Acceleration Deceleration Physics Problem

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SUMMARY

The discussion focuses on calculating the minimum time required for a car to travel one mile, starting and ending at rest, with a maximum acceleration of 10 ft/s² and a maximum deceleration of 15 ft/s². The car must accelerate to the speed limit of 55 mi/hr before decelerating to a stop. Participants emphasize the importance of using kinematic equations to determine the time and distance during both acceleration and deceleration phases, as well as the distance covered at constant speed.

PREREQUISITES
  • Kinematic equations for uniformly accelerated motion
  • Understanding of acceleration and deceleration concepts
  • Conversion between units (feet per second to miles per hour)
  • Basic algebra for solving equations
NEXT STEPS
  • Study the kinematic equations for motion under constant acceleration
  • Learn how to convert units between feet per second and miles per hour
  • Explore examples of motion problems involving acceleration and deceleration
  • Investigate the implications of maximum speed limits on travel time calculations
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for physics students, automotive engineers, and anyone interested in understanding motion dynamics, particularly in relation to acceleration and deceleration in vehicle travel.

spaceshipone
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A car has a maximum constant acceleration of 10 ft/s^2 and a maximum constant deceleration of 15 ft/s^2. determine the minimum amount of time it would take to drive one mile assuming the car starts and ends at rest and never exceeds the speed limit 55 mi/hr.

Why do you need to know the deceleration constant if we are talking about the car accelerating and going to 55 mi/hr?
I would assume you just plug it into the constant acceleration formula and that is it.
I was also thinking maybe it has to accelerate to first at a constant rate and then decelerate to slow to 55 mph. I which case I have no idea how to solve the problem.

Anyone want to take a stab at this?
 
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Imagine you are driving from place A to place B. What do you do?
You start from rest, then accelerate until you reach the speed limit. You drive some time, then when you are near B, you apply the brakes to stop the car at B. Total distance is 1 mile.
Find t and S during acceleration and retardation, using appropriate kinematic equation.
Find the remaining distance which covered with uniform velocity. From that find the time taken to cover that distance. So you can find the total time to cover the whole distance.
 

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