Grade 8 - Physics

C.W-3

Experiment: INVESTIGATE THE MOTION OF EVERYDAY OBJECTS SUCH AS TOY

CARS OR TENNIS BALLS
or, Design an experiment to calculate the average speed of a toy car.
Apparatus: Wooden ramp, toy car, meter rule, stopwatch, set square, wooden
block

Figure: Investigating the motion of a toy car

Procedure:
1. Set up the apparatus according to the diagram on a horizontal bench.
2. The ramp is raised at one end with the help of a wooden block to overcome
friction. The perpendicular height, h, is measured in m, with the meter rule and a
set square.
3. The ramp is marked with points A and B and the distance, s, is measured in m,
with the meter rule.
4. The toy car is released from the starting position and simultaneously the
stopwatch is started to measure the time. As the car’s front reaches the end
position, the stopwatch is stopped. The time, t, is measured in s.
5. The experiment is repeated three times, to measure the time taken and an
average of the time taken is found to minimize the human error.
𝑠
6. The average speed of the car is calculated with the formula 𝑣 =
𝑡
Results:

Precaution:
1. Human error is introduced while using the stopwatch, so instead a light gate
connected to a digital timer can be used to increase the accuracy.
2. The experiment can be repeated, and average value of the time taken can be
found to improve the reliability of the results.
3. The ramp must be of a considerable length to ensure that the person can react
on time to start and end the stopwatch.
Safety precaution:
1. The wooden ramp must be clamped to avoid falling off the bench.
Alternate method: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rnpKP3ZDTc