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A lever amplifies an input force to provide a greater output force, which is said to provide leverage, which is mechanical advantage gained in the system, equal to the ratio of the output force to the input force. As such, the lever is a mechanical advantage device, trading off force against movement.
This is the law of the lever, which Archimedes formulated using geometric reasoning. [2] It shows that if the distance a from the fulcrum to where the input force is applied (point A) is greater than the distance b from fulcrum to where the output force is applied (point B), then the lever amplifies the input force. If the distance from the ...
For example, if the load force on a lever is high enough, the lever will move backwards, moving the input arm backwards against the input force. These are called reversible , non-locking or overhauling machines, and the backward motion is called overhauling .
The relatively low vector force "B" is translated in a relatively high vector force "A". The force is thus increased in the ratio of the forces A : B, which is equal to the ratio of the distances to the fulcrum b : a. This ratio is called the mechanical advantage. This idealised situation does not take into account friction.
If a is the distance from the pivot to the point where the input force is applied and b is the distance to the point where the output force is applied, then a/b is the mechanical advantage of the lever. The fulcrum of a lever is modeled as a hinged or revolute joint. Wheel: The wheel is an important early machine, such as the chariot.
Compound levers can be constructed from first, second and/or third-order levers. In all types of compound lever, the rule is that force multiplied by the force arm equals the weight multiplied by the weight arm. The output from one lever becomes the input for the next lever in the system, and so the advantage is magnified.
Lever can be used to change the magnitude of a given mechanical signal, such as force or displacement. [1] Levers are widely used as mechanical amplifiers in actuators and generators. [12] It is a mechanism that usually consist of a rigid beam/rod fixed about a pivot. Levers are balanced when there is a balance of moment or torque about the pivot.
As the wheel and axle system rotates around its bearings, points on the circumference, or edge, of the wheel move faster than points on the circumference, or edge, of the axle. Therefore, a force applied to the edge of the wheel must be less than the force applied to the edge of the axle, because power is the product of force and velocity. [17]