Machines transfer force to perform work, and are made up of simple machines with few moving parts. The six simple machines are the screw, inclined plane, wedge, lever, pulley, and wheel and axle. Simple machines were first discussed by Archimedes and fully developed by Galileo. Some argue that certain machines can be classified differently.
In physics, a machine is a device that facilitates the performance of work by transferring a force from one point to another, increasing the distance or speed of a force, increasing the magnitude of a force, or changing the direction of a force .
While technology is constantly evolving, it’s helpful to remember that all machines are made up of the same basic parts. The term simple machine is used to refer to devices that have few, if any, moving parts, but use energy to function. If two or more simple machines are joined together to create a single mechanism, the resulting device is known as a complex machine.
The six simple machines are the screw, the inclined plane, the wedge, the lever, the pulley, the wheel and the axle. Within this group, you can divide simple machines into two smaller categories. The inclined plane, the wedge and the screw depend on the vector resolution of the forces, while the lever, the pulley and the wheel work because there is an equilibrium of torques.
An inclined plane is an inclined surface that connects a lower level to a higher level. A wedge is an object with an angled side that ends in a shape point to help you cut through the material. A screw is essentially an inclined plane wrapped around a post, which helps hold materials together.
A lever is a bar resting on a fulcrum that can lift or move loads. A pulley is a wheel with a groove between two flanges around its circumference and a cable, belt or rope running inside the groove. A wheel and axle is a modification of a pulley in which a wheel is attached to a shaft, such as on a pair of roller skates.
The idea of a simple machine was first discussed by the ancient Greek philosopher Archimedes. However, the complete theory of a simple machine as an object that transforms energy is actually attributed to the Italian scientist Galileo Galilei in his 1600 publication of Le Meccaniche (On Mechanics).
While the traditional definition of a simple machine includes six separate machines, it is interesting to note that not everyone agrees with this theory. For example, there are people who argue that both a pulley and a wheel and axle can be viewed as unique types of levers. There are also people who believe that hydraulic systems are also a simple type of machine, as they provide force amplification.
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