Proposta de utilização de um acelerômetro acoplado ao Arduino como alternativa de ensino de física

Abstract

The present work aims to validate the use of an accelerometer coupled to the Arduino electronic board to determine the acceleration of a uniformly moving trolley (MUV) on an air track. In this practice, we considered the mass of the objects involved, and the action of the gravitational force. For this, the sensor used was the accelerometer MPU-6050, which is a microcontroller whose communication with Arduino occurs through the I2C protocol, which in turn uses functions of the Wire library. It will address Arduino, its components and key functions required for reading and acquiring sensor data. Arduino is a platform easy to acquire and affordable price, with an open source system with free hardware and programming and modification. Thus, a script was elaborated that met the objective of determining acceleration. A study on the motion of a vehicle in a straight line under constant deceleration was developed to present an alternative method for calculating the velocity of an object in MUV through acceleration. It also contemplates concepts related to Classical Mechanics, which arise in the early years of high school, and is intended to relate them to traffic phenomena, as they contain principles that are described by the laws of mechanics. The results from the accelerometer reading were compared with the theoretical prediction of Newton’s Second Law, obtaining values experimentally close to the theoretical value. It is soon concluded that the sensor was properly configured, validating the proposed use of the sensor with Arduino. The accelerations obtained with the MPU-6050 were also compared from the time span of the trolley on the rail, generating results for speed and average acceleration for two different masses. According to the National High School Curriculum Guidelines (DCNEM, CEB Resolution No. 3, of June 26, 1998), it is pertinent to include subjects related to traffic in physics teaching, contributing to a visible and contextualized teaching. In this context, the study aims to propose an alternative classroom practice, addressing physical concepts experienced in traffic situations, using electronics. Therefore, the relevance of the subject as a didactic methodology is justifiable, demonstrating that physics can be applied to solve problems linked to reality, with the application of a flexible technology in the educational scenario today.