Forces and

Free-body
diagrams
Exploring Force Direction and Magnitude
Think About
It!
Suppose you and your peer need to
push a huge crate. How does the
movement of the crate change when
both of you push in the same direction
as opposed to when you and your peer
push in opposite directions?

Share your answers with your partner.

 Today, you
will:
Represent forces using force diagrams

Differentiate balanced and unbalanced forces

Describe how the size and direction of the

resultant force affect the motion of an object
 What can forces
do?
Forces are pushes or pulls that stem from the interaction between objects.

A force exerted on an object can cause changes in an object’s motion.

It can make an object:

1 2 3
Start or stop Speed up or Change its
moving slow down direction
 How do we represent
forces?
We use force diagrams to represent forces acting on objects.
Arrows are used in force diagrams to show:

SIZE OF THE DIRECTION OF

FORCE FORCE
The longer the arrow, An arrow pointing to
the larger the force the left means the force
is acting to the left.
 How do we represent
forces?
Remember to always label the forces the arrows represent and their sizes in
newtons. The newton (N) is the standard unit for force, named after the English
physicist and mathematician Isaac Newton.

Reaction force
Pushing force
of the surface
(500 N)
(100 N)

Weight of
the crate
(100 N)

A person pushing a A crate on a surface

trolley
 Try This!
What are the forces acting on the objects shown, and how would
their force diagrams appear?

A ball floating in the A ball hanging from a

water rope
ANSWER
KEY
Try This!
What are the forces acting on the objects shown, and how would
their force diagrams appear?

Upthrust of the
water Pull of the rope

Weight of the
ball
Weight of the ball

A ball floating in the A ball hanging from a

water rope
 What is a Free Body
Summary:
Diagram?
A simplified visual representation of an object and the forces acting on

it

• Shows the object as a point or simple shape

• Represents forces as arrows

• Arrow length indicates the relative magnitude of the force

• Arrow direction shows the direction of the force

 How to Draw a Free-body
Diagram
1.Isolate the object of interest

2.Represent the object as a point or simple shape

3.Identify all forces acting on the object

4.Draw arrows to represent each force

5.Label each force with its type and magnitude by arrow length and value (if

known). Equal forces should be the same length

 How to Interpret a Free-body
Diagram
Each arrow represents a force vector
• Vector components:
• Direction: Shown by arrow direction
• Magnitude: Represented by arrow length

Forces can be categorized as:

• Contact forces (e.g., friction, normal force)
• Non-contact forces (e.g., gravity, magnetism)

Multiple forces can act simultaneously on an object

The arrangement of forces provides insights into the object's motion

Common Types of
Forces
 Gravity Always points downward

(weight):
Normal Perpendicular to the surface of
contact, the supporting force
Force:

Spring Perpendicular to the surface of

contact, the supporting force
Force:
 Parallel to the surface, opposes motion.
Frictio Depends on surface texture and mass of
object
n:

Tensio Force exerted by a rope or string

n:
Applied Any force directly applied to an
object
Force:
 Example #1
A book is at rest on a tabletop. Diagram the forces acting on the book.
 Example #2
A flying squirrel is gliding (no wing flaps) from a tree to the ground at constant velocity.
Consider air resistance. Diagram the forces acting on the squirrel.
 Practice #1
An egg is free-falling from a nest in a tree. Neglect air resistance. Diagram the forces
acting on the egg as it is falling.
 Practice #2
A gymnast holding onto a bar, is suspended motionless in mid-air. The bar is supported
by two ropes that attach to the ceiling. Diagram the forces acting on the combination of
gymnast and bar.
 How to Interpret a Free-body
Diagram
• Balanced forces: When net force is zero, object is at rest or moving at constant

velocity

• Unbalanced forces: When net force is not zero, object accelerates

• Vector addition: Sum all force vectors to find the net force

• Direction of motion: Determined by the direction of the net force

Balanced Reaction force of

Forces the surface

(15 N)
Forces are balanced when two
forces acting on an object are of the
same size and act in opposite
directions. In this scenario, the
resultant force is zero.

The resultant force is the overall

Weight of
force acting on an object when two the books
or more forces are combined. (15 N)
 Balanced Forces
When balanced forces act When balanced forces act on a
on an object at rest, it moving object, it moves at a constant
remains stationary. speed in the same direction.

Reaction force Drag Thrust

of the surface (2,000 N) (2,000 N)
(15 N)
Weight of the
books
(15 N)
 Learning
Check
Determine whether each statement is TRUE or FALSE. If false,
suggest an alternative statement to make it correct.

1 2
If an object is stationary,
If an object is moving, a
no forces are pushing or
force must be acting on it.
pulling it.
ANSWER
KEY

Learning
FALSE
Check FALSE
1 2
If an object is stationary,
If an object is moving, a
no forces are pushing or
force must be acting on it.
pulling it.

An object at rest usually has many

If an object is moving, no
forces acting on it, including
force is necessary to keep it
gravity and air resistance (or drag)
moving, but a force is needed to
and the upward force of the
make it stop or change direction.
surface the object is sitting on.
 Unbalanced Forces
Box starts moving
We can say that forces are to the right

unbalanced when two (or more)

forces acting on an object are not
equal in size. This means that the
resultant force is no longer zero.

Unbalanced forces cause changes in

the motion of an object. Friction Pushing force
(100 N) (200 N)
 Unbalanced Forces
Unbalanced forces can speed up or slow down
Unbalanced forces cause
an object. They can also change the direction
a stationary object to
of a moving object. Unbalanced forces causes
move.
the object to accelerate or decelerate
Crate starts
moving to the right
Car speeds up to
the right

Drag Thrust
(1,000 N) (3,000 N)

Friction Pushing force

(300 N) (500 N)
 Unbalanced Forces
The change in motion of a moving object depends on the
direction of the resultant force.

The truck speeds up to the left The truck slows down

1,000 3,000 N 2,000 1,000 N

N N

Resultant force = 3,000 N + (-1,000 Resultant force = 1,000 N + (-2,000

N) N)
= 2,000 N = -1,000 N
 Forces Around Us

TUG OF WAR RIDING THE

SKATEBOARD
Winning the tug of war requires an To initiate movement or increase speed
unbalanced force. The team that exerts on a skateboard, an unbalanced force
the larger force wins. is generated by pushing against the
ground with your foot.
Learning
Check
You kick a stationary soccer ball,
and it starts rolling forward.
Then, it hits a muddy area and
slows down until it stops. Why
did the ball stop when it hit the
mud?
 ANSWER
KEY

Learning
Check
The ball stops because the mud
creates friction—a force that acts
opposite to the direction the ball is
moving.

The forces on the ball are

unbalanced, causing the motion of
the object to change.
 Summary

A force is a push or a pull Forces are considered When forces acting on

resulting from the balanced when they are an object are not the
interaction between the same size and act in same size, it indicates
forces. Force diagrams opposite directions. that the forces are
can represent these unbalanced,
forces.
potentially leading to
changes in the object's
motion.
Assignment
Observe and write about at least
three real-world scenarios where you
see these principles of force and
motion at play.

How do the direction and size of

forces affect the motion of objects?

Create a poster in Canva to present

your observations.
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