Experimental and Numerical Study of Coupled Metronomes on a Floating Platform

We investigated synchronization behavior using an experimental setup consisting of two metronomes placed on a platform floating over water. By setting the metronomes to oscillate perpendicular to the line between them, we observed three distinct modes of movement: in-phase synchronization, anti-phase synchronization, and synchronization with a fixed phase difference. While this last mode resembles phase-locking, it is important to distinguish that phase-locking typically refers to an oscillator’s response to external pacing, whereas the fixed phase difference observed in our study emerges from the mutual interaction between two metronomes. The frequencies of oscillations, and the placement of the metronomes are also changed to check the reliability of the new phenomenon. Even if we changed the material of the platform to a heavier one or turned around one of the metronomes, synchronization with a fixed time delay still was still observed. Drawing on previous research, we developed mathematical equations to model the coupled metronomes and performed numerical simulations that successfully reproduced all three observed phenomena. The simulation results showed excellent agreement with our experimental observations. These findings contribute to our understanding of coupled oscillators and may have potential applications in various fields.