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Fizyka w szkole średniej
Kurs: Fizyka w szkole średniej > Rozdział 7
Lekcja 3: Moment obrotowy i równowaga w ruchu obrotowymTorque and equilibrium review
Review the concept of torque and how it is affected by the applied force and lever arm.
Pojęcia kluczowe
| Term (symbol) | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Torque (tau) | Measure of the twisting action caused by a force that can cause an object to rotate about an axis. Vector quantity with SI units of start text, N, end text, dot, start text, m, end text. |
| Net torque (\Sigma, tau) | Sum of all the torques on a system |
| Balanced system | When the net torque on a system is zero |
| Lever arm | Perpendicular distance from the axis of rotation to where the force is applied. Vector quantity with SI units of start text, m, end text. |
| Pivot point | Point that an object rotates around. Sometimes called the fulcrum or rotational axis. |
Równania
| Equation | Symbol breakdown | Meaning in words |
|---|---|---|
| tau, equals, r, F, sine, theta, equals, r, start subscript, \perp, end subscript, F | tau is torque, F is applied force, r is the radius from the axis of rotation to the location where the force is exerted, and theta is the angle between F and r when these vectors are placed tail to tail. | Torque is proportional to both the lever arm and the force component perpendicular to the lever arm. |
How to visualize the torque equation
A wrench produces a torque on a nut if a force is applied to it correctly (see Figure 1). The equation for torque is:
To produce a torque, the force F must be applied at some distance r away from the pivot point. Since only the perpendicular component F, start subscript, \perp, end subscript produces torque, the equation includes sine, theta (see Figure 2 below).
The magnitude of the torque depends on:
- Applied force F: Larger forces increase torque.
- Radius r: Increasing the radius increases the torque.
- Angle between the force and lever arm theta: Directing a force perpendicular to the lever arm increases the torque.
An applied force can result in zero torque if there is no lever arm or the applied force is parallel to the lever arm (see Figure 3 and 4 below).
How to determine the direction of torque
The direction of rotation can be clockwise (cw) or counterclockwise (ccw). These terms refer to the movement of hands on a clock (see Figure 5). In physics, the counterclockwise direction is defined as positive and clockwise is negative for rotational variables.
For example, a torque that rotates an object counterclockwise is a positive torque (see figure 6 below).
A torque that rotates an object clockwise is a negative torque (see figure 7 below).
Dowiedz się więcej
For deeper explanations of torque, see our video about torque and equilibrium.
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