What Should the Mass of W Be to Support a 77 kg Person's Head?

AI Thread Summary
To support the head of a 77 kg person using a pulley system, the mass of W must counteract the weight of the head, which is approximately 5.39 kg (7% of body weight). A free-body diagram is essential to analyze the forces involved, particularly the tension (T) in the rope. The tension acts upward on the head while also being distributed through the pulleys, with two forces acting vertically and two at a 37-degree angle. The total vertical force on the head is the sum of the vertical components of these tensions. Understanding these forces is crucial for determining the appropriate mass of W to ensure proper support during neck healing.
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Homework Statement



When a patient’s injured neck is healing, it is often desirable to prevent the weight of the head from pushing down on the neck. This can be accomplished with the system of pulleys shown in the figure. The pulleys are all small and extremely light in weight and have no appreciable friction. Typically, a person’s head makes up 7.00% of his or her body weight.

If the head of a 77.0 kg person is to be supported completely by the apparatus shown, what should the mass of W be? Start with a free-body diagram of the head.

I drew out a free body diagram, but don't know where to go from there.
 
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Where is the figure?
 
If the tension in the rope is T, what is the force exerted by the apparatus on the head?
 
dx said:
If the tension in the rope is T, what is the force exerted by the apparatus on the head?

mg? With T pointing upward.
 
T points along the rope. There are four places where the tension exerts forces on the wheels. At two of these places, T points upward, and at the other two it points at an angle of 37 degrees to the vertical. You have to find the vertical componets of all these and add them up to find the total vertical force exerted on the head.
 
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