M-2: Equilibrium of Forces
Objective
- The objective of this lab is to experimentally verify vector addition of forces
Equipment
- Circular Horizontal Force Table with 360-degree scale
- 4 Orange Pulleys
- 4 50g Weight Hangers
- Slotted masses
- Protractor
- Rulers
Procedure
- Choose two concurrent forces, each between 100 and 500 gram weight and not in the same direction. Add these two vectors to find the resultant force
- Use both a graphical construction and a numerical computation
- Check your result by setting up the two original forces on the force table, and finding experimentally the single force which will hold them in equilibrium.
- Random errors are due mainly to friction. You can estimate them by repeating the measurement several times.
- Are your measured values consistent with the computation and graphical construction?
- Repeat the experiment, but use three different original forces.
Post-Experiment Question
- If the weight hangers used all have identical masses, can their weight be neglected?
M-2 Equipment