SALEM-Immanuel Lutheran College

Grade:
S4 Physics Worksheet (WS14)
Book 2 Chapter 3.1: Introduction of forces
Name: ___________________ Class: ______( ) Date:______

⚫ Force is a vector physical quantity. It has both magnitude and direction.

⚫ The SI unit of force is called ( ).
9.81 N = force needed to hold up an 1 kg object on Earth.
⚫ and force sensors (with data logger) can
be used to measure force.
Type of forces
⚫ are forces that act only when two objects are
in contact.
Example of contact forces and how to represent them using simple diagrams:
(For contact forces, draw at the point where the force is applied.)

Kind of force How to draw? Real life example

Pushing force

* Draw on the string

Tension (T )
A pulling force which acts
along a taut string

* Draw perpendicularly from the

surface

Normal reaction (N )
A supporting force from
the surface

* Draw along the surface

Friction (f )
A force which opposes the
tendency of motion of an
object.

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⚫ are forces that act even two objects are not in contact.
Example of non-contact forces and how to represent them using simple diagrams:

Kind of force How to draw? Real life example

* Draw from the center of the object

Weight (W )
The force of gravity acting
on the object.

FE
Electric force (FE)

FB
Magnetic force (FB)

⚫ A force usually involves objects, so we can describe a force like this:

A force on (object X) by (object Y)

Examples
State (i) the kind of force and (ii) the two objects involved in the forces indicated below.

F 1: (i) (ii) on by

F 2: (i) (ii)

F 3: (i) (ii)

F 4: (i) (ii)

F 5: (i) (ii)

F 6: (i) (ii)

F 7: (i) (ii)

F 8: (i) (ii)

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⚫ Problems in mechanics can be solved more effectively by free body diagram.
⚫ Steps of drawing a free body diagram of an object:
(1) Draw the object concerned. Use a box or simple shapes to represent it.
(2) Identity ALL the forces on the object, take care of the kind of forces (contact forces and non-
contact forces).
(3) Draw corresponding arrows to represent the forces.
⚫ Common mistakes:
(a) Draw more than one object, e.g. the ground and the concerned object.
(b) Forget to label.
(c) Fail to identify all the forces. It may be helpful if you check the following:
(i) on the earth, every object has weight;
(ii) if the object has a contact surface (e.g. ground), there may have normal reaction
(iii) rough surface = must have friction; smooth surface = no friction;
(iv) depend on the context, air resistance is usually neglected;
(v) take care of the direction of the forces (must be acting on the object).
(vi) name all forces but not label only. (e.g. write Weight instead of W only)

Draw a free body diagram for the underlined object in each of the following cases.
1. A uniform steel ball lies at rest on a horizontal
ground and just touches a vertical wall.

2. A T-shirt is hung at the midpoint C of a light rope.

3. A block is pulled by a force F on a smooth table.

4. A block on a rough horizontal table is acted on by

two horizontal forces of magnitudes 10 N and 2 N.

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5. A resting block.

6. A block of weight 100 N is placed on a smooth

horizontal table.

7. Two blocks A and B of the same mass on a

horizontal surface are connected by a string.
(a) box A; (b) box B.

8. Two boxes are hanged on a pulley by a string.

(a) box X; (b) box Y.

9. A box X is pulled by a box Y on a smooth table.

(a) box X; (b) box Y.

10. Two objects are pushed by a force 12 N on a

smooth table.
(a) object A; (b) object B.