Can we obtain the coefficient of restitution from the sound of a bouncing ball?

The coefficient of restitution may be determined from the sound signal emitted by a sphere bouncing repeatedly off the ground. Although there is a large number of publications exploiting this method, so far, there is no quantitative discussion of the error related to this type of measurement. Analyz...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPhysical review. E Vol. 93; no. 3; p. 032901
Main Authors Heckel, Michael, Glielmo, Aldo, Gunkelmann, Nina, Pöschel, Thorsten
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.03.2016
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Summary:The coefficient of restitution may be determined from the sound signal emitted by a sphere bouncing repeatedly off the ground. Although there is a large number of publications exploiting this method, so far, there is no quantitative discussion of the error related to this type of measurement. Analyzing the main error sources, we find that even tiny deviations of the shape from the perfect sphere may lead to substantial errors that dominate the overall error of the measurement. Therefore, we come to the conclusion that the well-established method to measure the coefficient of restitution through the emitted sound is applicable only for the case of nearly perfect spheres. For larger falling height, air drag may lead to considerable error, too.
ISSN:2470-0053
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevE.93.032901