01

NOTE
P H Y S I C S

NEWTON'S LAWS OF MOTION

PSEUDO FORCE & NON-INERTIAL FRAME

What you already know What you will learn

• Newton's laws of motion • Weighing machine

• Constrained motion • Frame of reference
• Pulley-block system • Pseudo force

Weighing Machine

A weighing machine measures the weight of the object kept on it. The reading of the weighing
machine is calibrated to give the mass of the object, which is calculated by the weight of the body.
This reading is in kg-f or kg-weight.
Example: if the reading shows 1 kg, it would mean the weight is 1 kg-f.

1 kg-force = 1 × g = 1 × 10 = 10 N
Where g is the acceleration due to gravity (g = 10 ms-2)
Technically, the weighing machine measures the normal reaction that it applies on the object kept
on it. This normal reaction is equal to weight in equilibrium condition.

Frame of Reference

Inertial frame of reference Non-inertial frame of reference

• Newton’s laws are valid. • Newton’s laws are not valid.

• In an inertial frame of reference,
the observer should be non-
accelerating (aobserver = 0), i.e., the
velocity should be either zero or
constant.
• In a non-inertial frame of reference,
an observer will have non-zero
acceleration (aobserver ≠ 0).
• Pseudo force (unreal force) comes
into picture.

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 02

Ground (Inertial) Frame of Reference

N = mg N
In the ground frame of reference, normal reaction is equal
785 N to the weight that is the reading of the weighing machine.
The observer measures his weight on the ground as 785 N
as shown in figure.

mg

NEET
Non-Inertial Frame of Reference

When the weighing machine is kept inside a lift and the lift moves upwards, the reading shown will
be more than the actual weight. When the lift moves downwards, the reading shown will be less
than the actual weight. Can this be an example of violation of Newton's law?
Actually, Newton's laws are valid when the observer is in an inertial frame of reference.
For the observers where Newton's laws are not valid, the frame is known as a non-inertial frame of
reference.

Lift moving upwards

(a) Observed by an inertial observer

Consider a boy of mass m standing on a weighing
N
machine. Now, consider the same system is kept
in an elevator at rest. As the elevator is at rest, the
reading is the same as measured in the ground 822 N
frame. When the elevator starts moving upwards, we a
get a different reading on the weighing machine.
When the elevator is moving upwards with
acceleration a, the weight measured by the weighing
machine will be
mg
Along the vertical direction,
N - mg = ma
N = mg + ma
N = m(g + a) ………(i)
Hence, from equation (i), it is clear that N is not equal to mg here. When the elevator starts
moving upwards with an acceleration a, then the acceleration due to gravity (g) becomes
geff = (g + a), and due to this, N becomes mgeff. Here, the weight measured by the machine is
822 N.

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 03

(b) Observed by the boy in the lift frame

The boy observes his own weight in the weighing
machine as 822 N when it is kept in an elevator that is N
moving upwards with an acceleration a.
So, for this case, 822 N
There is only weight and normal reaction, and with
respect to the lift frame, he is at rest.
Thus, balancing forces,
N = mg …………(ii) mg

This is not equal to the reading he had observed in the machine.

Also, he cannot explain this by writing Newton's laws of motion.
As the observer is in a non-inertial frame (accelerated) of reference, he can not apply Newton's
law.
To make Newton's law valid for a non-inertial frame of reference, we have to consider an unreal
or imaginary force known as the pseudo force.

Pseudo Force

The pseudo force is an imaginary force that is applied on objects in

a non-inertial frame of reference to satisfy Newton’s laws of motion.
 N
Fpseudo = − msys anon-inertial frame
Negative direction implies that the direction of force is
822 N
opposite to acceleration of the system.
• It acts opposite to the direction of acceleration of
the reference frame. ma
• It is applied for the non-inertial frame of reference.
mg
• There is no action-reaction pair.
Hence, for the observer in the lift, adding pseudo force on the observer will give the exact value
of the weight of the boy in the lift frame, which will match with reading of the weighing machine.
Along the vertical axis,
N = mg + ma
N = m(g + a)
N
Lift moving downwards

(a) Observed by an observer on the 738 N

ground frame of reference
Along the vertical direction,
mg - N = ma a
N = mg - ma
N = m(g - a) ………..(iii) mg

An observer from the ground measures the weight of the boy as 738 N, which is less than the
value measured by an inertial observer when the weighing machine was on the ground. It is
clear that from equation (iii) the normal reaction decreases by the value ma.

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 04

(b) For the lift frame of reference (observed by the boy himself in the lift frame)
Here, the observer will feel that he is at rest with respect to
the lift as he has the same acceleration as that of lift.
Hence, pseudo force should be considered in this case.
Along the vertical direction,
N + ma = mg
738 N
N = mg - ma
N = m(g - a) ………..(iv) N
mxa
The observer inside the lift measures his weight as 738
N, which is less than the value measured by an inertial
observer when the weighing machine was on the
ground. It is clear from equation (iv) that normal reaction mg
decreases by the value ma.

A man weighs 80 kg. He stands on a weighing 5 ms-2

machine in a lift that is moving upwards with a
uniform acceleration of 5 ms-2. What would be
the reading on the machine? (g = 10 ms-2) ?

(A) zero (B) 400 N (C) 800 N (D) 1200 N

Solution Method 2:

Method 1: Lift (non-inertial) frame of reference

Here, the observer will feel that he is at rest
Ground (inertial) frame of reference with respect to the lift as he has the same
When the observer in on the ground, for him, acceleration as that of the lift.
Along the vertical Hence, pseudo force should be considered in
direction, this case.
N - mg = ma
5 ms-2 Along the vertical
N = mg + ma N
direction, N
N = m(g + a) N = mg + ma
= 80 (10 + 5) ? N = 80 (10 + 5)
= 1200 N ?
= 1200 N

mg
mg ma = Fp
Hence, option (D) is the correct answer.

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 05

a
The figure shows a pendulum
suspended from the roof of a truck that θ
has a constant acceleration a relative
to the ground. Find the deflection of
the pendulum from the vertical as
observed from the ground frame and
from the frame attached with the truck.

a g  g a
( A ) tan-1  (B) tan-1  ( C) sin (D ) sin
-1 -1

     
 g a a  g

Solution

Method 1: In the ground frame Method 2: Truck (accelerated) frame of

reference
The observer will see the pendulum moving
in a backward direction and the system Now, if we solve the problem in the truck
accelerating in the forward direction. frame, Let the observer be in truck
Thus, using the pseudo force concept,
T cos θ y FBD of the pendulum
θ y
θ T T cos θ
θ
x
a θ T
T sin θ x
Fpseudo = ma
T sin θ
mg mg
Along the horizontal direction,
⇒ T sin θ = ma ........(i ) Using the pseudo force concept,
 
Along the vertical direction, Fpseudo = − mobject a frame
⇒ T cos θ = mg ........(ii ) Along the horizontal direction,
Dividing equation (i ) by equation (ii ), ⇒ T sin θ = ma ........(i )
a Along the vertical direction,
tan θ =
g ⇒ T cos θ = mg ........(ii )
a Dividing equation (i ) by equation (ii ),
⇒ θ = tan−1   a
 g tan θ =
Hence, option (A) is the correct answer. g
a
⇒θ = tan−1  
 g

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