Plotting+Wheel+height

Oliver Robins Robert Slodki Emalee Pfender

Problem: Create a graph that shows the height above ground for the valve on a mountain bike tire as the tire spins across the ground. Assume that the tire is on a 26" rim, i.e. the valve is 12 inches from the center of the wheel. Create an appropriate trigonometric model for your graph and explain the components of the model.

Over the period of one rotation, the valve on the wheel travels from a highest point of 25 inches above the ground to a low point of 1 inch from the ground.





This graph pattern is very similar to the graphs of sine and cosine, excluding the fact that this graph is rigid and contains only straight lines.