Dynamics of Systems with Rods

In this paper we discuss the derivation and numerical implementation of the equations of motion for mechanical systems with rods. These equations of motion find application in the analysis and simulation of class 1 tensegrity structures. In the first part of the paper we present detailed derivations of two distinct sets of differential equations, both using non-minimal sets of coordinates. In the second part of the paper we present the result of some numerical experiments, comparing the performance of these equations in the context of numerical integration algorithms