Inclined Planes: Learning Outcomes
Inclined Planes: Learning Outcomes
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Inclined Planes
Lesson Notes
Learning Outcomes
• How do you determine the free-body diagram for an object on an inclined plane?
• How do you mathematically analyze the forces for an object on an inclined plane?
A Big Idea
How an object moves along an inclined plane depends upon the
relative magnitude and direction of the forces that act upon it.
Here's some forces to expect:
• Gravity (Fgrav); always present; always downward
• Normal (Fnorm); always present; always ⊥ to plane
• Friction (Ffrict); usually present; always ‖ to plane and
opposite motion
• Applied (Fapp) or Tension (Ftens); sometimes present
Components of Gravity
An object on an incline accelerates parallel to and down
the incline. This acceleration is caused by the force of
gravity. One needs to consider the components of gravity
that are parallel and perpendicular to the plane.
F‖ = m•g•sinQ
F⊥ = m•g•cosQ
Example 1: No Friction