Question

What are the methods for finding out the resultant force for a given system of forces? Explain clearly the procedure for finding out the resultant force analytically.

Answer 1

Resultant force R is the vector sum of the different forces acting on the object

Explanation:

• When an object undergoes multiple forces, the resulting force is the force that produces the same acceleration as all of those forces alone.  
• For example, if 4 forces act on a block and cause it to accelerate 1 m / s2 south, then the resulting force is the force which will also accelerate 1 m / s2 south when applied alone to the block.  
• The reason the resulting force is useful is because it allows us to think of multiple forces as if they were a single force. This means that in order to determine the effect of multiple forces on an object, we only need to determine the effect that one force has.
• Experiments show that when an object is subject to several forces, F1, F2, ..., the resultant force R is the vector sum of those forces:

R = F1 + F2 + ...