How do you calculate the torque produced by a 60 N force acting on a bicycle pedal with a 16 cm long shaft?

To calculate the torque (
\( au \)
) produced when a force is applied at a distance from a pivot point, we can use the following formula:

Torque (
\( au \)
) = Force (
\( F \)
) × Distance (
\( r \)
) × sin(θ)

Where:


  • \( F \)
    = the magnitude of the force applied (in Newtons)

  • \( r \)
    = the distance from the pivot point to the point where the force is applied (in meters)
  • θ = the angle between the force vector and the lever arm (in degrees or radians)

In this scenario:

  • The force applied (
    \( F \)
    ) is 60 N.
  • The shaft of the pedal (
    \( r \)
    ) is 16 cm, which we need to convert into meters for our calculations. 16 cm is equal to 0.16 m.
  • If we assume that the force is applied perpendicular to the lever arm (which is typically the case when pedaling a bicycle), then the angle θ is 90 degrees, and sin(90°) equals 1.

Now we can plug these values into the formula:

Torque = 60 N × 0.16 m × sin(90°)

Torque = 60 N × 0.16 m × 1

Torque = 9.6 N·m

Therefore, the magnitude of the torque about point P when a 60 N force is applied to the bicycle pedal is 9.6 N·m.

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