A concise but general derivation of Lagrange’s equations is given for a system of finitely many particles subject to holonomic and nonholonomic constraints. Based directly on Newton’s second law, it takes advantage of an inertia‐based metric to obtain a geometrically transparent statement of Lagrange’s equations in configuration space. Illustrative examples are included.
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© 1994 American Association of Physics Teachers.
1994
American Association of Physics Teachers
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