Introduction
Suppose a ball is released from a distance and rolls down an inclined plane, as shown in figure 1. At the bottom of the inclined plane, the ball strikes a level tabletop and bounces away. The inclined plane may be rotated to give a steeper angle, which will affect the time of travel across the tabletop.
The ball’s horizontal component of velocity is (Walding, Rapkins and Rossiter, 2004, pg. 62): v_x = v cos θ Figure 1: Experiment set up. Red indicates acting forces, green indicates velocity.
As the ball bounces across the tabletop, the horizontal component of velocity (vx) will remain unchanged, assuming no kinetic energy is lost. The vertical component of the velocity (vy), force normal of the tabletop and the force of gravity
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However, it is obvious that the tennis ball was most affected by friction, as it has the greatest difference between the theory and data. This was also visually apparent during the experiment. It was observed that the tennis ball slowed down considerably more that the other two balls. This is because the outer surface of a tennis ball is made from a furry cloth material, which generates more friction that a smooth surface, like the other two balls. (Bowden, 1951, pg. 302; Tremaine and Weinberg, 1984)
Secondly, published coefficient of restitution values varied considerably depending on the source. It is easier to calculate coefficient of restitution values experimentally rather than theoretically, therefore coefficient of restitution values can vary from source to source (Elert, 2006). Thus, the accuracy of these values is poor, and the calculated velocity is equally poor. As a result, predictions made are inconclusive.
Thirdly, the experiment design was prone to human error. Human reaction times make it impossible to record accurate results with a stopwatch. Similarly, the calculated velocity values were an average velocity. Realistically, the instantaneous velocity at the start of the tabletop should have been measured so that the velocity is unaffected by friction, drag and other external
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As stated above, stopwatches introduced a large degree of random error, and a number of uncontrolled variables. Using time gates to record the instantaneous velocity at the start of the tabletop would eliminate most of these variables, including friction. Therefore it would be beneficial to use time gates rather than stopwatches.
The distances on the inclined plane (s1 = 1.5m) and tabletop (s2 = 4.0m) were chosen to make the error margin smaller. By making these distances longer, the affect of friction was larger; however this effect is relatively small. Shorter distances would have resulted in large error margins; therefore it was beneficial to have longer inclined plane and tabletop distances.
As a result of this study, the relationship between a ball 's horizontal velocity and the angle of the inclined plane it travels down is known. Therefore maximizing horizontal velocity on a ramp is as straightforward as the theory. This has lots of practical applications, such as bowling ramps and bike jumps, where largest the possible horizontal velocity is required.
There were no significant error factors that may have affected the arrangement of the lab experiment. Everything went smoothly with relative ease.
As I was doing research on this assignment I came across a web page about the effects of gravity on mars as it specifically relates to the projectile path of a curve ball. I know that you cannot believe everything you read, especially when it comes to internet content, but the issue is still worth noting. I will mention this effect when the topic of spin on the ball is discussed. Gravity was the other force that was mentioned by the scientists. This isn’t too particularly exciting, because it’s always in
the load , the height of the ramp or the angle. I have chosen the
Rolling a Car down a Ramp Investigation PLANNING When planning my experiment, I will need to take into consideration. the following points: -Fair testing -Equipment -How many results will I get? -What range of variables I will experiment with I will be investigating, by varying the height of the summit of the ramp. is raised off the ground, if the average speed increases or decreases.
Based on the data obtained, Figure 1 represents a force vs. time graph for the amount of force that was used to pull a wooden block across a table. As illustrated in Figure 1, the initial flat line in the graph represents the block at rest, this is where the forces acting on the object are the normal force, gravity, and the static frictional force. Force was then applied to the wooden block until it began to move, the point at which the block moves is the peak in Figure 1. This is the point at which there was enough force applied to the block to overcome the maximum static friction force. The graph then begins to decrease because once a force is applied to the object that is greater than the maximum frictional force, not as much force is needed to continue to pull
of course zero cm. From dropping the ball we can see how high the ball
Jenkins, T. J. (2013, October 3). Sports Science Part I: Shooting a Basketball. In Science in our World: Certainty and Controversy. Retrieved March 11, 2014, from http://www.personal.psu.edu/afr3/blogs/siowfa13/2013/10/sports-science-part-i-shooting-a-basketball.html
When an object travels through fluid/air there are two types of flow characteristics that happen, laminar and turbulent. Laminar flow is a smooth steady flow over a smooth surface and it has little disturbance. Intuition would lead to the belief that this type of air flow would be desirable. It would make sense to assume that this smooth undisturbed air would create the least amount of resistive force due to friction. The golf ball seemingly defies this theory by traveling farther with its disruptive surface texture that creates the second flow characteristic, turbulent flow. Turbulent flow is flow that is disturbed and creates whirlpool like features. The turbulent air actually lessens the difference in velocity of the air layer that is extremely close to the ball compared to the rest of the air and so lessens the friction acting on the ball.
is the reason that the ball does not rebound off the block at the same
2. Material of the ball; as the ball is the same one used, this will
Investigating How the Height From Which a Table Tennis Ball is Dropped Affects Its Bounce
If the material of the ball is changed, then the ball with the most elasticity in its material, which is the basketball, will produce the greatest bounce height. This is because balls with greater elasticity in their material will lose less energy to heat and sound since it has the ability to decelerate slower due to its flexible material and thus, will transfer more kinetic energy to elastic potential energy more efficiently causing the ball to bounce
friction, affecting the speed and distance the ball rolls. Title: The Effects of Height, Length, Surface, Weight, Size, and Material on the Distance a Ball Rolls Down a Ramp Aim: The aim of this experiment is to investigate the factors that affect the distance a ball rolls when released from the top of a ramp. Variables:
Possible sources of error in this experiment include the inaccuracy of measurements, as correct measurements are vital for the experiment.
...the more energy is lost and the less the ball bounces back. The less denting that occurs, the more energy is kept and the higher the ball bounces back.