Uniform Acceleration and Non Uniform Acceleration

Non uniform acceleration might be thought of as acceleration that is different at the beginning and end of the time considered. This might be taken to mean, for instance, that an object’s speed is different at the end of a time interval than it was at the beginning of the time interval. However, this may be misleading by confusing the acceleration that an object actually experiences over a time interval with the change in the speed of the object over this time interval. The idea that a non uniform acceleration signal is simply a change in speed over time would not hold true if one took into consideration the change in speed over this time interval as well as the actual acceleration experienced by an object during this time interval. Uniform acceleration does not refer to a lack of changes in speed over time or distance. Uniform acceleration means that acceleration experienced at a particular point in time is the same everywhere. In other words, acceleration is constant during any time interval and this acceleration may be thought of as being constant over a distance as well. Examples of uniform acceleration include constant speed in a straight line and an object affected by gravity.

A ball thrown upwards and falling back does not have non-uniform acceleration: it has a directed motion and its speed changes, but the change is constant, so the acceleration is uniform. In contrast, a car going around a curve has non-uniform acceleration because the direction (the angle between direction of motion and the tangent to the path) is not constant; this means that the acceleration actually changes over time, even though it might average out to a constant value.

What is Uniform Acceleration?

Uniform acceleration is the average acceleration that an object experiences throughout a time interval. The acceleration has a constant magnitude and direction over the same time interval.

In other words, uniform acceleration is the acceleration that an object feels throughout an infinitive amount of time, regardless of whether or not it changes at all.

The term uniform comes from Latin: “un” = one and “forma” = form. It means that the acceleration is always constant and it acts uniformly over all space in a physical system.

Even though the velocity of uniform acceleration can change over time, in a given instant the magnitude of it is always constant.

In physics, acceleration is defined as a measure of the rate of change in velocity . For example, if an object moves from point A to point B, and along the way its velocity changes due to different forces or applied torques, then it experiences acceleration.

When an object undergoes uniform acceleration, this means that its speed (or velocity) stays constant over an infinitive amount of time.

What is Non Uniform Acceleration?

An object that undergoes acceleration that is different at the beginning and end of a time interval isn’t accelerating uniformly. The acceleration has a non-constant magnitude, or direction, or both over the same time interval.

Non uniform acceleration always refers to the application of force over a given period of time.

The term non-uniform comes from Latin: “non” = not and “forma” = form. It means that the acceleration is not always constant and it acts in different ways over different spaces in a physical system.

Examples of non uniform acceleration: a ball thrown upwards and falling back, a car going around a curve, and an object affected by gravity.

The magnitude of the acceleration can change within each infinitive time interval but the direction is constant over the same infinitive time interval. So, although in some cases there are changes in acceleration, in others there are not. Even though speed is changing, there is uniform acceleration throughout the whole period of time in which the velocity is changing.

Difference between uniform acceleration and non uniform acceleration

1) Uniform acceleration refers to the average acceleration that an object experiences throughout a time interval. The acceleration has a constant magnitude and direction over the same time interval.

2) On the other hand, non uniform acceleration refers to the application of force over a given time period. The magnitude of non uniform acceleration can change throughout the same time period while its direction is always constant over the same period of time.

3) Uniform Acceleration –> A body is moving with a specified velocity and changing its condition or state of motion with respect to time or space .

Non uniform acceleration–>The average force applied in a specified direction on an object in motion increases or decreases at different intervals during that change in motion.

4) Uniform Acceleration –> The acceleration is the rate of change of velocity.

Non uniform acceleration–>The average force applied in a specified direction on an object in motion increases or decreases at different intervals during that change in motion.

5) Uniform Acceleration takes place when there are changes in both speed and direction over time, but the average change rate is constant.

6) On the other hand, non uniform acceleration means that there are changes in both speed and direction over time but the average change rate is not constant.

7) Uniform Acceleration does not refer to a lack of changes in speed over time or distance. Uniform acceleration means that the acceleration is constant, but the direction and magnitude of the acceleration can change.

Conclusion:

In this article, we have seen the difference between uniform and non uniform acceleration. We discussed its definition, applications, and examples. The main difference between uniform and non uniform acceleration is that:

• Uniform acceleration refers to the average change in velocity throughout a given time interval, the magnitude of it is constant over the same time interval
• On the other hand, non uniform acceleration refers to the average force applied to an object in motion through a given time period (over which it changes its velocity)

In most common cases in physics, we can see that all things are moving with some speed at some point of time.