Motion

What is motion?

If the location of an object changes with time the object is said to be in motion.

Motion is relative. An object may seem to be moving to one observer and stationary to another.

Motion can be of different types depending upon the type of path by which the object is going through:
circular motion, linear motion (straight path), oscillatory/vibratory motion.

 A Reference Point is used to describe the location of an object. An object can be referred to
through many reference points.

 Origin – The reference point that is used to describe the location of an object is called Origin.

 For Example, a new restaurant is opening shortly at a distance of 5 km north of my house. Here,
the house is the reference point that is used for describing where the restaurant is located.

Motion in a Straight Line

Distance – The distance covered by an object is described as the total path length covered by an object
between two endpoints. Distance is a numerical quantity. We do not mention the direction in which an
object is travelling while mentioning the distance covered by that object.

Displacement – The shortest possible distance between the initial and final position of an object is
called Displacement. Displacement depends upon the direction in which the object is travelling.

Zero Displacement – When the first and last positions of an object are the same, the displacement is
zero.

For Example, consider the diagram given below.

Displacement at point A = 0 because the shortest distance from A to A is zero.

What are Scalar and Vector Quantities?

 A scalar quantity describes a magnitude or a numerical value.

 A vector quantity describes the magnitude as well as the direction.

  Hence, distance is a scalar quantity while displacement is a vector quantity.

How is distance different from displacement?

Distance Displacement

Distance provides the complete details of the Displacement does not provide the complete details
path taken by the object of the path taken by the object, it is the shortest
distance covered by an object

Distance is always positive Displacement can be positive, negative or zero

It is a scalar quantity It is a vector quantity

What is uniform motion?

When an object travels equal distances in equal intervals of time the object is said to have a uniform
motion.

Examples of Uniform Motion

 Movement of the ceiling fan’s blades.

 Motion of Earth around the sun

 Pendulum with equivalent amplitude on either side

What is non-uniform motion?

When an object travels unequal distances in equal intervals of time the object is said to have a non-
uniform motion.

Examples

 Bouncing ball

 Running horse

 Moving train

The speed of an object is defined as the distance travelled by the object per unit of time.
SI Unit: Metre (m)

Symbol of Representation: m/s or ms-1

Speed = Distance/Time

 Average Speed – If the motion of the object is non-uniform then we calculate the average speed
to signify the rate of motion of that object.

 To describe the rate of motion in a direction the term velocity is used. It is defined as the speed
of an object in a particular direction.

Velocity = Displacement/Time

SI Unit: Metre (m)

Symbol of Representation: M/s or ms-1

Average Velocity (in case of uniform motion)-

Average Velocity = (Initial Velocity + Final Velocity)/2

Average Velocity (in case of non-uniform motion)-

Average Velocity = Total Displacement / Total Time taken

Acceleration

In the case of non-uniform motion the velocity of an object changes with time. This rate of change of
velocity per unit time is called Acceleration.

It is a vector quantity. In non-uniform motion, velocity varies with time, i.e., the change in velocity is not
0. It is denoted by “a”

Acceleration = Change in velocity/ Time taken

SI Unit: m/s2

Uniform Acceleration – An object is said to have a uniform acceleration if

 It travels along a straight path

 Its velocity changes (increases or decreases) by equal amounts in equal time intervals

Non - Uniform Acceleration – An object is said to have a non-uniform acceleration if

 Its velocity changes (increases or decreases) by unequal amounts in unequal time intervals

Acceleration is also a vector quantity. The direction of acceleration is the same if the velocity is
increasing in the same direction. Such acceleration is called Positive Acceleration.

The direction of acceleration becomes opposite to that of velocity if velocity is decreasing in a direction.
Such acceleration is called Negative Acceleration.

De-acceleration or Retardation – Negative acceleration is also called De-acceleration or Retardation

Graphical Representation of Motion

1. Distance – Time Graph

It represents a change in position of the object with respect to time.

 Linear variation = uniform motion and non-linear variations imply non-uniform motion
 The slope gives us speed
The graph in case the object is stationary (means the distance is constant at all time intervals) – Straight
line graph parallel to x = axis

The graph in case of uniform motion – Straight line graph

The graph in case of non-uniform motion – Graph has different shapes

2. Velocity – Time Graphs

 Velocity-Time graphs show the change in velocity with respect to time.

 Slope gives acceleration

 The area under the curve gives displacement

Constant velocity – Straight line graph, velocity is always parallel to the x-axis

Uniform Velocity / Uniform Acceleration – Straight line graph

Non-Uniform Velocity / Non-Uniform Acceleration – Graph can have different shapes

Calculating Displacement from a Velocity-time Graph
Consider the graph given below. The area under the graph gives the distance travelled between a certain
interval of time. Hence, if we want to find out the distance travelled between time intervals t1 and t2,
we need to calculate the area enclosed by the rectangle ABCD where the area (ABCD) = AB * AC.

Similarly, to calculate distance travelled in a time interval in the case of uniform acceleration, we need to
find out the area under the graph, as shown in the figure below.

To calculate the distance between time intervals t1 and t2 we need to find out the area represented by
ABED.
Area of ABED = Area of the rectangle ABCD + Area of the triangle ADE = AB × BC + 1/ 2 * (AD × DE)

Equations of Motion

The equations of motion represent the relationship between an object's acceleration, velocity and
distance covered if and only if,

 The object is moving on a straight path

 The object has a uniform acceleration

Three Equations of Motion

1. The Equation for Velocity – Time Relation

v = u + at

2. The Equation for Position – Time Relation

s = ut + 1/2 at2

3. The Equation for the Position – Velocity Relation

2a s = v2 – u2

Where, u: initial velocity, a: uniform acceleration, t: time, v: final velocity, s: distance travelled in time t

Uniform Circular Motion

If an object moves in a constant velocity along a circular path, the change in velocity occurs due to the
change in direction. Therefore, this is an accelerated motion. Consider the figure given below and
observe how the directions of an object vary at different locations on a circular path.
Uniform Circular Motion – When an object travels in a circular path at a uniform speed the object is said
to have a uniform circular motion.

Non-Uniform Circular Motion – When an object travels in a circular path at a non-uniform speed the
object is said to have a non-uniform circular motion

Examples of uniform circular motion:

 The motion of a satellite in its orbit

 The motion of planets around the sun

Velocity of Uniform Circular Motion

Velocity = Distance/ Time = Circumference of the circle / Time

v = 2πr/ t

where v: velocity of the object, r: radius of the circular path, t: time taken by the object