Dynamics (Linear Kinematics)

Kinematics and Kinetics of a particle motion

A Particle
All points on the body move with the same motion: same displacement, velocity and acceleration.
To simple analysis and calculation, the body such as an aeroplane, a train or an aircraft carrier can be assumed as
a particle.

Kinematics
Kinematics: In studying the kinematics, we only describe the motion of the particle without considering the
forces that act upon it, i.e.; we study the variations of the particles position, velocity, and acceleration with the
time.

Displacement versus Distance

Distance is a scalar quantity that expresses only the length of an arbitrary path.
Displacement is the vector that specifies the position of a point or a particle.

Velocity versus Speed

Velocity is the measurement of the rate and direction of change in the position of an object. It is a vector quantity
both magnitude and direction are required to define it. The scalar absolute value (magnitude) of velocity is
known as speed.

Acceleration
Acceleration is the vector quantity describing the rate of change with time of velocity.

Straight Line Motion with Constant Acceleration

v u at

uv

v avg

s ut 12 at 2
v 2 u 2 2as

Example 1: A particle is moving in a straight line from O to A with a constant acceleration of 2 ms-2. Its velocity
at A is 30 ms-1 and it takes 15 seconds to travel from O to A. Find
(a) the particles velocity at O
(b) the distance OA

MIET 7296 Apply scientific principles

College of Science, Engineering and Health
School of Engineering (TAFE)

Class Notes
1

Prepared by Yadana Wai

Example 2: An automobile initially moving at 30 ft/s accelerates uniformly at 15 ft/s2. (a) How fast is it moving
after 3s? (b) At the end of the 3s interval, the driver hits the brakes and now accelerates at -30 ft/s2. How long
does it take to come to a complete stop?
Example 3: A goods-train leaves Newcastle bound for Sydney and reaches its maximum speed of 40 km/h in one
minute. Five minutes later an express train leaves Sydney bound for Newcastle and reaches its maximum speed
of 90 km/h in one minute. Assuming the rates of acceleration were constant and that the maximum speeds were
maintained for the rest of the journey, find (a) the acceleration of each train (b) their distance apart fifteen
minutes before meeting. The distance between the two towns is 158 km.

Freely Falling Bodies

Suppose an object is released either from rest or with an initial upward or downward velocity, and after release it
is acted on only by the pull of gravity. If the air resistance is negligible, the object is said to be in free fall.
Examples are a ball dropped from a height, a rock thrown vertically upward, and an arrow shot straight down
from a height. All free fall objects have the same constant acceleration vertically downward. The magnitude of
this gravitational acceleration is 9.8 m/s2 in SI unit and 32.2 ft/s2 in imperial unit.
Example 4: A rivet is dropped from a building 50 m height. (a) If it is falling freely under gravity how long will it
take to reach the ground? (b) What will be its velocity at the instant just before touching the ground?
Example 5: A tourist drops a rock from rest from a guard rail overlooking a valley. What is the velocity of the
rock at 4.0 s? What is the displacement of the rock at 4.0 s?

Curvilinear Motion (Projectile Motion)

Projectile motion is a part of parabolic motion. Projectile motions are under constant acceleration. Throughout
the motion, the horizontal component of the velocity is constant and vertical component of the velocity is
changing with constant gravitational acceleration.

Example 6: A high-altitude bomber lines up on its target 4900 m below. If the bomb scores a direct hit, calculate
the angle between the vertical and a line joining the bomber and its target at the instant of release. The bombers
velocity was 360 km/h horizontally at the time of release.

MIET 7296 Apply scientific principles

College of Science, Engineering and Health
School of Engineering (TAFE)

Class Notes
2

Prepared by Yadana Wai

Example 7: A long-jumper leaves the ground at an angle of 20.0 above the horizontal and at a speed of 11.0 m/s.
(a) How far does he jump in the horizontal direction? (Assume his motion is equivalent to that of a particle.) (b)
What is the maximum height reached?

Example 8: A stone is thrown from the top of a building upward at an angle of 30.0 to the horizontal and with an
initial speed of 20.0 m/s, as shown below. If the height of the building is 45.0 m, (a) how long is it before the
stone hits the ground? (b) What is the speed of the stone just before it strikes the ground?

MIET 7296 Apply scientific principles

College of Science, Engineering and Health
School of Engineering (TAFE)

Class Notes
3

Prepared by Yadana Wai

MIET 7296 Apply scientific principles

College of Science, Engineering and Health
School of Engineering (TAFE)

Class Notes
4

Prepared by Yadana Wai