How is the Mechanical Advantage of a Wheel & Axle Determined?
Mechanical Advantage A wheel and axle is a simple machine that is used in many ways. Just for a few examples, the wheels on an automobile are connected to axles, just like the wheels at the top of a windmill. The wheel and axle provides mechanical advantage, which is defined as the ratio of the force that a simple machine puts out, compared to the force that is put into it. For instance, prying a nail from a board is a great deal easier when you use a crow bar (a lever) than when you use your fingers. That ease of effort is mechanical advantage at work. Formula Each simple machine has its own formula for determining the mechanical advantage that it provides. For a wheel and axle, the formula is the ratio of the radius of the wheel to the radius of the axle. As an example, examine a windlass (a device used to raise and lower an object via a rope, such as in wells that have a bucket). If the axle of the windlass has a 2-inch radius and the wheel has a 12-inch radius, you divide 12 (the r
