Position-Time Graph for Uniform and Non-Uniform Motion
Introduction:
Have you ever wondered how you might use a graph to describe the motion of an object? In this
activity, you will investigate the shapes of graphs of three different kinds of motion: uniform motion
(constant speed and direction), and non-uniform motion (speeding up, and slowing down).
Purpose:
To investigate position-time graph and different type of motions.
Procedure:
Part (a): uniform motion
1) Organize into groups of 7 or 8
2) Obtain 4 stopwatches (or use your own if you have one), a tape measure, and some
masking tape
3) Designate one person as the “walker”, one as the “data recorder”, and the other as
the “timer/position markers”. Locate yourselves in a long, empty hallway, and
setup as in the diagram below (Use masking tape to help mark the position)
recorder
walk
0m 2m 4m 6m 8m
4) The walker starts walking toward the first timer/position marker, at a steady
walking pace. As he/she passes the first marker, the marker yells, “Start!”, and all
other markers start their timers.
5) As the walker passes each subsequent marker, that marker stops his/her timer
6) Once the walker has passed all of the markers, the data recorder records each
marker’s time in a chart similar to the following. (Note: you may want to do a few
trials before collecting your data.)
Timer Position of Marker from Start Time (s)
1 2m
2 4m
3 6m
4 8m
Part (b): non-uniform motion – speeding up
Repeat the same procedure as part (a) except the walker starts out walking slowly, and
gradually speeds up until he/she passes the last marker.
Part (c): non-uniform motion – slowing down
Repeat the same procedure as part (a) except the walker begins at high speed and
gradually slows down until he/she has passed the last marker. Note: the walker should
start several meters before the first marker, so that he/she has a chance to build up
speed before passing the first marker.
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Question:
(i) From each of the 3 parts, a set of position-time graph is collected. These are like x-y
ordered pairs from math class. On a piece of graph paper, create a vertical “position” axis,
and a horizontal “time” axis. Use a scale which will enable you to fit all three sets of data
on one graph, for comparison purposes. Plot the data.
(ii) For each set of data, draw a line of best fit or curve of best fit (choose the one that is most
appropriate). Note: the line or curve of best fit need not pass through each data point! It
needs only to go through as much as possible.
(iii) In your words, describe the shape of the position-time graphs (henceforth to be referred
to as “ d - t graph”) for objects which move at a constant speed, or speed up, or slow
down. Also, explain why they have the shapes you described.
(iv) For the first run, your data points should fall on a roughly straight line (assuming your
walker did in fact walk at constant speed!) Calculate the slope of this line (slope = rise/run)
(v) Calculate the average velocity of the entire walk for each part, using the formula:
d
v av
t
(vi) Compare your answers from each part and make a conclusion about the significance of the
slope of a d - t graph, and the average speed of the object whose motion is being described.
(vii) What are some of the possible source of error in this experiment? Explain how you could
improve the experiment with each possible source of error.
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