MTRC Bath, UK

Current Virtual Physics Examples

Collisions

This movie shows multiple collisions and real-time shadows. The following stills are from a similar sequence.

Here we show a physics engine being used to determine how a stack of object falls.

Here is another stack of objects. The first object hits the ground. We have included shadows in these screen shots, to help the visualisation.

Several objects have hit the ground.

The spheres roll towards the blocks and hit them.

Electricity

This movie shows two outcomes. First, one object is being manipulated by an unseen hand. The other objects in contact respond accordingly. Second, we use colour to highlight electrically live objects. One of the objects (not the one being manipulated) is the electrically live source and the system, instant by instant, correctly highlights all objects directly or indirectly in contact with it. Some objects flash as they make contact for a brief while, for example. The two objects being "driven", one electrically, one mechanically, are different, to emphasise that there are no special objects. Any object could be chosen for either task or even both simultaneously.

The following pictures illustrate the same idea in a simpler arrangement.

This sequence illustrates electrical contact. The bars fall under gravity onto an electrically "live" metal pad.

At this point the first bar touches the live pad (and we cause a colour change to show it is now itself live).

By now, all the bars have settled and all are now live.

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