The Mathematical Model for the Tippe Top Inversion

Abstract

The dynamics of rotating objects is an area of classical mechanics that has many unsolved problems. Among these problems are the gyroscopic effects manifested by the spinning objects of different forms. One of them is the Tippe top designed as the truncated sphere which is fitted with a short, cylindrical rod for rotation. The unexplainable gyroscopic effect of the Tippe top is manifested by its inversion towards the support surface. Researchers tried to describe this gyroscopic effect for two centuries, but all modelings were on the level of assumptions. It is natural because the Tippe top has a more complex design than the simple spinning disc, which gyroscopic effects did not have an analytical solution until recent time. The latest research, in the area of gyroscopic effects, reveals the action of the system of several interrelated inertial torques on any spinning object. The gyroscopic inertial torques are generated by their rotating mass. These inertial torques and the variable ratio of the angular velocities of the spinning object around axes of rotations constitute the fundamental principles of gyroscope theory. These physical principles of dynamics of rotating objects enable to description and compute of any gyroscopic effects and also the Tippe top inversion.