Normal force on incline plane
Seeing Forces
This applet demonstrates the component forces acting on a block sitting on a sloped surface.
Fg (the force of gravity) can be decomposed into Fpar (the force of gravity parallel to the slope) and Fperp(the force of gravity perpendicular to the slope). Fperp in turn causes the normal force Fn, and Ff (friction force).
The forces (Fg, Fn and Ff) together determine the net force on the object. In this simulation the net force is zero because the forces cancel out.
Will it slide?
Move the point P to change the slope angle. Notice which forces get larger and smaller as the slope increases.
Which force gets larger as the angle goes close to 90°?
Move the point to find out which force grows with the slope.
Explain in your own words why this force gets bigger with a large slope.
What happens in the real world?
You already know what would happen. At some point the slope is so steep the the block will start to slide (or fall). This is because the static friction force has limits depending on the properties of the surface defined by Fn. A
To learn more about sliding go to this app: [tba]
To learn more about tipping or falling go to this app: [tba]