0
=

1
2
-- -

1

32
=

2

13
=

3

21
=

= u

c
( ) + =
z

tail
x

tip
z

tip
x

tail

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154
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A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
The rate of thi s embedded vector i s
(16.24)
Appl yi ng Eq. (16.11) shows that
, (16.25)
(16.26)
Hence, Eq. (16.24) becomes
(16.27)
or
(16.28)
I n terms of the angul ar vel oci ty vector, thi s resul t i s wri tten
(16.29)
Acceleration for rigid motion
The second rate of Eq. (16.10) gi ves a very si mpl e expressi on for the accel -
erati on:
, (16.30)
or, agai n noti ng that , the ful l y spati al expressi on for
the accel erati on i s
(16.31)
Recal l that
. (16.32)
Therefore
(16.33)
Thus
(16.34)
and
. (16.35)
z

tip
x

tail

x

tip
x

tip
x

c
( ) + =
x

tail
x

tail
x

c
( ) + =
z

tip
x

tail
( )
z

=
x

c
R

c
( ) + =
X

c
R

T
x

c
( ) =
x

c
R

T
x

c
( ) + =
R

=
R

+ ( ) R

= =
R

2
+ =
x

2
+ [ ] x

c
( ) + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
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155
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A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Appl yi ng Eq. (16.21) twi ce shows that
for any vector (16.36)
Note from Eq. (16.16) that
(16.37)
or, rearrangi ng thi s resul t,
(16.38)
I n di rect notati on,
(16.39)
Thus, a way of computi ng that i s an al ternati ve to Eq. (16.36) i s
for any vector (16.40)
Recal l from Eq. (16.14) that i s the axi al vector associ ated wi th the spi n ten-
sor . The al ternati ng tensor i s i ndependent of ti me. Therefore the ti me
rate of Eq. (16.14) gi ves
, (16.41)
whi ch shows that the angular acceleration vector i s the axi al vector associ -
ated wi th the rate of the spi n tensor . Therefore the angul ar accel erati on
vector and tensor sati ses the basi c i denti ty:
for any vector (16.42)
We may appl y Eqs. (16.42) and (16.40) to Eq. (16.35) to wri te the accel erati on
stri ctl y i n terms of the angul ar vel oci ty vector:
(16.43)
Al ternati vel y, usi ng Eq. (16.36) i nstead of (16.40),
(16.44)
Thi s i s the form of the accel erati on typi cal l y ci ted i n dynami cs textbooks.
Cl earl y, however, anyone wi th even a modi cum of ski l l wi th tensor anal ysi s
woul d prefer the el egant si mpl i ci ty of Eq. (16.30) or (16.35).

2
u

( ) = u

2
[ ]
0
3

2

3
0
1

2

1
0
0
3

2

3
0
1

2

1
0

2
2

3
2
+ ( )
1

2

1

1

3
2

1
2
+ ( )
2

1

3

2

1
2

2
2
+ ( )
= =

2
[ ]

1
2

2

1

1

2
2

1

3

2

3
2

1
2

2
2

3
2
+ + ( )
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
=

( ) I

2
u

2
u

( )

( )u

= u

= u

c
( )

c
( ) [ ]

( ) x

c
( ) + + =
x

c
( )

c
( ) [ ] + + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
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e
b
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c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
Important properties of a rigid body
One of the most profound di scoveri es i n the study of ri gi d body dynami cs i s
that we do not need to know the exact mass di stri buti on of the body i n order to
compl etel y determi ne i ts moti on. Rather, i t i s sufci ent to know the total mass
, the l ocati on of the center of mass and the val ue of a speci al second-
order i nerti a tensor dened rel ati ve to the center of mass. These three
quanti ti es depend onl y on the bodys geometri cal shape and i ts spati al densi ty
di stri buti on. They may be computed a priori at ti me zero and then easi l y
updated through ti me i f the rotati on tensor and the posi ti on of one poi nt
are known as functi ons of ti me.
Suppose that the si ze and shape of the ri gi d body are known. Let
be the mass densi ty
*
of the ri gi d body at posi ti on . We can dene
moments of the ri gi d body as fol l ows:
Zeroth moment (the mass): (16.45)
Fi rst moment (the CM): (16.46)
Second moment about the CM: (16.47)
Note that the zeroth moment i s just the mass of the body. The rst moment i s
the center-of-mass (henceforth abbrevi ated CM). For now, the second moment
may be regarded as an abstract mathemati cal enti ty havi ng no i ntui ti ve
meani ng. Note that the second moment i s dened usi ng the posi ti on vector
rel ati ve to the center of mass. The second moment about an arbi trary poi nt
i s dened
Second moment about : (16.48)
We wi l l l ater show that the second moment about an arbi trary poi nt can
be computed from the second moment about the CM by the very si mpl e for-
mul a:
, where (16.49)
Thus, i f and are known, then the second moment about can be
i mmedi atel y computed wi thout needi ng to perform any i ntegrati ons. I n other
words, knowl edge of does not provi de any addi ti onal i nformati on, but i ts
use mi ght si mpl i fy certai n equati ons.
* spatially varying, but constant (in a Lagrangian sense) with respect to time.
M x

c
R

p
B
x

( ) = x

M V d
B


o
V
o
d
B
o

=
x

c
1
M
------ x

V d
B

c
1
M
------ x

c
( ) x

c
( ) V d
B

p
x

p
y

p
1
M
------ x

p
( ) x

p
( ) V d
B

p
y

p
y

c
d

pc
d

pc
+ d

pc
x

p
x

c

y

c
x

c
x

p
y

p
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
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157
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A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
We wi l l use a superscri pt 0 as an al ternati ve notati on for the val ue of a
quanti ty at ti me zero. Thus, for exampl e,
(16.50)
(16.51)
(16.52)
When anal yzi ng the angul ar momentum equati on, we wi l l encounter the
expressi on
(16.53)
where (recal l ) i s the total mass of the body, i s the al ternati ng (permuta-
ti on) tensor, i s the second moment of the body about a poi nt , and i s
the angul ar vel oci ty tensor. The expressi on i n Eq. (16.53) i s l i near wi th
respect to and i t must therefore be l i near wi th respect to the axi al vector .
I n other words, there must exi st a tensor that i s i ndependent of such
that
(16.54)
Wri ti ng thi s expressi on i n i ndi ci al form reveal s that
(16.55)
The tensor i s cal l ed the rotati onal moment of i nerti a for the body, and we
wi l l see that i t pl ays a rol e i n resi sti ng rotati onal moti on that i s si mi l ar to the
i nerti al rol e of mass i n resi sti ng transl ati onal moti on.
Exa m p le : sp he re . For a sphere of radi us , performi ng the i ntegral s den-
i ng the second moment gi ves
(16.56)
and
(16.57)
Thi s resul t can be found i n any dynami cs textbook.
Exa m p le : e llip so id . Suppose an el l i psoi d i s dened by three orthogonal vec-
tors whi ch equal the pri nci pal axes i n both ori entati on and di recti on.
We coul d perform the i ntegral s as was done for the sphere, but the answer can
be obtai ned more el egantl y. We can construct a tensor , whose col umns con-
tai n the axi s vectors, that maps a unit sphere to the el l i psoi d such that
x

0
x

t=0
X

=
x

c
0
x

c
t=0

1
M
------ x

0
V d
B

1
M
------ X


o
V
o
d
B

c
= = =
y

c
0
y

c
t=0

1
M
------ X

c
( ) X

c
( )
o
V
o
d
B

=
M

: y

T
( )
M

p
x

: y

T
( )

p
M tr y

p
( ) I

p
[ ]

p
R
y

p
sphere
1
5
--- R
2
I

p
sphere
2
5
--- MR
2
I

=
a

, , { }
G

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm


Rigid Body Mechanics
158
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(16.58)
then
(16.59)
and
(16.60)
The tensor i s easi l y constructed from the sum of axi s dyads:
(16.61)
From whi ch i t fol l ows that
(16.62)
The pl anar moment of i nerti a about i s gi ven by
(16.63)
The tensor i s cal l ed the rotati onal moment of i nerti a tensor. Just as mass
represents resi stance of a body to transl ati onal accel erati on, the i nerti a tensor
quanti es resi stance of a body to rotati onal accel erati on.
Switc hing b e twe e n the se c o nd m o m e nt a nd ine rtia te nso r. The i nerti a
tensor carri es the same i nformati on as the second moment tensor. As a matter
of fact, i f i s known, then the second moment may be i mmedi atel y con-
structed by
(16.64)
C e nte r shift fo r the ine rtia te nso r. Usi ng (16.49), we note that can be
computed from by
, where (16.65)
Thi s resul t i s a general i zati on of the paral l el axi s theorem ci ted i n el ementary
dynami cs textbooks. I t i s a general i zati on because we make no requi rement of
the exi stence of any paral l el axes. I nstead, the rotati onal moment of i nerti a
wi th respect to an arbi trary poi nt can be computed i f the rotati onal
moment of i nerti a about the CM i s known. The tradi ti onal (speci al i zed) paral -
l el axi s theorem i s presented i n Eq. (16.94)
x

ellip
x

p
ellip
G

sphere
X

p
sphere
( ) + =
y

p
ellipsoid
1
5
---G

p
sphere
G

T

1
5
--- G

T
( ) = =

p
ellipsoid
1
5
--- M G

:G

( )I

T
[ ] =
G

T
a

+ + =
G

:G

tr G

T
( ) a
2
b
2
c
2
+ + = =
a

p
ellipsoid
a


a
2
---------------------------------------
1
5
--- M b
2
c
2
+ [ ] =

p
y

p
1
M
------
1
2
---
tr

p
( )I

p
[ ] =

c
M d

pc
d

pc
( )I

pc
d

pc
[ ] + d

pc
x

p
x

c

x

p
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
159
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
M o m e nt o f ine rtia a b o ut a g ive n a xis. Gi ven a pl ane of uni t normal , the
pl anar moment of i nerti a i s dened by
(16.66)
or, i n terms of the second moment,
(16.67)
The pl anar moment of i nerti a i s a measure of how di fcul t i t i s to rotate
the body about an axi s paral l el to that passes through the center of mass.
Exp lic it m a tric e s fo r the se c o nd m o m e nt a nd ine rtia te nso r. To gai n an
i ntui ti ve feel i ng for the general structure of the vari ous second moments sup-
pose that we can set up a coordi nate system wi th the ori gi n at . Then we
can wri te
(16.68)
The dyad woul d then have a Cartesi an component matri x
gi ven by
(16.69)
Thus,
(16.70)
The moment of i nerti a tensor woul d then be gi ven by
(16.71)
or
(16.72)
The pl anar moment of i nerti a about the z-di recti on woul d then be
n

cn
n

c
n

cn
M tr y

c
( ) n

c
n

[ ] =

cn
n

p
x

p
xe

x
ye

y
ze

z
+ + =
x

p
( ) x

p
( )
x

p
( ) x

p
( ) [ ]
x
2
xy xz
yx y
2
yz
zx zy z
2
=
y

p
[ ]
1
M
------
x
2
xy xz
yx y
2
yz
zx zy z
2
V d
B

p
[ ] x
2
y
2
z
2
+ + ( )
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
x
2
xy xz
yx y
2
yz
zx zy z
2

,



_
V d
B

p
[ ]
y
2
z
2
+ xy xz
yx z
2
x
2
+ yz
zx zy x
2
y
2
+
V d
B

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
160
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
(16.73)
Thus, i s the i ntegral over the body of the di stance from the z-axi s, when
the coordi nate system i s set up so that the z-axi s passes through the CM. The
off-di agonal components of the i nerti a tensor are cal l ed the products of
i nerti a. Some books omi t the negati ve si gn i n thei r deni ti ons, whi ch i s ne so
l ong as the negati ve i s re-i nserted whenever a change i n coordi nates i s per-
formed.
We wi l l l ater see that the second moment pl ays a rol e i n the conservati on
of angul ar momentum that i s si mi l ar to the rol e pl ayed by the mass i n the l i n-
ear momentum equati on. Mass i s a measure of the bodys resi stance to
changes i n l i near moti on whi l e the i nerti a tensor measures the bodys resi s-
tance to changes i n angul ar momentum.
Re la tio nship b e twe e n the c urre nt a nd initia l m o m e nts. Conservati on of
mass guarantees that the zeroth moments are equal . That i s,
(16.74)
Recal l the deni ti on of the center-of-mass:
(16.75)
The second moment about the ori gi n i s dened
(16.76)
A ri gi d moti on may be descri bed i n terms of the moti on of the CM by
(16.77)
Therefore
+ (16.78)
Substi tuti ng thi s i nto Eq. (16.76) and pul l i ng out arguments that dont
vary wi th posi ti on gi ves
+ (16.79)
Si mpl i fyi ng shows that
(16.80)

cz
e

c
e

z
x
2
y
2
+ ( ) V d
B

= =

cz

c
dV
o
dV
o
=
x

c
1
M
------ x

V d
B

1
M
------ x

V d
B

c
R

c
( ) + =
x

c
x

c
R

c
X

c
x

c
( ) x

c
X

c
X

c
( ) R

T
+ + =
R

c
X

c
X

c
X

c
+ ( ) R

T

y

c
x

c
R

c
x

c
X

c
x

c
( ) x

c
X

c
x

c
X

c
( ) R

T
+ +
R

0
X

c
X

c
X

c
X

c
X

c
X

c
+ ( ) R

T

y

c
x

c
R

0
x

c
0
x

c
0
( ) R

T
+
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
161
D
R
A
F
T
R
e
b
e
c
c
a
B
r a
n
n
o
n
From the center shi ft theorem (deri ved bel ow), we know that
(16.81)
Therefore
(16.82)
Now recal l that
(16.83)
And
(16.84)
Therefore
(16.85)
I n other words, the current second moment i s rel ated to the i ni ti al second
moment by a si mpl e rotati on.
M o m e nt c e nte r shift the o re m . Recal l the deni ti on of the second moment
about some poi nt
(16.86)
The goal of the moment center shi ft theorem i s to nd a formul a that rel ates
to the (presumabl y al ready computed) second moment that i s centered
about the CM. Wri tten out expl i ci tl y, the i ntegrand of Eq. (16.86) i s
(16.87)
Noti ng that i s si mpl y the l ocati on of a particular point and consequentl y
does not vary wi th posi ti on, i t may be pul l ed out of the i ntegral s i n Eq. (16.87)
to gi ve
(16.88)
I f coi nci des wi th , then Eq. (16.88) becomes
(16.89)
Thus, we may substi tute i nto Eq. (16.88) to obtai n
, where (16.90)
y

c
0
y

0
x

c
0
x

c
0

y

c
R

c
0
R

T

y

p
y

c
d

pc
d

pc
+ =
d

pc
R

pc
0
=
y

p
R

p
0
R

T

x

p
y

p
1
M
------ d

xp
d

xp
V d
B

p
y

c
d

xp
d

xp
x

p
( ) x

p
( ) x

p
x

p
x

p
x

p
+ = =
x

p
y

p
y

c
x

p
x

p
x

c
x

p
x

p
+
x

p
x

c
y

c
y

c
x

c

y

c
x

c
x

c
+ =
y

p
y

c
d

pc
d

pc
+ d

pc
x

p
x

c

May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
162
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Thi s resul t shows that may be i mmedi atel y constructed wi thout havi ng to
perform any new i ntegral s over the body so l ong as and are known. Thi s
i s why the moments about the centroi d are general l y consi dered the pri mi -
ti ve moments from whi ch al l other moments may be deri ved.
To remember Eq. (16.90), i t hel ps to recogni ze that i s a measure of the
resi stance of a body to an angul ar accel erati on. Thi s resi stance i s the smal l -
est when the axi s of rotati on passes through the CM. Thus, must al ways be
l arger than . Hence, i s obtai ned from by adding the dyad .
The p a ra lle l a xis the o re m . Recal l the deni ti on of the pl anar moment of
i nerti a, whi ch measures the resi stance of a body to an angul ar accel erati on
about an axi s paral l el to passi ng through the CM :
(16.91)
We can si mi l arl y dene the pl anar moment of i nerti a about a paral l el axi s
that passes through a di fferent poi nt :
(16.92)
We can substi tute Eq. (16.90) i nto thi s equati on to obtai n
(16.93)
Rearrangi ng gi ves the paral l el axi s theorem:
, where (16.94)
Note that i s the square magni tude of and i s the magni -
tude of the part of that i s paral l el to . Therefore, i s the perpendi cul ar
di stance between the two paral l el axes.
Linear momentum of a rigid body
The total momentum for a body i s dened by
, where , and (16.95)
Here, i s the mass densi ty and i s the vol ume el ement. We can substi tute
Eq. (16.10) i nto the above deni ti on to obtai n
(16.96)
Now we recal l that the rotati on tensor depends onl y on ti me, not posi ti on.
Li kewi se, the vel oci ty of the CM depends onl y on ti me, not posi ti on. Thus,
(16.97)
y

p
y

c
x

c
y

p
y

p
y

c
y

p
y

c
d

pc
d

pc
n

cn
M tr y

c
( ) n

c
n

[ ] =
x

pn
M tr y

p
( ) n

p
n

[ ] =

pn
M tr y

c
d

pc
d

pc
+ [ ] ( ) n

c
d

pc
d

pc
+ ( )
p
n

[ ] =

pn

cn
r
pc
2
+ = r d

pc
d

pc
( ) d

pc
n

( )
2

d

pc
d

pc
d

pc
d

pc
n

pc
n

r
B
L

m d
B

= v

= dm dV =
dV
L

c
R

c
( ) + [ ] V d
B

=
R

Mx

c
R

V d
B

MX

c
( ) + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
163
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We recogni ze the remai ni ng i ntegral to equal ti mes the posi ti on of the cen-
troi d . Therefore, the l ast two terms cancel l eavi ng onl y
(16.98)
Thus, the angul ar spi n of a ri gi d body has no effect on i ts l i near momentum.
Angular momentum of a rigid body
The total angul ar momentum about the ori gi n for a body i s dened by
(16.99)
Thi s may be wri tten as
(16.100)
We can agai n substi tute Eq. (16.11) i nto Eq. (16.100) to obtai n
=
= (16.101)
Thus, noti ng that ,
(16.102)
So the angul ar momentum becomes
(16.103)
The deni ti on of the i nerti a tensor about any poi nt i s gi ven i n Eq. (16.54):
(16.104)
Wi th thi s, the angul ar momentum about the xed l aboratory ori gi n becomes
(16.105)
Kinetic energy
The total ki neti c energy for a body i s dened by
(16.106)
or, usi ng Eq. (__) for the vel oci ty
M
X

c
L

Mx

c
=
B
H

m d
B

=
H

: x

m d
B

=
x

m d
B

c
( ) + [ ] m d
B

=
Mx

c
x

c
x

c
( ) m d
B

,
_

T
+
Mx

c
x

c
M y

c
x

c
( )

T
+
y

c
x

c
y

c
=
x

m d
B

M x

c
x

c
y

T
+ [ ] =
H

: x

c
x

c
y

T
+ ( ) =
x

p
M

: y

T
( )

=
H

Mx

c
x

+ =
B
E

1
2
--- v

m d
B

=
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
164
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a
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r a
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=
= (16.107)
I t i s strai ghtforward to demonstrate that thi s can be si mpl i ed to
, where (16.108)
Note that the i nerti a tensor and the angul ar vel oci ty pl ay rol es that are
anal ogous to the rol es pl ayed by the mass and vel oci ty .
E

1
2
--- x

c
( ) + [ ] x

c
( ) + [ ] m d
B

=
1
2
--- x

c
x

c
( ) x

c
( )
1
2
---tr

c
( ) x

c
( )

T
[ ] + +
,
_
m d
B

1
2
--- Mv
c
2
0
1
2
--- Mtr

T
[ ] + +
E

1
2
--- Mv
c
2
1
2
-- -

+ = v
c
2
x

c
x

M v
c
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
165
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NEWTONS EQUATION (balance of linear momentum)
The conservati on of l i near momentum states that the net force acti ng on
a ri gi d body must equal the rate of change of i ts l i near momentum. That i s
(16.109)
Thus
, where (16.110)
I n other words, the net force equal s the total mass ti mes the accel erati on of
the center of mass.
EULERS EQUATION (balance of angular momentum)
The bal ance of angul ar momentum requi res that the net torque (about the
xed Laboratory ori gi n) must equal the rate of change of the angul ar momen-
tum:
(16.111)
Thus, taki ng rates of Eq. (16.105), gi ves
(16.112)
Recal l that
(16.113)
Taki ng rates (noti ng that does not vary wi th ti me and ) gi ves
(16.114)
Dotti ng from the ri ght by , noti ng that permi ts Eq. (16.112) to be
wri tten
(16.115)
or
(16.116)
Thi s resul t i s the direct notation form of Eul ers equati ons of moti on. Thi s
expressi on may be appl i ed usi ng any conveni ent coordi nate system
F

=
F

Ma

c
= a

c
x

=
T

Mx

c
x

+ + =

c
R

c
0
R

T
=

c
0
R

=
T

Mx

c
x

+ + =
T

Mx

c
a

( ) + + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
Rigid Body Mechanics
166
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Many texts present a much speci al i zed versi on of Eul ers equati on usi ng an
ori gi n coi nci di ng wi th the CM (so that ) and al so usi ng a basi s al i gned
wi th the pri nci pal di recti ons of the i nerti a tensor (so that the products of i ner-
ti al are zero). I n thi s speci al l i mi ti ng case, the above equati on can be wri tten
i n component form as
(16.117)
(16.118)
, (16.119)
whi ch i s the form ci ted most frequentl y i n el ementary dynami cs books.
x

c
0

=
T
1

11

1

3

2

33

22
( ) + =
T
2

22

2

1

3

11

33
( ) + =
T
3

33

3

2

1

22

11
( ) + =
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
REFERENCES
167
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REFERENCES
1
Gol dstei n, Herbert; Pool e, Charl es P. Jr; Safko, John L. (2002), Classi-
cal Mechanics, Col umbi a Uni versi ty. Addi son Wesl ey.
2
Argyri s, J. (1982), An excursion into largerotations. Computer Methods
i n Appl i ed Mechani cs and Engi neeri ng 32.
3
Shoemake, K., Uniform random rotations, i n: D. Ki rk (Ed.), Graphi cs
Gems I I I , Academi c Press, London, 1992, pp. 124-132.
4
Desl oge, E.A., Classical Mechanics, V. 1&2, Fl ori da State Uni versi ty,
Wi l ey & Sons, New York, 1982.
5
Wi l ey, C.R. and Barrett, L.C. (1982) Advanced Engineering Mathe-
matics McGraw-Hi l l . {QA401.W9 1982, I SBN 0-070072188-2}
6
Chadwi ck, P. (1999) Continuum Mechanics: Concise Theory and
Problems (second revised and enlarged version). Dover. {QA808.C46,
I SBN 0-486-40180-4 (pbk)}
7
Mal vern, L.E. (1969) Introduction to the Mechanics of a Continu-
ous Medium. Prenti ce-Hal l , Engl ewood Cl i ffs, New Jersey.
8
Di enes, J.K., (1979) On theanalysis of Rotation and Stress Ratein De-
forming Bodies. Acta Mechani ca 32, pp. 217-232.
9
Eri ngen, A. Cemal . (1962), Nonlinear Theory of Continuous Media.
McGraw-Hi l l .
10
Schi ndl er, W. (1997), On theefcient simulation of a particular class of
random rotations relevant to computer graphics. J. Computati onal and Appl .
Math. 81, pp. 107-114.
11
Brannon, R.M., Caveats concerning conjugate stress and strain mea-
sures for largedistortion of anisotropicmaterials, Acta Mechani ca, v. 129(#1-2)
pp. 107-116 1998.
12
Shames, I .H. Engineering Mechanics, VII Dynamics, Prenti ce -
Hal l , Engl ewood Cl i ffs, New Jersey, 1980
13
Lai , W. Mi chael ; Rubi n, Davi d; Krempl , Erhard. Continuum Me-
chanics, 3rd Ed. Butterworth-Hei nemann Ltd 1993. I SBN 0 7506 2894 4
14
Brannon, R.M. http://www.me.unm.edu/~rmbrann/Tensors.pdf
May 9, 2002 3:49 pm
REFERENCES
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A-1
APPENDIX A FORTRAN CODE LISTINGS
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APPENDIX A.
FORTRAN CODE LISTINGS
Listing 1: Testing whether a matrix is a rotation
SUBROUTINE CHKROT(DC,IERR)
C ***********************************************************
C This routine checks if a matrix DC is a proper rotation.
C To be orthogonal, the columns (or) rows of DC must form an
C orthoNORMAL triad. That means that each column dotted with
C itself must equal 1, and each column dotted with a different
C column must equal 0. Furthermore, to be a proper rotation,
C the columns of DC must form a RIGHT-HANDED orthonormal triad.
C In other words, the determinant of DC must equal +1.
C ***********************************************************
C
C INPUT
C -----
C DC: candidate rotation matrix
C
C OUTPUT
C ------
C IERR = 0 if the matrix is a proper rotation
C
C = -1 if the matrix is orthogonal but has a negative determinant
C
C = ij if the dot product between column i and column j is wrong
C For example, if column 3 is not normalized, then ierr=33.
C If column 1 is not perpendicular to column 2, then ierr = 12.
INCLUDE implicit.h
C For double precison, the implicit.h include should contain one
C single line, depending on the desired precision. As appropriate,
C IMPLICIT REAL(A-H,O-Z) ! for single precision
C IMPLICIT DOUBLE PRECISION(A-H,O-Z) ! for double precision
C ....parameters
C real*8 pzero,pone
PARAMETER (PZERO=0.0D0,PONE=0.1D1)
C ....passed
C real*8 dc
DIMENSION DC(3,3)
INTEGER IERR
C
C ....local
INTEGER I,J,K
C real*8 dum
************************************************************************
IERR=0
C The direction cosines are known
C Check that the columns form an orthonormal set
C
DO I=1,3
DO J=1,3
DUM=PZERO
DO K=1,3
DUM=DUM+DC(K,I)*DC(K,J)
END DO
IF(I.EQ.J)DUM=DUM-PONE
IF(ABS(DUM).GT.0.001D0)THEN
IERR=10*I+J
RETURN
END IF
ENDDO
ENDDO
C
A-2
APPENDIX A FORTRAN CODE LISTINGS
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C Check if proper rotation by checking if det(dc)=+1
DUM=DC(1,1)*DC(2,2)*DC(3,3)
$ +DC(1,2)*DC(2,3)*DC(3,1)
$ +DC(2,1)*DC(3,2)*DC(1,3)
$ -DC(3,1)*DC(2,2)*DC(1,3)
$ -DC(2,1)*DC(1,2)*DC(3,3)
$ -DC(1,1)*DC(2,3)*DC(3,2)
DUM=DUM-PONE
IF(ABS(DUM).GT.0.001D0)THEN
IERR=-1
RETURN
END IF
C
IERR=0
RETURN
END
Listing 2: Converting axis and angle to direction cosines
c---.----1----.----2----.----3----.----4----.----5----.----6----.----7--
SUBROUTINE AA2DC(axis,angle,dc,ierr)
C This routine converts axis and angle of rotation to a direction
c cosine matrix.
C
C input
C -----
C AXIS: a unit vector in the direction of the axis of rotation
C ANGLE: the angle of rotation (by right hand rule around AXIS)
C
C output
C -----
C DC: the direction cosine matrix defined such that DC(i,j) equals
C the dot product between the ith laboratory base vector and the
C jth rotated base vector.
C
C MODIFICATION HISTORY
C 980826:rmb:created routine
C
************************************************************************
INCLUDE implicit.h
C.....parameters
c real*8 pone
parameter (pone=0.1d1)
c.....passed
integer ierr
c real*8 axis,angle,dc
dimension axis(3),dc(3,3)
C.....function (functions instead of subroutines)
C.....external
c.....local (not saved)
c real*8 c,s,omc
C.....local (saved)
C.....data
C.....statement functions
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
ierr=0
c=cos(angle)
s=sin(angle)
omc=pone-c
dc(1,1)=omc*axis(1)*axis(1)+c
dc(2,2)=omc*axis(2)*axis(2)+c
dc(3,3)=omc*axis(3)*axis(3)+c
dc(1,2)=omc*axis(1)*axis(2)-s*axis(3)
dc(2,3)=omc*axis(2)*axis(3)-s*axis(1)
dc(3,1)=omc*axis(3)*axis(1)-s*axis(2)
dc(2,1)=omc*axis(2)*axis(1)+s*axis(3)
dc(3,2)=omc*axis(3)*axis(2)+s*axis(1)
dc(1,3)=omc*axis(1)*axis(3)+s*axis(2)
A-3
APPENDIX A FORTRAN CODE LISTINGS
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RETURN
END
Listing 3: Converting direction cosines to axis and angle
The fol l owi ng l i sti ng uses c-preprocessor di recti ves to sel ect the method by
whi ch the task i s performed. I f METHOD1 i s dened, then method 1 from page -
36 i s used. Otherwi se, method 2 from page -40 i s used.
#ifdef METHOD1
SUBROUTINE DC2AA(DC,AXIS,ANGLE,ierr)
************************************************************************
INCLUDE implicit.h
c ....parameters
parameter (pzero=0.0d0,pone=0.1d1,phalf=0.5d0)
parameter (puny=0.1d-10)
c ....passed
integer ierr
dimension dc(3,3),axis(3)
c ....local
integer i,j,k
dimension scr(3,3)
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
ierr=0
c The axis and angle are desired
cth=(dc(1,1)+dc(2,2)+dc(3,3)-pone)*phalf
sth=SQRT(pone-cth*cth)
angle=acos(cth)
if(abs(sth).gt.puny)then
axis(1)=(dc(3,2)-dc(2,3))*phalf/sth
axis(2)=(dc(1,3)-dc(3,1))*phalf/sth
axis(3)=(dc(2,1)-dc(1,2))*phalf/sth
elseif(cth.gt.pzero) then
c The rotation tensor is the identity
c and any axis will do.
axis(1)=pone
axis(2)=pzero
axis(3)=pzero
else
c The rotation angle is exactly 180 degrees.
c The rotation axis is therefore parallel to any nonzero
c column of I+dc, where I is the identity matrix.
do i=1,3
do j=1,3
scr(i,j)=dc(i,j)
enddo
enddo
cth=pzero
j=-12345
do k=1,3
scr(k,k)=scr(k,k)+pone
sth=scr(1,k)**2+scr(2,k)**2+scr(3,k)**2
if(sth.gt.cth)then
cth=SQRT(sth)
j=k
scr(1,j)=scr(1,j)/cth
scr(2,j)=scr(2,j)/cth
scr(3,j)=scr(3,j)/cth
endif
enddo
axis(1)=scr(1,j)
axis(2)=scr(2,j)
A-4
APPENDIX A FORTRAN CODE LISTINGS
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axis(3)=scr(3,j)
endif
return
end
#else
SUBROUTINE DC2AA(DC,AXIS,ANGLE,ierr)
************************************************************************
INCLUDE implicit.h
c ....parameters
parameter (pzero=0.0d0,pone=0.1d1,ptwo=0.2d1,phalf=0.5d0)
c ....passed
integer ierr
dimension dc(3,3),axis(3)
c ....local
integer i,j,k
dimension scr(3,3)
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
ierr=0
c The axis and angle are desired
dum=(dc(1,1)+dc(2,2)+dc(3,3)-pone)*phalf
angle=acos(dum)
c
c The rotation axis is parallel to any nonzero
c column of R+R^T+(1-trR)I, where I is the identity matrix.
c and R^T is the tranpose of R. Here R is the rotation matrix DC.
dum=-ptwo*dum
do i=1,3
do j=1,3
scr(i,j)=dc(i,j)+dc(j,i)
enddo
scr(i,i)=scr(i,i)+dum
enddo
smag=pzero
j=-12345
do k=1,3
dum=scr(1,k)**2+scr(2,k)**2+scr(3,k)**2
if(dum.gt.smag)then
smag=dum
j=k
endif
enddo
smag=sqrt(smag)
axis(1)=sign( scr(1,j)/smag, dc(3,2)-dc(2,3) )
axis(2)=sign( scr(2,j)/smag, dc(1,3)-dc(3,1) )
axis(3)=sign( scr(3,j)/smag, dc(2,1)-dc(1,2) )
return
end
#endif
A-5
APPENDIX A FORTRAN CODE LISTINGS
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Listing 4: Converting Euler angles to direction cosines.
c---.----1----.----2----.----3----.----4----.----5----.----6----.----7--
SUBROUTINE EU2DC(EU,DC,ierr)
C
C INPUT
C -----
C EU: The euler angles
C
C OUTPUT
c ------
c DC: The direction cosine matrix.
c
************************************************************************
C PURPOSE: This routine ....
C
C MODIFICATION HISTORY
C mm/dd/yy:who:modification
C
INCLUDE implicit.h
C.....parameters
C.....common
c.....passed
integer ierr
c real*8 eu,dc
dimension eu(3),dc(3,3)
C.....function (functions instead of subroutines)
C.....external
c.....local (not saved)
c real*8 cphi,sphi,cth,sth,cpsi,spsi
C.....local (saved)
C.....data
C.....statement functions
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
ierr=0
cphi=COS(eu(1))
sphi=SIN(eu(1))
cth =COS(eu(2))
sth =SIN(eu(2))
cpsi=COS(eu(3))
spsi=SIN(eu(3))
dc(1,1)=cphi*cpsi - cth*sphi*spsi
dc(2,1)=cpsi*sphi + cphi*cth*spsi
dc(3,1)=spsi*sth
dc(1,2)=-(cpsi*cth*sphi) - cphi*spsi
dc(2,2)=cphi*cpsi*cth - sphi*spsi
dc(3,2)=cpsi*sth
dc(1,3)=sphi*sth
dc(2,3)=-(cphi*sth)
dc(3,3)=cth
RETURN
END
A-6
APPENDIX A FORTRAN CODE LISTINGS
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Listing 5: Converting direction cosines to Euler angles.
C---.----1----.----2----.----3----.----4----.----5----.----6----.----7--
SUBROUTINE DC2EU(DC,EULER,ierr)
c
c This routine converts an orthogonal proper rotation matrix to euler
c angles.
c
c INPUT
c -----
c DC: direction cosine matrix for the rotation TENSOR
C DC(i,j) is defined as the inner product between the ith lab
C base vector with the jth rotated base vector.
c
c OUTPUT
c ------
C EULER: euler angles {phi,theta,psi}, which describe the rotation
C of the lab triad by the following procedure...First rotate
C the triad an angle phi about its z-axis. Then rotate the new
C triad an angle theta about its own new x-axis. Then rotate
C the newer triad an angle psi about its own z-axis.
c IERR: =0 if success, =1 otherwise
************************************************************************
INCLUDE implicit.h
c ....parameters
c real*8 pzero,pone,puny,small
parameter (pzero=0.0d0,pone=0.1d1,small=0.1d-8,puny=0.1d-20)
c ....passed
integer ierr
c real*8 dc,euler
dimension dc(3,3), euler(3)
c ....local
c real*8 dum,dum11,dum12,dum21,dum22,cth,sthsq,theta,psi,phi
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
cth=dc(3,3)
sthsq=pone-cth*cth
if(sthsq.lt.puny)then
theta=acos(cth)
psi=pzero
phi=atan2(dc(2,1),dc(1,1))
return
endif
dum11=dc(1,1)
$ +((dc(2,3)*dc(3,2) + dc(1,3)*dc(3,1)*dc(3,3))/sthsq)
dum12=dc(1,2)
$ -(dc(2,3)*dc(3,1) - dc(1,3)*dc(3,2)*dc(3,3))/sthsq
dum21=dc(2,1)
$ -(dc(1,3)*dc(3,2) - dc(2,3)*dc(3,1)*dc(3,3))/sthsq
dum22=dc(2,2)
$ +(dc(1,3)*dc(3,1) + dc(2,3)*dc(3,2)*dc(3,3))/sthsq
dum=sqrt(dum11**2+dum22**2+dum12**2+dum21**2)
if(dum.gt.small)then
c The DC matrix is not proper orthogonal
ierr=1
return
endif
theta=acos(cth)
phi=atan2(dc(1,3),-dc(2,3))
psi=atan2(dc(3,1), dc(3,2))
euler(1)=phi
euler(2)=theta
euler(3)=psi
ierr=0
return
end
A-7
APPENDIX A FORTRAN CODE LISTINGS
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Listing 6: Generating a uniformly random unit normal
SUBROUTINE RANDA(AXIS)
c This routine outputs a random unit normal
c
c OUTPUT
c ------
C AXIS: The random unit axis.
C
************************************************************************
C
INCLUDE implicit.h
c ....parameters
c real*8 pi
parameter (pi=0.3141592653589793d1)
c real*8 pone,ptwo
parameter (pone=0.1d1,ptwo=0.2d1)
c ....passed
c real*8 axis
dimension axis(3)
c ....functions
c real*8 rand
c ....local
c real*8 phi, theta
c ....local (SAVED)
c real*8 seed
c save seed
c data seed/0.0/
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
phi=ptwo*pi*drand(0)
theta=ACOS(pone-ptwo*drand(0))
axis(1)=sin(theta)*cos(phi)
axis(2)=sin(theta)*sin(phi)
axis(3)=cos(theta)
return
end
A-8
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Listing 7: Generating a uniformly random rigid rotation.
C This file contains two subroutines, RANDC and RNDC, both of
C which compute a uniformly random rotation tensor. The only difference
C between them is the way that they do it.
C
C The routine randc computes the rotation by generating two
C uniformly random unit vectors, orthonormalizing them,
C and then generating the third vector by a right-hand cross product.
C
C The routine rndc computes the rotation via Shoemakes algorithm.
C
SUBROUTINE RANDDC(R)
C This routine calls either RANDC or RNDC, depending on how the
C programmer desires the rotation to be generated.
INCLUDE implicit.h
C real*8 r
DIMENSION R(3,3)
CALL RANDC(R)
RETURN
END
C
C
C
C
************************************************************************
SUBROUTINE RANDC(R)
C This routine computes a uniformly random rigid rotation tensor
C This routine calls randa to generate a uniformly random
C direction for the rotated e1 axis. Then randa is called again
C to generate a second random axis. The rotated e2 is taken to
C equal the projection of the second random direction to the
C plane with normal equal to e1. Finally, the third direction is
C given by the right hand cross product of e1 x e2.
C
C OUTPUT
C ------
C R: The direction cosine tensor components. The ij component
C of R equals the ith lab base vector dotted with the jth rotated
C base vector.
************************************************************************
INCLUDE implicit.h
C real*8 small,r,dum
PARAMETER (SMALL=.1D0)
DIMENSION R(3,3)
EXTERNAL RANDA
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
CALL RANDA(R(1,1))
7 CALL RANDA(R(1,2))
C subtract off the part of e2 that is in the direction of e1
DUM=R(1,1)*R(1,2)+R(2,1)*R(2,2)+R(3,1)*R(3,2)
R(1,2)=R(1,2)-DUM*R(1,1)
R(2,2)=R(2,2)-DUM*R(2,1)
R(3,2)=R(3,2)-DUM*R(3,1)
DUM=SQRT(R(1,2)**2+R(2,2)**2+R(3,2)**2)
C
C make certain that the two vectors are independent.
C If dum is small, then the second random vector is nearly
C parallel to the first, and we need to sample again.
IF(DUM.LT.SMALL)GO TO 7
C
R(1,2)=R(1,2)/DUM
R(2,2)=R(2,2)/DUM
R(3,2)=R(3,2)/DUM
C
R(1,3)=R(2,1)*R(3,2)-R(3,1)*R(2,2)
R(2,3)=R(3,1)*R(1,2)-R(1,1)*R(3,2)
R(3,3)=R(1,1)*R(2,2)-R(2,1)*R(1,2)
C
RETURN
END
C
A-9
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C
************************************************************************
SUBROUTINE RNDC(R)
C This routine computes a uniformly random rigid rotation tensor
C using Shoemakes method.
C
C OUTPUT
C ------
C R: The direction cosine tensor components. The ij component
C of R equals the ith lab base vector dotted with the jth rotated
C base vector.
************************************************************************
INCLUDE implicit.h
PARAMETER (ONE=0.1D1,TWO=0.2D1,
& PI=0.31415926535897932384626433832795028D1,
& TWOPI=TWO*PI)
C real*8 r
DIMENSION R(3,3)
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
X0=drand(0)
Y1=TWOPI*drand(0)
Y2=TWOPI*drand(0)
C
R1=SQRT(ONE-X0)
R2=SQRT(X0)
U0=COS(Y2)*R2
U1=SIN(Y1)*R1
U2=COS(Y1)*R1
U3=SIN(Y2)*R2
C
COEFI = TWO*U0*U0-ONE
COEFUU= TWO
COEFE = TWO*U0
C
R(1,1)=COEFI+COEFUU*U1*U1
R(2,2)=COEFI+COEFUU*U2*U2
R(3,3)=COEFI+COEFUU*U3*U3
C
R(2,3)=COEFUU*U2*U3-COEFE*U1
R(3,1)=COEFUU*U3*U1-COEFE*U2
R(1,2)=COEFUU*U1*U2-COEFE*U3
C
R(3,2)=COEFUU*U3*U2+COEFE*U1
R(1,3)=COEFUU*U1*U3+COEFE*U2
R(2,1)=COEFUU*U2*U1+COEFE*U3
C
RETURN
END
C
C
A-10
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B-1
APPENDIX B Tensor and vector notation
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APPENDIX B.
Tensor and vector notation
Thi s appendi x outl i nes the essenti al vector and tensor concepts used i n
thi s report. A far more extensi ve tutori al on tensor anal ysi s may be found i n
Reference [14]. Throughout thi s report, scal ars are denoted i n pl ai n i tal i cs
( ). Vectors are typeset wi th a si ngl e under-ti l de ( ). Second-order
tensors are shown wi th two under-ti l des ( ). Li kewi se, the order of
hi gher-order tensors i s i ndi cated by the number of under-ti l des.
Two vectors wri tten si de-by-si de are mul ti pl i ed dyadi cal l y. For exampl e,
i s a second-order tensor wi th components gi ven by . Any second-
order tensor may be expanded i n terms of basi s dyads as . Here
(and throughout thi s report) al l free i ndi ces range from 1 to 3. Furthermore,
repeated i ndi ces i mpl y summati on from 1 to 3.
A si ngl e rai sed dot denotes the vector i nner-product dened by
. (B.1)
The si ngl e rai sed dot conti nues to denote the vector i nner product even when
acti ng between hi gher-order tensors. For exampl e,
. (B.2)
Composi ti on of two tensors i s another exampl e:
. (B.3)
The devi atori c part of a tensor i s denoted by a pri me. Hence,
, (B.4)
where i s the i denti ty tensor and tr denotes the trace. Speci cal l y,
. (B.5)
The tensor i nner product i s denoted by and i s dened by
. (B.6)
Note that
. (B.7)
The magni tude of a second-order tensor i s dened
. (B.8)
The tensor i nner product i s al l owed to operate between any two tensors of at
least second order. For exampl e, i f i s a fourth-order tensor, then
s r t , , v

, ,

, ,
a

i j a
i
b
j
T

T
i j
e

i
e

j
=
u

u
1
v
1
u
2
v
2
u
3
v
3
+ + u
k
v
k
= =
A

A
i j
x
j
e

i
=
A

A
i k
B
kj
e

i
e

j
=
A

1
3
---
tr
A

( )
I

tr A

A
11
A
22
A
33
+ + A
kk
=
:
A

:B

A
i j
B
i j
=
A

:B

:A

=
||
A

|| A

:A

B-2
APPENDIX B Tensor and vector notation
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. (B.9)
The remai nder of thi s appendi x provi des some i ntroductory remarks about the
vector and tensor anal ysi s, and may be ski pped by readers fami l i ar wi th el e-
mentary concepts i n those el ds of study.
Vectors
A rst course i n cal cul us usual l y vaguel y denes an engineering vector as
somethi ng wi th l ength and di recti on, such as vel oci ty, el ectri c el d, or di s-
pl acement. The vague noti on of a vector i s then rened by showi ng how a vec-
tor can be descri bed by a set of three components referenced to three base
di recti ons. A mathemati ci an denes a vector more general l y as a member of a
set for whi ch addi ti on and scal ar mul ti pl i cati on are closed and sati sfy certai n
properti es. By cl osed, we mean that addi ng two vectors gi ves a vector and
mul ti pl yi ng a vector ti mes a scal ar gi ves a vector. Thi s sounds si mpl e enough,
but provi ng cl osure i s typi cal l y the most awkward and di fcul t step because i t
requi res a cl ear di scerni ng deni ti on of membershi p i n the proposed set. An
ordi nary engi neeri ng vector i s an enti ty consi sti ng of three numbers (compo-
nents) and three non-paral l el reference di recti ons (basi s). The components
must change i n a parti cul ar manner upon a change i n basi s. I t i s thi s change-
of-basi s rul e that i s used as the di scerni ng deni ti on of an engi neeri ng vector.
When the three reference di recti ons are mutual l y perpendi cul ar, orthogonal
matri ces pl ay a predomi nant rol e.
I f are base vectors then any engi neeri ng vector may be
wri tten
(B.10)
where are the components of the vector wi th respect to the
basi s. I f i s a di fferent choi ce for the basi s, the same
vector may be wri tten
, (B.11)
where are the components of the vector wi th respect to the
basi s. I f the two bases are orthonormal , then the components
are rel ated to the components i n a parti cul ar way, as expl ai ned i n the mai n
text.
E

: A

E
i j kl
A
kl
e

i
e

j
=
E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { } v

v
1
E

1
v
2
E

2
v
3
E

3
+ + =
v
1
v
2
v
3
, , { } v

1
E

2
E

3
, , { } e

1
e

2
e

3
, , { }
v

1
e

1
v

2
e

2
v

3
e

3
+ + =
v

1
v

2
v

3
, , { } v

1
e

2
e

3
, , { } v
i
v

j
B-3
APPENDIX B Tensor and vector notation
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Tensors
A tensor i s often descri bed as a l i near transformati on that takes vectors to
vectors. Consi der, for exampl e, a functi on that transforms a vector i nto a
new vector 3 ti mes as l ong, but wi th the same ori entati on. I n other words, con-
si der
(B.12)
Thi s functi on i s l i near because (as can be easi l y veri ed)
for al l scal ars
and for al l vectors and . (B.13)
Thus, we now know that f i s a tensor. However, i s just the transformati on
rul e. When most peopl e tal k about tensors, they are referri ng to somethi ng
that i s descri bed by a matri x of components that are referenced to a
basi s, si mi l ar to the way that vector components are referenced to a basi s.
Before di scussi ng how to convert i nto a matri x of components, consi der
the fol l owi ng l ess tri vi al exampl e of a l i near operator that takes vectors to vec-
tors: Suppose i s a known constant vector. Then the vector cross product
(B.14)
i s a vector-to-vector transformati on i s that i s l i near wi th respect to because
i t al so sati ses the l i neari ty condi ti ons of Eq. (B.13). Thus, we now know that
thi s f i s a tensor. Here i t i s even l ess cl ear how to construct the matri x
associ ated wi th thi s tensor.
When the transformed vectors are ordi nary engi neeri ng vectors a
tensor f i s descri babl e by a matri x referenced to a basi s. To see why,
l ets l ook at the l i neari ty property i tsel f. Let denote some conve-
ni ent orthonormal basi s. Now l et be some vector. Si nce the
vectors form a basi s, then we know that there must exist three components
such that
(B.15)
Because the functi on i s l i near, we can appl y Eq. (B.13) to wri te
,
where (B.16)
Bei ng vectors themsel ves, each of the vectors must be expressi bl e as a l i n-
ear combi nati on of the basi s. I n other words, we know there
must exi st components such that
(B.17)
f
f v

( ) 3v

=
f v

( ) f v

( ) =
f v

+ ( ) f v

( ) f w

( ) + = v

f
3 3
f 3 3
c

f v

( ) c

=
v

3 3
3 3
E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
v

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
v
1
v
2
v
3
, , { }
v

v
1
E

1
v
2
E

2
v
3
E

3
+ + =
f
f v

( ) v
1
g

1
v
2
g

2
v
3
g

3
+ + =
g

k
f E

k
( ) =
g

k
E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { }
F
j k
g

k
F
1k
E

1
F
2k
E

2
F
3k
E

3
+ + =
B-4
APPENDIX B Tensor and vector notation
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The i ndex takes val ues from 1 to 3, so i s a matri x whose col umns
contai n the components of the three vectors wi th respect to the
basi s. I f and i f , then put-
ti ng (B.17) i nto (B.16) shows that
(B.18)
Thus, al l of the i nformati on about the l i near transformati on functi on i s con-
tai ned compl etel y i n the matri x. Once the component matri x
i s known, computi ng i s si mpl y a matter of matri x mul ti pl i cati on. I n di rect
notati on, Eq. (B.18) i s wri tten
, (B.19)
where
(B.20)
The ni ne possi bl e pai rs are cal l ed the tensor basi s dyads. The basi s dyad
i s a speci al tensor whose associ ated matri x has zeros everywhere except
a 1 i n the posi ti on. I n practi ce, when someone speaks of a tensor, they are
usual l y referri ng to i nstead of the ori gi nal transformati on rul e .
The component matri x for the tensor associ ated wi th Eq. (B.12) i s
(B.21)
The component matri x for the tensor associ ated wi th Eq. (B.14) i s
(B.22)
I n general , gi ven a tensor transformati on rul e expressed i n component
form such that . The tensor component matri x may be found
by
(B.23)
k F
i j
[ ] 3 3
g

k
E

1
E

2
E

3
, , { } w

f v

( ) = w

w
1
E

1
w
2
E

2
w
3
E

3
+ + =
w
1
w
2
w
3

' ;

F
11
F
12
F
13
F
21
F
22
F
23
F
31
F
32
F
33
v
1
v
2
v
3

' ;


=
f
3 3 F
i j
[ ] F
i j
[ ]
w

=
F

F
i j
E

i
E

j
=
E

i
E

j
E

i
E

j
i j
F

f
F

[ ]
3 0 0
0 3 0
0 0 3
=
F

[ ]
0 c
3
c
2
c
3
0 c
1

c
2
c
1
0
=
f v

( )
w
i
f v
1
v
2
v
3
, , ( ) =
F
i j
w
i
v
j
--------- =

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