Open main menu

Resolving Forces

Revision as of 20:34, 4 February 2019 by NRJC (talk | contribs)

Contents

Key Stage 4

Meaning

To resolve a force is to separate a single force into two parts which act at right angles to one another.

About Resolving Forces

Resolving forces is used to find how much of a force acts in a certain direction. For example:
It may be useful to know what 'component' of an object's weight acts down the slope to tell if is likely to accelerate down the slope.
A rope pulling at an angle above the horizontal has a vertical 'component' acting against weight and a horizontal 'component' acting to accelerate the object horizontally.

Examples

Calculate the component of the tension acting against friction.
Text Text
Calculate the component of the tension acting against friction.
Text Text