CHOITHRAM INTERNATIONAL

IB INTERNAL ASSESSMENT COVERSHEET ( PHYSICS )

Student Name: Chirag Hablani
Teacher Prompt: Design a Lab on the motion of an object on an inclined plane
Assessment Title: How does the angle of the inclined plane with the horizontal affect the speed of cart at end
point.

Criterion Assessed
Exam year: 2015
Topic/Option
Topic 2.3
Design
Formulates a focused research question
and identifies the relevant variable
Designs an effective method for control
of variables
Effective method for collection of data
Data Collection and Processing
Records quantitative and qualitative raw
data with units and uncertainties
Process the quantitative raw data
correctly
Presents processed data appropriately
with errors and uncertainties
Conclusion and Evaluation
State conclusion based on reasonable
interpretation of data
Evaluates weakness and limitations
Suggests improvements of weakness and
limitations
I confirm this assessment is my own work.
Stude ts sig ature:
Teachers Na e: Prita Rathi
Teachers Sig ature :

Design
Level achieved
C/2 P/1 N/0

Total Marks

CHOITHRAM INTERNATIONAL
( IBDP 2013-2015, May Session)
Date:-

NAME:- Chirag Hablani

TOPIC/OPTION; 2.3

SUBJECT LEVEL: HL

LAB TITLE: Design a Lab on the motion of an object on an inclined plane

Teachers Instructions:

Design a lab on the above lab title. Choose proper dependent and independent variables. Design a
method that would allow you to collect relevant data to arrive at a relevant relation between the
variables chosen.
You will be assessed on the design criteria. The grading rubric for it is given below.

Investigating the Change in Velocity of a Trolley

Running Down an Inclined Plane
Teacher Prompt: Designing a lab on an inclined plane
Research Question: How does the angle of the inclined plane to the horizontal affect the
velocity at the end point ?
Theory: According to Newton's law an unbalanced force results in acceleration. Therefore, an
object kept on an inclined plane will move down the plane. We experience this first hand while
skiing downhill or bicycling down an incline. This investigation aims to determine a relationship
between the angle of the inclined plane with the horizontal and velocity of the object at end point
of inclined plane We use a cart rolling on inclined plane with different angles with the horizontal
to study if there is any dependence of velocity of the object at end point on the angle made by
the horizontal and the inclined plane.

Considering the cart above, the unbalanced force results in the cart accelerating in that direction
with an acceleration : " = "

Hypothesis: It is hypothesized that as the angle of inclination between the horizontal surface
and the inclined plane increases, the velocity of the cart at the end point increases. This is
because as the angle increases, the value of increases and so the value of acceleration
down the inclined plane which is equivalent to also increases. As a result, the final
velocity at the end point would increase.

Independent Variable: Angle made by the horizontal and the inclined plane. The angle will be
measured using a digital protractor or inclinometer with a least count of 0.01 . The angle will be
varied in a range from 20 to 50 increasing the angle by 5 for each trial. The minimum angle is
taken to be 20 as at angles below this value, the cart takes a long time to reach the end point
and also needs an initial external force to go down the inclined plane. The maximum angle is set
at 50 as at angles above this value, the cart travels extremely fast and it is difficult to record
values, the error is thus very high.
Dependent Variable: The velocity at the end of the inclined plane is dependent on the
inclination angle of the inclined plane. Times are measured by use of 2 Vernier photo gate
sensors. The error in measurement of time was almost negligible.

The velocity of the ball at the end point will be calculated using the equation
=

In the above equation, initial velocity is equal to 0 ms-1 as the trolley is provided with no
external force. Time ( ) is measured between the release point where the initial velocity is 0 ms1
to the final end point. The value of acceleration ( derived above) is equal to where
g=9.81 ms-2 and is the angle between the inclined plane and the horizontal surface. t
The above equation can be rewritten as
=
The uncertainty in measurement of t is taken to be neglible as the time taken to travel the
distance is measured using very precise digital instruments. The percentage error in final
velocity is thus equal to the percentage error in sin. Since the angle is measured using an
inclinometer with a least count of 0.01 the error in sin is negligible and therefore the error in
velocity is also negligible.

Controlled Variable:
Controlled
Variables

Reason for Controlling

Method of Controlling

External forces acting

on the cart

The external forces ( if any) acting on

the cart will add to the velocity of the
cart.

The experiment is conducted in a

closed laboratory. The cart is released
without providing any external human
force.

Mass and
dimensions of the
cart

The mass of the ball could affect the

the final speed of the cart at end
point.

The use of same cart throughout the

experiment. The trolley is a PASCO
low-friction trolley (with ball bearing
wheels.

The distance
travelled of the ramp
by the cart

The distance travelled by the cart on

the ramp will affect the final velocity
at end point.

The distance travelled is fixed at 1.50

m. The ramp is a standard lab
aluminum two-meter ramp. To avoid
errors a line was drawn at the 1.50 m
mark

Material of the ramp

A change in the material of the ramp

could give different coefficient of
friction thus there would be a loss of
energy and hence a lower value of
final velocity.

The same ramp is used throughout

the experiment. The ramp is made of
aluminum with a low coefficient of
friction which is negligible for such a
short distance.

Ventilation of Room

Air circulation could add external

forces on the cart motion.

The experiment is performed in a

controlled environment (laboratory)

Meter Rule used

Meter rules may have zero error and

thus add to the systematic error of
the experiment.

The same meter rule will be used

throughout the experiment so that to
ensure that all readings have the
same error ( if they do).

Ground Surface

The texture, hardness or the tilt of

the ground surface could affect loss
of KE during collision between
surface and ball.

The experiment was conducted at one

place so as to ensure that the ground
surface is the same for all trials. The
tilt of the ground was measured by a
spirit level to ensure that it is zero.

Point of the cart from

which all distance
readings are
measured

A change in the point of

measurement would alter the
distance travelled by the cart and
consequently effect the change in
energy.

The tip of the cart was taken as the

point of reference to measure all
distances. To avoid any errors a line
was drawn at that point.

Other apparatus
used in the
experiment

The apparatus may have their own

zero error, and this may cause
variation in the data

The same apparatus was used

throughout the experiment.

Apparatus Used:
Apparatus

Uncertainty

Vernier Photogate using Labquest App.

0.00 s

Cart ,a PASCO low-friction trolley (with

ball bearing wheels).

--

Aluminium ramp ( Standard 2 meter)

--

Meter rule

0.001 m

Inclinometer / Digital Protractor

0.01

Clamp to secure the ramp

--

Weighing scale

0.00001 kg

Procedure :

End point

Aluminium
Ramp ( 2 m
long)
Start
Point

1.50 m in Length from

mark point to end
Figure 1

1. Configure the Aluminum track as shown in Figure1 above .Set the inclination of the track
to 20 using a digital protractor. Fix the aluminum track to the clamp.
2. Set up the apparatus as shown in the Figure 1 above. Connect Photogate 2 to
Photogate 1 . Plug Photogate 1 into DIG1 on the LabQuest. Tap Mode on the
LabQuest screen and change Photogate Mode to Pulse.
Set the displacement between the Photogates to 1.5 meters. Align the dynamics cart so
that the post is just before the first Photogate (this makes the initial velocity of the cart
zero). Hit collect on the LabQuest and release the cart. Record the pulse time or the
time to get from gate 1 to gate 2.
3. Place the cart at the 1.50 m mark. Make sure that the post of the cart is aligned with the
mark on the ruler / the Photogate. Start the collection of data on Lab Quest.
4. Release the cart without applying any external force and find the time taken for the cart
to cover 1.5 meter of aluminum ramp. The acceleration on the inclined plane of any
object is given by a=gsin. Using equations of accelerated motion, we can find velocity
at end point using
=

where v = final velocity, u = initial velocity ( 0 m/s) , a = acceleration (gsin) and t=

time taken for cart to cover 1.5 meter.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4, 4 more times to have a total of 5 velocity readings for a 20 angle
between aluminum ramp and horizontal.
6. Take the next decided angle of 25 , lining up the tip of the cart with the marking on the
ruler. Repeat the procedures ( Step 3,4 and 5) obtaining 5 trials at that angle
7. Repeat for the next 5 decided angles. ( 30, 35, 40, 45, 50)
8. In total, after the experiment Obtain 7 sets of data as shown in the table below, taking 5
trials for each data set. This will sum up to 35 data sets. Record the data obtained from
the experiment in the given table below.
9. Construct a scatter graph titled the effect of angle on the speed of cart at end point. The
data in this graph will emanate from the quantitative data obtained and processed in
table below. Allocate the angle on the x-axis (independent variable), while the speed of
cart on the y-axis (dependent variable). Construct a linear line of best fit to ensure
greatest accuracy and find the relationship between angle of inclined plane and speed at
end point.
Raw Data Table:

1.

Angle
between
aluminum
ramp and
horizontal
()/
.

2.

25

3.

30

4.

35

5.

40

6.

45

7.

50

Serial
No.

20

Time to cover the Aluminimum track

t 0 s

t 0 s

Trial No.
1.

2.

3.

Tavg

4.

5.

Velocity (v) / ms-1