Simple Machines
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: HOW DO SIMPLE MACHINES MAKE WORK EASIER?
Background Information from National Geographic
There are three ways simple machines make work easier: by increasing the distance through which force is applied, by changing the direction of applied force, or by multiplying force of speed of the energy applied.
The wheel and axle is a machine in which the wheel is attached to a central axle. This means that if the wheel turns, the axle must turn, and if the axle turns, the wheel must turn. Turning the wheel a greater distance produces a short and more powerful movement at the axle. Turning the axle a shorter distance moves the wheel a greater distance.
A single pulley reverses the direction that a force is applied, but does not make work easier. If two or more pulleys are used together, they allow a load to be lifted using less force, but the distance the end of the rope must travel to lift the load is greater than the distance that the load must travel.
An incline plane provides an advantage by changing the direction a force is applied and increasing the distance that must be traveled in order to complete the work. A wedge is a type of inclined plane that works differently by concentrating force in a smaller area.
The screw is a machine that can be described as an inclined plane spiraled around a cylinder. When you turn a screw it converts the turning motion into a forward or backward motion.
A lever consists of a flat, stiff plane or rod which uses a fulcrum as a pivot point. Force applied to an end of the lever results in movement in the opposite direction on the other end. The location of the fulcrum determines whether the lever will multiply force or distance.
There are three ways simple machines make work easier: by increasing the distance through which force is applied, by changing the direction of applied force, or by multiplying force of speed of the energy applied.
The wheel and axle is a machine in which the wheel is attached to a central axle. This means that if the wheel turns, the axle must turn, and if the axle turns, the wheel must turn. Turning the wheel a greater distance produces a short and more powerful movement at the axle. Turning the axle a shorter distance moves the wheel a greater distance.
A single pulley reverses the direction that a force is applied, but does not make work easier. If two or more pulleys are used together, they allow a load to be lifted using less force, but the distance the end of the rope must travel to lift the load is greater than the distance that the load must travel.
An incline plane provides an advantage by changing the direction a force is applied and increasing the distance that must be traveled in order to complete the work. A wedge is a type of inclined plane that works differently by concentrating force in a smaller area.
The screw is a machine that can be described as an inclined plane spiraled around a cylinder. When you turn a screw it converts the turning motion into a forward or backward motion.
A lever consists of a flat, stiff plane or rod which uses a fulcrum as a pivot point. Force applied to an end of the lever results in movement in the opposite direction on the other end. The location of the fulcrum determines whether the lever will multiply force or distance.