Engr. Cynthia V.

Plaza
Instructor
LEARNING GOALS
By studying this chapter, students will learn:
 How to describe straight –line motion in terms of
average velocity, instantaneous velocity, average
acceleration, and instantaneous acceleration
 How to interpret graphs of position versus time,
velocity versus time, and acceleration versus time for
straight-line motion
 How to solve problems involving straight-line motion
with constant acceleration, including free-fall
problems
 How to analyze straight-line motion when the
acceleration is constant
INTRODUCTION
EVERYTHING IN OUR UNIVERSE IS IN MOTION

 MECHANICS

 KINEMATICS

 DYNAMICS
Position, Displacement, and Average Velocity
POSITION
To describe the motion of an object, you must first able
to describe its position (x): where it is at any particular
time

 A frame of reference is an arbitrary set of axes from

which the position and motion of an object are
described.

 To describe the position of an object undergoing one-

dimensional motion, we often use the variable x.
Position, Displacement, and Average Velocity
DISPLACEMENT
If an object moves relative to a frame of reference, then
the object’s position changes. This change of position is
called displacement

 Since displacement indicates direction, it is a vector

and can be either positive or negative
Position, Displacement, and Average Velocity
DISPLACEMENT
Objects in motion can also have a series of displacements:
 𝞓xTotal as the sum of the individual displacements, and
express mathematically with the equation

 The magnitude of the displacement , |𝞓xTotal| is always

positive
 The distance travelled is the sum of the magnitudes of
the individual displacements, xTotal = |𝞓x1| + |𝞓x2|
Position, Displacement, and Average Velocity
AVERAGE VELOCITY
This vector quantity is simply the total displacement
between two points divided by the time taken to travel
between them.
INSTANTANEOUS VELOCITY
It is the average velocity between two points on the path in
the limit that the time (and therefore the displacement)
between the two points approaches zero.

𝒙 𝒕 + ∆𝒕 − 𝒙 𝒕 𝒅𝒙(𝒕)
𝒗 𝒕 = lim =
∆𝒕→𝟎 ∆𝒕 𝒅𝒕
 The instantaneous velocity of an object is the limit of the
average velocity as the elapsed time approaches zero, or
the derivative of x with respect to t:

𝑑𝑥(𝑡)
𝑣 𝑡 =
𝑑𝑡
CALCULATING INSTANTANEOUS VELOCITY

When calculating instantaneous velocity, it is important to

specify the explicit form of the position function x(t).

 By using polynomials : x(t) = At n

 By differential using the power rule of calculus:

𝑑𝑥(𝑡)
= 𝑛𝐴𝑡 𝑛 −1
𝑑𝑡
Example Problem 1.0
The position of a particle is given by x(t) = 3.0t + 0.5t 3 m

a) Find the instantaneous velocity at t = 2.0 s

b) Calculate the average velocity between 1.0 s and 3.0 s

SOLUTION
𝑑𝑥(𝑡)
a. 𝑣 𝑡 = = 3.0 + 1.5𝑡 2 , m/s
𝑑𝑡
2
𝑣 2.0 = 3.0 + 1.5 2.0 = 9.0 𝑚/𝑠

b. To determine the average velocity of the particle between 1.0

and 3.0 seconds, calculate the values of x(1.0s) and x(3.0s)
Example Problem 1.0
𝑥 1.0𝑠 = 3.0 1.0 + 0.5 1.0 3 𝑚 = 3.5 𝑚

𝑥 3.0𝑠 = [ 3.0 3.0 + 0.5 3.0 3 𝑚 = 22.5 𝑚

Then the average velocity is;

𝑥 3.0𝑠 − 𝑥(1.0𝑠) 22.5 − 3.5 𝑚

𝑣ҧ = = = 9.5 𝑚/𝑠
𝑡 3.0𝑠 − 𝑡(1.0𝑠) 3.0 − 1.0 𝑠
Example Problem 2.0
Consider the motion of a particle in which the position is:
x (t) = 3.0t – t2 m

a) What is the instantaneous velocity at t = 0.25s, t = 0.50s,

and t = 1.0s
b) What is the speed of the particle at these times?

SOLUTION
𝑑𝑥(𝑡) 𝑚
a. 𝑣 𝑡 = 𝑑𝑡
= (3.0 − 2.0𝑡)
𝑠
v(0.25s) = 2.5 m/s; v(0.50s) = 2m/s; v(1.0s) = 1.0m/s

b. Speed = |v(t)| = 2.5 m/s, 2.0 m/s,and 1.0 m/s

SPEED
 In physics speed and velocity do not have the same
meaning and are distinct concepts
 One major difference is that speed has no direction
 Average Speed is calculated by finding the total distance
traveled divided by the elapsed time:

 Instantaneous Speed is calculated from the magnitude of

the instantaneous velocity:
Average and Instantaneous Acceleration
AVERAGE ACCELARATION
It is the rate at which velocity changes:

∆𝑣 𝑣𝑓 − 𝑣𝑖
𝑎ത = =
∆𝑡 𝑡𝑓 − 𝑡𝑖
AVERAGE ACCELARATION
Example Problem 3.0
A racehorse coming out of the gate accelerates from rest to a
velocity of 15.0 m/s due west in 1.80s. What is its average
acceleration?
Example Problem 3.0
SOLUTION
 First, identify the knowns: v0 = 0, vf = -15.0 m/s, 𝞓t = 1.80 s
 Second, find the change in velocity. Since the horse is going
from zero to – 15.0 m/s, it change in velocity equals its final
velocity:

∆𝑣 = 𝑣𝑓 − 𝑣𝑖 = 𝑣𝑓 = −15.0 𝑚/𝑠

 Last, substitute the known values (𝞓v and 𝞓t) and solve for
the known 𝑎ത :

∆𝑣 −15.0 𝑚/𝑠
𝑎ത = = = −8.33 𝑚/𝑠 2
∆𝑡 1.80 𝑠
Average and Instantaneous Acceleration
INSTANTANEOUS ACCELARATION

Acceleration at a specific instant time, is obtained by

calculating the average acceleration between two points
in time separated by ∆𝑡 and ∆𝑡 approach zero.

𝑑𝑣(𝑡)
𝑎 𝑡 =
𝑑𝑡
Example Problem 4.0
A particle is in motion and is accelerating. The functional form of
the velocity is v(t) = 20t – 5t 2 m/s.

a. Find the functional form of the acceleration

b. Find the instantaneous velocity at t = 1, 2, 3, and 5s.

c. Find the instantaneous acceleration at t = 1, 2, 3, and 5s.

d. Interpret the results of (c) in terms of the directions of

the acceleration and velocity vectors
Example Problem 4.0
SOLUTION
𝑑𝑣(𝑡) 𝑚
a. 𝑎 𝑡 = 𝑑𝑡
= (20 − 10 𝑡)
𝑠2

b. v(1s) = 15 m/s , (2s) = 10 m/s ,

v(3s) = 5 m/s, v(5s) = -5 m/s

c. a(1s) = 10 m/s2, a(2s) = 0 m/s2,

a(3s) = - 10 m/s2, a(5s) = - 30 m/s2
Example Problem 4.0
S O L U T I O N (d)
At t = 1s, velocity v(1s) = 15m/s is positive and acceleration is positive, so both
velocity and acceleration are in the same direction. The particle is moving faster

At t = 2s, velocity has increased to v(2s) = 20m/s, where it is maximum, which

corresponds to the time when the acceleration is zero. The maximum velocity occurs
when the slope of the velocity function is zero, which is just the zero of the
acceleration function

At t = 3s, velocity is v(3s) = 15m/s and acceleration is negative. The particle has
reduced its velocity and the acceleration vector is negative. The particle is slowing
down

At t = 5s, velocity is v(5s) = - 25 m/s and acceleration is increasingly negative.

Between the times t = 3s and t = 5s the particle has decreased its velocity to zero and
then become negative, thus reversing its direction. The particle is now speeding up
again, but in the opposite direction