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The wheel and axle is a simple machine.
The wheel and axle consists of a handwheel (a disc or lever arm with a handle) that turns an axle around which a cord is wound. A heavy weight attached to the cord can be lifted more easily because of mechanical advantage. The wheel and axle can perhaps be considered as a first class lever, since its properties match those of a first class lever. It has an axle which helps it stay on the vehicle that you want it to stay on. A wheel and axle is a lever that rotates in a circle around a center point or fulcrum. The larger wheel (wheel) rotates around the smaller wheel (axle). Bicycle wheels, ferris wheels and gears are all examples of wheel and axles. Wheels can also have a solid shaft with the center core as the axle such as a screwdriver or drill bit or the log in a log rolling contest. It's a very important part of the modern automobile.
Other Facts
- People used the wheel 6,000 years ago
- The wheel and axle are like a wound up lever, the effort arm represents the wheel and the axle represents the resistance
- No one knows where or by whom the wheel was invented, though the earliest recorded instances show them originating in Sumer.
- Some examples include a wheel barrow, a bicycle, a rolling pin, or a door knob.
See also
"Wheel and axle"