Evolutionary solutions to the brachistochrone problem with Coulomb friction

The classical brachistochrone problem was originally proposed by Johann Bernoulli more than 300 years ago, and is still one of the most elegant problems in modern mathematics. This paper examines a generalisation of the original brachistochrone problem by the inclusion of a non-conservative force in the form of Coulomb friction. Solutions to this problem are found using an evolutionary computational technique based on Darwinian natural selection and survival of the fittest. These evolutionary solutions tend to indicate that as friction is introduced the optimum curves develop from cycloidal (the analytical solution for the conservative problem) toward straight lines. The flexibility of the evolutionary method to optimise for other objectives is then discussed.