On a wheelchair, the circumference of the rear wheels...

Question

On a wheelchair, the circumference of the rear wheels Is x inches, and the circumference of the front wheels is y inches. If the chair is pushed until its rear wheels have made 100 revolutions, how many revolutions do the front wheels make? (Answer in terms of x and y)

Answer 1

Use the general formula circumference*number of revolutions = distance traveled.

 

So one wheel with circumference x went 100 revolutions and therefore traveled a distance of 100x.

The other wheel also traveled 100x inches. Substituting in you get

 

y * revolutions = 100x     divide both sides by y and you get

 

revolutions = 100x/y.

 

Hope this helped.