Almost all multi-body problems consist of two or more masses joined by cable and allowed to accelerate. In these the most common problem is to determine the acceleration.

Analysing the forces to find Fnet (whole system)

2)

Divide Fnet by system mass to find a3)

This is accomplished by 1) drawing an FBD

Determining Tension in a Multi-body SystemMonday, November 14, 201110:24 AM

Forces Page 1

Some multi-body systems ask you to determine the unknown force of tension (Ft) in the cable connecting masses. This is done by determining the acceleration of the whole system as above

PLUS

Drawing an FBD of a single mass to which the cable is attached4)Finding Fnet (single body) using Newton's 2nd Law5)Finding the Ft using the definition of Fnet6)

Determine the tension in the cable connecting masses in each previous example.

Forces Page 2

Forces Page 3