Vietnam National University – Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology

Faculty of Civil Engineering

Report
PHYSICAL 1
Subject: PHYSICAL 1
Lecturer: Nguyễn Như Sơn Thủy
Class: DTQ2
Group: Number 3
Student:
1. Lê Phúc Duy – 1752131
2. Nguyễn Ngọc Diệu Thanh – 1752490
3. Mai Quốc Hưng – 1752256
 Determining the trajectory of projectile motion in gravity
with drag force
I. Content
Motion equation of projectile motion in gravity with drag force is represented as follows:
m⃗a=m⃗g−h⃗v
With the initial conditions x 0= y 0 =0 ;v 0 x =v 0 cos(α );v 0 y =v 0 sin(α ) .
This project requires students to use Matlab to solve the above motion equation, calculate the
trajectory, and plot the trajectory depending on the angle.
1. Input
- Enter the mass m (kg)
- Enter the initial velocity v 0 ( m/s)
- Enter the throw angle α ( °)
- Enter the drag constant h ( kg/s)
2. Output
- Equations of motion and the trajectory of the object's motion
II. Introduction
Projectile motion is the motion of an object thrown or projected into the air, subject to
only the acceleration of gravity. The object is called a projectile, and its path is called
its trajectory. The motion of falling objects, as covered in Problem-Solving Basics for One-
Dimensional Kinematics, is a simple one-dimensional type of projectile motion in which
there is no horizontal movement. In this section, we consider two-dimensional projectile
motion, such as that of a football or other object for which air resistance is negligible.

Figure 1. The total displacement s of a soccer ball at a point along its path. The vector
s has components x and y along the horizontal and vertical axes. Its magnitude is s, and it
makes an angle θ with the horizontal.
III. Theoretical basis
1. Equation of movement of the object: m ⃗a=m⃗g−h ⃗v
- Follow the Ox direction ( from the left):
-
ma=−h v x

⇒ differential equation: x (t)+ (h/m)* x'(t)=

With: x 0=0
x '0=v 0 cos α ( we have from: vOx =v 0 cos α )
- Follow the Oy direction ( from the bottom)

ma=mg−h v y
⇒ differential equation: y (t)+g+(h/m)*y'(t)=
With: y 0=0
y '0=v 0 sin α ( we have from: v oy=v 0 sin α )
IV. MATLAB Code and Explanation

Input the information of m, h, v 0, alpha:

syms t v g vx vy
m= input('enter the mass, m= ');
h= input('enter the drag constant, h= ');
v0= input('enter the initial velocity, v0= ');
alpha= input('enter the throw angle, alpha= ');

Formulate the differential equations of the motion inchuding the initial conditions:

a= (m*g - h*v)/m;
ax= subs(a, {v g}, {vx 0});
ay= subs(a, {v g}, {vy -9.81});

Solve the differential equations by the command dsolve of symbolic calculation:

vx= dsolve(['Dvx= ', char(ax)], ['vx(0) =', num2str(v0*cos(alpha))]);

vy= dsolve(['Dvy= ', char(ay)], ['vy(0) =', num2str(v0*sin(alpha))]);
x= dsolve(['Dx= ', char(vx)], 'x(0)= 0');
y= dsolve(['Dx= ', char(vy)], 'x(0)= 0');
disp(['x= ', char(x)])
disp(['y= ', char(y)])
ezplot(x, y)

IV. Test Code and Result

1. The Angle α =15 °

A object with a mass m= 0.5kg are thrown diagonally in gravity with a drag
coefficient h=0.02kg/s, intial speed v 0=20 m / s and throw angle α =15 °
⇒ Conclution: We get quations x,y and movement trajectory of the object
2. The Angle α =¿30°

A object with a mass m= 0.5kg are thrown diagonally in gravity with a drag coefficient
h=0.02kg/s, intial speed v 0=20 m / s and throw angle α =30 °
⇒ Conclution: We get quations x,y and movement trajectory of the object

3. The Angle α =45°

A object with a mass m= 0.5kg are thrown diagonally in gravity with a drag coefficient
h=0.02kg/s, intial speed v 0=20 m / s and throw angle α =45°
⇒ Conclution: We get quations x,y and movement trajectory of the object

4. The Angle α =60 °

A object with a mass m= 0.5kg are thrown diagonally in gravity with a drag coefficient
h=0.02kg/s, intial speed v 0=20 m / s and throw angle α =60 °
⇒ Conclution: We get quations x,y and movement trajectory of the object
 5. The Angle α =75 °

A object with a mass m= 0.5kg are thrown diagonally in gravity with a drag coefficient
h=0.02kg/s, intial speed v 0=20 m / s and throw angle α =75 °
⇒ Conclution: We get quations x,y and movement trajectory of the object

V. Conclution

The project has completed the solution of the projectile motion problem using MATLAB

symbolic calculation. With this tool we can solve more complex motion situations that cannot

be solved by the analytical method. The results of a Physics lesson about the diaphragm's

motion show that, with an oblique throw equal to 45°, the object will reach its maximum

range. Many people have applied this knowledge to weightlifting and javelin thrashing in

sports. Therefore, we often hear people say, if we want to push the weight far, the angle when

the fruit falls out of hand should create a level of 45°.

References:
[1] Projectile Motion, Lumen Physics, 2019.
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/physics/chapter/3-4-projectile-motion.