Transform vector to Cylindrical Coordinates

Join the discussion
Ask a follow-up here, or get your own question answered by working scientists, mathematicians and engineers — people, not an autocomplete.
Real named experts · corrections over time · the nuance an AI answer skips
1 reply · 4K views
ph351
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
i need help transforming this equation into cylindrical coordinates...

w = omega
i = i hat
j = j hat
k = k hat
r is a vector

r(t) = Asin(wt)i + Bsin(wt)j + (Ct - D)k where w, A, B, C and D are constants.

i, j, and k are throwing me off...i know they are components of x, y and z...and i know xhat = cos(phi ro{hat}) - sin(phi phi{hat} likewise for yhat swapping sin and cos...
 
Last edited:
Physics news on Phys.org
ph351 said:
i need help transforming this equation into cylindrical coordinates...

w = omega
i = i hat
j = j hat
k = k hat
r is a vector

r(t) = Asin(wt)i + Bsin(wt)j + (Ct - D)k where w, A, B, C and D are constants.

i, j, and k are throwing me off...i know they are components of x, y and z...and i know xhat = cos(phi ro{hat}) - sin(phi phi{hat} likewise for yhat swapping sin and cos...

HI ph351, welcome to PF!:smile:

The [itex]\mathbf{\hat{i}}[/itex], [itex]\mathbf{\hat{j}}[/itex], and [itex]\mathbf{\hat{k}}[/itex] are just another way of writing [itex]\mathbf{\hat{x}}[/itex], [itex]\mathbf{\hat{y}}[/itex] and [itex]\mathbf{\hat{z}}[/itex]. Different authors use different notations, and it is usually a good idea to familiarize yourself with the notation of a text before attempting to solve problems from it, or apply equation found in it. Other common notations for the Cartesian unit vectors are [itex]\{\mathbf{\hat{e}}_x,\mathbf{\hat{e}}_y,\mathbf{\hat{e}}_z\}[/itex] and [itex]\{\mathbf{\hat{e}}_1,\mathbf{\hat{e}}_2,\mathbf{\hat{e}}_3\}[/itex].

So basically, you have [itex]\textbf{r}(t)=A\sin(\omega t)\mathbf{\hat{x}}+B\sin(\omega t)\mathbf{\hat{y}}+(Ct-D)\mathbf{\hat{z}}[/itex]...and you can just make your substitutions for [itex]\mathbf{\hat{x}}[/itex] and [itex]\mathbf{\hat{y}}[/itex] in cylindrical coordinates.