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Principal unit normal vector for a sin curve
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An expression for the sin curve's principal unit normal vector. | |
The principal unit normal vector is different from a unit normal vector in that it always points from a point on the curve | |
towards the centre of the circle that most closely approximates the curvature of the curve at that point. Thus, the principal | |
unit normal vector is undefined at inflection points since the radius of the circle is infinite at these points. | |
Consider the parametric form of a sin curve. Let R be a general position vector on a sin curve and let | |
c = cos(t) | |
s = sin(t) | |
then | |
R = |t| | |
|s| | |
= i(t) + j(s) | |
Now | |
^ dR ||dR|| | |
T = -- / ||--|| | |
dt ||dt|| | |
= (i + j(c)) / √(1+c²) | |
and | |
d(1/√(1+c²)) | |
------------ = (-1/2)(1+c²)^(-3/2)(-2sc) | |
dt | |
= sc(1+c²)^(-3/2) | |
Thus | |
^ | |
dT | |
-- = i(sc(1+c²)^(-3/2)) + j(-s/√(1+c²) + c(sc(1+c²)^(-3/2))) | |
dt | |
Now, let the positive scalar k be the curvature, then | |
^ | |
^ dT ||dR|| | |
k*N = -- / ||--|| | |
dt ||dt|| | |
= [i(sc(1+c²)^(-3/2)) + j(-s/√(1+c²)+c(sc(1+c²)^(-3/2)))] / √(1+c²) | |
= [i(c)-j] * s/(1+c²)² | |
^ | |
That is, the principal unit normal vector, N, of the sin curve is the unit vector of | c| * s/(1+c²)² | |
|-1| | |
Also | |
k = || | c| || * || s/(1+c²)² || | |
|| |-1| || | |
= √(1+c²) * ||s||/(1+c²)² | |
= ||s|| / (√(1+c²))³ |
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