The next equality constraint we will derive is the prismatic constraint. A prismatic constraint is like the line constraint except it does not allow rotation about the anchor point. A prismatic constraint constraints the linear motion of the bodies along a line. An example of a prismatic joint is the slide of a semi-automatic pistol. The slide is moved back to charge the weapon, then released to its original position. The slide cannot rotate about the pistol, nor can it move up/down or left/right only along one axis.
Posted on March 12, 2011
I recently released a new version of the TestBed application (which is used to test the dyn4j project. In this new version I decided to move from Java2D to OpenGL.
Posted on February 05, 2011
The new version, 2.2.3, features updated Javadocs, 3 different CCD modes, and a new JOGL based TestBed.
Posted on January 29, 2011
The new version, 2.2.2, features one more joint, AngleJoint and a few minor bug fixes. The RopeJoint has been extended to allow for a minimum distance in addition to the maximum distance. See the javadocs or source updates for more details.
Posted on January 15, 2011
The next equality constraint we will derive is the angle constraint. An angle constraint can be used to join two bodies forcing them to have the same rotation. This particular constraint will be added to other constraints (in later posts) to form more complex constraints.
Posted on December 30, 2010
The next equality constraint we will derive is the line constraint. A line constraint is like a prismatic constraint (which will most likely be the next post) except allows rotation about the anchor point. A prismatic constraint constraints the linear motion of the bodies along a line. An example of a prismatic joint might be a roller coaster on the track. The cars cannot translate or rotate except along the track. For simplicity the prismatic constraint we will define is only for straight lines.
Posted on December 30, 2010
The next equality constraint we will derive is the pulley constraint. A pulley constraint can be used to join two bodies at a fixed distance. In addition, the constraint can be used to simulate a block-and-tackle.
Posted on December 30, 2010
The next equality constraint we will derive is the weld constraint. A weld constraint can be used to join two bodies at an anchor point in which the bodies must move and rotate together (all DOF are constrained).
Posted on December 30, 2010
The new version, 2.2.1, features one more joint, RopeJoint and a few minor bug fixes involving SecurityExceptions for sand-boxed environments. See the javadocs for more details.
Posted on December 26, 2010
As a follow up post to the Distance Constraint post, we can also create a maximum distance constraint using the same solution we found in the Distance Constraint post.
Posted on December 18, 2010