Quincy said:Homework Statement
An object weighs 65 kg. When it is in an elevator on a bathroom scale, the scale reads 82 kg. What is the acceleration of the elevator and what is its direction?
Homework Equations
FG = mg
The Attempt at a Solution
(82 kg)(9.8) = 803.6 N
803.6 N = (65 kg)(a)
a = 12.36
12.36 - 9.8 = 2.6 m/s2 upwards
What are the scales that the object is sitting on actually measuring?Quincy said:Also, what would the free body diagram look like? Would there be a normal force upwards, and the gravitational force & the force from elevator pointing downwards?
They are measuring mass. I was also surprised by this since one would think they'd be measuring weight/Newtons... Anyways, is the free body diagram correct?heth said:What are the scales that the object is sitting on actually measuring?
Quincy said:They are measuring mass. I was also surprised by this since one would think they'd be measuring weight/Newtons... Anyways, is the free body diagram correct?
Quincy said:Also, what would the free body diagram look like? Would there be a normal force upwards, and the gravitational force & the force from elevator pointing downwards?
LowlyPion said:There is the N force up and the m*(g + a) down.
The Scale is measuring force, but as nothing in life is ever so simple it's marked in units of mass weight, which is the way I think most people interact with mass.
Quincy said:The normal force is upwards, the gravitational force is downwards, and (m)(a) is downwards? By (m)(a), do you mean the force of the elevator? Or is there no force from the elevator?
Acceleration in an elevator refers to the rate at which the elevator's velocity changes over time. In other words, it is the change in the elevator's speed as it moves up or down.
The acceleration in an elevator can be calculated by dividing the change in velocity by the change in time. This is also known as the average acceleration formula, which is a = (vf - vi) / t, where a is acceleration, vf is final velocity, vi is initial velocity, and t is time.
The acceleration in an elevator can be affected by various factors such as the mass of the elevator, the mass of the objects and people inside the elevator, the speed of the elevator, and the direction of the elevator's movement (up or down).
Acceleration in an elevator is a result of the elevator's motor or pulley system, whereas gravity is a natural force that pulls objects towards the center of the Earth. In an elevator, acceleration can be directed upwards or downwards, while gravity always pulls objects towards the ground.
No, acceleration in an elevator is not always constant. It can change depending on the elevator's direction of movement and the speed at which it is moving. In some cases, the acceleration may also be affected by external forces such as wind or air resistance.