Finite and infinitesimal rigidity with polyhedral norms

We characterise finite and infinitesimal rigidity for bar-joint frameworks in R^d with respect to polyhedral norms (i.e. norms with closed unit ball P a convex d-dimensional polytope). Infinitesimal and continuous rigidity are shown to be equivalent for finite frameworks in R^d which are well-positioned with respect to P. An edge-labelling determined by the facets of the unit ball and placement of the framework is used to characterise infinitesimal rigidity in R^d in terms of monochrome spanning trees. An analogue of Laman's theorem is obtained for all polyhedral norms on R^2.Comment: 26 page

Maxwell-Laman counts for bar-joint frameworks in normed spaces

The rigidity matrix is a fundamental tool for studying the infinitesimal rigidity properties of Euclidean bar-joint frameworks. In this paper we generalize this tool and introduce a rigidity matrix for bar-joint frameworks in arbitrary finite dimensional real normed vector spaces. Using this new matrix, we derive necessary Maxwell-Laman-type counting conditions for a well-positioned bar-joint framework in a real normed vector space to be infinitesimally rigid. Moreover, we derive symmetry-extended counting conditions for a bar-joint framework with a non-trivial symmetry group to be isostatic (i.e., minimally infinitesimally rigid). These conditions imply very simply stated restrictions on the number of those structural components that are fixed by the various symmetry operations of the framework. Finally, we offer some observations and conjectures regarding combinatorial characterisations of 2-dimensional symmetric, isostatic bar-joint frameworks where the unit ball is a quadrilateral.Comment: 17 page

Polyhedral realisation of hyperbolic metrics with conical singularities on compact surfaces

A Fuchsian polyhedron in hyperbolic space is a polyhedral surface invariant under the action of a Fuchsian group of isometries (i.e. a group of isometries leaving globally invariant a totally geodesic surface, on which it acts cocompactly). The induced metric on a convex Fuchsian polyhedron is isometric to a hyperbolic metric with conical singularities of positive singular curvature on a compact surface of genus greater than one. We prove that these metrics are actually realised by exactly one convex Fuchsian polyhedron (up to global isometries). This extends a famous theorem of A.D. Alexandrov.Comment: Some little corrections from the preceding version. To appear in Les Annales de l'Institut Fourie

Infinitesimal rigidity in normed planes

We prove that a graph has an infinitesimally rigid placement in a non-Euclidean normed plane if and only if it contains a $(2,2)$-tight spanning subgraph. The method uses an inductive construction based on generalised Henneberg moves and the geometric properties of the normed plane. As a key step, rigid placements are constructed for the complete graph $K_4$ by considering smoothness and strict convexity properties of the unit ball.Comment: 26 page

The rigidity of infinite graphs

A rigidity theory is developed for the Euclidean and non-Euclidean placements of countably infinite simple graphs in R^d with respect to the classical l^p norms, for d>1 and 1<p<\infty. Generalisations are obtained for the Laman and Henneberg combinatorial characterisations of generic infinitesimal rigidity for finite graphs in the Euclidean plane. Also Tay's multi-graph characterisation of the rigidity of generic finite body-bar frameworks in d-dimensional Euclidean space is generalised to the non-Euclidean l^p norms and to countably infinite graphs. For all dimensions and norms it is shown that a generically rigid countable simple graph is the direct limit of an inclusion tower of finite graphs for which the inclusions satisfy a relative rigidity property. For d>2 a countable graph which is rigid for generic placements in R^d may fail the stronger property of sequential rigidity, while for d=2 the equivalence with sequential rigidity is obtained from the generalised Laman characterisations. Applications are given to the flexibility of non-Euclidean convex polyhedra and to the infinitesimal and continuous rigidity of compact infinitely-faceted simplicial polytopes.Comment: 51 page

Symmetric isostatic frameworks with ℓ1\ell^1 or ℓ∞\ell^\infty distance constraints

Combinatorial characterisations of minimal rigidity are obtained for symmetric 2-dimensional bar-joint frameworks with either $\ell^1$ or $\ell^\infty$ distance constraints. The characterisations are expressed in terms of symmetric tree packings and the number of edges fixed by the symmetry operations. The proof uses new Henneberg-type inductive construction schemes.Comment: 20 pages. Main theorem extended. Construction schemes refined. New titl