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Theory and experiments to understand a contact between two filaments
Mechanical engineers and mathematicians at EPFL have joined forces to gain a better understanding of the geometry and mechanics of two filaments in contact – as in the cases of knots and woven fabrics.
Pedro Reis, head of EPFL’s Flexible Structures Laboratory, and John Maddocks, head of EPFL’s Laboratory for Computation and Visualization in Mathematics and Mechanics, have something in common: a fascination with ropes and knots. Reis, an engineer, is an avid rock climber while Maddocks, a mathematician, has a passion for sailing. But their mutual interest in knots is not restricted to their hobbies, as knots are used in a variety of applications – take surgical sutures, for example. And although knots have been part of our daily lives since the dawn of time, their mechanics are still poorly understood.