The Similarities Between Trebuchets And Catapults

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Although many think of trebuchets and catapults as two different things, trebuchets are actually a type of catapult. While a standard catapult is any device that will throw an object by means of tension, a trebuchet throws and object by means of gravity from a counterweight that will fling an object by means of stored up energy, which is known as potential energy. Modern trebuchets usually use metal weights or sandbags as the counterweight, but, medieval armies would use anything from bags of stone to crates of animals. When the trebuchet was first used in ancient China during the fourth century, it was highly preferred over the standard catapult. When trebuchets were first becoming popular, armies and army leaders were gravitated towards them, because of their design. It was easier to get a more accurate measurement of the landing point of the ammunition. A trebuchet can throw an object by using a counterweight on the …show more content…

While a counterpoise trebuchet uses just a counterweight to launch its projectile, a traction trebuchet uses straight man-power to launch the projectile. I have the throwing arm attached to the base of the trebuchet by using metal hooks and a heavy-duty rubber band. When the hook is released, the ball attached to the throwing arm will launch in a forward arch. The base is Two feet long and one foot wide with a support beam in the middle. The trebuchet is two feet tall and the throwing arm is forty-five inches long and attached to two support beams with a metal rod acting as the fulcrm. The side of the throwing arm with the projectile is roughly twice as long as the side with the counterweight; if both sides of the throwing arm were of equal length, the side with the weight would bend and break the fulcrum. The counterweight, which is trying to pull the other side down, is creating and storing Potential Energy. The equation for potential energy

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