Meaning of gimbal lock | Babel Free

Definitions

The loss of one degree of freedom in the three-dimensional rotational movement of a three-gimbal mechanism, which occurs when the axes of two of the three gimbals are driven into a parallel configuration, so that the system's rotational movement becomes two-dimensional (and necessarily remains so until an appropriate force is applied); the equivalent situation in a simulation of rotational movement, when the mathematical model uses Euler angles (representing pitch, yaw and roll) or their equivalent.

countable, uncountable

Equivalents

Examples

“Gimbal lock occurs when the pitch nears 90° or 270°, causing the bank and heading to lie along the same plane. This limits the item to only two rotation axes, as the bank and heading effectively do the same thing.”

“2010, S. Nagabhushana, L. K. Sudha, Aircraft Instrumentation and Systems, I. K. International Publishing House, page 249, Such a strap down system reduces the cost, eliminates gimbals and associated gimbal locks, and enhances the reliability (MTBF) by having no moving elements.”

“EVERY ANIMATOR CAN TELL YOU what gimbal lock does to their animations: during playback arms suddenly go crazy, wrists can spin like a top, heads can go exorcist on you.”

CEFR level