Topic 2-Mechanical Systems Flashcards
What is mechanical advantage?
The amount by which a machine can multiply a force
What is input force?
The force applied to the machine
Measured in Newtons
What is output force?
The force applied by the machine to the object
Measured in Newtons
What is the formula used to calculate mechanical advantage?
Mechanical Advantage equals the output force divided by the input force
What is speed ratio?
How the speed of an object is affected by a machine
What is the formula used to calculate the speed ratio?
Speed Ratio is equal to the input distance divided by the output distance.
What does it mean when the mechanical advantage is less than one?
It doesn’t mean the machine isn’t useful, it just is useful for tasks that don’t require a large output force
How does friction affect mechanical advantage?
Extra force is needed to overcome friction in a mechanical system therefore the machine isn’t perfect and will not work as well as it would with no friction
What is efficiency?
A measurement of how well a machine or device uses energy
What formula do you use to calculate efficiency?
Efficiency is equal to mechanical advantage divided by speed ratio
It is measured in percentage
What is work?
When a force acts on an object to make it move
What two things does work depend on?
The amount of force exerted on the object
The distance the object moves in the direction of the applied force
What is the formula used to calculate the work?
Work is equal to the force multiplied by the distance
What is the formula used to calculate the work input?
Work input equals input force multiplied by the output distance
What is the formula used to calculate the work output?
Work output equals the output force divided by the output distance
