Angular Impulse and Spinning Bouncing Ball

Abstract

A solid ball of mass m , size r and spin ω about an axis through its center is dropped freely from a height h on a rough horizontal plane. Assuming its angular momentum is parallel to the horizontal plane upon impact it bounces repeatedly drifting on a vertical plane. We analyze the kinematics of the bouncing ball assuming the impacts are semi-elastic without slipping. By varying the spin and relevant parameters, a robust Mathematica [1] program enables simulating the trajectories.