Place one side of the board on the books to make a ramp (inclined plane). Hook the wooden block with the Newton's spring scale. Find the side on the scale with the units of newtons. Make sure the scale is set at zero. Slowly drag the block up the inclined plane. Read the spring scale as you are dragging the block. This is your effort/force "F" (in Newton). Record your information on a piece of paper.
Obtain measurement of the distance traveled (d) by the block on the inclined plane. If you pull the block from the bottom to the top of your inclined plane, "d" will equal the total length of your board. Convert inches to meters using the formula 1 inch = 0.0254 meters.
Use the formula W (work input) = F*d to calculate work input needed to pull the block up on the inclined plane through the distance "d.”
Include an angle (Q) of the incline when the effort force on an object is known. For example, calculate the work input when a person applies 5 N of force on an object. He moves an object a total of 3 m on a 25-degree inclined plane. Use the formula for work input W = F*d *cos (Q). Substitute “F” and “d” with numbers into the formula W=5 N*3 m*cos (25-degree). This gives you: W=13.6 Joules. Work input that is done by the person to move the object is 13.6 Joules.