Sunday, December 7, 2008

Speed bump

I was driving in my car when I approached a speed bump. I slowed down and as the car's front two wheels fell, I could feel the frequency of the springs. This meant that physics was at work yet again. As I landed, the car bounced, as if it were in harmonic motion. The weight of the car landing created the force that would make the car no longer exist in equilibrium. This motion, however is not in simple harmonic motion. As shown in this picture, the car's shocks will actually compress a little as it rides up the bump in order to keep the body of the car at a constant level.
Upon landing, the shocks will become stiffer (higher spring constant) so that the car will not bounce. The spring constant of shocks are able to change because of hydraulics and air pressure.

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