Wheels Definition and 209 Threads

In its primitive form, a wheel is a circular block of a hard and durable material at whose center has been bored a hole through which is placed an axle bearing about which the wheel rotates when torque is applied to the wheel about its axis. The wheel and axle assembly can be considered one of the six simple machines. When placed vertically under a load-bearing platform or case, the wheel turning on the horizontal axle makes it possible to transport heavy loads. This arrangement is the main topic of this article, but there are many other applications of a wheel addressed in the corresponding articles: when placed horizontally, the wheel turning on its vertical axle provides the spinning motion used to shape materials (e.g. a potter's wheel); when mounted on a column connected to a rudder or to the steering mechanism of a wheeled vehicle, it can be used to control the direction of a vessel or vehicle (e.g. a ship's wheel or steering wheel); when connected to a crank or engine, a wheel can store, release, or transmit energy (e.g. the flywheel). A wheel and axle with force applied to create torque at one radius can translate this to a different force at a different radius, also with a different linear velocity.

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  1. A

    System of two wheels of different sizes with an axle through their centers

    If I understand correctly : The angular velocity vector has two components: one along ##\text{-ve z-axis}## and one along ##\text{-ve x-axis} ## So the motion can be considered to be two rotations:(some animation might help) Rotation about ##\text{z-axis}## with angular speed...
  2. isni

    I A vehicle has two wheels rolling at different speeds. What forces act on the vehicle as it follows a curved trajectory ?

    This is not homework, it's a problem I came across while trying to model differential braking for my flight simulator. I cannot really see what force pushes the vehicle horizontally and I would really appreciate a detailed explaination.
  3. I_Try_Math

    Power delivered to wheels of car with constant air resistance

    For part (a) the answer key is saying it's 40 hp. I'm having trouble understanding this. So the car accelerates to 15 m/s, then it stays at that velocity of 15 m/s, needing only 20 hp power to overcome the work done by air resistance. Supposing the car then accelerates to 30 m/s and stays at...
  4. drago44

    Is this way of steering possible?

    I was wondering... Let's say we have a square platform with 4 wheels at corners placed on dirt and let's have left side wheels fixed straight and right side wheels are steerable so that when rear right goes in then front right goes out, would this way of steering work? What's your thoughts?
  5. kielbasa

    I How does the mass of the wheels affect the car's acceleration?

    Hi, I found this interesting thread, https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/accelerating-a-car-including-the-moment-of-inertia-of-the-wheels.930374/ but as it has been closed to replies, I decided to ask here. The thread ended up with the equation: where τ - 200Nm engine torque provided on...
  6. S

    Engineering How do I know that the angular acceleration is the same for both wheels?

    how do I know that both angular accelerations are the same for both wheels here? should I apply relative motion analysis for the acceleration at A(with ##a_x,A and a_y,A##) and B(with ##a_{x,B} and a_{y,B}##) here, or is just a_A=r*alpha_C and a_B = r*alpha_D enough from which a_A=a_B and thus...
  7. W

    Help with wheels, stopping forces and possibly Simpack

    Hi all, I am new to the forum and hoping for some help please. I work in the rail industry and we use chock blocks to stop trains or carriages rolling. I would like to know about the technical side of how and why the chock stops the wheel from moving. Obviously it wedges the wheel to stop...
  8. AmericaPacific42

    Are there cheap smartcar EVs with electric motors attached to wheels?

    There are small 15kw electric motors <$500*. LiFePO4 batteries that offer 60kwh** weigh <50kilograms, cost <$500, take as much space as the gas used to take. The hood could be removed or replaced with extra seats or used for cargo. Ultra-lightweight 3D printed magnesium bodies*** should be...
  9. R

    Engineering Dynamics Problem with a Driving Force, 2 Wheels, a Spring and a Damper

  10. Vossi

    What Grade of Brass or Cast Iron is Used for Worm Wheels?

    I'm trying to figure out the specific grade/code of Brass or Cast Iron used for Worm Wheels.
  11. V

    Forces when car wheels "lay rubber"

    Suppose the car is moving to the right, so if the wheels roll without slipping, they are rolling clockwise. To get the wheel to slip, a counterclockwise torque would need to be applied to cause the wheel to have some angular acceleration. If the wheel was slipping, then the bottom of the wheel...
  12. DrunkElk1601

    I Energy Transfer Between Inertia Wheels

    Been 20 years since college physics. I have a problem where there are basically two inertia wheels on separate shafts coupled by a clutch. One wheel is spinning and the other is at rest. The clutch engages and connects the shafts. What's the final rpm of both wheels? I'm struggling to find a...
  13. 1

    Why did my roller luggage's wheels stop turning smoothly?

    Two weeks ago, my carry on worked perfectly. But last week the detachable wheels stopped rotating smoothly, when I tried to glide my carry on. The wheels budge JUST A TAD when you push them hard, but it should be EFFORT LESS! Please see two pictures below. I see nothing jammed in the wheels. I...
  14. S

    How did WW II planes with tail wheels taxi?

    The tail wheels on many WW II planes look tiny. How did pilots steer these planes when taxing? Was it by using the tail wheel? If so, what control was used to turn the tail wheel ? - some sort of steering wheel separate from the other flight controls?
  15. ILoveParticlePhysics

    Why do things with wheels get more balanced as velocity increases?

    You can try this at home!
  16. ivymoro

    Help using Mecanum wheels in a robot application

    Summary:: need to know spec of motor, max load of robot. Plan to design robot about 40kg, with mecanum wheel. But can't figure out ... how to calculate torque of motor, how to determine max load of robot, So how to select meterial of wheel (hope its okay with 3d printed material)
  17. DaveC426913

    Advice about Dremel cutting wheels

    As mentioned in another post, I'm cutting brass hobby tubing. I'm cutting a lot of brass hobby tubing. Like several hundred cuts. I'm using a Dremel, but I'm open-minded. Using the little ceramic cutting wheels is cheap, and easily replaced when they break, but they are slow and they waste a...
  18. E

    B How does time dilation affect measurements of wheel rotation on a moving bus?

    Here’s a simple scenario I came up with earlier, because I couldn’t make sense of a few things and so started to feel a bit sick. There’s a bus driving along a road at say, ##v \, \text{ms}^{-1}##, and on one of the tyres someone has painted a bright yellow dot. The tyres have radius of...
  19. A

    Exploring Angular Momentum: Examining Earth & Bike Wheels

    Take for example earth. Earth has angular momentum about its own axis. However, if we ignore the orbital portion, the angular momentum of the Earth relative to the sun's axis is the same. Another example is the spinning bike wheel/person holding it in a chair. It has angular momentum about its...
  20. chucho11028

    Motion in one dimension -- Experiments with a Hot Wheels car rolling down a ramp

    Hello This is not a homework, this is my own experiment to understand how the motion works. Please, follow my question here below: I have a hot wheels race with a slope with 10 degrees where I use a small car which departs from the top to the bottom. I have taken 5 times the time to get an...
  21. aspodkfpo

    Questions on Wheels: Reduce Friction & Traction

    Why do rollers/wheels reduce friction? When a car drives forward does friction act backwards on the car, or only forwards in the form of traction? I don't see how friction would act backwards.
  22. J

    MHB Compute the reaction in the front wheels

    A car and its load weighs 30kN and the center of gravity is 0.6 m from the ground and midway between the front and rear wheels which are 3m apart. The car is brought to rest from a speed of 50 kph in 5 sec by means of the brakes. Compute the reaction in the front wheel.
  23. Like Tony Stark

    Reaction force acting at the wheels of cars when turning

    Well, I considered the two wheels as two different bodies and I wrote Newton's equations for both of them I considered the wheel closer to the centre of the circle, we have: ##\mu N_1 =mR\dot (\theta)## So we can find ##N_1## Doing the same thing, we can find ##N_2## ##\mu N_2 =m(R+d)...
  24. physics_CD

    A cart with two cylindrical wheels connected by a rod

    Firstly I only consider one of the wheels. This wheel consists of a big wheel (black) with mass M and radius R and inside it a circular region with a negative mass (-m) and radius R/2. (I assume they have same mass density but with opposite signs. I do this because I don't know where the center...
  25. S

    How fast will two spinning weighted wheels propel a 7 lb cylinder?

    Hello, I am hoping someone on the forum can help me. I am designing a machine to move a cylindrical weight between to high speed rollers. The system is comprised of two weighted drive wheels being spun by motors positioned one above the other as shown in the sketch. The weighted drive wheels...
  26. A

    Friction ON wheels (say a car driving or accelerating)

    I know it takes friction for a car/wheels to move forward. However, I am confused by the free body diagram. As a torque is applied to the wheel, the wheel applies a force to the road, and as a reaction, the road puts a force on the wheel(this is friction). Then wouldn't the torque of friction...
  27. T

    B Calculating Stress on Car Motors with 4 Wheels

    If I were to have a theoretical car with 4 motors controlling the 4 wheels(each with a radius of 5 in and a width of 1 in) and the car was 100 pounds, how much stress would be exerted back on to each motor?
  28. J

    Torque required at the wheels to accelerate a vehicle at a certain rate?

    I'm struggling to understand something basic here. If I have a just a wheel, with mass 10kg, and radius 0.25m, and I specify that the CG is accelerating linearly at 1ms-2, how do I calculate the force needed to do this? Using F = ma gives 10N, but using this value for torque calculation on the...
  29. C

    Velocity Ratio in Gears & Wheels Systems: Inverting?

    Hi, if the velocity ratio is equal to the distance traveled by the effort divided by the distance traveled by the load, in a gears and wheels system, do you invert that in the case or gears? Making it number of teeth on driven gear divided by number of teeth on driving gear? Thanks
  30. Ridzuan

    RTG crane -- hydraulic motor and linkage design to turn these wheels

    Hi all I would like to ask your professional guide in designing a hydraulic system. I attached a file, showing sketch of the RTG crane wheel structure. Here are the conditions: 1. The red-line is the hydraulic cylinder with "X" as the fix point. 2. The hydraulic cylinder will stroke out from...
  31. CK_KoopaTroopa

    I Finding the max angle of a longboard deck before the wheels slip

    Hi, I'm making an electric longboard and trying to write an app for my phone to function as the remote. I've got a bunch of fancy Star-Trek-esque indicators on it, one of which is the pitch and roll of the deck. All the indicators have "danger zones" and turn red when they hit them, and for this...
  32. Clara Chung

    Mechanics problem -- a mass on a table that can freely move on wheels

    Homework Statement A point like body with mass m1 is placed on top of a table, that can freely move on wheels with respect to the ground. There is a static friction coefficient of u=0.3 between the body and the table. If the body is subject to the gravitational acceleration g, what is the...
  33. George Zucas

    Guide Wheel Forces in Circular Motion - Loads on Guide Wheels

    Dear friends, I have an application where a cart of some sort travels on a circular path. The circular direction is assured by guide wheels on the structure. Please see the attached photo which is pretty much the same as in my case. My problem is the forces on these guide wheels during...
  34. M

    Automotive How to find the uneven weight distribution on 4 wheels

    Hello, I am working on a project where I am trying to find the weight distribution on a 4 wheeled vehicle that is traveling diagonally up an incline. You can effectively think of the vehicle as having a pitch and a yaw angle in the body frame. Using an arbitrary location of the total center of...
  35. lichenguy

    Accelerating a car including the moment of inertia of the wheels

    Homework Statement A car accelerates from rest on a horizontal surface. The engine provides a torque of τ = 200 Nm on each of the two front wheels. Each of the four wheels on the car weigh m = 15 kg, have radius R = 0.35 m and can be considered solid, uniform discs. The rest of the car (not the...
  36. F

    Reduction in the number of wheels means less drag?

    If the number of wheels on a vehicle are reduced from four to three or two (assuming problem of balance is taken care of), will it reduce the amount of energy spent on all resistance (such as friction/slippage at tyres, rolling resistance etc) faced by vehicle at the wheels. It is also assumed...
  37. B

    Force exerted on counter-rotating wheels by a tennis ball

    Homework Statement I am trying to figure out what torque is applied to 2 wheels counter-rotating at 4,000 rpm when a tennis ball is squeezed between them and then propelled forward (because the wheels are counter-rotating).This is how a tennis ball machine propels a ball forward. I know the...
  38. Pushoam

    Minimum acceleration of a car at which front wheels leave the ground

    Homework Statement Homework EquationsThe Attempt at a Solution I assume that the wheels are 8ft apart in both x and y direction. Let's denote the length and width of the car by 2l = 8 ft. The torque about an axis connected the contact points of rear wheels : ##\vec \tau = [\{l( \hat x +...
  39. B

    The effect of tire diameter on turning

    Hi I am building a tricycle of sorts and i wanted to know if the diameter of the front tire has any effect on the turning speed of the trike i would imagine that a greater tire circumference would increase the speed of rotation. Correct me if I am wrong.
  40. F

    Two wheels rotating connected by a rod

    Homework Statement A cart has two cylindrical wheels connected by a weightless horizontal rod using weightless spokes and friction- less axis as shown in the figure. Each of the wheels is made of a homogeneous disc of radius R, and has a cylidrical hole of radius R/2 drilled coaxially at the...
  41. K

    Ratio of rotational inertias for belt-connected wheels

    Homework Statement Wheels A and B as shown in the figure are connected by a massless belt that does not slip. The radius of A is R and the radius of B is r. What is the ratio of rotational inertias ##\frac{I_a}{I_b}## if the two wheels had the same angular momentum about their central axes...
  42. K

    How to analyse a rigid frame on wheels?

    Hey Forum I'm hoping someone can help me gain some clarify with this problem. This is related to the trolley design thread i created; however this is a different problem so i thought it best to start a new thread. Hope that's ok. Basically, i want to analyze a basic rigid frame for a 4 wheel...
  43. Jibran96

    B What happens if two wheels turn toward each other....

    Does anyone know what will happen if the two front wheels of a car turn away from each other (left goes left and right goes right) while the car is moving or if they turn inwards towards each other? Other than the stress on the steering rod, will this cause braking and if yes, how effective can...
  44. L

    When Do Points on Two Different Ferris Wheels Align?

    1. The problem statement, all variables Ferris wheel 1 has constant angular velocity A with radius M described by parametric equations X=Mcos(At) Y=Msin(At) + M Ferris wheel2 has constant angular velocity of B with radius N described by parametric equations X= Ncos(Bt) + H Y=Nsin(Bt) + N At...
  45. B

    Damping ability in rubber wheels

    Homework Statement I don't have a specific question, but I try to calculate very easy on a simple Gokart in a project. I try to figure out if there is a way to approximately determine what the damping ability of rubber wheels is because I don't have any suspension on it. Homework Equations I...
  46. T

    Find new location -- 2-wheeled car/robot

    Hello, everyone! Now I'm trying to develop 2 wheels robot, which travels along the line simulator. The robot can turn only by increasing velocities of each wheel. The conditions are below: - I know velocities of 2 wheels - I know radius between wheels The task is next: How to find new location...
  47. F

    Automotive How to calculate Torque on the rear wheels of an RC car?

    Hi guys, I'm working on a project where I need to find the torque produced by the rear wheels of an RC car so that I can convert it into power and then into the current required by the motor. So T=ω×Pmech → Pmech → Pelec → Imotor Here are the details for the car: 1kg weight Torque on each rear...
  48. H

    Why does the spinning of wheels move a car?

    Homework Statement why does the spinning of wheels move a car? Homework EquationsThe Attempt at a Solution The wheels spin backwards pushing on the road, friction opposes this spinning motion. But why does this result in the car moving forward? friction can only increase to be equal and...
  49. Q

    Confusion About Wheels and Friction

    If a wheel is freely rolling on the ground (not torque driven, but by a force acting on its center of gravity) towards the right, the friction force on the bottom of the wheel would be acting towards the left. What if the friction force was equal to the force acting on the wheel's COG? Then the...
  50. W

    Force required to move the wheels on a manual wheelchair

    Hi, I'm trying to calculate the force required to move the wheel on a standard wheelchair from stand still and then consistently over a flat surface? I understand that this has to with the amount of weight that is trying to be moved, this being the weight of the user (approx. 68kg) and the...
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