A Didactic Approach to Energy-Based Dynamic Modeling: Least Action, D’Alembert Principle and Euler-Lagrange Formalism

Special Session: Multibody systems and mechanism design in robotics. This article aims to provide a didactic approach to energy-based dynamic modeling. Understanding these concepts is essential to grasping classical physics and mechanics. However, they can be challenging for science and engineering students, especially for those in the early stages of their studies, due to the technical terminology and jargon used in these fields. This article aims to offer a simple and didactic approach to help students better understand these fundamental concepts. Specifically, the article demonstrates how the principle of least action underlies all energy-based formalisms and how it can be used to model dynamic systems using easy-to-follow examples. This manuscript presents didactic and teaching contributions. It targets undergraduate students who are interested in addressing topics of dynamic modeling of robots and other more elaborate mechanical systems. It is also focused on those who need to have a solid foundation in the physical formalisms that assist in dynamic modeling projects and associated disciplines.