Component Forces

We can use a right triangle to explain the component forces acting on an object sliding down an inclined plane.

We have Gravity pulling directly downward. This needs to be the hypotenuse of the triangle because a component force could never be larger than the original force responsible for it.

Gravity is an acceleration, not a force. However we have Force when we take the acceleration caused by gravity and multiply that by the mass of the object.

The two component forces are a force in the direction that the object moves down the plane and a component force going into the inclined plane.

The two component forces are perpendicular one to the other.