MECHANICS

CHAPTER 2: MOTION ALONG A STRAIGHT LINE

Contains……………….

2.1 Displacement, Time, and Average Velocity,

2.2 Instantaneous Velocity
2.3 Average and Instantaneous Acceleration
2.4 Motion with Constant Acceleration
2.5 Velocity and Position by Integration

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Displacement vs. Distance

• Displacement (blue line) = how far the object

is from its starting point, regardless of path
• Distance traveled (dashed line) is measured
along the actual path.

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Displacement vs. Distance

Q: You walk 70 meters across the campus, hear a

friend call from behind, and walk 30 meters back
the way you came to meet her.

• What distance do you travel?

• What is your displacement?

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Speed vs. Velocity

Speed is how far an object travels in a given time

interval (in any direction)

Ex: Go 10 miles to Chabot in 30 minutes

Average speed = 10 mi / 0.5 hr = 20 mph

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Speed vs. Velocity

Velocity includes directional information:

VECTOR!

Ex: Go 20 miles on 880 Northbound to Chabot in 20

minutes
Average velocity = 20 mi / 0.333 hr = 60 mph NORTH

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Example of Average Velocity

During a 3.00-sec interval, runner’s position

changes from x1 = 50.0 m to x2 = 30.5 m
What was the runner’s average velocity?
Vavg = (30.5 - 50.0) meters/3.00 sec
= -6.5 m/s in the x direction.

Note! Dx = The answer must have

FINAL – INITIAL value1,
position units2, &
DIRECTION3

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A position-time graph—Figure 2.3
• A position-time graph (an “x-t” graph) shows the particle’s
position x as a function of time t.
• Average x-velocity is related to the slope of an x-t graph.

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Instantaneous Speed

Instantaneous speed is the average

speed in the limit as the time interval
becomes infinitesimally short.

Ideally, a speedometer would

measure instantaneous speed; in
fact, it measures average speed,
but over a very short time interval.

Note: It doesn’t measure direction!

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Instantaneous Speed

Instantaneous velocity is the average

velocity in the limit as the time interval
becomes infinitesimally short.

Velocity is a vector; you must

include direction!

V = 27 m/s west…

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Instantaneous velocity

• The instantaneous velocity is the velocity at a

specific instant of time or specific point along the
path and is given by vx = dx/dt.

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Instantaneous velocity

• The instantaneous velocity is the velocity at a

specific instant of time or specific point along the
path and is given by vx = dx/dt.
• The average speed is not the magnitude of the
average velocity!

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Acceleration Example

A car accelerates along a straight road from rest to 90

km/h in 5.0 s

What is the magnitude of its average acceleration?

|a| = (90 km/hr – 0 km/hr)/5.0 sec

= 18 km/h/sec along road

better – convert to more reasonable units

90 km/hr = 90 x 103 m/hr x 1hr/3600 s = 25 m/s

So
|a| = 5.0 m/s2 (note – magnitude only is requested)

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Acceleration Example

An automobile is moving to the right along a

straight highway. Then the driver puts on the
brakes.

If the initial velocity (when the driver hits the

brakes) is v1 = 15.0 m/s, and it takes 5.0 s to
slow down to v2 = 5.0 m/s, what was the car’s
average acceleration?

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Acceleration Example
An automobile is moving to the right along a straight
highway. Then the driver puts on the brakes. If the initial
velocity (when the driver hits the brakes) is v1 = 15.0 m/s,
and it takes 5.0 s to slow down to v2 = 5.0 m/s, what was
the car’s average acceleration?

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Acceleration Example

A semantic difference between negative acceleration

and deceleration:
“Negative” acceleration is acceleration in the
negative direction (defined by coordinate system).
“Deceleration” occurs when the acceleration is
opposite in direction to the velocity.

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 Finding velocity on an x-t graph
• At any point on an x-t graph, the instantaneous x-
velocity is equal to the slope of the tangent to the
curve at that point.

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 Finding acceleration on a vx-t graph

• Use Velocity vs. Time (x - t) graph to find

instantaneous acceleration & average acceleration.

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 Constant Acceleration Equations

FIVE key variables:

Dxdisplacement vinitial , vfinal , acceleration time

FIVE key equations:

 Dx = ½ (vi+vf)t

 Dx = vit + ½ at2

 vf = vi + at

 vf2 = vi2 + 2aDx

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The equations of motion with constant acceleration

Equation of Motion Variables Present

vx  v0x  axt • Initial velocity, final velocity, acceleration, time
• Displacement ( x  x0 ), initial velocity, time,
x  x0  v0xt  12 axt 2 acceleration
2  2a  x  x 
vx2  v0x • Initial velocity, final velocity, acceleration,
x 0  
displacement
v0x  vx 

• Displacement, initial velocity, final velocity,
x  x0  
 t
2 
 time
• Displacement ( x  x ), final velocity, time,
x = x0 + vxt – 1/2axt2 0
acceleration

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The equations of motion with constant acceleration

Equation of Motion Find 3 of 4, solve for 4th!

vx  v0x  axt • Initial velocity, final velocity, acceleration, time
• Displacement (xx – x0),
x0 initial velocity, time,
x  x0  v0xt  12 axt 2 acceleration
2  2a  x  x 
vx2  v0x • Initial velocity, final velocity, acceleration,
x 0  
displacement
v0x  vx 

• Displacement, initial velocity, final velocity,
x  x0  
 t
2 
 time
• Displacement (x  x ), final velocity, time,
x = x0 + vxt – 1/2axt2 0
acceleration

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A motorcycle with constant acceleration

• What is position and velocity at t = 2.0 sec?

• Where is he when speed = 25 m/s?

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Two bodies with different accelerations (Ex. 2.5)
• A motorist traveling at a constant 15m/s passes school
crossing where speed limit is 20 mph.
• Just as motorist passes the sign a police officer stopped
on a motorcycle starts off in pursuit with acceleration
3.0 m/s2.

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Two bodies with different accelerations (Ex. 2.5)
• WHEN does officer catch up to the car?
• How FAST is officer going at that time?
• How FAR has each travelled?

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Two bodies with different accelerations (Ex. 2.5)
• Two different initial/final velocities and accelerations
• Two different equations of position in time x(t)
– Xm(t) for the motorist gives his position as f(time)
– Xp(t) for the police officer gives *his* position
• But…time & displacement are linked!

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Two bodies with different accelerations (Ex. 2.5)
• Two different initial/final velocities and accelerations
• TIME and displacement are linked!

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 Variable Acceleration; Integral
Calculus
Deriving the kinematic equations through
integration:

For constant acceleration,

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 Variable Acceleration; Integral
Calculus
Then:

For constant acceleration,

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 Variable Acceleration; Integral
Calculus
Example: Integrating a time-varying
acceleration.
An experimental vehicle starts from rest
(v0 = 0) at t = 0 and accelerates at a rate
given by a = (7.00 m/s3)t. What is
(a) its velocity and
(b) its displacement 2.00 s later?

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 Graphical Analysis and Numerical
Integration
The total displacement of an
object can be described as the
area under the v-t curve:

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 Graphical Analysis and Numerical
Integration

Similarly, the velocity may be written as the area

under the a-t curve.
However, if the velocity or acceleration is not
integrable, or is known only graphically,
numerical integration may be used instead.

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 Example: Numerical integration

An object starts from rest at t = 0 and accelerates

at a rate a(t) = (8.00 m/s4)t2. Determine its velocity
after 2.00 s using numerical methods.

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Velocity and position by integration
• The acceleration of a car is not always constant.
• The motion may be integrated over many small time intervals to
t t
give vx  v 
ox 0 x
a dt    
a nd   
x  x 
0 0 x
v dt .

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 Motion with changing acceleration (Ex. 2.9)

• Look at the example where acceleration DOES vary

in time. ax = 2.0 m/s2 – (0.10 m/s3)t
• You cannot use the set equations - you must
INTEGRATE

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