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    krishnaguna's Avatar
    krishnaguna Posts: 1, Reputation: 1
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    #1

    Mar 18, 2010, 04:06 AM
    What is the direction of resultant force
    I know how to find magnitude of resultant of two forces . But I was doubt what is the direction of resultant force?
    ebaines's Avatar
    ebaines Posts: 12,131, Reputation: 1307
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    #2

    Mar 18, 2010, 11:06 AM

    One technique is this:

    1. Break each force into its x-component and y-component.

    2. Sum up the x-component forces to get an Fx_total.

    3. Sum up the y-component forces to get an Fy_total.

    4. The resultant force is found using Pythagorus:

    F_total = sqrt(Fx_total^2 + Fy_total ^2)

    The direction is found using the arc tangent:

    Theta = ArcTan(Fy_total/Fx_total)

    You will need to check the value of theta to make sure that it's in the appropriate quadrant (plus or minus 180 degrees).
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