Force Sensor
Model No. CI-6537
8
®
Suggested Experiments
Component of Force on an Incline Plane
When a cart is at rest on an inclined plane, the component of force
acting on the cart that is parallel to the plane is mgsin
θ
, where mg is
the weight of the cart and
θ
is the angle of the plane. Use the sensor to
measure the weight of a dynamics cart. Mount the sensor at the high
end of the inclined IDS track and connect it with a string to the
dynamics cart on the track. Measure the angle of the track. Measure
the tension in the string, and compare this to the theoretical value
mgsin
θ
.
Newton’s Second Law: Pushing and Pulling a Cart
When an object is accelerated by a net force, the acceleration is
directly proportional to the net force and inversely proportional to the
object’s mass. Mount the Force Sensor onto a Dynamics Cart. Use a
CI-6742 Motion Sensor to measure the velocity and acceleration of the
cart. Zero the Force Sensor. Hold the hook on the front of the Force
Sensor, and move the cart gently but irregularly back and forth in front
of the motion sensor. Use the computer program to compare the
measured force to the measured velocity and acceleration.
q
Figure 3: Setup for Force on Incline Experiment
Force Sensor
Cart
mgsin
mgcos
mg
θ
θ
Figure 4: Setup for Push/Pull Experiment
Force Sensor
Motion Sensor
Cart
