I know other people have asked this before, but I don't understand the way people are answering this.
A vehicle has a wheelbase of 1.8m and a centre of mass, when unloaded, which is 0.8m from the ground
The vehicle is tested for stability on an adjustable slope. Calculate the maximum angle of the slope to the horizontal if the vehicle is not to topple over.
The calculations we've been given to use are:
If parallel- F = W sin
If perpendicular to the slope- Sx + Sy = W cos
Please can someone explain this using these calculations!
Thank you!
A vehicle has a wheelbase of 1.8m and a centre of mass, when unloaded, which is 0.8m from the ground
The vehicle is tested for stability on an adjustable slope. Calculate the maximum angle of the slope to the horizontal if the vehicle is not to topple over.
The calculations we've been given to use are:
If parallel- F = W sin
If perpendicular to the slope- Sx + Sy = W cos
Please can someone explain this using these calculations!
Thank you!
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The formula you give are nothing to do with the angle for a stability calculation.
If the vehicle is about to topple over, its centre of gravity is directly above the wheel it will pivot on.
From a suitable diagram you can see that the angle (θ) of the slope is such that
tan(θ) = (half base)/(height of centre of gravity)
= 0.9/0.8
= 1.125
θ = arctan(1.125) = 48º
If this isn't clear, look at the video in the link (which is about centre of gravity). From 10min 45secs there is an example closely related to the above problem. It explains (with suitable diagrams) the stability of a block when tilted through an angle θ; it's basically the same problem as the problem above.
If the vehicle is about to topple over, its centre of gravity is directly above the wheel it will pivot on.
From a suitable diagram you can see that the angle (θ) of the slope is such that
tan(θ) = (half base)/(height of centre of gravity)
= 0.9/0.8
= 1.125
θ = arctan(1.125) = 48º
If this isn't clear, look at the video in the link (which is about centre of gravity). From 10min 45secs there is an example closely related to the above problem. It explains (with suitable diagrams) the stability of a block when tilted through an angle θ; it's basically the same problem as the problem above.
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What do Sx and Sy signify?
Is the wheelbase the distance between the wheels at the opposite sides of the vehicle?
Is the wheelbase the distance between the wheels at the opposite sides of the vehicle?