What is Physical pendulum: Definition and 78 Discussions

A pendulum is a body suspended from a fixed support so that it swings freely back and forth under the influence of gravity. When a pendulum is displaced sideways from its resting, equilibrium position, it is subject to a restoring force due to gravity that will accelerate it back toward the equilibrium position. When released, the restoring force acting on the pendulum's mass causes it to oscillate about the equilibrium position, swinging it back and forth. The mathematics of pendulums are in general quite complicated. Simplifying assumptions can be made, which in the case of a simple pendulum allow the equations of motion to be solved analytically for small-angle oscillations.

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  1. S

    Find period of circular disk physical pendulum

    Homework Statement A uniform circular disk whose radius R is 40.0 cm is suspended as a physical pendulum from a point on its rim. (a) What is its period of oscillation? (b) At what radial distance r < R is there a point of suspension that gives the same period? R = .40 m g = 9.81...
  2. N

    Where Should I Drill the Hole to Minimize the Period of a Physical Pendulum?

    Homework Statement You are given a meter stick and asked to drill a hole in it so that when pivoted about the hole the period of the pendulum will be a minimum. Where should you drill the hole Homework Equations T=2*pi*sqrt(I/mgd) The Attempt at a Solution So I use parallel...
  3. B

    Moment of inertia for physical pendulum

    I have a rigid, massless strut of length 11m. A mass of 55kg is located on the free end, and another mass of 55kg is located at the midpoint. I'm having some trouble calculating the moment of inertia I for this physical pendulum. I = \int r^{2} dm (for continuous objects) I = \sum m D...
  4. fluidistic

    What is the solution to a physical pendulum problem involving a cord and a bar?

    Homework Statement A physical pendulum is made of a cord of length S with no mass and a bar attached to the cord, of length L and mass m. We apart it from the vertical with an angle of \theta °. We then release it. 1)Find the center of mass' velocity of the pendulum when it reaches the...
  5. L

    Physical Pendulum attached to spring in SHM. Find Equation of Motion

    Homework Statement Uniform Rod of length 0.2m and mass 0.2kg pivoted at one end. THe other end of attached to a horizontal spring with spring constant 3.0N/m. The spring is neither stretched nor compressed when the rod is perfectly vertical. You can also assume that the force due to the...
  6. W

    Moment of Inertia of a Physical Pendulum?

    Homework Statement I have a uniform ruler, 80cm long weighing 50g. I'm attaching a weight at one end, 1cm from the bottom. I'm assuming that its a point mass to make things easier. This weighs 10g. The ruler has an axis 5 cm from the top. What's the moment of inertia? Homework EquationsThe...
  7. fluidistic

    What is the motion of a physical pendulum with a rotating rigid body?

    Homework Statement Hello, I've tried all I could and get very confused about how to approach the problem. Here it comes : A disk of mass M and radius R can rotates around an axis passing by the point A without friction situated on its circumference. The disk is in a vertical plane. We let...
  8. B

    Center of mass of physical pendulum

    Homework Statement A pendulum consists of a uniform disk with radius r=0.100m and mass 0.500 kg attached to the end of a uniform rod with length L=0.500 m and m 0.250 kg. It pivots at the other end of the rod. a) Calculate the rotational inertia of the pendulum about the pivot point. b) What...
  9. F

    How Does Pivot Position Affect the Period of a Physical Pendulum?

    Homework Statement A slender, uniform rod of mass m and length l can be pivoted on a frictionless horizontal support at any point along the rod's length. The rod then moves as a physical pendulum for small oscillations about the vertical equilibrium position. Suppose that the pivot point is...
  10. J

    What Determines the Period of a Physical Pendulum?

    Homework Statement A physical pendulum is constructed using a 4.4 kg object having a moment of inertia of 33.9 kg-m2 about its center of mass. The rotation (suspension) point is 276.69 cm from the center of mass. What is the period of this physical pendulum? Homework Equations T =...
  11. K

    Oscillations and Physical Pendulum help

    1) SOLVED. In an engine, a piston oscillates with simple harmonic motion so that its position varies according to the following expression, where x is in centimeters and t is in seconds. x = (7.00 cm) cos(5t + π/8). (a) at t=0, find the position (b) velocity (c) acceleration For part a, I...
  12. T

    Calculating the A value of a physical pendulum

    Homework Statement The moment of inertia for an arm or leg can be expressed as I = AmL^2, where A is a unitless number that depends on the axis of rotation and the geometry of the limb and L is the distance from the center of mass. Say that a person has arms that are 31.30 cm in length and...
  13. K

    Restoring Torque in a physical pendulum?

    I know that in the simple pendulum there is a rextoring force created by the gravity. My question now is, when we take the case of the physical (real) pendulum there is an other stuff which come in "the restorung torque" how is this created. What is infact its axis of rotion?
  14. B

    What is the equation for the period of oscillation for a physical pendulum?

    Homework Statement A physical pendulum consists of a meter stick that is pivoted at a small hole drilled through the stick a distance d from the 50 cm mark. The period of oscillation is 2.5 s. Find d Homework Equations T=2PI*sqrt(I/mgh) I(com)=(1/2)mL^2 parallel axis theorem...
  15. C

    Physical pendulum with air friction

    Homework Statement For my control system course i need to derive differential equation and period of a physical pendulum. Pendulum rod's mass is m, length is l and has a spherical mass M Homework Equations i need relevant equatins so obviously :D The Attempt at a Solution i know that i...
  16. J

    Solve Physical Pendulum: Length, Mass, Period

    [SOLVED] Physical pendulum Homework Statement A physical pendulum constists of a rod (length = 0,30 m og mass = 0,80 kg). The rod rotates around its center. On this rod there is a moveable mass (mass=0,80kg). Now the period of the pendulum is T = 0,83 s. The problem to solve is: How far below...
  17. G

    Physical Pendulum least period

    Homework Statement In Fig. 16-41, a stick of length L = 1.6 m oscillates as a physical pendulum. (a) What value of distance x between the stick's center of mass and its pivot point O gives the least period? (b) What is that least period...
  18. Saladsamurai

    Problem Understanding Physical Pendulum

    I am having trouble understanding what h is in the equation for T listed below. Here is an imageThe Problem: A physical pendulum consists of a uniform circular disk (of R=2.35cm) supported in a vertical plane by a pivot located a distance D=1.75cm from the center of the disk. The disk is...
  19. D

    Simple Pendulum Motion and Physical Pendulum

    Homework Statement 1) Find the period of a pendulum 50 cm long when it is suspended in (a) a stationary elevator; (b) an elevator falling at the constant speed of 5.0 m/s; (c) an elevator falling at the constant acceleration of 2.0 m/s2; (d) an elevator rising at the constant speed of 5.0 m/s...
  20. P

    Among Simple harmonic oscillation, simple pendulum and physical pendulum

    What is the similarity between Simple Harmonic Oscillation(SHO), simple pendulum and a physical pendulum? I never understood it. Like what's the physical significance of SHO, or the energy and momentum change in oscillating motion?
  21. W

    Extreme Period for a Physical Pendulum

    Homework Statement http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/808/periodicemotionhd3.jpg solid, uniform disk of mass M and radius a may be rotated about any axis parallel to the disk axis, at variable distances from the center of the disk If you use this disk as a pendulum bob, what is T(d), the...
  22. B

    Physical pendulum and meter stick

    A physical pendulum consists of a meter stick that is pivoted at a small hole drilled through the stick a distance x from the 50. cm mark. The period of oscillation is observed to be 1.656 s. Find the distance x. I know I have to find the moment of Inertia and I believe the equation for this...
  23. S

    Physical Pendulum oscillation problem

    (9) A physical pendulum consists of a meter stick (1 meter long) pivoted at a distance 20 cm from one end and suspended freely. The frequency for small oscillation is closest to (a) 0.67 Hz (b) 0.8 Hz (c) 1.1 Hz (d) 1.7 Hz (e) Insufficient information (Hint: The moment of inertia of a stick of...
  24. M

    How Do You Calculate the Length of a Swinging Rod in a Physical Pendulum?

    A rod suspended on its end and acting as a physical pendulum swings with a period of 1.74 s. What is its length? (g = 9.80 m/s2) Ok so in order to solve this I need to use the physical pendulum formula: T = 2Pi * sqrt (I / mgh) ==> I am looking for 'h' To get 'h' I need to first...
  25. S

    Physical pendulum of stick swing

    Problem: A large stick is pivoted about one end and allowed to swing back and forth as a physical penulum. The mass of the stick is 5.90 kg and its center of gravity (found by finding its balance point) is 1.2 m from the pivot. If the period of the swinging stick is 3.90 seconds, what is its...
  26. S

    How Is the Pivot Distance Calculated in a Physical Pendulum?

    "A physical pendulum consists of a meter stick that is pivoted at a small hole drilled through the stick a distance d from the 50 cm mark. The period of oscillation is 5.27 s. Find d." I know that the period for a physical pendulum is T = 2pi * sqrt (I/mgL). I'm really stuck on how to...
  27. N

    PHYSICS - physical pendulum - Need your help

    A physical pendulum consists of a uniform rod of length L = 1.5 meters. The mass of the rod is 5kg and the rod is pivoted about its end. The rod is pulled out to an angle of θ0=0.2rad and is then given a push so that its instantaneous angular velocity is -0.5 rad/sec. a) What is the period of...
  28. C

    How Do You Calculate the Moment of Inertia for a Swinging Monkey Wrench?

    I need hlep with this question... A 1.8-kg monkey wrench is pivoted 0.250-m from its center of mass and allowed to swing as a physical pendulum. The period for small-angle osciallations is 0.940 s. a.) What is the moment of inertia of the wrench about an axis through the pivot? b.) If...
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