Topology and Bifurcations in Nonholonomic Mechanics

Abstract

This paper develops topological methods for qualitative analysis of the behavior of nonholonomic dynamical systems. Their application is illustrated by considering a new integrable system of nonholonomic mechanics, called a nonholonomic hinge. Although this system is nonholonomic, it can be represented in Hamiltonian form with a Lie–Poisson bracket of rank two. This Lie–Poisson bracket is used to perform stability analysis of fixed points. In addition, all possible types of integral manifolds are found and a classification of trajectories on them is presented.