In this work we have examined the motion of a body that rolls on an inclined plane, without the assumption of a rigid body. Under these conditions, the body may suffer small deformations. From the equations of motion we obtain an analytical expression for the acceleration of the center of mass. We show that some cases reported in the literature can be obtained as special cases of our expression. In addition, we obtain an expression for the friction coefficient of rolling, which can be calculated from experimental measurements performed on an inclined plane. These results can be used for students of physics to do a deeper analysis of the friction phenomenon associated with rolling bodies.
Keywords:
inclined plane; rolling; rolling friction
