Dynamics includes:

- Kinematics: study of the geometry of motion. Kinematics is used to

relate displacement, velocity, acceleration, and time without reference to
the cause of motion.
- Kinetics: study of the relations existing between the forces acting on a
body, the mass of the body, and the motion of the body. Kinetics is used
to predict the motion caused by given forces or to determine the forces
required to produce a given motion.
Rectilinear motion: position, velocity, and acceleration of a particle as it
moves along a straight line.
Curvilinear motion: position, velocity, and acceleration of a particle as it
moves along a curved line in two or three dimensions.
11 - 1

Rectilinear Motion: Position, Velocity &

Acceleration
Particle moving along a straight line is said
to be in rectilinear motion.
Position coordinate of a particle is defined
by positive or negative distance of particle
from a fixed origin on the line.
The motion of a particle is known if the
position coordinate for particle is known for
every value of time t. Motion of the particle
may be expressed in the form of a function,
e.g.,
x 6t 2 t 3
or in the form of a graph x vs. t.

11 - 2

 Consider particle which occupies position

P at time t and P at t+t,
x

Average velocity
t
x

lim
Instantaneous velocity
t 0 t
Instantaneous velocity may be positive or
negative. Magnitude of velocity is referred
to as particle speed.
From the definition of a derivative,
x dx
v lim

dt
t 0 t
e.g., x 6t 2 t 3
dx
v
12t 3t 2
dt

11 - 3

 Consider particle with velocity v at time t and

v at t+t,
v
Instantaneous acceleration a lim
t 0 t
Instantaneous acceleration may be:
- positive: increasing positive velocity
or decreasing negative velocity
- negative: decreasing positive velocity
or increasing negative velocity.
From the definition of a derivative,
v dv d 2 x
a lim

2
dt dt
t 0 t
e.g. v 12t 3t 2
dv
a
12 6t
dt

11 - 4

 Consider particle with motion given by

x 6t 2 t 3
v

dx
12t 3t 2
dt

dv d 2 x
a

12 6t
dt dt 2
at t = 0,

x = 0, v = 0, a = 12 m/s2

at t = 2 s,

x = 16 m, v = vmax = 12 m/s, a = 0

at t = 4 s,

x = xmax = 32 m, v = 0, a = -12 m/s2

at t = 6 s,

x = 0, v = -36 m/s, a = 24 m/s2

11 - 5

Determination of the Motion of a

Particle
Recall, motion of a particle is known if position is known for all time t.
Typically, conditions of motion are specified by the type of acceleration
experienced by the particle. Determination of velocity and position requires
two successive integrations.
Three classes of motion may be defined for:
- acceleration given as a function of time, a = f(t)
- acceleration given as a function of position, a = f(x)
- acceleration given as a function of velocity, a = f(v)

11 - 6

 Acceleration given as a function of time, a = f(t):

v t
t
dv
a f t
dv f t dt
dv f t dt

dt
v
0
dx
v t
dt

x t

dx v t dt

v t v0 f t dt
0

dx v t dt

x0

x t x0 v t dt

Acceleration given as a function of position, a = f(x):

v

dx
dx
or dt
dt
v

v dv f x dx

a
v x

dv
dv
or a v f x
dt
dx
x

v dv f x dx

v0

x0

1 v x 2
2

12 v02

f x dx

x0

11 - 7

 Acceleration given as a function of velocity, a = f(v):

dv
a f v
dt
v t

v0

dv
dt
f v

v t

v0

t
dv
dt
f v 0

dv
t
f v

dv
v a f v
dx
x t x0

v t

v0

v dv
dx
f v

x t

v t

x0

v0

dx

v dv
f v

v dv
f v

11 - 8

SOLUTION:
Integrate twice to find v(t) and y(t).
Solve for t at which velocity equals
zero (time for maximum elevation)
and evaluate corresponding altitude.
Ball tossed with 10 m/s vertical velocity
from window 20 m above ground.
Determine:
velocity and elevation above ground at
time t,
highest elevation reached by ball and
corresponding time, and
time when ball will hit the ground and
corresponding velocity.

Solve for t at which altitude equals

zero (time for ground impact) and
evaluate corresponding velocity.

11 - 9

SOLUTION:
Integrate twice to find v(t) and y(t).
dv
a 9.81 m s 2
dt
v t
t
v t v0 9.81t
dv 9.81 dt
v0

v t 10
dy
v 10 9.81t
dt
y t
t
dy 10 9.81t dt
y0

m
m
9.81 2 t
s
s

y t y0 10t 12 9.81t 2

m
m

y t 20 m 10 t 4.905 2 t 2
11 - s
10
s

 Solve for t at which velocity equals zero and evaluate

corresponding altitude.
v t 10

m
m
9.81 2 t 0
s
s

t 1.019 s

Solve for t at which altitude equals zero and evaluate

corresponding velocity.
m
m

y t 20 m 10 t 4.905 2 t 2
s

s
m
m

y 20 m 10 1.019 s 4.905 2 1.019 s 2

s

s
y 25.1 m
11 - 11

 Solve for t at which altitude equals zero and

evaluate corresponding velocity.
m
m

y t 20 m 10 t 4.905 2 t 2 0
s

s
t 1.243 s meaningless
t 3.28 s
v t 10

m
m
9.81 2 t
s
s

v 3.28 s 10

m
m
9.81 2 3.28 s
s
s
v 22.2

m
s
11 - 12

SOLUTION:
a kv

Integrate a = dv/dt = -kv to find v(t).

Integrate v(t) = dx/dt to find x(t).

Brake mechanism used to reduce gun

recoil consists of piston attached to barrel
moving in fixed cylinder filled with oil.
As barrel recoils with initial velocity v0,
piston moves and oil is forced through
orifices in piston, causing piston and
cylinder to decelerate at rate proportional
to their velocity.

Integrate a = v dv/dx = -kv to find

v(x).

Determine v(t), x(t), and v(x).

11 - 13

SOLUTION:
Integrate a = dv/dt = -kv to find v(t).
v t
t
dv
dv
v t
a
kv

k
dt
ln
kt

dt
v0
v v
0
0

v t v0 e kt
Integrate v(t) = dx/dt to find x(t).
dx
v t
v0 e kt
dt
x t
t
1 kt
kt

dx

v
e
dt
x
t

0
0 e

0
0
x t

t
0

v0
1 e kt
k 11 - 14

 Integrate a = v dv/dx = -kv to find v(x).

dv
a v kv
dx

v0

dv k dx

dv k dx

v v0 kx

v v0 kx

Alternatively,

v0
1 e kt
k

with

x t

and

v t v0 e kt or e kt

then

x t

v0
v t
1

k
v0

v t
v0
v v0 kx
11 - 15

Uniform Rectilinear Motion

For particle in uniform rectilinear motion, the acceleration is zero and
the velocity is constant.
dx
v constant
dt
x

x0

dx v dt

x x0 vt
x x0 vt

11 - 16

Uniformly Accelerated Rectilinear Motion

For particle in uniformly accelerated rectilinear motion, the acceleration of
the particle is constant.
dv
a constant
dt

v0

dv a dt

v v0 at

v v0 at
dx
v0 at
dt

x0

dx v0 at dt

x x0 v0t 12 at 2

x x0 v0t 12 at 2
dv
v a constant
dx
v 2 v02 2a x x0

v0

x0

v dv a dx

1
2

v 2 v02 a x x0
11 - 17

Motion of Several Particles: Relative

Motion

For particles moving along the same line, time

should be recorded from the same starting
instant and displacements should be measured
from the same origin in the same direction.
x B x A relative position of B
with respect to A
xB x A xB A
xB

v B v A relative velocity of B
with respect to A
vB v A vB A
vB

a B a A relative acceleration of B
with respect to A
aB a A aB A
11 - 18
aB

SOLUTION:
Substitute initial position and velocity
and constant acceleration of ball into
general equations for uniformly
accelerated rectilinear motion.
Substitute initial position and constant
velocity of elevator into equation for
uniform rectilinear motion.
Ball thrown vertically from 12 m level
in elevator shaft with initial velocity of
18 m/s. At same instant, open-platform
elevator passes 5 m level moving
upward at 2 m/s.
Determine (a) when and where ball hits
elevator and (b) relative velocity of ball
and elevator at contact.

Write equation for relative position of

ball with respect to elevator and solve
for zero relative position, i.e., impact.
Substitute impact time into equation
for position of elevator and relative
velocity of ball with respect to
11 - 19
elevator.

SOLUTION:
Substitute initial position and velocity and constant
acceleration of ball into general equations for
uniformly accelerated rectilinear motion.
v B v0 at 18

m
m
9.81 2 t
s
s

m
m

y B y0 v0 t 12 at 2 12 m 18 t 4.905 2 t 2
s

s
Substitute initial position and constant velocity of
elevator into equation for uniform rectilinear
motion. m
vE 2
s
m
y E y0 v E t 5 m 2 t
s
11 - 20

 Write equation for relative position of ball with respect to

elevator and solve for zero relative position, i.e., impact.
yB

12 18t 4.905t 2 5 2t 0
t 0.39 s meaningless
t 3.65 s

Substitute impact time into equations for position of

elevator and relative velocity of ball with respect to elevator.
y E 5 2 3.65
vB

y E 12.3 m

18 9.81t 2
16 9.81 3.65
vB

19.81

m
s

11 - 21

 Position of a particle may depend on position of one

or more other particles.
Position of block B depends on position of block A.
Since rope is of constant length, it follows that sum of
lengths of segments must be constant.
x A 2 x B constant (one degree of freedom)
Positions of three blocks are dependent.
2 x A 2 x B xC constant (two degrees of freedom)
For linearly related positions, similar relations hold
between velocities and accelerations.
dx
dx A
dx
2 B C 0 or 2v A 2v B vC 0
dt
dt
dt
dv
dv
dv
2 A 2 B C 0 or 2a A 2a B aC 0
11 - 22
dt
dt
dt
2

SOLUTION:
Define origin at upper horizontal surface
with positive displacement downward.
Collar A has uniformly accelerated
rectilinear motion. Solve for acceleration
and time t to reach L.
Pulley D has uniform rectilinear motion.
Pulley D is attached to a collar which
Calculate change of position at time t.
is pulled down at 3 in./s. At t = 0,
collar A starts moving down from K Block B motion is dependent on motions
of collar A and pulley D. Write motion
with constant acceleration and zero
relationship and solve for change of block
initial velocity. Knowing that
B position at time t.
velocity of collar A is 12 in./s as it
passes L, determine the change in
Differentiate motion relation twice to
elevation, velocity, and acceleration
develop equations for velocity and
of block B when block A is at L.
11 - 23
acceleration of block B.

SOLUTION:
Define origin at upper horizontal surface with
positive displacement downward.
Collar A has uniformly accelerated rectilinear
motion. Solve for acceleration and time t to reach L.
v 2A v A 02 2a A x A x A 0
in.

12

2a A 8 in.

aA 9

in.
s2

v A v A 0 a At
12

in.
in.
9 2t
s
s

t 1.333 s

11 - 24

 Pulley D has uniform rectilinear motion. Calculate

change of position at time t.
xD xD 0 vDt
in.
x D x D 0 3 1.333 s 4 in.
s
Block B motion is dependent on motions of collar
A and pulley D. Write motion relationship and
solve for change of block B position at time t.
Total length of cable remains constant,
x A 2 x D x B x A 0 2 x D 0 x B 0

x A x A 0 2 x D xD 0 xB x B 0 0
8 in. 2 4 in. x B x B 0 0
x B x B 0 11-16
in.
25

 Differentiate motion relation twice to develop

equations for velocity and acceleration of block B.
x A 2 x D x B constant
v A 2v D v B 0

12

in.
in.

3 vB 0
s
s

v B 18

in.
s

a A 2a D a B 0

in.

vB 0

a B 9

11 - 26

in.
s2

Curvilinear Motion: Position, Velocity &

Acceleration
Particle moving along a curve other than a straight line
is in curvilinear motion.
Position vector of a particle at time t is defined by a
vector between origin O of a fixed reference frame and
the position occupied by particle.
Consider particle which occupies position P

r by
defined
at t +
r by at time t and P defined

t,
r dr
v lim

dt
t 0 t
instantaneous velocity (vector)
s ds

dt
t 0 t

v lim

instantaneous speed (scalar)

11 - 27


Consider velocity v of particle at time t and velocity

v
at t + t,

v dv

a lim

dt
t 0 t
instantaneous acceleration (vector)
In general, acceleration vector is not tangent to
particle path and velocity vector.

11 - 28

Derivatives of Vector
Functions

Let P u be a vector function of scalar variable u,

dP
P
P u u P u
lim
lim
du u 0 u u 0
u
Derivative of vector sum,

d P Q dP dQ

du
du du
Derivative of product of scalar and vector functions,

d f P df
dP

P f
du
du
du
Derivative of scalar product and vector product,

d P Q dP dQ

Q P
du
du
du

d P Q dP
dQ

Q P
11 - 29
du
du
du

Rectangular Components of Velocity &

Acceleration
When position vector of particle P is given by its
rectangular components,

r xi y j zk
Velocity vector,
dx dy dz
v i j k x i y j z k
dt
dt
dt

vx i v y j vz k
Acceleration vector,
d 2 x d 2 y d 2 z
a 2 i 2 j 2 k xi y j zk
dt
dt
dt

ax i a y j az k

11 - 30

 Rectangular components particularly effective

when component accelerations can be integrated
independently, e.g., motion of a projectile,
a x x 0
a y y g
a z z 0
with initial conditions,
vx 0 , v y , vz 0 0
x0 y 0 z 0 0

Integrating twice yields

vx vx 0
x vx 0 t

0 gt
y v y y 12 gt 2
0

vy vy

vz 0
z0

Motion in horizontal direction is uniform.

Motion in vertical direction is uniformly accelerated.
Motion of projectile could be replaced by two
independent rectilinear motions.
11 - 31

Motion Relative to a Frame in Translation

Designate one frame as the fixed frame of reference.
All other frames not rigidly attached to the fixed
reference frame are moving frames of reference.
Position vectors for particles A and B with respect to

the fixed frame of reference Oxyz are rA and rB .

r
Vector B A joining A and B defines the position of
B with respect to the moving frame Axyz and

rB rA rB A
Differentiating twice,

vB v A vB A vB

a B a A aB

aB

A
A

velocity of B relative to A.
acceleration of B relative
to A.

Absolute motion of B can be obtained by combining

motion of A with relative motion of B with respect to
11 - 32
moving reference frame attached to A.

Tangential and Normal Components

Velocity vector of particle is tangent to path of
particle. In general, acceleration vector is not.
Wish to express acceleration vector in terms of
tangential and normal components.

et and et are tangential unit vectors for the

particle path at P and P. When drawn with

respect to the same origin, et et et and
is the angle between them.
et 2 sin 2

et
sin 2
lim
lim
en en
0
0 2

det
en
d
11 - 33


With the velocity vector expressed as v vet
the particle acceleration may be written as

de dv
de d ds
dv dv
a
et v
et v
dt dt
dt dt
d ds dt
but
det
ds
en
d ds
v
d
dt
After substituting,
dv
v2
dv v 2
a et en
at
an
dt

dt

Tangential component of acceleration reflects

change of speed and normal component reflects
change of direction.
Tangential component may be positive or
negative. Normal component always points
toward center of path curvature.
11 - 34

 Relations for tangential and normal acceleration

also apply for particle moving along space curve.
dv v 2
a et en
dt

dv
at
dt

v2
an

Plane containing tangential and normal unit

vectors is called the osculating plane.
Normal to the osculating plane is found from

eb et en

en principal normal

eb binormal
Acceleration has no component along binormal.
11 - 35

Radial and Transverse

Components

When particle position is given in polar coordinates,

it is convenient to express velocity and acceleration
with components parallel and perpendicular to OP.

r re r

der
e
d

The particle velocity vector is

der dr
dr
d
d
v re r e r r
er r
e
dt
dt
dt
dt
dt

r er r e

de

er
d

der der d d

e
dt
d dt
dt

de de d
d

er
dt
d dt
dt

Similarly, the particle acceleration vector is

d
d dr
a
er r
e
dt dt
dt

d 2 r dr der dr d
d 2
d de
2 er

e r 2 e r
dt dt dt dt
dt dt
dt
dt

r r 2 er r 2r e

11 - 36

 When particle position is given in cylindrical

coordinates, it is convenient to express the
velocity and acceleration
vectors using the unit

vectors e R , e , and k .
Position vector,

r R e R z k
Velocity vector,

dr

v
R e R R e z k
dt
Acceleration vector,

dv

2
R eR R 2 R e z k
a
R
dt

11 - 37

SOLUTION:
Calculate tangential and normal
components of acceleration.
Determine acceleration magnitude and
direction with respect to tangent to
curve.
A motorist is traveling on curved
section of highway at 60 mph. The
motorist applies brakes causing a
constant deceleration rate.
Knowing that after 8 s the speed has
been reduced to 45 mph, determine
the acceleration of the automobile
immediately after the brakes are
applied.

11 - 38

SOLUTION:
Calculate tangential and normal components of
acceleration.
v 66 88 ft s
ft
at

2.75 2
t
8s
s
v 2 88 ft s 2
ft
an

3.10 2

2500 ft
s
60 mph 88 ft/s
45 mph 66 ft/s

Determine acceleration magnitude and direction

with respect to tangent to curve.
ft
2
2
2
2
a

4
.
14
a at a n 2.75 3.10
s2

tan

1 a n

at

tan 1

3.10
2.75

48.4
11 - 39

SOLUTION:
Evaluate time t for = 30o.
Evaluate radial and angular positions,
and first and second derivatives at
time t.
Rotation of the arm about O is defined
by = 0.15t2 where is in radians and t
in seconds. Collar B slides along the
arm such that r = 0.9 - 0.12t2 where r is
in meters.
After the arm has rotated through 30o,
determine (a) the total velocity of the
collar, (b) the total acceleration of the
collar, and (c) the relative acceleration
of the collar with respect to the arm.

Calculate velocity and acceleration in

cylindrical coordinates.
Evaluate acceleration with respect to
arm.

11 - 40

SOLUTION:
Evaluate time t for = 30o.

0.15 t 2
30 0.524 rad

t 1.869 s

Evaluate radial and angular positions, and first

and second derivatives at time t.
r 0.9 0.12 t 2 0.481 m
r 0.24 t 0.449 m s
r 0.24 m s 2

0.15 t 2 0.524 rad

0.30 t 0.561 rad s
0.30 rad s 2

11 - 41

 Calculate velocity and acceleration.

vr r 0.449 m s
v r 0.481m 0.561rad s 0.270 m s
v
tan 1
vr

v vr2 v2

v 0.524 m s

31.0

ar r r 2
0.240 m s 2 0.481m 0.561rad s 2
0.391m s 2
a r 2r

0.481m 0.3 rad s 2 2 0.449 m s 0.561rad s

0.359 m s 2
a ar2 a2

a
tan 1
ar
a 0.531m s

11- 4242.6

 Evaluate acceleration with respect to arm.

Motion of collar with respect to arm is rectilinear
and defined by coordinate r.
a B OA r 0.240 m s 2

11 - 43