Static
Equilibrium
Part II, Rotational and translational
equilibrium
• Choose one of the two
remaining threads and pull on it, varying the force and angle until
there seems to be little force on the central pin. Put a third hanger
on this thread, run the thread over the third pulley, and add mass to
it until the force on the pin seems to be zero.
• Check that the points of the pulleys are aligned with the
directions of the threads, and that all of your angles with respect to
the long axis of the stick are greater than 15o.
Remove the
pin. If you have successfully found the conditions for rotational
and translational equilibrium, the stick will not move. Just in
case friction between the threads and pulleys might be limiting the
stick’s motion, tap on the force table to see if the stick changes its
position from the center of the table. Adjust masses and angles
if necessary.
• Repeat the procedures for Questions 2 and 3 for Questions
4 and 5 of the worksheet. In comparison to the first set of
questions, the second set includes a third force (and torque), and you
are asked for the sum of the force magnitudes, forces, and relative
error in force. This time, you may place the origin where you
choose, but make sure that both the data in the table and the
coordinates in the sketch are consistent with your choice. If you
start to run out of time, collect the raw
data (yellow cells) and finish your work later. If any of the
fractional error components are greater than 0.099, redo your
calculations or
repeat the experiment. Don’t forget to note your units in the
square brackets at the top of each column.
• Individually answer the last question about the force of the
pin on the stick for the first case, for which you considered only
rotational equilibrium. Think about if translational equilibrium
still applies.
If all has gone well today, you will have confirmed that the sums of
the forces and torques are equal to zero in equilibrium.
Back to the Overview
Back to Part I
Worksheet
Index