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Experiment# 3
Projectile Motion
1) Objective
Study the projectile motion under the following various conditions and analyze the results accordingly.
i To determine the muzzle velocity, time of flight and range of the projectile.
ii To determine the predicted range and measured range of projectile at various launching angle on a
plane.
iii To determine the time of flight and experimental range of projectile by changing the various launching
angle from a certain height.
iv To measure the maximum height of a projectile at various launching angle on a plane.

THJEORITCAL EXCPLANATION
i) Introduction
The purpose of this experiment is to predict the horizontal range of a projectile shot from various heights
and angles. In addition, students will compare the time of flight for projectiles shot horizontally at
different muzzle velocities. This is really four stand-alone activities except that all require a measurement
of initial speed when the launcher is fired horizontally. This is done in Procedure 1, but is easy to redo.
Doing all four is too long for a 3 hour lab, but Procedure 1 and 2, or Procedure 1 and 3 should work well
together. Procedure 1 deals with the independence of horizontal and vertical motion and are a key idea
that should not be skipped. Procedure 4 is short but requires knowledge of Calculus. Uncertainty The
launchers work extremely well and with a combination of luck and skill you may see an accuracy of a
centimetre or so over a 3-meter distance. However, small variations in cocking the launcher may cause
the pattern to shift by several centimetres. We use three shot patterns and average and the results should
generally be accurate to within 3 centimetres.

ii) Theory:
When a particle is thrown obliquely near the earth’s surface, it moves along a curved path under constant
acceleration directed towards the centre of the earth (we assume that the particle remains close to the
earth’s surface). The path of such a particle is called a projectile, and the motion is called projectile
motion.
In a Projectile Motion, there are two simultaneous independent rectilinear motions:
Along the x-axis: uniform velocity, responsible for the horizontal (forward) motion of the particle.
Along the y-axis: uniform acceleration, responsible for the vertical (downwards) motion of the particle.
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Acceleration in the horizontal projectile motion and vertical projectile motion of a particle: When a
particle is projected in the air with some speed, the only force acting on it during its time in the air is the
acceleration due to gravity (g). This acceleration acts vertically downward.
The horizontal range, Δx, for a projectile can be found using the following equation:
∆𝒙 = 𝒗𝒙𝒕
(1) Where vx is the horizontal velocity (the initial horizontal velocity) and t is the time of flight. To find
the time of flight, t, the following kinematic equation is needed:
∆𝒚 = 𝟏 𝟐 𝒂𝒚𝒕 𝟐 + 𝒗𝒚𝒐𝒕
(2) Where Δy is the height, ay = -g is the acceleration due to gravity and vyo is the vertical component of
the initial velocity. When a projectile is fired horizontally (from a height Δy), the time of flight can be
found by rearranging Equation 2. Since the initial vertical velocity is zero, the last term drops out of the
equation yielding:
𝒕 = √𝟐 ∆𝒚 𝒂𝒚 (2a)
When a projectile is fired at an angle and it lands at the same elevation from which it was launched, Δy =
0, and we may solve Equation (2) for t:
𝒕 = √𝟐 𝑽𝒚𝒐 𝒈 (2b)
Substituting this into Equation (1) yields
∆𝒙 = 𝟐𝒗𝒙𝒗𝒚𝒐 𝒈 = 𝟐𝒗 𝟐𝑪𝒐𝒔𝜽𝑺𝒊𝒏𝜽 𝒈
(2c) Where v is the initial speed of the projectile. When a projectile is fired from a height, none of the
terms drop out and Equation 2 may be rearranged as follows:
𝟏 𝟐 𝒂𝒚𝒕 𝟐 + 𝒗𝒚𝒐𝒕 − ∆𝒚 = 𝟎 (3

Apparatus;
1) Mini Launcher,
2) Time of Flight Accessory,
3) Phone Jack Extender Cable,
4) Photogate Head,
5) Photogate Bracket,
6) Large C Clamp (need one only),
7) Plumb Bob (need one only),
8) Carbon Paper,
9) Metric Measuring Tape
10) PASCO Capstone.
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SETUP 1
Muzzle Velocity, Time of Flight, and Range:
1. Slide the Photogate Bracket into the groove on the bottom of the launcher and tighten the
thumbscrew.
2. Connect two photogates to the bracket (see in Fig. 1). Adjust the Photogate Bracket so the
first photogate is as close to the launcher as possible without blocking the IR beam.
3. Attach the launcher to the launcher stand using the upper holes (see in Fig. 1).
4. Plug the photogate closest to the launcher into Digital Input 1 on the 850 Universal Interface.
Plug the other photogate into Digital Input 2.
5. Plug the Time of Flight Accessory into Digital Input 3.
6. In PASCO Capstone, click on Digital Input 1 in the Hardware Setup and select a photogate.
Then click on Digital Input 2 and select another photogate. Then click on Digital Input 3 and
select a Time-of-Flight Accessory.
7. Open the Timer Setup and select a pre-configured timer for Time-of-Flight with Two
Photogates as shown in figure below:
8. Choose one corner of a table to place the projectile launcher. Make sure a distance of about 3
meters is clear on the floor in the direction the ball will be fired.
9. Clamp the launcher to the corner of the table using a C-clamp (see in Fig. 1).
10. Using the attached plumb bob, adjust the angle of the launcher to 0o

.
Figure 1: Apparatus set-up
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Note 1:
Measuring angles:
It is critical that you measure the angle carefully. An error of ½ degree will affect your results by
several centimetres. You should be able to read the angles within 0.2 degrees. In Fig. 2, the angle
is 30°. In Procedure 1, it is critical that the angle be exactly 0°. In Procedures 2 & 3, it is not
critical to exactly set the requested angle as long as you know what the exact angle is. For
example, having 20.7° instead of 20° is fine as long as you know it is 20.7° and adjust the
numbers in the table to reflect your actual angles.

Figure 2: Measuring Angles

Procedure 1:
Muzzle Velocity, Time of Flight, and Range
Note the circle on the side of the launcher that says “Launch Position of Ball.” This indicates the position
of the ball when it leaves the spring and becomes a free projectile. From where on the circle should you
measure the drop distance Δy? Hint: what part of the ball strikes the floor? Is Δy positive or negative?
From what part of the circle should you measure Δx? In addition, measure the spacing between the two
photogates and verify that it is 10.0 cm. The program calculates the initial speed by assuming the
photogates are separated by 10.0 cm and dividing by the time the ball takes to travel between the two
gates.

1. Measure the drop distance Δy, to the top of the Time of Flight Accessory.
2. Carefully adjust the launcher to fire horizontally. The protractor should read exactly zero degrees.
You should try to set the angle within 0.2 degrees by making the string equidistant between the +1
and -1 degree hash marks on the protractor. You will not get good results if you are not careful when
setting the angles. See Note 1.
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3. Place the steel ball into the launcher and use the push rod to load the ball until the third
“click” is heard.
4. Check to see that there is no one down range! Launch the ball by pulling straight upward on the
string. Don’t jerk. Observe where the ball hits the floor. Tape a small piece of tape to the floor to
mark the spot. Place the Time of Flight Accessory above the piece of tape so the ball will strike it.

5. Reload the ball to the third “click” and start recording in Capstone.
6. Pull the launch cord on the launcher. Click the Stop button to stop recording.
7. Create a table to record the Initial Speed and the Time of Flight as shown below. Create
User-Entered data sets called “# Clicks” with no units, “V initial” with units of m/s, and “Time-of
Flight” with units of seconds.

8. Repeat two more times with the launcher cocked to three clicks.
9. If the launcher is only compressed to two clicks, will the time of flight be more, less, or the same as
for 3 clicks? Explain your logic.
10. Repeat steps 2-8 for 2 clicks and 1 click. Record your results in Table I. Did you answer correctly in
step 9? Why or why not?
11. Using your data and Equation 1, calculate the Δx distance to where the ball should strike the floor
when the launcher is compressed two clicks. Drop a plumb line from the center of the Launch
Position of Ball circle and mark the position with a piece of tape. Measure a distance equal to Δx
along a line between the piece of tape you just put on the floor and the one from step 4. Tape a piece
of white paper to the Time of Flight apparatus and place it at your predicted impact point. Mark your
predicted impact point with an X. Place a piece of carbon paper on top of the paper (face down).
Launch the ball three times using the two click position. Turn in this paper as part of your lab report!
.
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Procedure 2:
Launching at an Angle on Plane

Figure 3: Launching at an angle on plane

1. Create a table as shown below. Create User-Entered data sets called “Ang” with units of degrees, “V1”
with units of m/s, and “M Range” (Measured Range) with units of meters. Then create two
calculations:
𝒗 = ([𝒗𝟏]𝟐 − 𝟐 × 𝒈 × 𝟎. 𝟎𝟑𝟓 × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 ([𝜽]))𝟎.𝟓 (4)

Predicted Range (PRange)

(5)

1. If you did Procedure 1, calculate the average initial speed in meters per second for 1-click horizontal
fire. Record the average value in the second column (V1) of Table II. If you are doing this part of the
experiment without doing Procedure 1, you will have to determine the speed for horizontal fire by
performing Procedure 1, steps 3-8. You do not need the Time of Flight accessory.
2. Clamp the launcher to the edge of a table using a C-clamp so that the ball launches from and lands at
the same elevation (the bottom of the Ball Launch Position circle should be even with the top of the
table (see photos above). Launcher should be as far back as possible on its track so the front holding
screw points directly at the center of the Launch Position circle. In this manner, the release height will
not change when you change the angle.
3. Adjust the launcher for a launch angle of 45 o. Using the push rod, push the ball into the Launcher
until the first click is heard. Using the string, pull back on the trigger. Note the location on the table
where the ball lands.
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4. Tape a sheet of blank paper at the location where the ball landed. Place carbon paper over the blank
paper.
5. Load the Launcher to the first click again. Launch the ball. Repeat two more times.
6. Use the tape measure to find the horizontal range from the Ball Launch Position circle to the center of
the three shot pattern (just estimate the center of the pattern).
7. Record the value of the horizontal range in meters into the Measured Range (M Range) column of Table
II. If your angle was not exactly 45o, record the correct angle in the Angle (θ) column.
8. Repeat the steps 4-8 for 25, 35, 55, 65 degrees.

Analysis Part 2: Launching at an Angle on Plane

1. The third column in Table II shows the initial speeds (v o) at various angles calculated from your
measured initial horizontal speed. They are smaller because when the gun is tipped up by an angle
(θ), some of the energy from the spring goes into increasing the potential energy of the system instead
of the kinetic energy of the ball. However, since you have probably not considered energy yet in your
physics class, we have calculated the speeds for you. The formula is:
𝒗𝟐 = (𝒗𝒐)𝟐 − 𝟐𝒈𝒔𝑺𝒊𝒏𝜽
Where v = initial speed, vo= horizontal speed (measured), s = distance spring is compressed (3.5 cm
for 1 click, 4.8 cm for two clicks, and 6.3 cm for three clicks) and θ is the angle of tip.

2. We now use Equation 3 to calculate the predicted range (P Range).

3. Compare your measured values to the predicted values for the range. Do they agree? Try to explain
any differences.
4. Create a graph of MRange vs. Angle. Then use “Add the similar measurement” to add P Range to the
vertical axis.
5. Plot the graphs between MRange vs. Angle and PRange vs. Angle.

Procedure 3: Launching at an Angle from a Height

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Figure 4: Launching at an Angle from a Height

1. Create a table as shown below. Create User-Entered data sets called “Angle” with units of degrees,
“V3” with units of m/s, and “ERange” (Experimental Range) with units of meters. Then create
calculations:

Corrected velocity (Vcor)

𝒗𝒄𝒐𝒓 = ([𝒗𝟑]𝟐 − 𝟐 × [(𝒈)] × 𝟎. 𝟎𝟔𝟑 × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 ([𝜽]))𝟎.𝟓 (7)

Theoretical Time of Flight (Tflight)

𝟐 𝟎.𝟓

𝑻𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 = ([𝒗𝒄𝒐𝒓] × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 ([𝜽]) + (([𝒗𝒄𝒐𝒓] × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 ([𝜽])) − 𝟐 × [∆𝒚] × [(𝒈)] ) ⁄[(𝒈)] (8)

Theoretical Range (TRange)

𝑻𝑹𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆 = [𝒗𝒄𝒐𝒓] × 𝑪𝒐𝒔 ([𝜽]) × [𝑻𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕] (9)

1. If you did Procedure 1, calculate the average initial speed in meters per second for 3-click horizontal
fire, V initial. Record the average value in the second column (V3) of Table III. If you are doing this
part of the experiment without doing Procedure 1, you will have to determine the speed for horizontal
fire by performing Procedure 1, steps 3-8 for the 3-click position. You do not need the Time of Flight
accessory.
2. Clamp the launcher to the edge of a table using the C-clamp so that the ball launches from a position
above where it will land (see in Fig. 4). Launcher should be as far back as possible on its track so the
front holding screw points directly at the center of the Launch Position circle. That way the release
height will not change when you change the angle.
3. Adjust the angle of the launcher to -20o.

4. Note the circle on the side of the launcher that says “Launch Position of Ball.” This indicates the
position of the ball when it leaves the spring and becomes a free projectile. From where on the circle
should you measure the drop distance Δy? Hint: what part of the ball strikes the floor? Is Δy positive
or negative? From what part of the circle should you measure Δx? Measure the drop distance in
meters. Clicks open the Calculator in Capstone and type in the value for Δy.
5. Drop a plumb line from the Launch Position of Ball circle and mark the position with a piece of tape.
Measure the distance Δx from this mark for each angle.
6. Using the plunger, push the ball as far as possible into the Launcher. Make sure three clicks are heard.
Using the string, pull back on the trigger. Keep track of the location on the floor where the ball lands.
7. Tape a sheet of blank paper at this location. Place carbon paper over the blank paper.
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8. Load the Launcher. Take 3 shots. Measure Δx to the center (eyeball it) of the three shot pattern with
the tape measure and record it in the Experimental Range column of Table III on the Analysis 3 page.
If your angle was not exactly 45o, record the correct angle in the Angle column.
9. Repeat for angle of -10o, 0o, 10o, 20o, 30o, 35o, 40o, 45o, 50o, and 60o.

Analysis 3: Launching at an Angle from a Height

1. See the discussion of why the initial launch speed V3 is different than the horizontal launch speed
under the Analysis 2 section.
2. We now use Equation 2c from Theory to calculate the time of flight. Solve the quadratic equation for
t. Verify that the calculations for Tflight (the time of flight) agree with your result.
3. Verify that the calculations for the Theory Range (TRange) agree with Equation 1.
4. Compare your measured values to the predicted values. Do they agree? Try to explain any
differences.

5. Create a graph of TRange vs. Angle. Then use “Add the similar measurement” to add E Range to the
vertical axis.
6. Plot the graphs between TRange vs. Angle and ERange vs. Angle.

Procedure 4:
Maximum Height of a Projectile
THEORY 4
We now consider the problem of a launcher at a fixed distance from a vertical wall and seek to find the
angle that causes the projectile to strike the wall at a maximum height. In this case, solving equation 2,
gives the time to the wall as;
𝑹
𝒕 = ⁄𝒗𝒐𝒙 (10)
Where R is the distance to the wall. Then the height (h) at the wall is given by;

(11)

(12) Use calculus to find the angle (call it “max

angle”) that maximizes the height.
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Figure 5: Maximum Height of a Projectile

Set-up 4:
Maximum Height of a Projectile
1. Clamp the launcher to the edge of a table using the C Clamp about 1.5 meters from a vertical wall (see
in Fig. 5). Launcher should be as far back as possible on its track so the front holding screw points
directly at the center of the Launch Position circle. That way the release height will not change when you
change the angle.

Procedure 4:
Maximum Height of a Projectile
1. Measure the distance from the Launch Position circle (what portion of the circle should you use?)
to the wall. Record this value.
2. You will need to measure the horizontal speed for the two-click position if you don’t already
have it.

𝒗𝜽 = ([𝒗𝟐]𝟐 − 𝟐 × [𝑨𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒅𝒖𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒚 (𝒈)] × 𝟎. 𝟎𝟒𝟖 × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 (𝜽))𝟎.𝟓

Use the expression that you derived in the theory to calculate the theoretical velocity at an angle that
gives the maximum height.

3. Using the push rod, push the ball into the Launcher until the second click is heard. Using the
string, pull back on the trigger. Note the location on the wall where the ball strikes.
4. Tape a sheet of blank paper at the location where the ball struck. The location where the ball hit
should be near the top of the paper. Tape carbon paper over the blank paper.
5. Set the mini launcher at 60o and fire one shot at the wall. Circle the pattern and label each spot
“max”. Leave the paper in place.

6. Measure the height from surface to hitting spot using meter scale.
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7. Repeat for angle of 25o, 30o, 35o, 45o, 50o, 55o and 60o.

Observations and Calculations

Part 1: Muzzle/ Initial velocity, Time of flight and Range
Table 1: The values of muzzle/ initial velocity, time of flight, predicted range, and measured range of the
projectile at 0 degree from a certain height (Δy = -1m) using different clicks of mini launcher,
respectively.

S. No. No. of Clicks VInitial (m/s) Time of flight (s) RPredicted (m) = VInitial x RMeasured (m)
Time of flight

1 3 5.59 0.426 2.381 2.48

2 3 5.61 0.427 2.203 2.49

3 3 5.63 0.429 2.415 2.43

4 2 4.31 0.429 1.848 1.87

5 2 4.30 0.433 1.861 1.49

6 2 4.27 0.408 1.742 1.79

7 1 3-31 0.414 1.37 1.38

8 1 3.31 0.433 1.433 1.45

9 1 3.30 0.433 1.428 1.45

At 3 clicks:
Average of VInitial = 5.61 m/s; Average of RMeasured = 2.46667 m
Average of RPredicted = 2.33 m

Error = 6.008 %3
at
2 clicks:
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Average of VInitial = 4.2933 m/s Average of RMeasured = 1.7166 m

Average of RPredicted = 1.817 m

Error = 5.5
11click:

Average of VInitial = 3.306 m/s Average of RMeasured = 1.4267 m

Average of RPredicted = 1.4106 m

Error = 1.14 %

Part 2: Launching at an Angle on Plane

Create two calculations in PASCO software:

𝒗 = ([𝒗𝟏]𝟐 − 𝟐 × 𝒈 × 𝟎. 𝟎𝟑𝟓 × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 ([𝜽]))𝟎.𝟓

Predicted Range (PRange)

Table 2: The values of initial velocity, calculated velocity, predicted range, and measured range of the
projectile at various angles on a plane (Δy = 1m) using 1st click of mini launcher, respectively.
θ V1 (m/sec) V (m/sec) PRange (m) MRange (m)

25o 3.19 3.14 0.772 0.83

35o 3.15 3.09 0.913 0.99
45o 3.11 3.03 0.937 1.5

55o 3.09 299 0.855 0.98

65o 3.06 2.96 0.774 0.78

Part 3: Launching an Angle from Height

Corrected velocity (Vcor)
𝒗𝒄𝒐𝒓 = ([𝒗𝟑]𝟐 − 𝟐 × [(𝒈)] × 𝟎. 𝟎𝟔𝟑 × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 ([𝜽]))𝟎.𝟓
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Theoretical Time of Flight (Tflight)

𝟐 𝟎.𝟓

𝑻𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 = ([𝒗𝒄𝒐𝒓] × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 ([𝜽]) + (([𝒗𝒄𝒐𝒓] × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 ([𝜽])) − 𝟐 × [∆𝒚] × [(𝒈)] ) ⁄[(𝒈)]

Theoretical Range (TRange)

𝑻𝑹𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆 = [𝒗𝒄𝒐𝒓] × 𝑪𝒐𝒔 ([𝜽]) × [𝑻𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕]
Table 3: The values of initial velocity, corrected velocity, time of flight, theoretical range, and measured
range of the projectile at various degrees from a certain height (Δy = -1m) using 3 rd click of mini
launcher, respectively.

Angle V3 (m/s) VCor (m/s) Time of flight (s) TRange (m) ERange (m)

-20o 5.73 5.77 0.283 1.53 1.48

-10 o 5.63 5.65 0.351 1.95 1.93

0o 5.55 5.65 0.440 2.44 2.42

10o 5.52 5.50 0.545 2.97 3.06

20o 5.55 5.51 0.673 3.48 3.62

30o 5.52 5.51 0.799 3.78 3.97

35o 5.48 5.41 0.859 3.81 4.02

45o 5.51 5.39 0.981 3.77 3.94

50o 5.48 5.43 1.031 3.57 3.76

60o 5.45 5.35 1.118 2.99 3.12

Average of VInitial = 5.53 m/s; Average of Erange = 3.21 m Average

of Trange = m

Error = 3.54 %
Plot the graphs between TRange vs. Angle and ERange vs. Angle.

Part 4: Maximum Height of the Projectile

𝒗𝜽 = √(𝒗𝟐)𝟐 − 𝟐 × 𝒈 × 𝟎. 𝟎𝟒𝟖 × 𝑺𝒊𝒏 (𝜽)
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Table 4: The values of initial velocity, calculated velocity, and maximum height of the projectile at
various angles on a plane using 2nd click of mini launcher, respectively.

θ V2 (m/sec) Vθ (m/sec) Maximum Height (m)

25o 4.25 4.20 0.16

30o 4.23 4.17 0.24
35o 4.20 4.13 0.33

45o 4.16 4.07 0.48

50o 4.17 4.08 0.54
55o 4.16 4.06 0.62
60o 4.15 4.05 0.68

Average of Vθ = 4.17 m/s

RESULT AND DISCIUSSION:

PART 1 AND 2:
We determined the muzzle velocity, time flight and range of projectile and we also to determine the
projected range 0.937m/s and measured range is 1.5 m of projectile at various launching angle
on a plane and we plot a graph :
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PART 3 AND 4
WE DETERMINE the time of flight and experimental range of projectile at various launching angle on a
plane and we also determine the maximum height off the projectile at various launching angle on a plane.

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS:
A minimum of 4 members per team for this experiment, with the following responsibilities:
• 2 members will block access to flight path from either side.
• 1 member will cock the ballistic pendulum.
• 1 member will fire the ballistic pendulum. Put on safety glasses! They must remain on for the entire
experiment.
Rotate responsibilities as you progress through the experiment. Failure to follow safety precautions will
result in your dismissal from lab, zero grade.

Comments:
It experiment is very interested, I am enjoying it but determining of range with the help of measuring tape
and is very difficult it take much more time because minor of mistake are cause of error. And carefully
we also determine t the maximum height of projectile. The error of part of experiment is 19.5 and other
is 3.5 so it no need to repeat that experiment .