4. A 75.0-kg man is riding an escalator in a shopping mall. The escalator moves the man at a constant velocity from ground level to the floor above, a vertical height of 4.60 m. What is the work done on the man by (a) the gravitational force and (b) the escalator?

 

The FEscal force is the force of the escalator acting on the person.  It would include the normal force and the force to accelerate the person up the incline of the escalator.  We are looking for the work done raising the person a vertical distance, so the horizontal or x component of the escalator does no work in the vertical direction.  So we break the escalator force up into x and y components and then we only need consider the work in the y direction.  We also know the escalator is moving at constant speed, so there is no acceleration in the y direction.

 

Sum of the forces provides

 

Work done by gravity

 

 

Work done by escalator

 

 

 

 

Please send any comments or questions about this page to ddonovan@nmu.edu

This page last updated on January 11, 2020