Hensley Arrow: How does it REALLY work?
There have been several discussions on this hitch that have become somewhat 'controversial'. I am NOT trying to stir this controversy/bashing back up. Instead, I'd like to see a good, intelligent di...
Forum Discussion
Stressor wrote:Actually, free body diagrams are typically used to isolate components of a system, to make it easier to understand what's happening in smaller, simpler, "bite-size" pieces.
Tkluxon,
How it works is a function of all of its parts working together. That is what a free body diagram seeks to explain.
Stressor wrote:???? I'm not sure what you're trying to say here. I haven't spoken about vectors at all - just the usefulness of isolating the geometric behavior of the Hensley.
Adding in vectors that are canceling each other out, or vectors that exist only under certain conditions, does not increase my understanding of what is actually going on there, and that is what we wanted to investigate in this thread.
Stressor wrote:
I will also submit that playing with the real thing is a superior method of investigation than playing with popsicle sticks.
Interesting. How exactly did you observe the contribution of the hitch without isolating it? If you were able to isolate it, please explain how you did it. Otherwise, apart from free body analysis how can you possibly know where the contribution of the hitch ends and that of the rest of the system (primarily forces through the tires) begins? Using your whole system method, how would you propose to understand the difference between a Hensley and a conventional hitch other than through subjective observation?
I'm not sure, but I really do think the reason for our lack of agreement is mostly because you're having difficulty separating the 4-bar linkage concept from your experience of how effective the Hensley solution is as a whole. Trust me - if you make a stick model you WILL gain a better understanding of the contribution of the hitch. Without it, I'm not confident that a discussion between us will make the headway we should get. If you want to PM me with a mailing address, I'll be happy to send a stick model your way. Otherwise, I'll make a short video clip and post a link to it where all can benefit. Either way, I think you'll wonder what the big deal is because it's so unbelievably simple.
FWIW, there's no "k" anywhere in my actual name or my username.
Tim
