b Physics 211 Lab

Lab

9 Ballistic Pendulum
What You Need To Know:
The Physics Today’s lab is not going to cover any new physics. However, based on
what you’ve learned in lecture and in lab, we will be combining together several
different physics concepts into a single problem.

“Combo” problems like this are easiest to solve if you first break down the problem
into stages. Typically there are two or three stages to a single problem. Each stage
relates to a particular physics concept. The different concepts that you’ve learned so
far are:

• Linear Motion
• Projectile Motion
• Summation of Forces
• Centripetal Forces
• Conservation of Energy
• Conservation of Momentum

As an example, we are going to discuss an apparatus called a ballistic pendulum.

There is one sitting on the desk in front of you. This one, however, is slightly more
complicated than the example we are going to use.

The ballistic pendulum was created to measure the “muzzle velocity” of a gun. In
other words, it measures the velocity of a bullet as it leaves a gun. The device
consists of a block that is suspended by cables. See Figure 1a. A gun is positioned
near the block and a bullet is fired horizontally into the block. The bullet embeds
itself into the block. The block swings up into the air a distance h. See Figure 1b.
After doing some calculations you would see that there is a direct relationship
between the velocity of the bullet and the height that the block swings.

EMBEDDED
BULLET
SPEEDING
BULLET
BLOCK

(a) (b)

FIGURE 1 – Ballistic Pendulum

Ballistic Pendulum Physics 211 Lab

This example would be a two stage combo problem. The 1st stage would be a
collision between the bullet and the block. The area of physics that this relates to is
conservation of momentum (a perfectly inelastic collision). We could do a
calculation that determines the velocity of the block/bullet after the collision based on
the velocity of the bullet as well as the masses of each. See Figure 2.

1st Stage 2nd Stage

Event: collision between block and bullet Event: block/bullet swinging up

Physics: conservation of momentum Physics: conservation of energy

0 0
Σ p = Σ pʹ KE ini. + PEini. = KE fin. + PE fin.
m bu. v bu. = (m bl. + m bu. ) vʹ 1 2
(m bu. + m bl. ) v ini. = (m bu. + m bl. )g h
2

vʹ = v ini.

FIGURE 2 – Stages for Combo Problem

When analyzing these combo problems it is useful to be clear on the beginning and
ending of each stage. The initial part of the 1st stage is the bullet approaching the
block. The final part of the 1st stage is after the collision, at which point the
block/bullet just begins to move up into the air. There is always a final piece of
information that you calculate at the end of a stage that becomes an initial piece for
the next stage. In this case, the final velocity of the block/bullet after the collision
becomes the initial velocity of the block/bullet as it begins its swing upward. See
Figure 2.

The initial part of the 2nd stage is right after the collision as the block/bullet begins its
swing into the air. The final part of the 2nd stage is when the block/bullet is stopped at
its highest point in its swing. The area of physics that this stage relates to is
conservation of energy. At the beginning of this stage all the energy is kinetic and by
the end of the stage the energy has turned into gravitational potential energy. See
Figure 2.

For this lab you will be working through two different combo problems. You will be
guided through the first process and then for the second one you will have to work it
out on your own.

The Equipment The ballistic pendulum LOCKING

KNOB
apparatus on your desk is a little different COMPRESSION
from the “block/bullet” one described above. SCREW

See Figure 3. Instead of a gun, you have a BALL SPRING

CATCHER LAUNCHER
spring launcher. Instead of a bullet, you have a
ball. Instead of a block, you have a ball catcher LEVEL
that swings up into the air and locks into place.

The first thing you should do before proceeding

is to make sure the device is level. There is a
level on the base of the device. See Figure 3. FIGURE 3 – Ballistic Pendulum
Under the base of the device there are rotatable
black feet that you can use to lower and raise the
device. Adjust the feet until the bubble in the level
is centered. See Figure 4.

You should also turn the compression screw (See FIGURE 4 – Feet
Figure 3) so that it goes all the way into the
device. There will be one or two threads showing when it’s in all the way.

What You Need To Do:

Part 1 – Guided Combo Problem Before
we discuss the stages for this problem, try out
the device by doing the following. Put the ball
at the end of the launcher and compress it in
until the red knob catches. Sometimes the red
RED
knob doesn’t engage completely, so after you KNOB
compress the spring, hold the red knob up with
your finger while you take your hand away.
See Figure 5. This way it won’t accidently
launch and slam into your hand.
FIGURE 5 – Arming the Launcher
Next, while the ball catcher arm is in the
vertical position, tighten the locking knob snuggly but not overly tight. See Figure 3.
The locking knob will allow the ball catcher to only swing up to its maximum height
and then hold it in position. It’s now armed and ready to go. Push down on the red
knob and observe what happens.

(Note: please do not move the ball catcher back to its vertical position while the
locking knob is tightened. This will strip the locking mechanism, and damage like
this could make the pendulum inoperable.)

Question 1 Based on what you observed, how many stages do you think there are in
this situation? What kind of physics does each stage use? Decide on your answer
before turning the page.
 There are three stages to this combo problem. The 1st stage is the launching of the
ball from the spring launcher. The 2nd stage is the collision between the ball and the
catcher. The 3rd stage is the ball and the ball catcher swinging up into the air.

The main objective for Part 1 of this lab is to measure the spring constant in the
launcher. You are going to be taking data on a variety of things in this section but
your main piece of data will be measuring the height to which the ball catcher swings
into the air. This means that for your calculations you will be working backwards,
since the quantity we want to know (the spring constant) is used in the first stage,
while the quantity you will measure (the height) appears only in the third stage.

In other words, you will be dealing with the last stage first and vice versa. You’ll
work backwards through the stages, using the result from stage 3 in the setup for stage
2, and then the result from stage 2 in the setup for stage 1.

3rd Stage The beginning of this stage takes place after the ball collides with the
catcher, just as it starts its swing into the air. The end of the stage takes place when
the catcher is at the peak of its swing. In this part, we will work backwards, relating
the final height to the velocity of the ball + catcher just as they start to swing.

A) You need an equation to calculate the velocity of the ball and catcher right as it
starts its swing based on the height it swings to. Determine this equation using
conservation of energy. Before proceeding, ask your TA to make sure you are
correct.

h
Trial h2
h2
1 h1
2
3
4
FIGURE 6
5
B) In the equation you derived you will need a value for
6 the height that the ball swings in the air. If you measure the height from the base of
Ave. h2 the device to the bottom of ball for each of its two locations, then you can subtract
these two values to get the height, h = h2 – h1. See Figure 6.
h1
h
vini. NOTE: All units should be in SI (meters and kilograms).

CHART 1 C) Make a data chart in your lab report like the one in Chart 1. Measure the initial
height, h1, and put it in the chart. (You only have to measure this once, since the
starting height will be the same every time.) Do six trials of launching the ball into
the catcher. Measure h2 each time and put the values in the chart.

D) Take the average of your h2 data and put it in the chart.

 E) Using your average h2 and the equation above, calculate h and put the value in the
chart.

F) Using the equation you derived in A), calculate the velocity of the ball and
catcher, vini., as it starts its swing. Place this value in your chart.

2nd Stage The beginning of this stage takes place after the ball has been launched
from the spring launcher, just before it collides with the catcher. The end of the stage
takes place after the ball collides with the catcher, just before it swings up into the air.

A) You need an equation to calculate the velocity of the ball right before it collides
with the catcher. Determine this equation using conservation of momentum.
Before proceeding, check with your TA to make sure that you are correct.
Object Mass
Ball
Catcher 116 g

v′
vball

CHART 2

B) Make a data table like the one in Chart 2.

C) Measure the mass of the ball and place this value in the chart. The mass of the
catcher is given on the device. It’s the same for everyone, so it’s already in the chart.
rd
E) The piece of information that you will use from the 3 Stage is the initial velocity
of the ball/catcher. This now becomes the final velocity after the collision, v′. Place
this value in your chart.

F) Using the equation you just derived, calculate the velocity of the ball, vball, right
before it collides with the catcher. Show your calculation below. Place this value in
your chart.
 1st Stage The beginning of this stage takes place right when you launch the ball from
the spring launcher. The end of the stage takes place right after the ball leaves the
launcher.

A) You need an equation to calculate the spring constant of the spring in the
launcher. Determine this equation using conservation of energy. You will need
1
vfin. the potential energy equation for a spring … PE = kx 2 . Before proceeding,
2
mball check with your TA to make sure you are correct.
x1
x2
x
k

CHART 3
B) Make a data table like the one in Chart 3.
nd
C) The piece of information that you will use from the 2 Stage is the initial velocity
of the ball before it collides with the catcher. This now becomes the final velocity of
the ball after it is launched. Place this value in your chart.

D) You will also need the mass of the ball that you
measured in the last section. Place this value in the
chart.
x1
E) The only data that you need to take for this
section is the compression distance for the spring, x.
When the launcher is un-armed, measure the distance
from the left side of the ball to the edge of the device,
x1. See Figure 7. Place this value in the chart. Now
compress and arm the launcher. Measure the x
distance from the left edge of the ball to the edge of x2
the device, x2, and put this value in the chart.
Subtract the two values to get x and place it in the
chart. NOTE: Please make sure you have read the
lab introduction before completing this step; it has
important information about correctly and safely FIGURE 7 – Measuring the
using the spring. compression distance
nd
F) Using the equation you just derived in A) and the result from the 2 Stage,
calculate the spring constant. Show your calculation below. Place this value in your
chart.
Part 2 – Combo Problem On Your Own You are now going to go through
basically the same procedure from Part 1 but for a somewhat different experiment.
However, unlike the last time, you are not going to be working backwards through the
stages, you will be working forwards.

A) Your combo problem will be to determine where on the floor the ball will land if
it is launched from the spring launcher. Determine how many stages this combo
problem has. Write out the stages in your lab report in the same way that it was
done in Figure 3. For each stage, write down what type of physics you are using
and also derive the equation for each stage. Check with your TA to see if your
equations are correct before you move on.

B) If a ball is launched horizontally from a height h, how long does the ball take to
hit the floor? Solve this problem algebraically.

C) If the same ball from part b takes time t to hit the floor when it has a horizontal
velocity v, at what horizontal distance D from the launch position does the ball hit
the floor? Solve this problem algebraically.

D) If a spring launcher with constant k is compressed a distance x , how fast is the

ball moving immediately after it is launched? Solve this problem algebraically.
E) Combine the results of A, B , C, and D to derive an equation for the horizontal
distance D that the ball moves in terms of things you know or can measure. Ask
your TA to check your result before continuing.

F) Before you start taking data you need to set up a few things. First, situate the
launcher so that it is right at the edge of the table. See Figure 8.

G) Second, you are going to adjust the compression distance of the spring launcher.
Currently, the compression screw should be all the way in. (If it’s not, then go back
and read the end of the intro to the lab and do your data over again.) Turn the
compression screw anywhere from 2 complete turns (360º) to no more than
5 complete turns. SPRING
LAUNCHER
You are going to reference where the ball
lands to a point on the floor that is
directly below the edge of the table. See
Figure 8. At the front of the lab there is
a plumb bob which you can hang from
the edge of the table. This will allow you TABLE
H
to find where the edge of the table is EDGE
relative to the floor. There is also tape at
the front of the lab that you can use to PLUMB
BOB
make a mark on once you find the
reference point with the plumb bob.
D

FIGURE 8
H) Based on your equations you should decide on what data you need to take. Make
your own chart to hold this data. Note that the height of the table is NOT the height,
H, in Figure 8. How should you measure H? (If you’re not sure why, please ask your
TA.) Keeping this in mind, take your data and fill out the chart.
I) Use your equations and your data to determine the distance, D. Note that the
horizontal distance that the ball travels from the launcher is NOT the distance, D, in
Figure 8. What is the correct way to measure D? Again, please ask your TA if you
aren’t sure why.

J) Get a piece of carbon paper and a piece of regular paper from the front of the lab.
Tape down the regular paper so that the center of the paper is at the distance, D, that
you calculated. Rest (do not tape) the carbon paper upside-down on top of this regular
paper.

K) Now you are going to run 5 trials of launching the ball. Make a data chart to hold
your data. Launch the ball. It should hit and make a carbon mark on the regular
paper. Measure the distance, D, from the carbon mark to your reference point from
the plumb bob, for each trial. Do this 5 times.

L) Take the average of your D data. Calculate a percent difference between this
value and the one you calculated in I).
M) Please turn the compression screw all the way back in before you leave.

What You Need To Turn In:

Questions and Calculations Along with your data, make sure that you include a
calculation where it asks for one. Also make sure you have answered all questions.