Toy car stopping distance and angle variation investigation

The aim of this experiment is to ascertain how the stopping distance of a toy car is affected by the steepness of the angle of the ramp.

Diagram

Safety Measures

There aren't any safety aspects in this investigation.

Apparatus

During the experiment I used to the following equipment:

Ramp

2x Metre Rulers

Matchbox car

Boss + Clamp

Stand

Prediction

I predict that the steeper the ramp, the further the car will travel

Fair Test

To ensure that it was a fair test I made sure that any variables (such as the angle of the ramp for each of the three test runs or change in the surface area) were kept the same.

I tried each angle three times and took an average to get the most accurate results possible.

Method

I first set up the equipment in the way shown in the diagram. I then measured the angle of the ramp onto the ground using a protractor. I used the ramp at angles of 30*, 40* and 50* at a time.

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To get accurate results I will be performing the test 3 times at each angle. Once I set the equipment up, I ran the car down the ramp and measured how far it travelled with the metre ruler. I then recorded the results. To keep the test fair, I kept many of the variables the same, so I only used the same car, I used the same surface for the test , and I always let go of the car from exactly the same height. This made it so that each of my results would have taken under the same conditions and were accurate.

Results

The results were as follows:

Angle

1st Attempt

2nd Attempt

3rd Attempt

Average

30*

41cm

69cm

60cm

56.67cm

40*

93cm

84cm

100cm

92.34cm

50*

124cm

118cm

136cm

126cm

Conclusion

In this experiment I have found that the steeper the angle then the car will travel faster.

This is because gravity can have a greater effect on the car, as the ramp does not get in the way of gravity. This means gravity has more power over the car and can make it go faster down the ramp. When it leaves the ramp at a greater speed, the car will travel further because it has more kinetic energy and that means it will take a greater amount of force to stop it. My prediction was correct and although the when the cars hit the ground at too great an angle it slowed them down slightly (because they hit the ground front first and the wheels didn't touch the ground), overall I am happy with what I said.

Evaluation

I am quite happy with my experiments. I do not think it was 100% accurate and there were a few things I would change if given the opportunity. I would make the surface the car travelled on much more smooth so the car would not be impeded by anything and making it so the results where a fairer representation of what went on. I would make sure the car was in perfect working condition so that no energy was wasted. Each of my results is similar and that implies that the test was done accurately. If I could do the experiment again, I would do it with the angles and 5* intervals so I could get 6 different readings. This is because it was difficult to get a good picture of the results from a graph. It is difficult to tell if there is any correlation between the results on the graph because there is little to compare them against. Other than that , I have no complaints about this at all.