How do Bodies Move?

Student Preparation

In preparation for the studio sessions, students are expected to read and understand this chapter on
dynamics – law of motions particularly on the application of the laws. A narrative lecture is available
for students to appreciate the salient points of this topic on dynamics – law of motions. Students are also
expected to think through the questions posed in the chapters, as we will discuss them and build on them
in the studio sessions. In addition, students are expected to view the following videos:

a. IVLE narrative lecture on dynamics – law of motions (11.03 minutes)

b. Video on angular momentum (7.03 minutes)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MULe4xv3lVk&ebc=ANyPxKrx8Y5RueEKxBTzQXDv40_3Yi6
JLSkYMK86zqa3rOxNGF_uIX9IZGTnyoZc0G8EKpFQqRLT4hj3C_47XmeoK0Nf_vzTrQ&nohtml5
=False

c. Video on torque and couple (7.29 minutes)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=us7KNhguSuM&nohtml5=False

d. Dynamics of a quadcopter (6.07 minutes)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5n8AjgoJIN4&nohtml5=False

e. Quadcopter Thrust Force & Center of Gravity Measurement (3.17 minutes)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nb3Z-rHk1L8&nohtml5=False

1. Newton's First Law

Newton's first law of motion predicts the behavior of objects for which all forces are balanced. The first
law - sometimes referred to as the law of inertia basically states that if the forces acting upon an object
are balanced, then the acceleration of the object will be 0 m/s2. In short, objects at equilibrium (the
condition in which all forces balance) will not accelerate. Figure 1 illustrates the flow that describes
Newton’s first law.

Conversely, according to Newton, an object will only accelerate if there the forces acting on it is
unbalanced. The presence of an unbalanced force will accelerate an object - changing its speed, its
direction, or both its speed and direction.

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 Figure 1. A flow diagram illustrating Newton’s first law

1.1 Newton's First Law in Daily Encounters

There are many applications of Newton's first law of motion. Have you ever observed the behavior of a
cup of water filled to the rim while starting a car from rest or while bringing a car to rest from a state of
motion? Water in the cup "keeps on doing what it is doing."

Accelerating the car from rest, the road provides an unbalanced force on the rotating wheels (rotational
to translation motion) to push the car forward; yet the water (that was at rest) wants to stay at rest. When
the car accelerates and moves forward, the water is able to remain in the same position. However, when
the car subsequently accelerates out, the water spills in your lap. On the other hand, when braking from
a state of motion the water continues forward with the same speed and in the same direction, ultimately
hitting the windshield or the dash.

Another example: have you ever experienced inertia (resisting changes in your state of motion) in a car
while it is braking to a stop? Forces of the road on the locked wheels provide the unbalanced forces to
change the car's state of motion, yet there is no unbalanced force to change your own state of motion as
shown in Figure 2. Therefore, you will continue in motion, sliding along the seat in forward motion.

A person in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction until he/she is acted
upon by the unbalanced force – in this case the resistive force from the seat belt.

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 Figure 2. Forces acting on a car during motion

Seat belts are used to provide safety for passengers whose motion is governed by Newton's laws. The
resistive force of the seat belt provides the unbalanced force that brings you from a state of motion to a
state of rest. Think of the possible scenario when no seat belt is used when the car in fast motion sudden
brakes.

2. Newton's Second Law

Newton's second law of motion relates to how objects will behave when all existing forces are not
balanced. The second law simply states that the acceleration of an object is dependent upon two key
variables, namely, the net force acting upon the object and the mass of the object. A flow diagram
illustrating the flow for Newton’s second law is depicted in Figure 3.

The acceleration of an object, therefore, depends upon the net force acting upon the object, and inversely
upon the mass of the object. When the force acting upon an object increases, the acceleration of the
object is increased accordingly. When the mass of an object is increased, the acceleration of the object
will decrease.

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 Figure 3. A flow diagram illustrating Newton’s second law

The Newton’s second law is often expressed in the form of the following two equations. Therefore
Newton’s second law equation can be expressed as

𝐹𝑛𝑒𝑡 or 𝑭𝒏𝒆𝒕 = 𝒎 ∗ 𝒂 (1)

𝑎=
𝑚

2.1 Newton's Second Law and a Force Analysis

Newton's second law is often used to analyze a variety of physical situations particularly when different
forces are acting on a body.

For any given physical situation when it is analyzed in terms of the individual forces acting upon an
object, those individual forces must add up as vectors to the net force. Also, the net force must be equal
to the mass times the acceleration (mass multiple acceleration of the body).Accordingly, the acceleration
of an object can be found if the mass of the object and the magnitudes and directions of each individual
force are known. Also, the magnitude of any force can be determined if the mass of the object, the
acceleration of the object, and the magnitude of the other forces acting on the body are known.

The starting point of analyzing such a physical situation so that unknown information can be determined
is to represent the physical situation using a free-body diagram. A free-body diagram is a vector diagram
that shows both the relative magnitude and direction of all the individual forces that are acting upon the
object. Figure 4 shows an example of a free-body diagram illustrating the forces acting on a flying plane.
In summary, the key steps include:

 Drawing Free-Body Diagrams

 Determining the Net Force from Knowledge of Individual Force Values
 Determining Acceleration from Knowledge of Individual Force Values
 Determining Individual Force Values from Knowledge of the Acceleration

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 Figure 4. Free-body diagram showing forces acting on a flying plane

2.2 Newton's Second Law in Daily Encounters

There are many Newton’s Second Law examples throughout your life. For example, you may realize,
when trying to purchase a car that the kilometer per litre of a sports utility vehicle (SUV) is always lower
than that of a standard car. Note the higher the kilometer per litre of a car means the more fuel economy
the car is.

We can use the Newton’s Second Law to explain this. The mass of a SUV is much greater than that of a
car. Therefore, it requires more force to accelerate it at the same amount. If you were driving a car 90
kilometer per hour on a freeway for 200 kilometer, you will use much less petrol than if you were to
drive at the same speed for the same distance using a SUV.

Similarly, you have a friend who is several kilograms lighter than you, but they walk exerting the same
amount of force as you. Your friend will be able to walk much faster than you because his acceleration
would undoubtedly be higher.

We can relook the Second Law from another perspective. If an object has much more mass, then exerting
more force will make it move faster. For this reason, a small child will not be able to throw a football
the same distance as an adult, since he is unable to exert the same amount of force that the adult is able
to.

Understanding Newton’s second law is a great way to understand motion of a rigid body. It is simple but
when properly understood and employed, enables an engineer to design some of the most complex
dynamic systems out there (e.g. cars, planes, drones, rockets etc).

2.3 The BIG Equation – Newton’s Second Law

Newton's second law of motion can be formally stated based on the relationship between force, mass
and acceleration.

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The acceleration experienced by an object as produced by a net force is directly proportional to the
magnitude of the net force, in the same direction as the net force, and inversely proportional to the mass
of the object. This verbal statement can be expressed in equation form as follows:
a = Fnet /m (2)

The above equation is often rearranged to a more familiar form as shown below. The net force is equated
to the product of the mass times the acceleration.

Fnet = m • a (3)

It is noteworthy that in the earlier section, the emphasis has been on the net force. The acceleration is
directly proportional to the net force; the net force equals mass times acceleration; the acceleration in
the same direction as the net force; an acceleration is produced by a net force.

Consistent with the above equation, a unit of force is equal to a unit of mass multiples a unit of
acceleration. By substituting standard metric units for force, mass, and acceleration into the above
equation, the following unit equivalency can be written: 1 Newton = 1 kg • m/s2

Accordingly, one Newton is defined as the amount of force required to give a 1-kg mass an acceleration
of 1 m/s/s.

2.4 Body in Circular Motion in a Horizontal Plane

To illustrate how the principle involved in circular motion can be combined with Newton's second law
to analyze a physical situation, let us consider a car moving in a horizontal circle on a level surface as
shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5. Schematic diagram of a car moving a horizontal circle

Applying the concept of a centripetal force requirement, the net force acting upon the object is directed
inwards. Since the car is positioned on the left side of the circle, the net force is directed rightward.

A detailed analysis of the situation shows that there are three key forces acting upon the car - the force
of gravity (acting downwards), the normal force of the pavement (acting upwards), and the force of
friction (acting inwards or rightwards).

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Note that it is the frictional force that provides the centripetal force requirement for the car to move in
a horizontal circle. Without the frictional force, the car can turn its wheels but will not be able to move
in a circle.

Figure 6. Free-body diagram of the forces acting a car moving a horizontal circle

This analysis leads to the free-body diagram shown in Figure 6. Note that each force is represented by a
vector arrow that points in the specific direction that the force acts (labeled according to type - Ffrict,
Fnorm, and Fgrav). Therefore, the force analysis in a free-body diagram is the first step of any problem
involving Newton's second law.

Example 1. The 50-kg crate shown in Figure below rests on a horizontal surface for which the
coefficient of friction is k = 0.3. If the crate is subjected to a 400-N towing force as shown, determine
the velocity of the crate in 3 s starting from rest.

Free-Body Diagram. The weight of the crate is W = mg = 50 kg x 9.81 m/s2 = 490.5 N. As shown in
FBD, the frictional force has a magnitude F = k x NC and acts to the left, since it opposes the motion of
the crate. There are two unknowns, namely NC and a.

Equations of Motion. Using the data shown on the FBD, we have

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+
→ ∑ 𝐹𝑥 = max: 400 cos 30o - 0.3NC = 50a (1)

↑ + ∑ 𝐹𝑦 = max: NC - 490.5 + 400 sin 30o = 0 (2)

Solving Eq. 2 for NC, substituting the result into Eq. 1, and solving for a yields

NC = 290.5 N

a = 5.185 m/s2

Kinematics. Notice that the acceleration is constant, since the applied force P is constant. Since the
initial velocity is zero, the velocity of the crate in 3 s is

v = v0 + act = 0 + 5.185(3)
= 15.6 m/s Ans.

2.5 Calculation in Circular Motion

 Uniform circular motion, that is circular motion at a constant speed, is one of many forms of
circular motion. When moving in a circle, an object traverses a distance around the perimeter of
the circle. If an object moves in a circle with a constant speed of 10 m/s, then it would travel 10
meters along the perimeter of the circle in each second of time.

 The distance of one complete cycle around the perimeter of a circle is known as the circumference.
With a uniform speed of 10 m/s, a car could make a complete cycle around a circle that had a
circumference of 10 meters. At this uniform speed of 10 m/s, each cycle around the 10-m
circumference circle would require 1 second. At 10 m/s, a circle with a circumference of 20 meters
could be made in 2 seconds; and at this uniform speed, every cycle around the 20-m circumference
of the circle would take the same time period of 2 seconds. Therefore, the average speed can be
calculated from

𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑐𝑖𝑟𝑐𝑢𝑚𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒
𝐴𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑆𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 = = (4)
𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

 The circumference of any circle can be computed from the radius according to the equation:

Circumference = 2*pi*radius (5)

 Combining these two equations above lead to a new equation relating the speed of an object moving
in uniform circular motion to the radius of the circle and the time to make one cycle around the
circle (also known as the period).

2∗𝜋∗𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑢𝑠
𝐴𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑆𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 = (6)
𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

where R represents the radius of the circle and T represents the period.
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 The equation suggests that for objects moving around circles of different radius in the same period,
the object traversing the circle of larger radius must be traveling with the greatest speed. In fact,
the average speed and the radius of the circle are directly proportional.

3. The Direction of the Velocity Vector

 Food for thought: An objects moving in uniform circular motion will have a constant speed. But
does this mean that they will have a constant velocity?

• Note that speed and velocity refer to two distinctly different quantities. Speed is a scalar quantity
and velocity is a vector quantity.

 Velocity, as a vector, possesses magnitude and direction. The magnitude of the velocity vector is
the instantaneous speed of the object. The direction of the velocity vector is in the same direction
that the object moves.

 Since an object is moving in a circle, its direction is continuously changing. At one moment, the
object is moving northward such that the velocity vector is directed northward.

 As the object rounds the circle, the direction of the velocity vector is different than it was the instant
before. So while the magnitude of the velocity vector may be constant, the direction of the velocity
vector is changing.

 The best word that describes the direction of the velocity vector is the word tangential. The
direction of the velocity vector at any instant is in the direction of a tangent line drawn to the circle
at the object's location.

 Figure 7 shows the direction of the velocity vector at four different points for an object moving in
a clockwise direction around a circle. While the actual direction of the object (and thus, of the
velocity vector) is changing, its direction is always tangent to the circle.

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 Figure 7. A schematic diagram showing the velocity vector changing as the object moves in a circle.

 In sum, an object moving in uniform circular motion is moving around the perimeter of the circle
with a constant speed. Though the speed of the object is constant, its velocity is changing. Velocity,
being a vector, has a constant magnitude but a changing direction. The direction is always directed
tangent to the circle and as the object turns the circle; the tangent line is constantly changing and
pointing in a new direction.

3.1 Inward Acceleration - Circular Motion

 To understand the acceleration of an object during circular motion, we will have to combine the
definition of acceleration with a review of some basic vector principles.

 Recall that acceleration as a quantity was defined as the rate at which the velocity of an object
changes. As such, it is calculated using the following equation:

∆𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑣𝑓 −𝑣𝑖
𝐴𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 = = (7)
𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑡

where vi is the initial velocity and vf is the final velocity after some time of t.

 Consider the case of an object moving in a circle as shown in Figure 8. In a time of t seconds,
the object has moved from point A to point B. In this time, the velocity has changed from vi to
vf. The process of subtracting vi from vf is shown in the vector diagram; this process yields the
change in velocity.

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 Figure 8. Vector algebra of an object moving in circle.

 Recall that the speed of an object moving in a circle is given by the following equation:

2∗𝜋∗𝑅
𝐴𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑆𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 = (8)
𝑇

where R represents radius and T represents period.

 The acceleration of an object moving in a circle can be determined by either two of the following
equations:

𝑣2 4∗𝜋2 ∗𝑅
𝐴𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 = = (9)
𝑅 𝑇2

where v represents speed, R represents radius, and T represents period.

 The equation on the right (above) is derived from the equation on the left by the substitution of
the expression for speed.

 The net force (Fnet) acting upon an object moving in circular motion is directed inwards. Even
though there may by more than one force acting upon the object, the vector sum of all of them
should add up to the net force.

 In general, the inward force is larger than the outward force (if any) such that the outward force
cancels and the unbalanced force is in the direction of the center of the circle. The net force is
related to the acceleration of the object (as is always the case) and is thus given by the following
three equations:

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 𝑣2 4∗𝜋2 ∗𝑅
𝐹𝑛𝑒𝑡 = 𝑚 ∗ 𝑎 = 𝑚 ∗ =𝑚∗ (10)
𝑅 𝑇2

where m represents mass, v represents speed, R represents radius, and T represents period.

The equations in the middle (above) and on the right (above) are derived from the equation on the left
by the substitution of the expressions for acceleration.

3.2 Uniform circular motion – Angular velocity and acceleration

When an object moves in a circular path at a constant speed, the motion of the object is termed as uniform circular
motion. In our daily life, we came across many examples of circular motion for example cars going round the
circular track, and earth and other planets revolve around the sun in approximately circular orbits.

It should be noted that even if the speed of motion is constant for an object moving in a circular motion, the object
is able to accelerate because of the constantly changing direction of its velocity. Therefore, in circular motion, it
is appropriate to use angular velocity in place of velocity we used while studying linear motion

3.2.1 Angular Velocity

Consider an object moving in a circle with uniform velocity as shown below in the Figure 9. The velocity v at
any point of the motion is tangential to the circle at that point. Let the particle moves from point A to point B
along the circumference of the circle. According to geometry, the distance along the circumference from A to B
is

s=Rθ (11)

where R is the radius of the circle and θ is the angle moved in radian.

Figure 9. Schematic representation of an object moving in a circle with uniform velocity

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Magnitude of velocity is given by

v=ds/dt=Rdθ/dt (12)

Since radius of the circle remains a constant quantity,

ω=dθ/dt (13)

is called the angular velocity defined as the rate of change of angle swept by radius with time.

Angular velocity is expressed in radians per second (rads-1). From equation (12) and (13), we find the following

v=ωR (14)

Thus for an objective moving in a circular motion, its velocity is directly proportional to radius for a given angular
velocity.

Since 2π radians is the angle θ in one revolution, the time period of motion is given by

T=2π/ω (15)

If angular velocity ω is constant then integrating equation (13) with the limits θ0 to θ, the following can be
obtained,

𝜃 𝑡 𝑡
∫𝜃 𝑑𝜃 = ∫𝑡 𝜔𝑑𝑡 = 𝜔 ∫𝑡 𝑑𝑡 𝑜𝑟 𝜃 = 𝜃0 + 𝜔 (𝑡 − 𝑡0 ) (16)
0 0 0

where θ0 is the angular position at time t0 and θ is the angular position at time t .The above equation is similar to
rectilinear motion result x-x0=v(t-t0).

3.2.2 Angular acceleration

Angular acceleration (unit of angular acceleration is rads-2) is defined as the rate of change of angular velocity
moving in circular motion with time. Thus,

α=dω/dt=d2θ/dt2 (17)

For motion with constant angular acceleration

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 𝜃 𝑡 𝑡 𝑡
∫𝜃0 𝑑𝜃 = ∫𝑡0 𝜔𝑑𝑡 = ∫𝑡0 𝜔0 𝑑𝑡 + 𝛼 ∫𝑡0(𝑡 − 𝑡0 )𝑑𝑡 𝑜𝑟 𝜔 = 𝜔0 + 𝛼 (𝑡 − 𝑡0 ) (18)

Again since ω=dθ/dt or dθ=ωdt then from equation (13)

On the integration process, we get

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𝜃 = 𝜃0 + 𝜔0 (𝑡 − 𝑡0 ) + 2 𝛼 (𝑡 − 𝑡0 )2 (19)

If in the beginning t0=0 and θ0=0 the angular position at any time t is given by θ=ω0t+(1/2)αt2 .

This result is of the form similar to what we find in case of uniformly accelerated motion while studying rectilinear
motion.

Consider the following equation relating the net force (Fnet) to the speed (v) of an object moving in
uniform circular motion.

𝑣2
𝐹𝑛𝑒𝑡 = 𝑚 ∗ (20)
𝑅

This equation shows that the net force required for an object to move in a circle is directly proportional
to the square of the speed of the object. As shown in Figure 10, for a constant mass and radius, the Fnet
is proportional to the speed2.

Figure 10. A pictorial illustration of how force is proportional to square of speed for
circular motion.

Interesting fact to note: The net force is altered is the square of the factor by which the speed is
altered. Subsequently, if the speed of the object is doubled, the net force required for that object's circular
motion is quadrupled. And if the speed of the object is halved (decreased by a factor of 2), the net force
required is decreased by a factor of 4.

Example 2. The brake drum is attached to a larger flywheel that is not shown. The motion of the brake
drum is defined by the relation θ = 36t −1.6t2, where θ is expressed in radians and t in seconds. Determine
(a) the angular velocity at t = 2 s, (b) the number of revolutions executed by the brake drum before
coming to rest.

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Given θ = 36t −1.6t2 radians, differentiate to obtain the angular velocity:

𝑑𝜃
𝜔= = 36 − 3.2𝑡 rad/s
𝑑𝑡

(a) At t = 2 s,  = 36 - (3.2)(2) = 29.6 rad/s Ans.

(b) When the rotor stops,  = 0.

0 = 36 - 3.2t, therefore, t =11.25 s

θ = (36)(11.25) − (1.6)(11.25)2 = 202.5 radians

In revolutions, 202.5/2π = 32.2 rev Ans.

4. How Things Move in Translational Motion

Figure 11. Rotational motion to translational motion of a vehicle

 Figure 11 shows the rotational to translation motion of a vehicle. From rotational to translational
motion, we need to measure angle instead of position in rotational motion; we need to know how
angle is changing as objects move. Key parameters include: angular velocity (ω) and angular
acceleration (α). Angular velocity is measured in rad/s, the same way translational velocity is

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 measured in m/s, and represents the change of angle in a given time. For example, a car may be
driving at 30 m/s, but its wheels are spinning at 130 rad/s.

 Angular acceleration is the rate of change of angular velocity, measured in rad/s 2, just as
translational acceleration is measured in m/s2. As the car speeds up, the wheels spin faster.
Angular velocity and angular acceleration can be related to their translational counterparts the
same way angle is related to arc distance:

vt = rω and at = rα (21)

 That means vt and at are always changing direction if an object is rotating. (Whether they're also
changing magnitude depends on α.) It also means that on a rotating object—like a record—the
outside is moving faster than the inside, even though they're rotating at the same angular velocity.
That point is really the key difference between rotational and translational motion. An object can
move at a constant speed, but change its rotational velocity.

We can relate θ, ω, and α to each other the same way we handled x, v, and a in translational motion.

A quick recap of some pf the key ideas and formulas from kinematics below:

 An object traveling at constant speed v for t seconds will move x meters: x = vt

 An object that moves from an initial velocity of v0 to a final velocity of v in t seconds has an
acceleration of a:

𝑣−𝑣0
𝑎= (22)
𝑡

 An object that starts at position x0 with initial speed v0 and accelerates at a rate a will end up at
position x in t seconds:
1
𝑥 = 𝑥0 + 𝑣0 𝑡 + 2 𝑎𝑡 2 𝛼 (23)

 The square of an object's current velocity v is equal to the square of its initial velocity v0 plus
two times the product of its current position x and acceleration a:

v2 = v02+2ax (24)

Angular velocity is change in angle, angular acceleration is change of angular velocity - rotational
motion can then take place. Recap the following points:

 An object that moves from an initial angular velocity of ω0 to a final angular velocity of ω in t
seconds has an angular acceleration of α:
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 𝜔−𝜔0
𝛼= (25)
𝑡

 An object that starts at angle θ0 with initial angular speed ω0 and accelerates at a rate α will end
up at angle θ in t seconds:
1
𝜃 = 𝜃0 + 𝜔𝑡 + 2 𝛼𝑡 2 (26)

 The square of an object's current angular velocity ω is equal to the square of its initial angular
velocity ω0 plus two times the product of its current angle θ and angular acceleration α:

ω2=ω02+2αθ (27)

Figure 12. Rotational motion to translational - motion of a vehicle

 A car is able to move forward due to the friction action between its tyres and the road as shown
in Figure 12. The force of friction of the road on the tyre acts in the forward direction and is equal
but in opposite direction to the force of the tyre on the road (Newton’s third law – to be covered
in a later chapter).

Example 3.The disk is originally rotating at v0 = 12 rad/s. If it is subjected to a constant angular

acceleration of a = 20 rad/s2, determine the magnitudes of the velocity and the n and t components of
acceleration of point A at the instant when t = 2 s.

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Angular Motion. The angular velocity of the disk can be determined using

ω = ω0 + 𝛼ct; ω = 12 + 20(2) = 52 rad/s

Motion of Point A. The magnitude of the velocity is

vA = ωrA = 52(0.5) = 26.0 m/s Ans.

The tangential and normal component of acceleration are

(aA)t = r = 20(0.5) = 10.0 m/s2 Ans.

(aA)n = ω2r = (522)(0.5) = 1352 m/s2 Ans.

4.1 Analogy between Linear and Rotational Motion

By now it is obvious that there is an analogy between linear and rotational motion. Linear motion
involves an object moving from one point to another in a straight line. Rotational motion involves an
object rotating about an axis. Table 1 gives a summary of various quantities that describe the linear
motion and rotational motion.

Table 1. Analogy between linear and rotational motions

Linear Motion Rotational Motion
Position x Angle θ
𝒅𝒙 𝒅𝜽
Linear velocity: 𝒖 = 𝒅𝒕 Angular velocity: 𝝎 = 𝒅𝒕
Linear acceleration Angular acceleration
𝒅𝒖 𝒅𝟐 𝒙 𝒅𝝎 𝒅𝟐 𝜽
𝒂= = 𝟐 𝜶= = 𝟐
𝒅𝒕 𝒅𝒕 𝒅𝒕 𝒅𝒕
Force Torque
Equation of motion Equation of motion

𝒖 = 𝒖𝟎 + 𝒂𝒕 𝝎 = 𝝎𝟎 + 𝒂𝒕

𝟏 𝟏
𝒔 = 𝒖𝟎 𝒕 + 𝒂𝒕𝟐 𝜽 = 𝝎𝟎 𝒕 + 𝜶𝒕𝟐
𝟐 𝟐

𝒖𝟐 − 𝒖𝟎 𝟐 = 𝟐𝒂𝒙 𝝎𝟐 − 𝝎𝟎 𝟐 = 𝟐𝒂𝜽

4.2 Applying Newton’s Second Law to Spring-Mass-Damper System

In many engineering system, it is essential to isolate a sensitive system from vibrations. For example,
the suspension of a car is designed to isolate a sensitive system, the passengers, from bumps in the road.
Electron microscopes are another classical example of sensitive instruments that must be isolated from
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vibrations. Electron microscopes are designed to resolve features a few nanometers in size. Again, it
has to use a spring-mass system as a model of a real engineering system.

Figure A1. Schematic of a spring-mass-damper system of a vehicle.

The purpose of the experiment is to enable students to understand free vibration and damped vibration
on a system and to study the relationship between the basic vibration parameters using Newton’s second
law of motion.
Consider a system consisting of a body of mass m supported by a spring of stiffness coefficient k moving
along only the vertical direction as shown in Figure 1a.

-kΔ

mg

Figure A2. A simple spring-mass system having one degree of freedom

Note that in the beginning stage, when the mass, m, is loaded, the spring undergoes a displacement given
by –kΔ=mg.

Let the mass m be given a downward displacement from its equilibrium position and then released. At
some time t, the mass will be at a distance x from the equilibrium position. The net force on the mass is
the spring force (-kx) which tends to restore it to its equilibrium position. Therefore, drawing a free-body
diagram, the equation of the motion by Newton’s second law (Figure 2b):

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 𝑑2 𝑥
𝑚 = 𝑚𝑔 − 𝑘(𝛥 + 𝑥) (A1)
𝑑𝑡 2

𝑑2 𝑥
Since –kΔ=mg ,re-writing, + 𝜔𝑛2 𝑥 = 0 (A2)
𝑑𝑡 2

𝑘
where 𝜔𝑛2 = 𝑚

The solution to the second order ODE in (2) with the initial conditions

𝑥 (𝑡 = 0) = 0 (A3a)

and

𝑑𝑥
(𝑡 = 0) = 0 (A3b)
𝑑𝑡

is

𝑥(𝑡) = 𝑥0 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝜔𝑛 𝑡 (A4)

The motion of the free-vibration mass-spring system can be seen in Figure 3.

Figure A3. The motion of free vibration of spring mass system

The period T of the motion is determined from Figure 3. From Equation (2), the frequency
f is given as

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 1 1 𝜔 1 𝑘
𝑓=𝑇= 2𝜋 = 2𝜋 = 2𝜋 √𝑚 (A5)
( )
𝜔

Example 4. A spring-mass system has a natural period of 0.21 sec. What will be the new period if the
spring constant is (a) increased by 50 percent and (b) decreased by 50 percent?

(a)
𝑚
𝑇 = 2𝜋√
𝑘
𝑚 𝑚
Therefore, 0.21 = 2𝜋√ 𝑘 (1) and 𝑇𝑛𝑒𝑤 = 2𝜋√1.5 × 𝑘 (2)
0.21 1
Divide (1)/(2) =  Tnew = 1.712 seconds Ans.
𝑇𝑛𝑒𝑤 1
√
1.5

(b)
𝑚
𝑇 = 2𝜋√
𝑘
𝑚 𝑚
Therefore, 0.21 = 2𝜋√ 𝑘 (1) and 𝑇𝑛𝑒𝑤 = 2𝜋√0.5 × 𝑘 (2)
0.21 1
Divide (1)/(2) =  Tnew = 0.297 seconds Ans.
𝑇𝑛𝑒𝑤 1
√
0.5

4.3 Springs in Series/Parallel

Everyday machines, such as cars and computers, are made of many different parts. Each part has its own
purpose, so that together with other parts, they can move and function correctly. Many machines have
parts that need to move back and forth so that the machine can perform a function over and over again.
One of the parts used in a typical machine is a simple device called a spring. There are many incidents
that springs are used in the industries for damping of heavy machineries. And most of the time, a spring
system comprising of springs in parallel or series are used.

As the springs are generally used to store and release energy, it is very much important to know about
the different combination of the springs when they are in parallel, series and combination of both.
Each spring system is characterized by its own spring constant. Spring constant can be determined by
the use of Hooke’s law:

𝐹 = 𝐾∆ (A6)
Where: F = Applied force Δ= the resulting displacement
So when the springs are in series as shown in Figure A4, the Keq is given by
1
𝐾𝑒𝑞 = 1 1 (A7)
+
𝐾1 𝐾2
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 Figure A4. Springs in Series

Similarly, when the springs are in parallel, the displacements (Δ) produced by the springs are equal
which is shown in Figure A5. Therefore, when the springs are in parallel, the Keq is given by

𝐾𝑒𝑞 = 𝐾1 + 𝐾2

ΔT = Δ1 = Δ2

Figure A5. Springs in Parallel

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5. How does things fly?
5.1 Forces Affect Objects Flying

Understanding how things fly begins by learning about the Four Forces of Flight as portrayed in Figure
13. When a plane flies, the wing is designed to provide enough Lift to overcome the airplane’s
Weight, while the engine provides enough Thrust to overcome Drag and move the airplane forward.
Increasing the weight of an aircraft influences the amount of lift needed. A larger wing would provide
more lift, but that would increase the amount of drag and therefore increase the amount of thrust needed.
The forces of flight are intrinsically connected, and a change in one affects the others. The definitions of
the forces are given as

 Weight is the force of gravity. It acts in a downward direction—toward the center of the Earth.
 Lift is the force that acts at a right angle to the direction of motion through the air. Lift is created
by differences in air pressure.
 Thrust is the force that propels a flying machine in the direction of motion. Engines produce
thrust.
 Drag is the force that acts opposite to the direction of motion. Drag is caused by friction and
differences in air pressure.

Figure 13. A simple schematic showing the forces on an airplane

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All Four Forces Act on an Airplane
When an airplane is flying straight and level at a constant speed, the lift it produces balances its weight,
and the thrust it produces balances its drag. However, this balance of forces changes as the airplane rises
and descends in latitude, as it speeds up or slows down, and even as it turns.

Weight
Weight is a force that is always directed toward the center of the earth. The magnitude of the weight
depends on the mass of all the airplane parts, plus the amount of fuel, plus any payload on board (people,
baggage, freight, etc.). The weight is distributed throughout the airplane. But we can often think of it as
collected and acting through a single point called the center of gravity.

During a flight, an airplane's weight constantly changes as the aircraft consumes fuel. The distribution
of the weight and the center of gravity also changes. So the pilot must constantly adjust the controls to
keep the airplane balanced, or trimmed.

Lift
To overcome the weight force, airplanes generate an opposing force called lift. Lift is generated by the
motion of the airplane through the air and is considered an aerodynamic force.

Lift is considered directed perpendicular to the flight direction. The magnitude of the lift depends on
several factors including the shape, size, and velocity of the aircraft. As with weight, each part of the
aircraft contributes to the aircraft lift force. Most of the lift is generated by the wings.

Aircraft lift acts through a single point called the center of pressure. The center of pressure is defined
just like the center of gravity, but using the pressure distribution around the body instead of the weight
distribution.

Drag
As the airplane moves through the air, there is another aerodynamic force present. The air resists the
motion of the aircraft and the resistance force is called drag – similar to the friction on the road which is
in opposite direction to a car moving forward. Similarly, drag is directed along and opposed to the flight
direction.

Like lift, there are many factors that affect the magnitude of the drag force. These include the shape of
the aircraft, the viscosity of the air, and the velocity of the aircraft. Similar to lift, once can collect all of
the individual components' drags and combine them into a single aircraft drag magnitude. And like lift,
drag acts through the aircraft center of pressure.

Thrust
To overcome drag and move forward, airplanes use a propulsion system to generate a force called thrust.
The magnitude of the thrust depends on many factors associated with the propulsion system including
the type of engine, the number of engines, and the throttle setting.

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For jet engines, it is often confusing to remember that aircraft thrust is a reaction to the hot gas rushing
out of the nozzle. The hot gas goes out the back, but the thrust pushes towards the front. Here we can
observe a classical example explained by Newton's Third Law of Motion – “For every action, there is an
equal and opposite reaction”. The motion of the airplane through the air depends on the relative strength
and direction of the forces shown above. If the forces are balanced, the aircraft cruises at constant
velocity. If the forces are unbalanced, the aircraft accelerates in the direction of the largest force.

5.2 Equilibrium Forces Act on an Airplane

Assuming a simple case where there is negligible drag force, then when an aircraft is in equilibrium, the
vector sum of these three forces (weight, lift and thrust) is equal to zero.

Figure 14. A simple schematic showing the forces acting on an airplane

Recall that the net forces working on a plane is a vector sum, there are two components of equations -
one vertical and one horizontal). Using the free body diagram shown in Figure 14, equilibrium of forces
in the vertical and horizontal directions can be conducted as

W = L * cos(a) + D * sin(a) (28)

L * sin(a) = D * cos(a) (29)

The aircraft has a constant forward and downward velocity along the flight path. Under equilibrium
condition, some forces are exactly balanced (cancelled out) by other forces. If the drag was to suddenly
increase, then the aircraft would no longer be in equilibrium and the aircraft would begin to decelerate.

25
Referring to Figure 14, if the weight on the left (F1) is placed a distance (L1) from the pivot so it generates
a torque (T1) which tends to rotate the bar counter-clockwise around the pivot.

T1 = F1 * L1 (30)

The weight on the right (F2) is placed a distance (L2) from the pivot, generating a torque (T2) which
would rotate the bar clockwise.

T2 = F2 * L2 (31)

When the system is in equilibrium, then the both torque equates, that is T 1 equals T2. In other words, the
torques cancel each other out and the bar does not rotate in either direction.

T1 = T2  F1 * L1 = F2 * L2 (32)

If more weight is added to F2, then T2 would be greater than T1 and the bar would rotate clockwise. The
system would no longer be in equilibrium.

5.3 What Happens When One Engine Fails?

When one of the airplane’s engines fails, the thrust created by the still active engine will create a moment
towards the dead engine. To salvage the situation, the way is to cancel this moment. This can be
accomplished by applying a rudder towards the functioning engine.

A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft or airplane that
moves through a fluid medium (generally air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to
counter unexpected flight movement conditions (e.g. extreme turbulences or when an engine shut down
etc.)

26
 (B)
(A)
Figure 15. (A) Pictorial view of a plane’s rudder; and (B) the rudder in action to stabilize
flight movement when one engine fails (adapted from https://www.quora.com/How-is-a-
twin-engine-aircraft-balanced-when-it-is-running-with-either-one-of-the-two-engines).

When the rudder is applied, it creates a force that directly opposes the thrust force which tries to turn the
airplane. If proper rudder is not given, the airplane will go into a spiral dive. The amount of force the
rudder gives depends mainly on the place of the Centre of Gravity (CG). Once an optimal level is applied,
the airplane stabilizes quickly. Once the airplane is stable, the pilot should secure the failed engine by
following the correct checklist procedure. More will be covered in subsequent chapters on thrust and
propulsion.

6. Chapter Summary: A Quick Recap in a Table

Table 2. Some key points on Newton’s law of motion

Newton's Second Law of Motion Acceleration of an object is equal to the net
force acting on the object divided by the
object's mass
Centripetal Force In circular motion, a force that acts
perpendicular to the direction of the motion,
and toward the center of the curve
Circular Motion Any motion in which an object moves along
a curved path

If a net force acts on a moving object in the Speed up

direction of the moving object, the object will:

27
If a net force acts on a moving object in the Speed down
direction that is opposite to the moving object,
the object will:
The term for change in velocity over time is: Acceleration

Unbalanced forces can make an object Speed, direction, or both

accelerate or decelerate by changing the
objects:

The direction of the acceleration is the same as Net Force

the direction of the:

Acceleration is measured in: m/s2

One Newton is the same as one kg x m/s2

Newton's Second Law Equations: A- acceleration is given by a= F ÷ m

m- mass is given by m= F ÷ a
F- net force (N) is given by F= m x a

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