ME LABORATORY 1 EXPERIMENT NO.

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MEASUREMENT OF LENGTH AND AREAS
NAME 1. ADAM, JAMAL MOHAMMED DATE PERFORMED SCORE
2. BALLADOS, JHON PAOLO SEPTEMBER 10, 2019
3. CASTILLO, CRISTOPHER DATE SUBMITTED
4. EUGENIO, ADRIAN SEPTEMBER 12, 2019
INSTRUCTOR
SECTION 57029
Engr. Eisley John S. Tiongson
GROUP 1

I. OBJECTIVES
 To determine the different dimension of a given specimen.
 To determine the area of regular and irregular surface by means of Planimeter.
II. LEARNING OUTCOME (LO):

The students shall be able to:

 Demonstrate different methods for measuring a length and Area of various specimen.
 Interpret data and relate result to governing scientific principle.
 Develop professional work ethics, including precision, neatness, safety and ability to
follow instruction.

III. DISCUSSION
Engineering is a physical science and therefore deals with various kinds of object and materials.
These materials are distinguished from each other by certain physical characteristics like size, shape, color
and other, which are determined by numerous kinds or form of measurements. It is therefore for mechanical
engineering course to be familiar at the determination of the basic measurement scale, since practicing
mechanical engineer are based on measurement of data. The most basic size in measurement are in terms
of length, area, diameter, revolution time and others.
The length determines the distance between two points, or in other words, it is the amount of space
between two points. For basic measurement we use Metric System or English System. For length
measurement we commonly used are Vernier Caliper, Metric Tapes, and Metric Rulers. The most common
type of instrument for measuring internal and external diameters is the Vernier Caliper.

Figure 1.1 Vernier Caliper

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 The areas of irregular figures like indicators diagram are generally determined either by measuring
the length of the ordinates drawn on the figure and solving using Trapezoidal Rule.

Y0 Y1 Y2 Yn

Figure 1.2 Irregular Shape

Trapezoidal Rule
𝟏 𝟏
𝑨 = 𝒘 ( 𝒀𝟎 + 𝒀𝟏 + ⋯ 𝒀𝒏−𝟏 + 𝒀𝒏 )
𝟐 𝟐
Where,
𝑛 − 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑠
𝑤 − 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝
𝑌0 , 𝑌1 , 𝑌𝑛 − 𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑠
𝐴 − 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎
Planimeters are used to measure areas on maps of any kind and scale, as well as plans, blueprints
or any scale drawing or plan. They are often used by surveyors, foresters, geologists, geographers, engineers
and architects.
Mechanical (non-digital) planimeters feature a pole arm, tracer arm, tracer magnifier, recording dial,
and Vernier measuring wheel. Some models have adjustable length pole and tracer arms, while others are
fixed length. All have a reset which returns the measuring dial and Vernier scale to zero before the next use.
Digital planimeters are computerized. They give a direct reading of the area traced as square inches
or centimeters, with some reading directly in any unit of area including acres, square meters, square
kilometers, etc. The most advanced units will also store data for downloading into a personal computer. Most
digital planimeters have various memory functions which enable you to add areas, accumulate
measurements and average multiple measurements. Digital planimeters are available with pole arms or
rollers.
To use a mechanical planimeter, a "constant" is first determined by choosing the shortest possible
arm length which will cover the area to measure, and tracing the boundary of a known area Once the known
area is traced, you can see how many revolutions the dial scale indicates. The known area divided by the
dial reading equals the constant. Once the constant is determined, the measuring dial is reset and the
boundary is traced by moving the magnifier over the boundary in a clockwise direction. The reading on the
dial is multiplied by the constant to give the desired area of the plot. Digital planimeters require initial settings
for units and scale. There is no need to determine a constant when using any digital planimeter.

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 Figure 1.3 L30 Model Planimeter

Percent Difference of Trapezoidal Rule and Planimeter

𝑴𝑽𝟏 − 𝑴𝑽𝟐
𝑷𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑫𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 = ⌊ ⌋ 𝒙 𝟏𝟎𝟎%
𝑴𝑽𝟏 + 𝑴𝑽𝟐
𝟐
Where,
𝑀𝑉1 − 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑢𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑒𝑧𝑜𝑖𝑑𝑎𝑙 𝑟𝑢𝑙𝑒
𝑀𝑉2 − 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟

IV. MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENTS

Table 1.1 List of Laboratory Equipment

Equipment Quantity Unit
Planimeter 1 Pc
Meter Stick, 1 meter 1 Pc
Steel Rule 12” 1 Pc
Vernier Caliper 1 Pc
Different Kind of Tubes 5 Pcs
(Different Diameter and Length)

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 Table 1.2 list of raw materials
List of raw materials Quantity unit
Bond paper 1 Pc
Calculator 1 Pc

V. PROCEDURES
Safety Procedure:
Safety is the most important, the following procedure are the safety measures which have been
practiced upon conducting the experiment:
1. Never perform unauthorized work, preparations or experiments.
2. Wear the laboratory gown upon performing the experiment in order to avoid getting dirt from
the liquids used in the experiment.
3. Use gloves and proper eye protection if necessary.
4. It is prohibited to bring or to use flammable liquids (i.e. gasoline, alcohol, etc.) which may be
a cause of fire upon conducting the experiment unless otherwise specified in the experiment.
5. Read carefully the experiment procedure before performing the experiment.
6. After the experiment clean all the apparatus and equipment used during experiment.

Experiment Procedure:
A. Measurement of regular dimensioned objects.
1. Get tubes of different diameter and length from the laboratory.
2. Use meter stick, measure the length of the tubes and record.
3. Measure the internal diameter and external diameter of the tubes by a Vernier caliper and
record.
4. Using the measured length of and diameter of the tubes compute the inner and outer surface
area.
B. Measurement of Irregular Surface
1. Draw five irregular shaped surfaces in a clean sheet of paper.
2. With the use of planimeter, measure the area of this irregular surface and record.
3. Repeat the same procedure (2) five times.
4. By using trapezoidal rule determine the area of the irregular shaped surface and record.
5. Repeat the same procedure (4) five times.

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B.1 Measurement Procedure of the Planimeter
1. Before any measurements are attempted, make sure that the measuring surface is suitable.
It should not be very glossy, (photographs) too rough, mutilated, torn or patched up with
adhesive tape. If the measuring surface is not quite suitable, cover it with a transparent sheet
of tracing paper to minimize the problem. Make sure that the measuring table is reasonably
flat and that both pole weight and planimeter body operate at the same elevation.
2. Assemble your instrument as shown on figure 1.4 and select the tracer arm length most
suitable for your application.

Figure 1.4 Assembly Setup for Polar Planimeter

3. Place the tracer point TP of your planimeter in the approximate center of the area to be
measured. Position the pole weight in such a manner, that the pole arm P and the tracer
arm T form a 900 angle (approx.) as shown in figure 1.5.
4. Make a quick cursory tracing around the area to be measured to make sure that the
measuring wheel does not run over paper edges and that the area can be covered in one
single continuous operation.
5. Select a starting point S somewhere on the area periphery and move the tracer point TP
over it as shown in figure 3.
6. Set the measuring mechanism to zero or take an initial reading.
7. While keeping the tracer point TP precisely over the peripheral line, move the tracer around
the area in a clockwise direction until the circuit is closed and the starting point S is reached
again. Important: While measuring, keep the instrument level on the measuring surface to
avoid a lift off the measuring wheel.
8. Read the result off the measuring mechanism.

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 Figure 1.5 Measurement of the Planimeter
9. If the counter was cleared prior to the measuring process, the result "N" can readily be used
to obtain the actual area measurement.
10. If you took an initial readout prior to the measurement, it must be subtracted from the final
readout to obtain "N".
11. For 1:1 measurement expressed in inch2 or cm2, multiply the result "N" by the "u" value given
for your model 10 or 20 or, if your instrument is a model 30, by the "u" value for the arm
extension used.
12. For scale measurements to be expressed in ft2, acres, mile2, m2, ha, km2, multiply "N" by
CA. (Scale Area Constant)

VI. DATA AND RESULTS

Table 1.3 Measure of Length, Diameter and Area
Dimensions
Surface
Specimen Internal Outside
Length Area
No. Diameter Diameter
(mm) (mm2)
(mm) (mm)
1 6.25 9 193 1667.40
2 2.5 4 177 834.093
3 4 6 94 590.62
4 3.95 6 212 1365.34

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 Table 1.4 Measurement of Irregular Surface
Area
Figure No. Trapezoidal Planimeter % Difference
Rule (mm2) (mm2)
1 1065 1064.514 0.0456
2 1520 1677.416 9.8465
3 883.5 1258.062 34.98
4 1705.5 1709.674 0.244438
5 1505 1419.352 5.85757

VII. COMPUTATIONS:
𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐀𝐫𝐞𝐚 = 𝛑(𝐎𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫 – 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫) (𝐋𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐡)

1. 𝑺𝒖𝒓𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂 = 𝝅(𝟗 − 𝟔. 𝟐𝟓)(𝟏𝟗𝟑) = 𝟏𝟔𝟔𝟕. 𝟒𝒎𝒎𝟐

2. 𝑺𝒖𝒓𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂 = 𝝅(𝟒 − 𝟐. 𝟓)(𝟏𝟕𝟕) = 𝟖𝟑𝟒. 𝟎𝟗𝟑𝒎𝒎𝟐

3. 𝑺𝒖𝒓𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂 = 𝝅(𝟔 − 𝟒)(𝟗𝟒) = 𝟓𝟗𝟎. 𝟔𝟐 𝒎𝒎𝟐

4. 𝑺𝒖𝒓𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂 = 𝝅(𝟔 − 𝟑. 𝟗𝟒)(𝟐𝟏𝟐) = 𝟏𝟑𝟔𝟓. 𝟑𝟒 𝒎𝒎𝟐

FOR PLANIMETER:
1. 1.65 in2 (2.54 cm2 /1 in2) (10 mm2 / 1 cm2) = 1064.514 mm2
2. 2.60 in2 (2.54 cm2 /1 in2) (10 mm2 / 1 cm2) = 1677.416 mm2
3. 1.95 in2(2.54 cm2 /1 in2) (10 mm2 / 1 cm2) = 1258.026 mm2
4. 4.26 in2 (2.54 cm2 /1 in2) (10 mm2 / 1 cm2) = 1709.674 mm2
5. 2.20 in2 (2.54 cm2 /1 in2) (10 mm2 / 1 cm2) = 1419.352 mm2

FOR TRAPEZOIDAL
A1 = 10 mm (1/2) (37) + 35 + 37 +(1/2) (32) = 1065 mm2
A2 = 10mm (1/2) (36) + 38 + 37 + 42 + (1/2) (34) = 1520 mm2
A3 = 15 mm (1/2) (56) + (1/2) (37) = 883.5 mm2
A4 = 10 mm (44) + 40.5 + 39 + 45 + (1/2) (48) = 1705.5 mm2
A5 = 10 mm (34) + 33 + 35 + 44 + (1/2) (43) = 1505 mm2

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 FOR PERCENTAGE DIFFERENCE:
1064.514 − 1065
percentage difference (1) = × 100 %
1064.514 + 1065
2
= 𝟎. 𝟎𝟒𝟓𝟔 %
1677.416 − 1520
percentage difference (2) = × 100 %
1677.416 + 1520
2
= 9.84645 %
883.5 − 1258.062
percentage difference (3) = × 100%
883.5 + 1258.062
2
= 𝟑𝟒. 𝟗𝟖 %
1709.674−17055
percentage difference (4) = 1709.674+17055 × 100 %
2

= 𝟎. 𝟐𝟒𝟒𝟒𝟑𝟖 %
1505−1419.352
percentage differnce (5) = 1505+1419.352 × 100 %
2

= 𝟓. 𝟖𝟓𝟕𝟓𝟕 %

VIII. DISCUSSION OF THE RESULTS

The experiment was about measurement of Length and Areas, in the first part of the
experiment we used Vernier caliper to measure the internal and the outside diameters of four
pipes (specimen) with different dimensions, also we used a steel ruler to measure the length of
each pipe then using the formula we compute for the area of each specimen. The first pipe
obtained value of (surface area = 1667.40 mm 2, and length =193 mm), the second pipe (S.A =
834.093 mm2 and length = 177 mm). the third pipe (S.A = 590.62 mm2 and length =94 mm), And
the firth pipe obtained values of (S.A = 1365.34 mm2 and the length = 212 mm).
In the second part of the experiment we drawn a five different irregular shaped
surfaces. To measure their areas using Planimeter and a Trapezoidal Rule. Then finally we
compute for the percentage difference among the trapezoidal rule and the Planimeter values. I
observed that the first irregular shaped surface has the smallest percentage value which is 0.046
% and the second irregular shaped surface has the largest percentage difference value which
9.85 %.

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IX. DOCUMENTATION OF THE EXPERIMENT

Figure 1.6 measuring Irregular Objects Using Planimeter.

Figure 1.7 Computing the surface area using trapezoidal rule.

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Figure 1.8 Computing the Regular Dimensioned Tubes.

Figure 1.9 Computing the Percentage Error.

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X. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
In The first step we drawn five irregular shapes with different sizes. We then measured
it with the Planimeter. The Planimeter should be on a 90-degree angle and the Tracer point TP
of the Planimeter on the line, there is a mark to use us guide while we traced the lines on the
clockwise motion. The pole weight of the Planimeter should not be moved. The Planimeter was
used carefully and properly in determining the areas of these irregular shaped.
There were some errors in calculating the areas because sometimes the instrument went
off the line which made our calculation not accurate as possible. In addition, that, there are
instrument errors.

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