A wheel is a disc- or torus-shaped mechanical device , the fundamental operation of which is to transfer linear motion (going along) into rotary motion (going around). It is one of the simple machines.
1 Mechanics
A wheel that is on an automobile.
Wheels can be fastened on an axle, which when fitted to a third object such as a vehicle body, will efficiently impart the energy of the converted linear motion to that body. Since the strongest motions available in nature to pre-industrial humans (exertion of their own muscle, exertion of animal muscle, flowing water, etc.) were linear and horizontal, the wheel/axle/object combination enabled them to leverage these sources in any direction by tilting the wheel (vertically in a horse driven mill wheel, for instance). Expended linear force, instead of being pushed ahead and scattered in unlimited forward space, was now conserved along the compact 360 degree surface of the turning wheel. Compared to a vehicle without wheels, such as a travois, barrow or sled, this compaction of momentum, along with a related reduction in surface friction, allows wheeled vehicles to travel farther even while less push or pull force is applied.
Since a wheel is a rigid object, it will only be non-rotating when all the torques on it are balanced. Since forces produce greater torques when they are closer to the axis, a wheel can be used to transform between large and small forces applied by friction with belts or other wheels. The combination of the wheel with the wedge produced the toothed gear, which was fundamental to the advent of industrial class complex machines. Other variations on wheels produce the pulley and the windlass.
With its cycling/compaction of momentum, reduction of friction and resulting lower amount of work necessary to move items, the wheel is essential in transportFor other article subjects named transport see transport (disambiguation). Transport or transportation in American English, is the movement of people and goods from one place to another. The term is derived from the Latin trans meaning across and portare. On many wheeled vehicles (for instance, automobiles and motorcycleA motorcycle (or motorbike is a two-wheeled vehicle powered by an engine. The wheels are in-line, and at higher speed the motorcycle remains upright and stable by virtue of gyroscopic forces; at lower speeds continual readjustment of the steering by the rs), a rigid wheel does not come directly in contact with the surface, but instead serves as a mounting point for a flexible tireA tire ( US spelling) or tyre ( UK spelling) is a roughly toroidal piece of (usually) rubber placed on a wheel to cushion it. Tires generally have reinforcing threads in them; based on the orientation of the threads, they are classified as bias-ply/ cross, usually filled with compressed air. For railRail can mean: Rail tracks Rail transport For the group of birds called rails see Rallidae For rail in electronics, see. vehicles this is not the case. A development of wheels to allow them to travel through rough terrain is the caterpillar trackCaterpillar tracks are large (modular) tracks used on tanks, construction equipment and certain other off-road vehicles. The tracks help the vehicle to distribute its weight more evenly over a larger surface area than wheels can, keeping it from sinking i found on some tractors and armored vehicles. Land vehicles without wheels are the hovercraftA hovercraft is a vehicle that is supported on a cushion of air. They are able to traverse many different types of terrain on land and can also travel on water. Hovercraft are often referred to as Air-Cushion Vehicles . The hovercraft was invented in 1952, the electro-magnetic monorailA monorail is a metro or railroad with a track consisting of a single rail (actually a beam), as opposed to the traditional track with two parallel rails. Monorail vehicles are wider than the beam they run on. Types and Technical Aspects There are two mai, and relying on surface conditions the sled, the snowboard and/or skis.
