construct an optimal car ramp minimizing the possible ride height

31 Views Asked by At

In the words of mathematics there is the problem of connecting two horizontal street sections separated by a distance, say A, at different height levels (difference H) with a function f(x). You now can imagine a secant line of given length "traveling" along the ramp while the maximal distance D from secant line to the function f(x) is measured. The objective is to find a function f(x) which minimizes this distance D for all secant lines. Returning to the initial problem, the shape of this function f(x) would allow a maximum of cars to use this ramp unharmed. I am interested whether any result can be obtained by calculus of variations or a solution has to be found numerically in any special case.