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Vectors

A vector is a quantity that has both magnitude and direction. Vectors can be added geometrically by placing the tail of one vector at the head of another. The properties of vector addition include: vectors being commutative, the associative property, and vectors adding to zero when combined with their inverse. A vector can be resolved into components along perpendicular axes, with the x-component being the projection on the x-axis and y-component the projection on the y-axis. These components and the overall vector magnitude and direction can be calculated using trigonometric functions.

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47 views4 pages

Vectors

A vector is a quantity that has both magnitude and direction. Vectors can be added geometrically by placing the tail of one vector at the head of another. The properties of vector addition include: vectors being commutative, the associative property, and vectors adding to zero when combined with their inverse. A vector can be resolved into components along perpendicular axes, with the x-component being the projection on the x-axis and y-component the projection on the y-axis. These components and the overall vector magnitude and direction can be calculated using trigonometric functions.

Uploaded by

michael
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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➡

vectors
Introduction
A vector quantity is a quantity that has both a magnitude and a direction and
thus can be represnted with a vector.
A vector can be shifted w/o changing its value if its length and direction are not
changed.
Displacement vectors represeent onlly the overall effect of the motion, not the
motion itself.

vector representation

fig 1

Adding Vectors Geometrically


vector addition

vectors 1
fig 2

AB + BC = AC

AC is the vector sum (resultant) of the vectors AB and BC.


Vector additon - Properties

a + b = b + a

(a + b )+ c = a +(b + c )

b + (− b ) = 0

d = a − b = a + (− b )

⇒ we an add only vectors of the same kind. For example, we add two
displacements, or two velocities, but adding a displacement and velocity makes
no sense.

Components of Vectors
A component of a vector is the projection of the vector on an axis.

The projection of a vector on an x axis is its x component, and similarly the


projection on the y axis is the y component. The process of finfing the

vectors 2
components of a vector is called resolving the vector. A component of a
vector has the same direction (along an axis) as the vector.

fig 3

we can find the components of a in fig 3 geometrically from the right


triangle there

ax = acosθ and ay = asinθ

If we know a vector in component notation (ax and ay ) and want it in


magnitude-angle notation (a and θ), we can use the equations to tranfrom it.
ay
a= a2x + a2y and tanθ =
ax

Horizontal Components:

refer fig 3 for representation


The team's horizontal displacement forms the hypotenuse of the triangle, and
its magnitude dh is given by the pythagoras theorem.

representation

vectors 3
Overall Displacement

the vertical component and the horizontal displacement dh from the legs of
another right angle. Now the team's overall displacement forms the
hypotenuse of that triangle with a magnitude d

vectors 4

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