The Engineering Of A Trebuchet Essay

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The Engineering of a Trebuchet To understand all the works and Physics behind a trebuchet, you must first understand all the individual parts of the trebuchet. Corresponding with most machines, the trebuchet is made up of different parts each having their own unique function. The five parts of the trebuchet are; the frame, the arm (or beam), the counterweight, the sling, and the guide chute (“How the Trebuchet Catapult Works”). Additionally, corresponding with most machines each part of the trebuchet can manipulated to create a different output. Meaning that, each part can be adjusted so that the trebuchet will have the outcome that the person engineering the machine wishes to achieve. The first part of the Trebuchet is the frame (“How a Trebuchet Catapult Works”). The frame of a trebuchet usually has a rectangular bottom with triangular shaped brackets. Frames act as the support for the trebuchet, as the arm of the trebuchet moves and the weight falls, it keeps the entire machine from toppling to either side. If the trebuchet built has a larger counterweight, than the frame should most likely be built to be able to support the weight. This can be done by adding more brackets and maybe user thicker wood (or whatever material you choose). However, …show more content…

The parts of a trebuchet, work with Newton’s first three laws; to state simply, anything at rest stays at rest while anything in motion stays in motion unless something acts upon them. This law is used as gravity causes the counterweight to free fall, the momentum of this object builds up potential energy as the arm rotates around the fulcrum. Then, Newton’s Third law as the counterweight falls, the sling (on the other end of the beam) rotates up, then the potential energy is turned into kinetic energy as the projectile is released from the sling and

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