Polytechnic University of the Philippines

Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs

College of Science, Department of Physical
Sciences Sta. Mesa, Manila 1016

College Physics Activity 01:

Measurement of New Generation Coins (NGC)
Name of Program, Year,
Jaena Maegan M. Alarma BS Psychology 3-9s
Student and Section
Student Date
2019-16703-MN-1 June 30, 2021
Number Submitted

INSTRUCTIONS: After accomplishing this activity (all fields filled up and all questions answered), save the
document in PDF format and upload it in Microsoft Teams (in the Assignments tab). For the guide questions,
you need to type your answer per line. There is no deadline to chase. Submit your work after you have
completed the entirety of the activity.

OBJECTIVES
At the end of the activity, you should be able to
1. measure the dimensions of different Philippine New Generation Coins (NGC)
2. Compare your measurements with actual dimensions and with your other measurements.
3. execute simple statistical analysis on your measurements

MATERIALS NEEDED
For this activity, you will be needing
1. Philippine Peso New Generation Coins (3 pcs. each): 0.25PHP, 1 PHP, 5PHP (Circular), 10PHP
2. Physics Toolbox Sensor Suite (Available for free in Apple App Store and in Google Play Store)
3. Meter stick and/or Foot Rule (Ruler), if abovementioned material is not applicable

PROCEDURES
1. Look for official Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) publications that reveal the actual dimensions
of the New Generation Coins. Record your findings on Table 1.1.
2. Open the Physics Toolbox Suite app you downloaded and navigate to the ruler function of the app as
shown in the figure below. You may also use a foot rule (ruler) or a meter stick if you encountered app
compatibility issues.

Figure 1.1. Physics Toolbox Suite Rule

Function

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3. Measure the diameter of one of the 25c coin, with the front of the coin facing upward. This is your first
measurement (M1). Flip the coin upside down and measure the diameter again. This is your second
measurement (M2). Do the same for the other two 25c coins (M3, M4, M5, M6). Compute the average value of
your measurements. Record your measurements in Table 1.2.

4. Compute for the percentage error and percentage deviation for each of your measurements (M1-M6).
Record your computations in Table 1.2.

5. Compute for the percentage difference between your measurements of the same coin (M1 and M2, M3 and
M4, M5 and M6). Record your computations in Table 1.2.

6. Repeat the whole process in steps 3-5 using the other coins (P1, P5, and P10). Record your measurements
on the assigned tables per coin. Note: Use the circular 5 Peso NGC. BSP has recently updated the P5 coin
dimension (non-circular).

7. Answer all the guide questions. Upload your complete computations (JPG/PDF) along with this activity sheet
(PDF).

DATA AND OBSERVATIONS

Table 1.1. Official NGC Dimensions Released by BSP

25 1 Peso 5 10
Dimension
Cents (in mm) Pesos Pesos
(in mm) (in mm) (in mm)
Diameter 20.0 mm 23.0 mm 25.0 mm 27.0 mm
Edge
1.65 mm 2.05 mm 2.20 mm 2.05 mm
Thickness

Table 1.2. Diameter Measurement of 25 Centavo New Generation Coin

Coin
Analysis Measurements Average
M1 M2 M3 M4 M5
M6
Coin 1, Coin 1, Coin 2, Coin 2, Coin 3,
Coin 3, Back
Front Back Front Back Front
Measured
19.6 19.5 19.5 19.4 19.6 19.5 19.52
Diameter
Percentage
2.0 2.5 2.5 3.0 2.0 2.5
Error
Percentage
0.41 0.1 0.1 0.61 0.41 0.1
Deviation
Percentage
0.51 0.51 0.51
Difference

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Table 1.3. Diameter Measurement of 1 Peso New Generation Coin
Coin
Analysis Measurements Average
M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6
Coin 1, Coin 1, Coin 2, Coin 2, Coin 3, Coin 3, Back
Front Back Front Back Front
Measured
22.5 22.6 22.8 22.9 22.7 22.6 22.68
Diameter
Percentage
2.17 1.74 0.87 0.43 1.30 1.74
Error
Percentage
Deviation 0.79 0.35 0.53 0.97 0.09 0.35
Percentage
0.44 0.44 0.44
Difference

Table 1.4. Diameter Measurement of 5 Peso New Generation Coin (Circular Type)
Coin
Analysis Measurements Average
M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6
Coin 1, Coin 1, Coin 2, Coin 2, Coin 3, Coin 3, Back
Front Back Front Back Front
Measured
24.8 25.0 24.9 25.0 25.0 24.9 24.93
Diameter
Percentage
0.8 0 0.4 0 0 0.4
Error
Percentage
0.52 0.28 0.12 0.28 0.28 0.12
Deviation
Percentage
0.80 0.40 0.40
Difference

Table 1.5. Diameter Measurement of 10 Peso New Generation Coin

Coin
Analysis Measurements Average
M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6
Coin 1, Coin 1, Coin 2, Coin 2, Coin 3, Coin 3, Back
Front Back Front Back Front
Measured
27.0 26.9 27.0 27.0 26.8 26.9 26.93
Diameter
Percentage
0 0.37 0 0 0.74 0.37
Error
Percentage
0.26 0.11 0.26 0.26 0.48 0.11
Deviation
Percentage
0.37 0 0.37
Difference

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 GUIDE QUESTIONS
1. Did your measurements reflect acceptable accuracy (Error < 5%)? What further improvements can you do
regarding the measurement process or measurement instrument to increase accuracy of your measurements?

ANSWER: Yes, I can say that my measurements were accurate since I haven’t had any error exceeding at 5
percent, but one thing that I should remember is to always make sure that the experimental value will not get too
far from the accepted value, since it will be the one which will determine the result’s accuracy. I also had fun
learning about the application, because it really helped me determine the measurements of the coins, but it was a
bit tricky, you must align the coins on the line detector so you must have a stable hand to gain accurate results.

2. What factors do you think caused the deviations in your measurements? How can you address these issues
to improve precision?

ANSWER: There is one factor that caused deviation in my measurements, it is the error of difference between
the accepted value of the coins and the results of my measurement, but there is also a way to solve this, you
must measure the coins properly so that it will be able to get the exact value or at least get closer to the accepted
value released by (BSP) Banko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

3. What do you think are the advantage/s of using a foot rule (ruler) or the Physics Toolbox Suite app to
measure coin dimensions compared to using a meter stick?

ANSWER: Due to the pandemic everyone has to follow the government protocols of not going outside if you
don’t have any necessities to buy, so it will also be hard to find the right tools to perform this activity because
aside from it not being a necessity, some establishments are also closed because of several reasons but
because of the technology advancement we can still access applications online that can help us get accurate
measurements of the things that we are trying to measure, just like foot rule or physics Toolbox Suite App
which is reliable, convenient and easier to use compared to the actual meter stick. By simply using the app and
aligning the line between the coins, we can get measurements without having a hard time counting and
estimating the value.

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