When you drive your car over a bump, the springs connecting the wheels to the car compress.

Question:

When you drive your car over a bump, the springs connecting the wheels to the car compress. Your shock absorbers then damp the subsequent oscillation, keeping your car from bouncing up and down on the springs. Figure P14.38 shows real data for a car driven over a bump. Estimate the frequency and the time constant for this damped oscillation.

FIGURE P14.38 Ay (cm) 4 0 0.5 1.0 1 (s)