What Does Gimbal Lock Mean?

Gimbal lock is the loss of one degree of freedom in a three-dimensional, three-gimbal mechanism that occurs when the axes of two of the three gimbals are driven into a parallel configuration, "locking" the system into rotation in a degenerate two-dimensional space. The word lock is misleading: no gimbal is restrained.

Why is gimbal lock a problem?

Because of gimbal lock, it has lost one of the degrees of freedom - in this case the ability to roll. ... The gimbal lock problem does not make Euler angles "invalid" (they always serve as a well-defined coordinate system), but it makes them unsuited for some practical applications.

What is gimbal lock in animation?

A gimbal is a pivoted support which may rotate freely along a single axis. ... Simply put, Gimbal Lock is the loss of one degree of freedom which occurs when two gimbals are rotating parallel to each other.