This simulator isolates a single cart on an inclined rail and draws every external force acting on it as an arrow in a 3D scene. You choose the cart mass, the incline angle, the uphill pull and the friction coefficient, then watch how the forces add up along the track to set the acceleration.
• A 3D inclined rail with an isolated cart and separate arrows for the weight vector, the normal reaction, the applied pull and contact friction; all arrows share one length scale. • Four sliders: cart mass (1-10 kg), track inclination (0-35 degrees), uphill applied force (0-80 N) and friction coefficient (0-0.6). • Six live readouts: along-track net force, acceleration, velocity uphill, travel uphill, normal reaction and signed friction. • Two presets: Friction holds (5 N pull, mu 0.4, cart stays at rest) and Frictionless downhill (30 degrees, no pull, acceleration -4.905 m/s2).
The normal reaction is N = mg cos(theta) because the pull is parallel to the track. Gravity contributes -mg sin(theta) along the track, so Fnet = Fpull - mg sin(theta) + Ffriction and a = Fnet / m. While the cart is at rest, friction adjusts to whatever balances the other forces, up to a limit of mu times N; once it slides, friction opposes the velocity with magnitude mu N. Drawing the body alone and listing only external forces is the habit this lab is built to reinforce.
The motion is one-dimensional along a constrained track, static and kinetic friction use the same coefficient, and the trial stops at plus or minus 4 m (a labelled, artificial travel limit) with no collision impulse. Use the Curves tab for the force-comparison bars and time histories, the Experiments tab to load presets and run built-in model checks, and the Learn tab for the quiz and scope notes.
No. On an incline with a pull parallel to the track, the normal reaction is N = mg cos(theta), so it shrinks as the incline gets steeper. It equals mg only on a flat track.
The sum of the pull, the along-track component of gravity and friction. At rest, friction can supply up to mu times N; if the required balancing force is larger than that limit, the cart starts to slide.
Because Newton's second law applies to the net external force on the isolated body. Internal forces cancel in pairs, so only weight, normal reaction, the applied pull and friction are drawn on the cart.
It is a one-dimensional constrained-motion model with equal static and kinetic friction coefficients, a fixed 4 m travel limit and no collision impulse, rolling resistance or air drag.