Teachers

Sarwat Sultana
Amrita Shahab
Kinematics
The study of motion in
One Dimension
 Syllabus
Cambridge O Level
Mathematics (Syllabus D) 4024
 Motion Graphs
• d-t distance/displacement vs. time

• v-t speed/velocity vs. time

• a-t acceleration vs. time

 Distance (d) -Time (t) Graphs
A distance-time graph shows the motion
of a certain object in line graph form.

•Time always runs horizontally (the x-axis).

•The arrow shows the direction of time. The further to the
right, the longer time from the start.
•Distance runs vertically (the y-axis).
•The higher up the graph we go, the further we are from
the start.
 Distance (d) -Time (t) Graphs
When a distance-time
graph is drawn the
gradient of the graph
gives the speed of the   𝑟 𝑖 𝑠𝑒
   
𝐷𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒  𝑆 𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑
𝑠𝑙𝑜𝑝𝑒 = = =¿
object.  D
𝑟 𝑢𝑛
 
𝑇 𝑖𝑚𝑒
 

SLOPE or
GRADIENT = SPEED 
(higher slope = faster t
speed)
Distance (d) -Time (t) Graphs
Time (s) Distance (m) The slope of a
0 0 distance-time
1 2 graph is the speed
2 4
3 6
4 8
5 8
6 8
7 8
8 8
9 12
10 16
 Distance-Time Graphs
S=D÷T
=0÷4
= 0 m/s

S=D÷T
=8÷4 S=D÷T
= 2 m/s =8÷2
= 4 m/s
 Distance-Time Graphs

Constant speed Constant speed No

(moving away) speed
(moving closer) (standing still)

(and faster!)
 Interpreting Velocity on a Graph
You can use the slope Distan ce [m]
of a line to find Velocity Velocity 
Time [ s ]
15 m

More Distance
Distance

In Less Time
10 m (Faster)

5m
Less Distance
In More Time
(Slower)

5s 10 s 15 s
Think of the Velocity graph this way:Time
Which one of these balls will fall faster?
The graph with more steepness is the faster velocity. The less steep, the slower.
Interpreting a D-T Graph (1)
Analysis:
• The distance (m)
stays the same as the
time (s) increases
Distance (m)

• Therefore, the object

is at rest (not
moving)
Time (s)
 Interpreting a D-T Graph (2)
Distance (m) • The object is moving away from the reference point
• 2 constant speeds, one faster, one slower
• The distance (m) from a reference point is
increasing

Time (s)

• The distance (m) increasing as time (s) passes

Distance (m)

• The distance gets larger and larger with each second

• This shows (+) acceleration

Time (s)
 Interpreting a D-T Graph (3)
Distance (m)

• The object is moving towards the reference

point
• The object is moving at a constant speed
• The object is moving slowly
Time (s)

• The distance (m) decreasing as time (s) passes

Distance (m)

• The distance gets smaller & smaller with each

second
• This shows (-) acceleration

Time (s)
Interpreting a D-T Graph (4)
• In Part A, the object is moving
away at a constant speed
• In Part B, the object is at rest
Distance (m)

B
• In Part C, it is moving towards
at constant speed
A C

Time (s)
 Speed (v) -Time (t) Graphs

When a speed-time
graph is drawn two
quantities are Steady velocity
obtained
1) acceleration = the Steady deceleration
gradient of the graph
Steady acceleration
2) distance travelled
= area under graph
 Speed (v) -Time (t) Graphs
Slope = acceleration Area under curve = distance/displacement
 Velocity-time graphs
Acceleration can be calculated by the gradient of a velocity:time graph. (Remember
gradient is the difference up divided by the difference across)

80 Calculate the acceleration for each

of the 4 sections of the graph.

60
Velocity
m/s 40

20

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
Acceleration can be calculated by the gradient of a velocity:time graph. (Remember
gradient is the difference up divided by the difference across)

80 Acceleration = V - U Calculate the acceleration for each

t of the 4 sections of the graph.

60
Velocity
m/s 40

20

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
Acceleration can be calculated by the gradient of a velocity:time graph. (Remember
gradient is the difference up divided by the difference across)

80 Calculate the acceleration for each

of the 4 sections of the graph.

60
Velocity
m/s 40

20 Acceleration = 40 - 0 = 4m/s2
10

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
Acceleration can be calculated by the gradient of a velocity:time graph. (Remember
gradient is the difference up divided by the difference across)

80 Calculate the acceleration for each

of the 4 sections of the graph.

60
Velocity
m/s 40

20 Acceleration = 0 (no change in

velocity)

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
Acceleration can be calculated by the gradient of a velocity:time graph. (Remember
gradient is the difference up divided by the difference across)

80 Calculate the acceleration for each

of the 4 sections of the graph.

60
Velocity
m/s 40

20 Acceleration = 20 - 0 = 2m/s2
10

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
Acceleration can be calculated by the gradient of a velocity:time graph. (Remember
gradient is the difference up divided by the difference across)

80 Calculate the acceleration for each

of the 4 sections of the graph.

60
Velocity
m/s 40

20 Acceleration = 0 - 60 = -3m/s2
20

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
On a velocity – time (or speed – time) graph, the area under the line is numerically
equal to the distance travelled.

80

60
Velocity
m/s 40

20

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
On a velocity – time (or speed – time) graph, the area under the line is numerically
equal to the distance travelled.

80

60
Velocity
m/s 40

20

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
On a velocity – time (or speed – time) graph, the area under the line is numerically
equal to the distance travelled.

80

60 Area =
Velocity 200m2

m/s 40

20

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
On a velocity – time (or speed – time) graph, the area under the line is numerically
equal to the distance travelled.

80
Area =
400m2
60 Area =
Velocity 200m2

m/s 40

20

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
On a velocity – time (or speed – time) graph, the area under the line is numerically
equal to the distance travelled.

80
Area =
400m2
60 Area =
Velocity 200m2

m/s 40

Area =
20 400m2

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
On a velocity – time (or speed – time) graph, the area under the line is numerically
equal to the distance travelled.

80
Area =
Area = 100m2
400m2
60 Area =
Velocity 200m2

m/s 40

Area =
20 400m2

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
On a velocity – time (or speed – time) graph, the area under the line is numerically
equal to the distance travelled.

80
Area =
Area = 100m2
400m2
60 Area =
Velocity 200m2

m/s 40

Area = Area =
20 400m2 600m2

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50
 Velocity-time graphs
On a velocity – time (or speed – time) graph, the area under the line is numerically
equal to the distance travelled.

80
Area =
Area = 100m2
400m2
60 Area =
Velocity 200m2

m/s 40

Area = Area =
20 400m2 600m2

0 Time/s
10 20 30 40 50

The total distance travelled = 200 + 400 + 400 + 100 + 600 = 1700m
Distance/time graph Speed(velocity)/time
graph
Example 1

A car starts a journey from rest. It moves with constant acceleration for 20 seconds until it reaches a speed
of 15m/s. It then moves at a constant speed of 15m/s for 40 seconds.
(a) On the grid, draw the speed–time graph for the car’s journey.
(b) Calculate the acceleration of the car in the first 20 seconds of the journey.
Example 2

A train started from station A and travelled to station B 8 km from A. The table below show the readings of
the time, in minutes, since leaving station A and the corresponding distance, in km, from A.

Time
(in minutes) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Distance
0.3 1.1 2.3 4.8 6.8 7.4 7.8 8.0
(in km)

a) Using a scale of 2 cm to represent 2 minutes on the horizontal axis and 2 cm to represent 2 km on the
vertical axis, plot the points given in the table and join them with a smooth curve.

b) Use your graph to estimate the time taken to travel the first 4 km of the journey.

c) Find the approximate speed of the train 5 minutes after it has left station A.
 b) From the graph the time taken to travel the first 4
km of the journey is 3.8 minutes. (Ans.)

c) E is the point the train reaches 5 minutes after it has

left station A. The gradient of the tangent at point E
gives the speed at that particular point, hence the speed
of the train 5 minutes after it has left station A.
 
From the graph,
=

Speed = 1.11 km/minute = 66.6 km/h (Ans.)

 Practice
New Syllabus Mathematics
Book 4
Revision Ex. 6F (pg. 253 to 257)
# 5, 7, 9, 10, 13, 14, 17 & 18.