a wheelchair ramp has a diognal lenght of 36 feet. the ramp rises 3 feet. determine the ramp's angle of elevation. federal standards specify that the ramp angle used for a wheelchair ramp must be less than 4.76 degrees. does this ramp meet the significations described.
work needs to be shown
i could not solve this prob;em. can someone help with it. thanks
2007-03-28 17:11:22 · 4 answers · asked by princess 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Other - Science
Use basic trig.
In a right triangle, the ratio of opposite side from the non-right angle to the hypotenuse is the sine of the angle.
so: sin(X) = 3/36 = 0.08333...
X= arcsin(0.08333...) = 4.78 degrees
2007-03-28 17:14:38 · answer #1 · answered by Jerry P 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Just to put it the other way round. The maximum rise for a 36 foot long ramp = 36 * sin(4.76)
which turns out to be about 2ft 11 and 13/16 inch. You would have to ask how level the ground level datum was from which you measured the rise! A good lawyer could run his car for a year on that 3/16 inch.
2007-03-29 03:50:24 · answer #2 · answered by lunchtime_browser 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If the diagonal length is 36 and the rise is 3, the angle is the arcsin of 3/36, or 4.78 degrees. The thing is out of spec, but by such a small amount that no one is likely to notice.
2007-03-29 00:18:04 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Easy, you know that the length of the hypotenuse is 36 feet and the side opposite the angle in question is 3 feet. Now all you do is plug it in. You should know, from SOHCAHTOA (Sin=Opposite/Hypotenuse, Cosine=Adjacent/Hypotenuse, Tangent =Opposite/Adjacent) that Sin(angle in question)=3/36 now you take your calculator and find sin^-1(3/36)=x=4.78 degrees. Make sure your calculator is set to degrees, not radians, I did that the first time, it doesn't help.
2007-03-29 00:18:07 · answer #4 · answered by big o 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋