The equations of the approximate theory of the motion of a rigid body with a vibrating suspension point

Abstract

The motion of a rigid body in a uniform gravity field is investigated. One of the points of the body (the suspension point) performs specified small-amplitude high-frequency periodic or conditionally periodic oscillations (vibrations). The geometry of the body mass is arbitrary. An approximate system of differential equations is obtained, which does not contain the time explicitly and describes the rotational motion of the rigid body with respect to a system of coordinates moving translationally together with the suspension point. The error with which the solutions of the approximate system approximate to the solution of the exact system of equations of motion is indicated. The problem of the stability with respect to the equilibrium of the rigid body, when the suspension point performs vibrations along the vertical, is considered as an application.