Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
Abstract: The formulas for calculating the trigonometric functions whose angle sum or
differences can be deduced from one another. However, we have to prove one of these
formulas. Considering this problem with multiple implications in trigonometry, we searched
for various methods of solving this formula and we searched for relations with different other
mathematics chapters (linear algebra, analysis in complex etc.). We searched for several proofs
for the initial formula, of which the method of the fictitious scalar product is an original one.
P'
O M P A Figure 1.
337
Emil Olteanu - An original method of proving the formula of a trigonometric
function of a sum of angles
OA = r = 1
OP' = cos()
OP = OP' cos() = cos()cos()
OM = cos(+)
NP' = sin()
MP = NP' sin() = sin()sin()
P
b
M
a
a-b
O(0,0) A(1,0)
Figure 2.
O (0,0);
A (1,0);
M (cos(a), sin(a));
N (cos(b), sin(b));
338
Emil Olteanu - An original method of proving the formula of a trigonometric
function of a sum of angles
P (cos(a-b), sin(a-b)).
2 - 2(cos(a)cos(b) + sin(a)sin(b))
( )
a b = ab cos a, b
for the vectors i, j i k , the module of which is one, the scalar product
table is the following:
i j k
i 1 0 0
j 0 1 0
k 0 0 1
Table 1.
i = j = k = 1;
cos(0o) = 1;
cos(90o) = 0.
( )
a = a x i + a y j = i cos( ) + j sin ( ) a ;
339
Emil Olteanu - An original method of proving the formula of a trigonometric
function of a sum of angles
( )
b = bx i + b y j = i cos( ) + j sin ( ) b .
- b
Figure 3.
(a, b) =
( )
a b = ab cos a, b = ab cos( )
( ) ( )
a b = a i cos( ) + j sin ( ) b i cos( ) + j sin ( ) =
( )
= ab i i cos( )cos( ) + i j cos( )sin ( ) + j i sin ( )cos( ) + j j sin ( )sin ( ) =
results
4. Using a product created for this proof (which in this material we shall call
fictitious scalar product).
We introduce a new type of scalar product, for instance:
a b = ab sin( a, b)
340
Emil Olteanu - An original method of proving the formula of a trigonometric
function of a sum of angles
i = j = 1;
( )
i i = sin 0 0 = 0 ;
j j = sin (0 ) = 0 ;
0
i j = sin ( 90 ) = 1 ;
0
j i = sin (90 ) = 1 0
For the vectors i and j , the module of which is one, the scalar product
table is the following:
i j
i 0 -1
j 1 0
Table 2.
a b = ab sin ( )
(
a = a x i + a y j = i cos( ) + j sin ( ) a )
(
b = bx i + b y j = i cos( ) + j sin ( ) b )
Results:
( ) (
a b = a i cos( ) + j sin ( ) b i cos( ) + j sin ( ) = )
( )
= ab i i cos ( )cos ( ) + i j cos ( )sin ( ) + j i sin ( )cos ( ) + j j sin ( )sin ( ) =
341
Emil Olteanu - An original method of proving the formula of a trigonometric
function of a sum of angles
e ix = cos( x ) + i sin ( x )
ix .
e = cos( x ) i sin ( x )
References:
Author:
Emil Olteanu - 1 Decembrie 1918 University of Alba Iulia, Romania, E-mail
address: eolteanu@uab.ro
342