The force table Physics 221 lab PDF

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THE FORCE TABLE Lara de Almeida and Abigail Jarratt Physics 221 Section 4 Aaron Kirby Performed: September 8, 2016, Submitted: September 15, 2016

Introduction This experiment strives to learn vector addition and how to resolve their x and y components, magnitude, and direction along with calculating the balancing force that has more vector forces exerted on it. According to Newton’s second law an object that is not accelerating must have no net force so the sum of the vectors of the forces on the object are zero. Fr+Fe =0 Fe= -Fr Vectors can be resolved into two orthogonal components such that resultant orthogonal components are the components of the resultant vector. A = Axi +Ayj B = Bxi + Byj The “x” and “y” components can then be found using equations… Ax = Axcos Ay = Aysin Bx = Bxcos By = Bysin The magnitude of the resultant vector is |A| = Ax^2 + Ay^2 |B| = Bx^2 + By^2

And the angle between vector R and the xaxis is = ArcTan(Ay/Ax) = ArcTan(By/Bx)

Cx= Ax +Bx Cy=Ay +By Procedure Three given forces were applied to a ring on a force table for a total of 4 different set ups. These forces were summed analytically to find their resultant force (Fr). The masses were

placed at measurable angles in a way that allowed the components of the force vectors to be calculated.

Data

Analysis The experimental results are shown in Table 1. Our percent error ranged from .09-4.59% so this method of calculating vector addition is relatively accurate. The “x” and “y” components for each force were found using equations stated above (Bx=Bxcos… etc) and the resultant force was calculated likewise (ArcTan(Ay/Ax)….etc).

Conclusion This experiment was successful in the sense that we became familiar in working with vectors and observing their effects on resultant direction (degrees) and resultant force (N). Our percent error was under 5% for all four trials, thus the experimental method was accurate. The error could have resulted from friction in the pulleys, masses of the strings, errors in direction of the forces if the strings were not placed at the exact angle, or calibration of the pulley strings. If pulleys were not used the errors would have increased because resting on the edge of the force table would cause greater friction. Overall there was minimal percent error and the experiment was successful.

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