280 Maths Quest 12 Mathematical Methods

6G Trigonometric modelling

d WORKED 1 Competition is severe, so Fred Greenseas decides that he will catch more fish in an
hca Example
inlet several kilometres east of the place where John North fishes. There is a
Mat

22
Function sandbar at the entrance to the inlet and the depth of water in metres on the sandbar
grapher
πt
is modelled by the function d(t) = 6 + 2.5 sin ----- where t is the number of hours
6
reads
L Sp he after 12 noon.
et
EXCE

Function
a What is the greatest depth of the water on the sandbar and when does it first occur?
grapher b How many hours pass before there is once again the maximum depth of water on
the sandbar?
c What is the least amount of water on the sandbar?
d Sketch the graph of d for 0 ≤ t ≤ 24.
e Fred Greenseas needs a depth of 7.25 metres to cross the sandbar. Between what
hours is he able to enter and leave the inlet?
2 A student wanting to catch fish to sell at a local market on Sunday has discovered that
more fish are in the water at the end of the pier when the depth of water is greater than
π
8.5 metres. The depth of the water (in metres) is given by d = 7 + 3 sin --- t, where t
6
hours is the number of hours after midnight on Friday.
a What is the maximum and minimum depth of the water at the end of the pier?
b Sketch a graph of d against t from midnight on Friday until midday on Sunday.
c When does the water first reach maximum depth?
d Between what hours should the student be on the pier in order to catch the most
fish?
e If the student can fish for only two hours at a time, when should she fish in order
to sell the freshest fish at the market from 10.00 am on Sunday morning?
3 The mean daily maximum temperature in Tarabon, an experimental town in a glass
π
dome, is modelled by the function T(m) = 18 + 7 cos --- m, where T is in degrees
6
Celsius and m is the number of months after 1 January 1997.
a What was the mean daily maximum temperature in March 1997, and in August 1997?
b What is the highest mean daily maximum temperature in Tarabon? In which
months does it occur?
c What would the mean daily maximum temperature be in February 1998?
d If the pattern continued, how many months would pass before the mean daily
maximum temperature would be the same again as it was in February 1998?
4 The height above the ground of the middle of a skipping rope as it is being turned in
a child’s game is found by using the equation h = a sin nt + c, where t is the number
of seconds after the rope has begun to turn. During the game, the maximum height the
rope reaches is 1.8 metres and it takes 2 seconds for the rope to complete a full turn.
a Find the values of a, n and c and hence write the equation of h in terms of t.
b Sketch the graph of h against t for 0 ≤ t ≤ 5.
c After how much time from the beginning of the turn will the rope be 25 cm above
the ground? Give your answer correct to the nearest tenth of a second.
 Chapter 6 Circular (trigonometric) functions 281
5 The graph at right shows the path of a small lizard as it y
runs over a hill. y = 1 – cos π–4 x
a Calculate the height of the hill, in metres, and hence
find the amplitude of the trigonometric function.
b If the ground was flat, how far would the lizard run to
reach the same spot on the other side of the hill? 0 x
Hence, find the period of the function.
6 When Sloane and Michael were
riding on a Ferris wheel, they realised h
that as the wheel turned clockwise, h = 34
the height of their seat in metres after 30
t minutes could be modelled by the 25
function h(t) = a − b cos nt. 20
The graph of h against t is shown 15
for the whole ride. 10
a State the values of a, b and n. 5
h=2
b Write down the rule for h(t). 0 3 6 9 12 15 t
c How many times do Sloane and
Michael reach the highest point
during their ride and how far
above the ground is it?
d How high are they when the ride
begins to move?
e How many minutes pass before
they are at this point again?
f How far above the ground are
they after 1 minute?
g If the ride began when the boys
were at the height found in part f,
what would the function become?
h Draw a graph of the new function
for the first 6 minutes of the ride.

7 On a summer day the hourly temperature, which can be approximated to a cosine

curve, was recorded. The maximum temperature was 30°C and occurred at 3.00 pm.
The minimum temperature was 10°C and occurred at 3.00 am. The temperature was
first recorded at 12 midnight, then every hour for 24 hours.
a What is the amplitude of the function?
b What is the period of the function?
c What is the middle value of the function?
d How far has this middle value been translated upwards from the x-axis?
e When do the maximum and minimum temperatures occur?
f Using the above, write an equation that will model this function.
g Check the accuracy of your work by using your equation to find the temperature
after 3, 9, 15 and 21 hours.
h What is the temperature at midnight? Give your answer correct to the nearest
degree. Check that your answer makes sense.