Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Lesson 3.2
Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity
Contents
Introduction 1

Learning Objectives 2

Warm Up 2

Learn about It! 3

Average Velocity 3
Instantaneous Velocity 4

Key Points 10

Key Formulas 11

Check Your Understanding 12

Challenge Yourself 13

Bibliography 14

Key to Try It! 14

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Lesson 3.2
Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity

Introduction
Have you ever observed a speedometer of a car? The speedometer of the car indicates how
fast the car is moving at a given period of time. In an analog speedometer, as shown above,
if the car moves at a fast rate, the pointer will point towards the higher number stating that
the rate of change of position of the car is higher at that specific time. Most often than not,
the unit displayed in a speedometer is km/h. If the car speeds up, you can notice that the
pointer moves in a clockwise direction. This means that the car is not moving at a constant
speed. In real life, objects usually do not travel at a constant speed. In this lesson, we will
be describing how we can determine the instantaneous velocity of an object.

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 1

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

DepEd Competencies
Learning Objectives This lesson serves as a prerequisite for
the following DepEd competencies:
In this lesson, you should be able to do the
● Convert a verbal description of a
following: physical situation involving

● Define average and instantaneous uniform acceleration in one

dimension into a mathematical
velocity.
description
● Solve problems involving (STEM_GP12Kin-Ib-12).
● Recognize whether or not a
instantaneous and average velocity.
physical situation involves
● Use calculus in solving instantaneous constant velocity or constant

velocity from a position as a function acceleration

(STEM_GP12Kin-Ib-13).
of time equations.

Warm Up
Mighty Motors 5 minutes
In this activity, you will see how a speedometer reflects the instantaneous speed of a car.
The pedal will cause an acceleration which will change the reading of the speedometer as a
response to the change in the car's motion.

Material
● laptop/tablet/smartphone

Procedure
1. Open the link below.

Mighty Motors
Kizi Games, “Mighty Motors,” (Kizi.com, nd),
https://www.y8.com/games/mighty_motors, last accessed on
February 28, 2020.

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 2

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

2. Press the play button and start a new game.

3. Observe the movements of the car and of the speedometer.
4. Answer the guide questions below.

Guide Questions
1. As you click the pedal in the game, what happens to the movement of the car?
2. As you click the pedal, what happens to the speedometer?
3. Do you think it is possible to determine the accurate value of the instantaneous
speed in the game? Why or why not?

Learn about It!

From the previous lesson, we learned the different motion descriptors. We talked about the
two motion descriptors which describe the rate of change in the position of an object in
motion. These are speed and velocity. These two quantities’ magnitudes are only equal if the
object is moving in one dimension. In this lesson, we are only going to discuss objects
moving in one dimension and talk about the magnitude of its speed or velocity.

How can we differentiate average velocity from

instantaneous velocity?

Average Velocity
Average velocity is defined as the total rate of change of position of an object. It can be
mathematically expressed as

such that is the average velocity, is the total displacement of the object, and is
the elapsed time.

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 3

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Instantaneous Velocity
Sometimes, the average velocity of an object is already enough to know about a particle’s
motion, such as identifying who is the fastest in a racing competition. The equation for
average velocity can be used to determine which among the cars would reach the final point
in the shortest amount of time. Despite the usefulness of average velocity, it is not enough
to tell us about how fast and in what direction an object is moving at any particular time. To
do this, we introduce the instantaneous velocity.

Instantaneous velocity ( ) is defined as the velocity of an object in an instant. It means

that we are getting the rate of change in the position of an object in a very small time.
Instantaneous speed is what is being measured by a speedometer in a car. We will note at
this point that the object is moving along the x-component, so we can say that the
magnitude of the instantaneous speed is equal to the magnitude of the instantaneous
velocity.

Let us consider the car moving along the x-axis in Figure 3.2.1. You can notice that the car is
not traveling at a constant velocity. Hence, its velocity is changing at specific time intervals.
Analyzing its motion graph at the side, we can deduce that the car covers different distances
per unit time, resulting in a non-linear graph.

Figure 3.2.1. The motion of the car and its corresponding motion graph

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 4

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Looking at the motion graph, the positions of the car, denoted by x is plotted along the
y-axis and while the elapsed time t, is along the x- axis. We recall that the slope of a line is
defined as rise over run or the change in y over change in x. We know that velocity is given
by displacement ( ) divided by the time elapsed ( ). With this definition, we can deduce
that the slope of displacement vs. time graph is the velocity of the object. However, we also
know that the slope of a curve varies. To determine the precise slope of a given segment in
a curve, we have to get a very small segment of and a very small segment of . To get
a very precise value for the velocity, we have to make to be very small or make it
approach zero. With our knowledge in calculus, we can then say that

Equation 3.2.1
.

In the language of calculus, we can rewrite the generalized equation in getting the
instantaneous velocity of an object moving along the x-dimension Equation 3.2.1 as

Equation 3.2.2
.

From Equation 3.2.2 we can redefine instantaneous velocity as the limit of the average
velocity as the time interval approaches zero; it equals the instantaneous rate of change of
position with time.

Remember
A negative value of means that x is decreasing and the motion
is in the negative x-direction. A body can have positive x and

negative , or the reverse. The position (x) only tells us where the

object is relative to the origin and the tells us the direction of

the movement of the object.

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 5

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Let’s Practice!

Example 1
The position of a particle is given by the equation: . Determine the
instantaneous velocity of the particle at t = 2s.

Solution
Step 1: Identify what is required in the problem.
You are asked to solve for the instantaneous velocity of the particle.

Step 2: Identify the given in the problem.

The position as a function of time equation and the time of interest are given.

at t = 2

Step 3: Get the derivative of the equation.

From

,
we will get

Step 4: Substitute t = 2 s.

Step 5: Find the answer.

Assuming all quantities are expressed in SI units, at t = 2 s, the particle is moving at 34.8
m/s.

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 6

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

1 Try It!
Calculate for the instantaneous velocity of a car with a position as a function of time

equation of at t = 0.25 s. Assume that all units are expressed in

SI units.

Example 2
Juan ran as fast as he can in front of a motion sensor. The motion sensor recorded that his

equation is equal to . How much did his velocity

change from t = 1 s to t = 3 s? Did he slow down or speed up?

Solution
Step 1: Identify what is required in the problem.
You are asked to calculate for the instantaneous velocity.

Step 2: Identify the given in the problem.

The position as a function of time equation and the range time of interest are
given.

at t = 1 to t = 3

Step 3: Get the derivative of the equation.

From

,
we get

Step 4: Substitute the given values.

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 7

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Step 5: Find the answer.

The difference between the instantaneous velocities is ‒49.08 m/s. The negative sign
suggests that Juan is slowing down.

2 Try It!
A motion sensor had an output equation for a flying bird of

. What is the difference between the instantaneous

velocities of the bird at t = 1 and t = 3? Evaluate your answer. Assume that all units
are expressed in SI units.

Example 3
A hypothetical car stops at an intersection. When the stoplight turns green, it then travels

along a straight road and its distance from the intersection is given by
where a = 4.6 m/s2, b = 1.2 m/s3 and c = 17 m. Calculate for the average velocity of the jeep
from t = 2 s to t = 8 s and its instantaneous velocity at t = 9 s. Do you think this hypothetical
car can be usually seen in our streets?

Solution
Step 1: Identify what is required in the problem.
You are asked to calculate for the average velocity and the instantaneous velocity.

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 8

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Step 2: Identify the given in the problem.

The x(t) is given and the time of interest are given.

at t = 2 to t = 8 s

Step 3: Solve for the average velocity.

We can calculate the positions at t = 2 s and t = 8 s using the x(t) equation.

Step 4: Get the derivative of the equation to solve for the instantaneous velocity.
From

where a = 4.6 m/s2, b = 1.2 m/s3, and c = 17 m,

we will get

Step 5: Substitute the given value/s.

Step 6: Find the answer.

The average velocity of the car from t = 2 s to t = 8 s is 146.8 m/s and its instantaneous
velocity at t = 9 s is 374.4 m/s. This car is just hypothetical because if we convert the values
into km/h, 146.8 m/s is approximately equal to 530 km/h and 374.4 m/s is 1347 km/h. We do
not see cars of these velocities in our streets.

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 9

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

3 Try It!
A particle has a position as a function of time equation of

. Calculate for the average velocity of the particle from

t = 4 s to t = 6 s and its instantaneous velocity at t = 3 s.

Why do we use differential calculus in solving for

the instantaneous velocity of a particle?

Key Points
___________________________________________________________________________________________

● Average velocity is defined as the total rate of change of position of an object.

● Instantaneous velocity is the velocity of an object in an instant.
● When an object is traveling along a straight line, the velocity and speed of an
object are equal.
● The slope of a position vs. time graph is velocity.
● In order to calculate the instantaneous velocity of an object, we have to get a small
segment of displacement ( ) and divide it with its infinitesimal time ( ). This is
the same as getting the first derivative of the position as a function of time
equation.
___________________________________________________________________________________________

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 10

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Key Formulas
___________________________________________________________________________________________

Concept Formula Description

Average Velocity Use this equation to

where:
● is the average velocity
● is the total displacement
calculate the average
velocity if the total
displacement and the
time elapsed are both
given.

of the object
● is the elapsed time.

Instantaneous Use these equations to

Velocity get the instantaneous
velocity of a particle with
where:
a non-constant velocity.
● is the instantaneous Both of these equations
velocity are synonymous and
calculus-based.
● is the change in
position
● is the time elapsed

where:
● is the instantaneous
velocity

● is the derivative of
position with respect to
time

___________________________________________________________________________________________

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 11

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Check Your Understanding

A. Write T if the statement is correct and F if not.

____________ 1. Any object traveling along a straight has a constant velocity.

____________ 2. Average velocity is synonymous with instantaneous velocity.
____________ 3. The slope of a position vs. time graph is velocity.
____________ 4. If the average velocity is high, the instantaneous velocity is also
high.
____________ 5. Instantaneous velocity is the velocity at an instant.
____________ 6. The average velocity only considers the total displacement and
total time elapsed.
____________ 7. One of the key differences between average velocity and
instantaneous velocity is that the latter is a scalar quantity.
____________ 8. The values of the instantaneous velocity can tell us that an object
is either speeding up or slowing down.
____________ 9. The derivative of the velocity as a function of time equation gives
you instantaneous velocity.
____________ 10. Instantaneous velocity can never be equal to the average
velocity.

B. Complete the table below. Assume that the equations in

the first column have homologous units.

Instantaneous Velocity
Equation Time (s)
(m/s)

t=2

t=9

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 12

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

t=4

t=2

t=3

C. Solve the following problems.

1. The position of a particle is given by the equation .

Determine the instantaneous velocity of the particle at t = 5 s.
2. Calculate for the instantaneous velocity of a car with a position as a function of time

equation of at t = 0.39 s.

3. A particle moves according to the equation where x is in meters and t

is in seconds. Find the average velocity for the time interval from 2.20 s to 3.00 s.

4. A particle moves according to the equation where x is in meters and

t is in seconds. Find the instantaneous velocity for the time 2.8 s.
5. Find the instantaneous velocity of a particle described in an equation given

at the following times: (a) t = 1.0 s, (b) t = 3.0 s, and (c) t = 4.5 s.

Challenge Yourself

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Differentiate average velocity and instantaneous velocity.

2. How can the average velocity and instantaneous velocity be equal?
3. Why do we have to use differential calculus in getting the instantaneous velocity?
4. How can you say that an object is speeding up or slowing down using the concept of
instantaneous velocity?
5. Why do speedometers cannot accurately measure the instantaneous velocity of a
car?

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 13

Unit 3: Motion in One Dimension

Bibliography
Faughn, Jerry S., and Raymond A. Serway. Serway’s College Physics (7th ed). Singapore:
Brooks/Cole, 2006.

Hewitt, Paul G. Conceptual Physics (11th ed). New York: Pearson Education. 2010.

Homer, David, and Bowen-Jones, Michael. Physics Oxford IB Diploma Programme. UK: Oxford
University Press. 2014.

Sang, David, Graham Jones, Gurinder Chadha, and Richard Woodside. Cambridge
International AS and A Level Physics Coursebook. UK: University Printing House. 2014.

Serway, Raymond A., and John W. Jewett, Jr. Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern
Physics (9th ed). USA: Brooks/Cole, 2014.

Young, Hugh D., Roger A. Freedman, and A. Lewis Ford. Sears and Zemansky’s University
Physics with Modern Physics (14th ed). USA: Pearson Education, 2012.

Key to Try It!

1. 1.31 m/s
2. 79.6 m/s, the bird sped up from t = 1 s to t = 3 s

3. ,

3.2. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity 14