Kinematics

Speed = distance moved / time taken

Average speed = total distance travelled / total time taken
A distance-time graph shows how distance changes with time.

The gradient of the tangent at a point on the distance time graph gives instantaneous speed.
Here is a d-t graph that shows all of the above cases. The graph has been broken into sections. Answer
these questions:
- Which sections show constant speed?
- Which sections show positive acceleration?
- Which sections show negative acceleration?


Answers:
Section b shows constant forward speed, section f shows constant backward speed, and section d shows
a short period of constant zero speed.
Positive acceleration takes place in sections a (increasing forward speed) and g (decreasing backward
speed.).
Negative acceleration occurs in sections c (decreasing forward speed) and e (increasing backward
speed.)

Describe the difference between the motions represented by these two d-t graphs.


Answer: The first graph shows an object starting from rest (like a thoroughbred horse race). The second
graph shows an object that was already moving at constant speed at time zero (like a trotters race,
where the horse-and-carts travel around the track before the race begins and are in motion when they
cross the starting line.)

Distance in a specified direction is known as displacement. The displacement is how far the object is
from the starting point in the specified direction.
Velocity is the change in distance in a specified direction per unit time. OR change in displacement per
unit time.
Speed and velocity is measured in m/sec. Velocity is speed in specified direction.


What is the average velocity if you travel 1 m at 1 m/s then go a second metre at 2 m/s? If you think the
answer is 1.5 m/s, WRONG. (Hint: total distance over total time.)
Remember that displacement is simply the difference between ending and
starting point. Total displacement all the way around a race track is zero. If you are standing on a chair 1
m above the ground and throw a projectile in the air, when it hits the ground its displacement is 1 m
[down]. The fact that it rose 4 m in the air is not relevant.

Example B2.1: Average speed and velocity for constant speed in a circle
The tip of the second hand on a wall-clock travels from the 12 to the 3. The hand is 8.0 cm long.
Calculate the average speed and average velocity.
Solution:
average speed:
distance = of a circle, t = 15 s.
Average speed:


Average velocity:

Find d first, where we are using d for the vector quantity of distance and
direction. Consider the centre of the clock as a reference point. (It does not matter where the
reference point is. The displacement is the difference between the two positions, a vector
subtraction.
d
1
and d
2
are each 8 cm, so d = 11.31 cm

ii. Average velocity [top]

The average velocity between two times is the slope of the straight line joining the two points.



iii. Instantaneous velocity [top]

The instantaneous velocity is the actual velocity at a single time instant. Therefore it is the slope of the
graph AT a single point. To do find this, draw a tangent, a line the matches the slope of the graph at the
point you are considering. Then find the slope of the tangent. The length of the tangent is not relevant,
except that accuracy is better if you draw a long line.


The actual or instantaneous speed of the object at time t in the above graph is given by the slope of the
line that matches the slope of the graph at the point. This is always a judgment call: do your best to
match up the slopes.

Acceleration = change in velocity / time (m/sec
2
)
= v u / t where v final velocity; u initial velocity; t = time taken
When the speed of an object changes, its velocity changes. However, when the speed remains constant,
its velocity may not be constant if there is a change in direction.
Positive acceleration change in velocity is in the same direction as velocity
Negative acceleration or deceleration change in velocity is in the opposite direction to the velocity
(speed is decreasing)
positive acceleration: increasing forward velocity or decreasing negative velocity
negative acceleration: increasing backward velocity or decreasing forward velocity
negative acceleration does not necessarily mean getting slower. Negative acceleration also applies to
increasing speed in a negative direction
Uniform acceleration & Non-uniform acceleration
Instantaneous Acceleration In the speed time graph, gradient of the tangent at a point on the curve
gives you the instantaneous acceleration.
Example B3.1: Rising ball
A ball is rising in the air at 15 m/s. 6.0 s later it is falling at 43.8 m/s. What was the average acceleration
of the ball?
Consider up as positive
v
1
= 15 m/s[up]
v
2
= 43.8 m/s[down] = -43.8 m/s[up]
t = 6.0 s

Notice that although the ball is moving up, it is accelerating down. This is always the case for projectiles
near Earths surface in the absence of air resistance. All projectiles, no matter what their speed or
direction of motion, are accelerating down at 9.8 m/s
2
.
Question:
A ball rises straight upward, stops at the top, and falls directly downward. What was the acceleration at
the exact instant it was stopped at the top? Answer: 9.8 m/s
2
[down].
Question:
A basket ball is arcing through the air toward the hoop. What is the acceleration as it is rising? As it is
moving horizontally at the top of its arc? As it is curing downward toward the basket? After it goes
through the basket and drops toward the players hands? Answers: 9.8 m/s
2
[down], 9.8 m/s
2
[down],
9.8 m/s
2
[down], 9.8 m/s
2
[down]. Get it?
Remember these patterns: d & t v
v & t a
This means that whatever you know that applies to a distance-time graph, such as the slope of a d-t
graph is velocity (dtv) applies to a velocity-time graph, except that well be talking about acceleration
instead of velocity (vta): the slope of a v-t graph is acceleration.
Therefore, if zero slope of a d-t graph means stopped moving, no change in displacement, then zero
slope on a v-t graph means stopped accelerating, no change in velocity.


The most common error is to look at this graph and think the object is stopped (by
confusing this v-t graph with a d-t graph). In fact, the object is traveling at high
forward velocity.
Example C2.1 Object dropped from rest
A common example you will come across is that of a falling body in air and in vacuum. Here are d-t, v-t,
and acceleration-time graphs for these situations.

ii. Obtaining displacement from a v-t graph
A final fact you may use if you are interpreting a velocity-time graph is that the area between the line
and the time axis on the v-t graph is the displacement
that occurred in that interval.
In the graph on the right, the displacement from the 4 s
to 6 s mark is the area of the shaded region. Think of the
shape as a 2 x 5 square underneath a triangle. The
displacement during that interval of time was 10 m + 4 m
= 14 m.

D. Motion Problems
Note that all the formulas for (straight line) accelerated motion have three terms on the right. There are
five terms altogether (d, a, t, u, and v) and from any three you can get the missing two. When you are
dealing with constant acceleration situations, say to yourself What three things do I know? (You will
always be given three quantities, although you may have to infer one from the wording. For example,
suppose a question begins with A ball was dropped Unless otherwise stated, you will use u=0 and a =
10 m/s
2
, the acceleration of a falling object near Earths surface.)

For constant acceleration only

1. Single bodytwo step problem
A car accelerates from rest at 4.0 m/s
2
for 12 s, then hold that speed for 20 s. How far did it travel?
Set up the two parts:
Part 1: a = 4.0 m/s
2
Part 2: t = 20s
t = 12 s a = 0
v
1
= 0 d = ?
d = ?
Recall: You need three quantities, but only two are given in Part 2. There must be a way to get the third.
You need this insight: the final velocity in part 1 is the initial velocity in part 2.
Now you have the procedure. Find d and v
2
for part 1, then use v
2
as v
1
for part 2. Add the ds together
for the total distance.
Answer: d
total
= 288 m + 960 m = 1248 m (or 1.2 x 10
3
m, if you are following proper rules of significant
digits.)
2. Kinematics collisions
Car A starts from rest and accelerates east at 2.0 m/s
2
. 80 m ahead car B is approaching at 20 m/s.
Seeing car A coming at it, car B hits the breaks, slowing at 4.0 m/s
2
. Will there be a collision. If so, when
and where. If not, how close did they come?

There are clever ways of solving questions like this. One is to view the collision from one cars point of
view. Another is to plot a d-t or v-t graphs. Heres the brute force method which always works. The logic
is that for a collision, the cars must be at the same place at the same time. Find expressions for the
positions of each car and set them equal. Then solve for t.
Let t = the elapsed time and measure position from As starting point.
position A = starting point + v
1
t + .5 at
2
position B = starting point + v
1
t + .5 at
2

= .5 (2) t
2
= 80 20t + .5 (4) t
2

= t
2
= 80 20t +2t
2

(Note that Bs initial velocity was negative (west), and its acceleration is positive (i.e. eastward), because
it was decreasing its negative velocity.)
For collision, position A = position B
Therefore t
2
= 80 20t + 2t
2

or t
2
20t + 80 = 0
Using the quadratic formula gives t = 5.53 s and t = 14.5 s. Substitute the earlier time into either position
formula to get the location of the collision: 30.6 m from As starting point. (The second time comes
because, if the cars are allowed to pass through each other, A will pass through B. B will eventually stop
and start heading east and, because its acceleration is greater than As, B will catch up to A at time 14.5
s.)
If B had started 120 m away, you would have obtained this quadratic formula instead: t
2
20t + 120 = 0.
The quadratic formula would give the square root of a negative number. This shows that the cars do not
collide. (B stops in time, and reverses direction, accelerating away from A.)
To find the time of closest approach realize this obvious-when-you-see-it fact: closest approach comes
when the speeds are equal! (If the speeds are not equal, then one is either catching up, so closest
approach has not happened yet, or the other pulling away, so closest approach has already occurred.)
Use v
2
= v
1
+at and set their speeds (i.e. the v
2
s) equal. This gives a time of 10 s. Substituting in the
position equations and subtracting gives a closest approach of 20 m.
Braking Distance
Depends on speed of the car, acceleration of the car and reaction time of the driver and weather
conditions.
Two parts : 1) first time interval begins when the driver decides to apply the brakes and ends when he
touches the brake pedal. This is the reaction time during which the speed is constant and acceleration is
zero. 2) second time interval is the actual braking period when the vehicle slows down (a not equal to
zero) and comes to a stop.

After hitting the brakes, the stopping distance increases with the square of the initial speed.
Free Fall Objects
All objects would fall with same constant acceleration in the absence of air and other resistance.
Distance travelled will be proportional to the square of the time.
The speed of an object falling in air doesnt increase indefinitely. If the object falls far enough, it will
reach a maximum velocity called terminal velocity due to air resistance.
It is arbitrary whether we choose y to be positive upwards or downwards; but must be consistent