Mechanical advantage is a measure of the force amplification achieved by using a tool, mechanical device or machine system. Ideally, the device preserves the input power and simply trades off forces against movement to obtain a desired amplification in the output force. The model for this is the law of the lever. Machine components designed to manage forces and movement in this way are called mechanisms.
An ideal mechanism transmits power without adding to or subtracting from it. This means the ideal mechanism does not include a power source, and is frictionless and constructed from rigid bodies that do not deflect or wear. The performance of real systems is obtained from this ideal by using efficiency factors that take into account friction, deformation and wear.
Read more about Mechanical Advantage: Law of The Lever, Speed Ratio, Gear Trains, Chain and Belt Drives, Block and Tackle, Efficiency
Famous quotes containing the words mechanical and/or advantage:
“Industry has operated against the artisan in favor of the idler, and also in favor of capital and against labor. Any mechanical invention whatsoever has been more harmful to humanity than a century of war.”
—Rémy De Gourmont (1858–1915)
“The advantage of the emotions is that they lead us astray.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)