User's Manual

®
Model No. ME-6830 Exp. 4: Projectile Path
012-05375C 23
Exp. 4: Projectile Path
Equipment Needed
*The target board should be as tall as the distance from the muzzle to the floor.
Purpose
The purpose of this experiment is to determine how the vertical distance a projectile drops is related to the hori-
zontal distance the projectile travels when the projectile is launched horizontally.
Theory
The range is the horizontal distance, x, between the muzzle of the Launcher and the place where the projectile hits,
given by x = v
0
t, where v
0
is the initial speed of the projectile as it leaves the muzzle and t is the time of flight.
If the projectile is launched horizontally, the time of flight of the projectile will be
The vertical distance, y, that the projectile falls during time, t, is given by
where g is the acceleration due to gravity. Substituting for t in the second equation gives
A plot of y versus x
2
will give a straight line with a slope equal to .
Setup
1. Clamp the Projectile Launcher
to a sturdy table or other hori-
zontal surface. Mount the
Launcher near one end of the
table with the Launcher aimed
away from the table.
2. Adjust the angle of the Projec-
tile Launcher to zero degrees
so the ball will be launched
horizontally.
3. Fire a test shot on medium
range to determine the initial
position of the vertical target
board. Place the target board
on the floor so that the ball hits the board near the bottom. See Figure 4.1
Item Item
Projectile Launcher and plastic ball Movable vertical target board*
Meter stick or measuring tape Sticky tape
Graph paper Carbon paper
White paper
t
x
v
0
-----
=
y
1
2
---
gt
2
=
y
2
2v
0
2
--------



x
2
=
g
2v
0
2
--------
CAUTIO
N!
D
O NO
T LOO
K
DO
W
N BA
RREL!
CAUTIO
N!
D
O NO
T LOO
K
DO
W
N BA
RREL!
C
A
U
T
I
O
N
!
D
O
N
O
T
L
O
O
K
D
O
W
N
T
H
E
B
A
R
R
E
L
.
L
ON
G
RANGE
ME
DIUM
R
AN
GE
SHOR
T
RANG
E
P
o
s
i
t
i
o
n
o
f
B
a
l
l
L
a
u
n
c
h
SHOR
T RANGE
PROJECTILE LAUNCHER
ME-6800
Y
e
l
l
o
w
B
a
n
d
in
W
i
n
d
o
w
In
d
i
c
a
t
e
s
R
a
n
g
e
.
9
0
8
0
7
0
6
0
50
4
0
3
0
2
0
1
0
0
W
E
A
R
S
A
F
E
T
Y
G
L
A
S
S
E
S
W
H
E
N
I
N
U
S
E
.
U
s
e
2
5
m
m
b
a
ll
s
O
N
L
Y
!
Figure 4.1: Launcher setup
Target board
y
x