PHY 1401 LABORATORY REPORT

EXPERIMENT 14
Video analysis using Tracker Software
Conservation of Angular Momentum of a Spinning Figure Skater
NAME: Hamza Rehioui DATE: April 16, 2020

SECTION: PHY 1401 04 L

THIS PAGE NEEDS TO BE DONE AT HOME BEFORE COMING TO THE LAB.

SESSION

1. EXPERIMENTAL PURPOSE:
State the purpose of the experiment. (5 points)

In this experiment, we will measure the initial and final angular velocity of a
figure skater doing a “Scratch Spin” and also calculate her change in moment
of inertia in order the prove the principle of “Conservation of Angular Momentum
of a Spinning Figure”.

2. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES AND APPARATUS:

Briefly outline the apparatus used and the general procedures adopted. (5 points)

physics.princeton.edu/~mcdonald/examples/ph101_2013/Labs/LoggerPro3_8_6_1.exe
Links to the collision videos can also be found here.
http://www.pas.rochester.edu/~tdimino/phy141/lab05/WebVideos/VideosFall2019.html

o Analysis the video we will use LoggerPro (which you have used previously for various homework
assignments):

• Start LoggerPro.
• From the "Insert" menu, select "Movie" to open the movie you want to analyze.
• At the bottom right-hand side of the video window you see a button with red dots with allows you to
"Enable/Disable Video Analysis". Enable video analysis a set of tools will appear on the right-hand
side of the video window.
• Select the ruler button to set the scale. Use the rulers on the left-hand side of the video to calibrate
your screen. After selecting the ruler button you move your mouse to the rear wheel of the left cart
in the video, click-and-hold your mouse button, move your mouse horizontally to below the light that
is mounted on the cart, and release the mouse button. A window will emerge, asking you for the
length of the "calibration line" you just drew on the screen. This distance should be .766 m.
• Use the "red-green dot button" to select "Point Sries: X:Y" and use the mouse to the position of one
of the two cart in your collision video. Each time you select a position in a frame, the video will
advance to the next frame.
• At the end of the video, rewind it, use the "red-green dot button" to add another "point series",
specifying the position of the other cart.
• After completing your data entry you will see that the x and y positions and velocities for all frames
and for both data series are listed in the data table. These data can be exported by The file created
can be imported into Excel or to determine the velocities.
• You can also do the entire analysis within Logger Pro. Click here to see a demonstration of the
capabilities of Logger Pro.
RESULTS AND ANALYSIS

A. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:

Screenshot: Tracking the motion of the left hand using a fixed reference point

Why does the data drift in the −x direction?

The data drifts in the –x direction because of our reference point which we did
not precise to be the center of mass. In this graph, the reference point is fixed
even though the center of mass is slightly moving to the –x direction resulting
in the graph drifting in that same direction. The solution would be to make the
center of mass which is moving the reference point of the skater’s motion.

Does her hand now rotate around x = 0?

After making the center of mass the reference point of the left hand, the graph
now is osscillating around x = 0, which means that her hand is now rotating
around x = 0.
 Step 1: Tracking the motion of the center of mass

Step 2: Making the center of mass the reference point

What is the resulting curve fit? From this equation, determine the radius of the
circle traveled by her hand and her angular velocity ω
The resulting curve fit is a sinosoidal function : x(t) = 0.7*sin(1.2t)
We know that x(t) = R*sin(ω*t)
Using the equation, the radius is 0.7m.
Using the equation, the angular velocity is 1.2 rad/s.
What is the resulting curve fit? From this equation, determine the radius of the
circle traveled by her hand and her angular velocity ω
The resulting curve fit is a sinosoidal function : x(t) = 0.17*sin(2.01t)
We know that x(t) = R*sin(ω*t)
Using the equation, the radius is 0.17m.
Using the equation, the angular velocity is 2.01 rad/s.

What is the ratio ωf/ωi?

We have = 2.01/1.2 =1.675
What is the ratio If/Ii?
We know that I = cMR^2
So If/Ii = cMRf^2/cMRi^2 = (Rf/Ri)^2 = 0.2428^2 = 0.05895

B. ANALYSIS:
• We notice that Ii/If = 1/0.05895 = 1.675 = ωf/ωi.
Therefore Ii/If = ωf/ωi.
This confirms the theoretical relation we found that Iiωi = Ifωf.
This proves that our experimental results match the theoretical expected
results.

C. CONCLUSIONS:

• We conclude from the experiment that the theoretical expressions of circular

motion in two dimensions are in agreement with the experimental results.
• We also concluded from the experiment the validty, and therefore, we have
confirned the equality between Iiωi = Ifωf.
• The use of the Tracker software and Logger Pro too was very helpful and
interactive as it was with the last lab sessions, I got used to it, and through the
instructions, we were able to use it to its full potential graphically using its
analysis methods.