Extended Experimental

Investigation
The Restitutions of a Bouncing Ball

Abstract:
This extended experimental investigation is aimed at
looking closely into the physics of a bouncing ball. It will
look at the different factors that make a ball bounce higher
like the size, material or internal pressure. With the
hypothesis that the ball that have better elastic properties
will bounce better and the balls with the higher internal
pressure would also bounce better. The experiment was a
ball being dropped from the height of 1 metre and
recorded by a video camera for later analysis. Different
variable were changed to get a fair amount of data to
analyse and discuss in the report. Furthermore the results
proved the hypothesis correct and opened discussion to
possible modifications to the experiment. In addition the
best performing ball was analysed and conclusions were
made on why it bounced so well. Finally, possible relevant
scenarios and their possible outcome were envisioned in
the Discussion.


GRIESHABER, Michael
4/5/2014

Introduction:
The bouncing of a ball is something everybody has done in some point in their childhood. The
motion of a bouncing ball is not something you really think about that much. You throw the ball
down and it bounces back up and each time it bounces it doesnt bounce as high as the bounce
before.
The motion of a bouncing ball is an interesting topic to investigate, indicating numerous interesting
dynamics principles correlated with acceleration, momentum, and energy.
To begin this explanation let's first consider what happens to a typical high bounce ball that is
dropped under the influence of gravity.
The motion of a bouncing ball can be broken up into seven distinct stages, where the motion of the
ball is analysed before, during, and after impact. For simplicity assume that the surface is hard and
rigid, and ignore air resistances effect on the balls motion through the air.
The geometric centre of the ball is defined as point C, the velocity of point C as V, and the
acceleration of point C as A. Assume that the ball has uniform density; this means that point C is also
the centre of mass.
Stages of a bouncing ball falling vertically under influence of gravity:
Stage 1
In the first stage, the ball has gravitational potential energy. The formula for gravitational potential
energy is:

. With m being the mass of the ball and g being the acceleration due to gravity
and h the height at which the ball is dropped from. When the ball is let go it falls vertically
downward under the influence of gravity (g). And the gravitational potential energy is transformed
into kinetic energy as it falls. The amount of gravitational potential energy and kinetic energy at
different stages during the drop is proportional to the height at which the ball is e.g. if the ball is half
way between the height it was dropped and the surface it will bounce off, the ball has 50% potential
energy and 50% kinetic energy. The velocity V points downward. The acceleration A also points
downward. The magnitude of A is equal to g, if the air resistance is ignored. Acceleration due to
gravity is approximately 9.8 m/s
2
. (Note all masses must be recorded in kilograms and all heights
must be in metres)


Stage 2

In the second stage, the ball starts to make contact with the surface and all the gravitational
potential energy has now being transformed into kinetic energy. So the equation:

(m
represents mass and v represents velocity) is used to work out the kinetic energy. But we already
know that 100% of the potential energy has being transformed into kinetic energy. So we know the
kinetic energy but not the velocity. The equation can simply be rearranged to work out the velocity
at this stage:

. The ball carries on falling vertically downward under the influence of gravity.
The velocity V and acceleration a (equal to g) both continue to point downward.



Stage 3

In this stage, the ball has slowed down. The velocity V is still pointing downward. However, the ball
has deformed sufficiently such that the acceleration a is now pointing upward. This means that the
ball has deformed enough such that it's pushing against the surface with a force greater than its own
weight. As a result, the acceleration a is pointing upward. The kinetic energy begins to transform
into elastic potential energy as the ball deforms. The deformation is like a spring being compressed
except the ball deforms in 3 dimensions instead of 1 as a spring. The amount a ball deforms
depends on the type of material a ball is made up of, the shape and the air pressure inside the ball (if
it is hollow). This is where the energy is lost as sound or heat e.g. when you hear a ball bounce and
when a ball becomes warm after using it for a long period of time.


Stage 4

In this stage, the ball has reached its maximum deformation. As a result, the acceleration a is still
pointing upward, and the velocity V is zero. This means that point C is at its lowest point. The ball
now has transformed all the kinetic energy into elastic potential energy and obviously has no
gravitational potential energy at this point.



Stage 5

In this stage, the ball velocity V is increasing and pointing upward since the ball is now in the
rebounding stage. As a result, the ball is less deformed than in the previous stage, but is still
deformed enough such that it's pushing against the surface with a force greater than its own weight.
This means that the acceleration a is still pointing upward. The elastic potential energy is now
transforming back into kinetic energy because the restoring force will return the ball to its original
shape. (Note there will not be as much kinetic energy as there was when it came into contact with
the surface because the energy was lost as heat and sound energy)


Stage 6

In this stage, the ball is barely touching the surface. The velocity V is still pointing upward since the
ball is still in the rebounding stage. However, since the ball is no longer deformed it has essentially
zero contact force with the surface. This means that the only force acting on the ball is gravity. As a
result, the acceleration a is now pointing downward, and the upward velocity V is now decreasing.
The ball now has 100% of the remaining energy as kinetic energy. Therefore it will not bounce as
high as the point it was dropped from.



Stage 7
In this stage, the ball has fully rebounded and has lifted off from the surface. The velocity V is still
pointing upward, and the acceleration a is still pointing downward since the only force acting on the
ball in this stage is gravity. The kinetic energy is transforming into gravitational potential energy
until it reaches its peak where there is 100% gravitational potential energy and the whole process
happens again and continues to bounce until there is not enough elastic potential energy to lift the
weight of the ball off the ground. Due to the fact that gravity (9.8m/s
2
) is greater than the
acceleration the elastic potential energy produces.





Aim:
The aim of this extended experimental investigation is to investigate and discuss the effects the size,
material and internal pressure has on the height of the restitutions, the coefficient of restitution and
change in velocity before and after impact when the controlled variables are kept the same.
Research questions: How does the size affect the height of the bounce? The size of the ball does not
give the ball any advantages in it capability to bounce higher. The only affect it has is the air
resistance of having a larger surface area. How does the material affect the height of the bounce?
The material of a ball determines how high it will bounce. A ball that has material with high elastic
properties is going to bounce higher that a ball made of a more ridged material with low elastic
properties. How does the internal pressure affect the height of the bounce? The internal pressure of
a ball (that is pumpable) should have an effect on the height of restitution of the ball. If the ball is
pumped to it recommended internal pressure it should have high elastic properties depending what
the purpose of the ball is. When the balls internal pressure is below its recommended internal
pressure it should not bounce as high as it did when it had the recommended internal pressure. The
independent variable was the different balls that were dropped. The dependent variables were the
height of the bounces and the coefficient of restitution and the velocity before and after impact. The
controlled variables were the height of the drop which was kept at 1 metre; the surface the ball was
dropped on which was wood covered in lino and the spot where the ball was dropped was kept the
same throughout the experiments. The uncontrolled variables were the way the ball was released
from the hand i.e. sometimes the ball was released with spin, the breeze and the temperature.
Independent Variable
The ball that was bounced
Dependent Variables
The height at which it bounced to and the
coefficient of restitution and the velocity before and
after impact
Controlled Variables
Drop Height (1 metre)
Surface the ball was dropped on
The ball was dropped on the exact same place every
time
Uncontrolled Variables
The way the ball was released from the hand
sometimes it had spin
The breeze that came through the door
The temperature

Hypothesis:
For the small all the small balls it was hypothesized that as the material of the ball was less ridged
and more elastic the height of the balls restitution would increase. For the large ball it was
hypothesized that as the internal pressure was reduced from the recommended pressure to 50% of
the internal pressure the height of the restitution would decrease.
Materials:
Small Balls Large Balls Other
Ping Pong ball Basketball Camera
High Bounce ball Soccer ball Tripod
Large High Bounce ball Netball 1 meter ruler
Small Tennis ball Soft Volleyball Wooden backboard
Large Tennis ball Hard Volleyball Lino covered wooden floor
Sponge Baseball Pressure gauge
Rubber Cricket ball Electric ball pump
Blu-tac
Tracker (Visual analysing
program)

Procedure:
1. All equipment for experiments was collect.
2. The 1 metre ruler was connected to the back board with blu-tac so it was straight and one
end of it was at the bottom of the backboard.
3. The backboard with the ruler attached to it was place vertically against a wall.
4. All the balls were weighed and their masses were recorded.
5. The camera was set on a tripod and was setup so that it could capture the motion of the
bouncing ball.
6. The camera was tested if it worked properly and the SD card was removed from the camera
and placed into a laptop to ensure that it recorded and was able to transfer the file.
7. A random ball was selected and dropped from 1 metre and recorded then analysed on
tracker as a test.
8. The first of the small balls the ping pong ball was dropped from 1 metre onto the lino
covered wooden floor. The bounces were recorded by the camera. This was completed 3
times to rule out any experimental error.
9. The 7
th
step was repeated for the other 6 small balls.
10. The large balls were pumped to a little more than their recommended psi with an electric
ball pump and then the excess was released with pressure gauge until they precisely their
recommended psi.
11. The first of the large balls, the soccer ball was dropped from 1 metre onto the lino covered
wooden floor. The bounces were recorded by the camera. This was done 3 times to rule out
experimental error.
12. The Soccer Ball was deflated to 50% of its recommended psi and then step 11 was repeated.
13. Steps 11 and 12 were repeated for the other 4 large balls.
14. All the data was transferred from the SD card
15. All the files were analysed on tracker

Results:
Small Balls:
How to work out Coefficient of restitution:

Ping pong ball 1
st
bounce:

Ping pong ball 2
nd
bounce:

Note: these steps were repeated for all small balls but for simplicity only the working out for the
ping pong ball was shown.


Height of Restitution and Coefficient of Restitution
Ping
Pong
ball
High
Bounce
ball
Large
High
Bounce
ball
Small
Tennis
ball
Large
Tennis
ball
Sponge
Baseball
Rubber
Cricket
ball
Drop height 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
Bounce 1
height
0.57 0.74 0.75 0.58 0.51 0.52 0.47
Bounce 2
Height
0.34 0.56 0.57 0.36 0.26 0.29 0.20
Coefficient
of restitution
1
0.75 0.86 0.87 0.76 0.71 0.72 0.69
Coefficient
of restitution
2
0.77 0.87 0.87 0.79 0.71 0.71 0.65

How to work out the Gravitational potential energy:

Gravitational potential energy of ping pong ball at drop height:

How to work out the Kinetic energy at stage 2:

But the Kinetic energy at stage 2 is already known because it is the same as the gravitational
potential energy. So the only other unknown in the equation is v, velocity. Therefore the equation is
rearranged like so:

Velocity of ping pong ball at stage 2:

Gravitational potential energy of ping pong ball at peak of first bounce:

Work out the velocity the same way as for the initial drop:

To work out the loss of energy take the

of the first bounce away from the

at the drop height.

Work out the amount of energy lost as heat and sound:





















Velocity Before and After Impact, Mass Gravitational Potential Energy,
Ping Pong
ball
High
Bounce
ball
Large
High
Bounce
ball
Small
Tennis
ball
Large
Tennis
ball
Sponge
Baseball
Rubber
Cricket
ball
Velocity
Before
impact
(m/s)
4.43 4.43 4.43 4.43 4.43 4.43 4.43
Velocity
After
impact
(m/s)
3.34 3.81 3.83 3.37 3.09 3.16 3.04
Mass
(kilograms)
0.0026 0.0456 0.1285 0.0554 0.2064 0.0606 0.1935

(Joules)
0.0255 0.4469 1.2593 0.5429 2.0227 0.5939 1.8963

at stage
2(Joules)
0.0255 0.4469 1.2593 0.5429 2.0227 0.5939 1.8963

Bounce 1
(Joules)
0.0145 0.3307 0.9445 0.3149 1.0316 0.3029 0.8913

at stage
6 (Joules)
0.0145 0.3307 0.9445 0.3149 1.0316 0.3029 0.8913
Energy lost
as heat
and sound
(Joules)
0.2403 0.1162 0.3148 0.2280 0.9911 0.2910 1.0050
Drop time
(seconds)
0.45 0.45 0.45 0.45 0.45 0.45 0.45




Large Balls:
Soccer ball Netball Basketball Hard Volleyball Soft Volleyball
Drop Height 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
Bounce 1
height 100%
0.59 0.67 0.78 0.63 0.82
Bounce 1
height 50%
0.52 0.54 0.68 0.53 0.78
Bounce 2
height 100%
0.36 0.45 0.59 0.40 0.69
Bounce 2
height 50%
0.27 0.31 0.48 0.29 0.62
Coefficient
of
restitution 1
100%
0.77 0.82 0.88 0.79 0.91
Coefficient
of
restitution 1
50%
0.72 0.73 0.82 0.73 0.88
Coefficient
of
restitution 2
100%
0.78 0.82 0.87 0.80 0.92
Coefficient
of
restitution 2
50%
0.72 0.76 0.84 0.74 0.89
Velocity
Before
impact (m/s)
100%
4.43 4.43 4.43 4.43 4.43
Velocity
Before
impact (m/s)
50%
4.43 4.43 4.43 4.43 4.43
Velocity
After impact
(m/s) 100%
3.40 3.62 3.91 3.51 4.01
Velocity
After impact
(m/s) 50%
3.19 3.25 3.65 3.22 3.91
Mass
(kilograms)
100 % and
50%
0.4265 0.4220 0.5892 0.2641 0.2196

(Joules)
100% and
50%
4.1797 4.1356 5.7742 2.5882 2.1521

at stage
2(Joules)
100% and
50%
4.1797 4.1356 5.7742 2.5882 2.1521

Bounce
1 (Joules)
100%
2.4660 2.7709 4.5038 1.6306 1.7647

Bounce
1 (Joules)
50%
2.1734 2.2332 3.9264 1.3717 1.6786

at stage 6
(Joules)
100%
2.4660 2.7709 4.5038 1.6306 1.7647

at stage 6
(Joules) 50%
2.1734 2.2332 3.9264 1.3717 1.6786
Energy lost
as heat and
sound
(Joules)100%
1.7137 1.3647 1.2704 0.9576 0.3874
Energy lost
as heat and
sound
(Joules) 50%
2.0062 1.9024 1.8478 1.2165 0.4735
Drop time
(seconds)
0.45 0.45 0.45 0.45 0.45
Pressure
100% (psi)
10 10 10 5 3.8
Pressure
50% (psi)
5 5 5 2.5 1.9
Note: the methods for working out the velocity,

, energy loss and coefficient of restitution

were the same as in to small balls therefore it was unnecessary to repeat the example of the
working out for the large balls.
Note: The pressure was measured with a pressure gauge.
Note: Rows shaded the same colour are supposed to have the same or very similar values.














Displacement time graph:
Comparing two small balls:


























Height
(metres)
Small Tennis Ball Time vs. Height
Time (seconds)
Time (seconds)
Height
(metres)
Rubber Cricket Ball Time vs. Height
Comparing large balls at 100% recommended internal pressure and 50% recommended
internal pressure:

























Time (seconds)
Height
(metres)
100% Netball Time vs. Height
50% Netball Time vs. Height
Height
(metres)
Time (seconds)
Discussion:
The investigation was aimed at answering the research question: How does the size, material and
internal pressure have an effect on the height of the restitutions, the coefficient restitution and
change in velocity before and after impact when the height and surface the ball is dropped onto are
kept the same.
The coefficient of restitution was worked out by first having the height of the drop and the height of
the first bounce. The formula

is derived from the change in velocity of an
object in a collision. In this application, a bouncing ball, the ratio


is used. The
kinetic energy or the ball is proportional to the velocity squared of the ball. Therefore the
coefficient of restitution is equal to the square root of the final kinetic energy over the initial kinetic.

. Since the amount of kinetic energy at stage 2 is equal to the gravitational potential
energy at the top of the drop/bounce. Therefore the coefficient of restitution can we written as

. And the formula for gravitational potential energy can be substituted in.

The mass and acceleration due to gravity cancel out because they are the same on both sides of the
division line so the formula is now:

and is replaced with

to make the formula

identifiable as the coefficient or restitution:

. This formula was used to find the coefficient

of restitution of all the different ball tested and determined which ball bounced better.
The hypothesis for the small balls that as the material of the ball was less ridged and more elastic the
height of the balls restitution would increase. The data that was collected supported this hypothesis
with the large high bounce ball bouncing the highest at 0.75 metres and the solid centred rubber
cricket ball bouncing the lowest at 0.47 metres. The properties of the large high bounce such as the
air filled centre and the elastic rubber shell optimised the conversion of kinetic energy into elastic
energy and back into kinetic with little energy loss (0.3148 J). Whereas the solid centred rubber
cricket ball had poor elastic qualities because it was solid and did not deform very much when it
came into contact with the ground therefore losing a lot of energy as heat and sound (1.0050 J). The
hypothesis for the large balls that as the internal pressure was reduced from the recommended
pressure to 50% of the recommended pressure the height of the restitution would decrease. Once
again the data supported the hypothesis with every case showing the ball with half the
recommended internal pressure bounce lower than the ball at the recommended amount. This was
most clearly shown in the netball where the first bounce of the 100% ball was 0.67 metres and the
first bounce of the 50% ball was 0.54 metres which is 0.13 metres change in height.
There were not many serious anomalies in the data that was collected. Many of the anomalies that
occurred were in the coefficient of restitution part of the table. The coefficient of restitution is
supposed to be exactly the same for the first bounce and the second bounce theoretically. For a few
cases like the large high bounce ball, large tennis ball and the 100% recommended internal pressure
netball were exactly the same and proved the theory to be correct. But the majority of the
coefficients were off by 0.01. This is not a bad result because most of the data pointed towards the
theory being correct. There were a few anomalous values such as the small tennis ball, rubber
cricket ball and 50% recommended internal pressure netball. These values were out by 0.03.
While these values are not way off they still show that there were some experimental or analytical
errors.
One of the experimental errors was that the ball was dropped by a human each time. A human hand
shakes and is not completely still this could affect how the ball dropped. As well when releasing the
ball if one half of the ball is released before the other it may put spin on the ball and cause it to
bounce irregularly. Another human forced error was that the ball was not dropped from exactly 1
metre each time. The person who was dropping the ball did not always check at eye-level if the
bottom of the ball lined up with the 1 metre mark. The temperature of the balls could have affected
the way they bounced. Like with a squash ball how you warm up the ball before a game so it
bounces better so might of some balls bounced better if they were left in the sun in the sunroom
before they were tested compared to other ball that might of being under the shelf away from the
warm sunlight. Another slight but possible error is the draft that comes in the door from the hallway
that may have affected the way the ball bounced by increasing the air resistance therefore the ball
would lose more energy and not bounce as high.
To solve these problems and model a more accurate experiment next time a few thing would need
to refine in the experiment. Firstly I would recommend that a type mechanical structure be made to
release the ball when a string is pulled that way it eliminated the error of the human putting spin on
the ball and also the issue of not dropping the ball from the exact same height each time. Another
amendment would be to place all the balls that are going to be tested in the exact same spot out of
the sun (unless this is one of the variables) when storing them this way they will all be relatively the
same temperature when you test them. Finally to eliminate the factor of a draft affecting the testing,
do the experiments away from any open doors or windows and make sure the fans or air-
conditioning are turned off be for the tests commence.



Camera
1 metre ruler
Ball at bottom
Ball at top
One of the analytical errors was the position of the camera. When the videos were analysed on
tracker the bottom of the balls did not line up with the 1 metre mark when the balls were being
dropped, nor did the bottom of the ball line up with the base of the 1 metre ruler (as shown in the
above diagram). Another analytical error was the fact that the video became very blurry when it was
shown in slow motion and it was hard to determine exactly where the ball was because it appeared
in 3 different places in the same frame. Furthermore the camera that was used did not show
enough frames per second to sometimes see the ball hit the ground. One frame the ball would be
just about to impact then the next frame it would be already higher than the last frame traveling
away from ground.

This diagram shows, by increasing the distance between the camera and the ball bouncing the angle
of difference between the bottom of the ball and the 1 metre mark decreases. This makes it more
accurate when analysing on tracker. To solve the other problems of the image being blurred and the
camera not recording enough frames per second it would be advised to buy a better camera with a
higher frames per second rate and a better resolution.
The ball that bounced the highest and had the highest coefficient of restitution of 0.92 was the soft
volleyball when it was pumped to its assumed recommended internal pressure. The actual
recommended internal pressure was not give therefore it was pumped until if felt firm and that was
then labelled as its recommended internal pressure. The reason
this ball bounced so high was because of the material it was
made out of and how thick the material. The manufacturer had
intended it to bounce high off the wrists of a volleyball player so
that it would give maximum time for one of the players team
mates to get under the ball and hit it over the net. The material
was a 5mm thick synthetic rubber which stretched easily and had
excellent elastic properties. When the ball was bounced it
deformed in to an elliptical shape (as shown in insert). It was


Camera
1 metre ruler
Ball at bottom
Ball at top
Insert- Soft Volleyball deforms as it
reaches its maximum deformation
shown to lose to least amount of energy as heat and sound of the small balls because it conserved
its energy the best.
The difference between the 100% recommended internal pressure balls and the 50% internal
pressure balls was slight to the naked eye but on tracker it was clear that the 50% balls were
bouncing lower than the 100% ball. The reason for this is because the air pressure inside in greatly
less; the forces pushing out on the ball, giving it its elastic properties have diminished. The lower air
pressure means that the ball is less effective in transforming kinetic energy in to elastic potential
energy the back into kinetic energy and lost more energy as heat and sound energy as a result.
Not all of the purposes for the balls were so the ball bounced higher some balls are designed so the
bounce minimally. Like the rubber cricket which performed very poorly not even bouncing to 50% of
the drop height. The reason this ball is designed not to bounce much is because in cricket where the
bowler bowls the ball from anything from 50km/h to 160km/h the batsman still needs to be able to
hit the ball. If a ball with a higher coefficient of restitution was used the ball would bounce over the
batsmans head every ball for 4 byes. Because when the ball is released from the bowlers hand there
is enormous amounts of kinetic energy and it doesnt need a very elastic ball to maintain the high
speed of the bowl.
One possible scenario for this test being practically applied would be if a high bounce ball company
was trying to get their ball to bounce higher than the other companies balls. There would be tests
of all different types of balls and the properties of the balls that bounced the best would be noted
then there would be discussion on how to utilise all of the things that help a ball conserve its energy
as it bounced. A few possible point they night discuss would be the air pressure inside the ball, how
high was too high? Another might be If one material stretches the best and another material
compresses the best, why not made a dual layered ball with a stretchy outer layer and a
compactable inter layer to maximise the effects of both and work out the right ratio of each layer
and how thick they should be. This idea came from roman bow and arrows how they used to make
the outer side of deer hind leg tendons and the inner side of a beasts tusk. After these discussions
they might trial some prototypes and create the worlds bounciest ball.
Conclusion:
In conclusion the hypothesis and research question were confirmed and answered. The size,
material and internal pressures effect on the height of the restitutions, the coefficient of restitution
and the change in velocity before and after impact were investigated and discussed in this extended
experimental investigation. Experimental and analytical errors were noted and recommendations
were given to avoid these problems in the future. The reasons for the most efficient balls high
coefficient of restitution were discussed as well as why other balls had so poor coefficient of
restitutions. The difference between the 100% recommended internal pressure and the 50% ones
were talked over and possible relevant scenarios and their possible outcomes were envisioned.


Bibliography:
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