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Velislav Nikolov

GC-12 Finding The Radian Of A Circle

Ever wondered how the radian can be found graphically? Here's one way to do it:






Needed analogue tools:

  • Dividers

  • Pencil

  • Straight Edge

  • Eraser

 

Given:

  • Circle A-B, R=10, D/7

Desired:

  • Radian Angle=180°/π=57.296°

Note: Refer to GC-09 to find out how to divide a line segment.


  1. Divide A-o in 7 equal segments. The distance from Point A to its closest point (we just created) is 1/7 of A-o, or 1/49 of A-B.

  2. Set one leg of the dividers at O (Circle A-B's center), stretch the other to the point (Step 2) nearest to A.

  3. Maintaining that stretch, place one leg on Point B.

  4. Swing the other leg of the dividers across Circle A-B's circumference.

  5. Mark the intersection.

  6. Connect Point O (A-B's center) with the intersection point (Step 5).

  7. Draw another line from O to B.

  8. These two lines cut Circle A-B's circumference. The length of the arc thusly defined approximates closely that of Circle A-B's radius.

  9. The angle subtended by the lines drawn (Step 6, 7) equals 57.317° and is called Radian.


The graphical solution described above gives the following results:

  • Arc's length = 10.004

  • Radian Angle = 57.317°


If those same parameters are calculated, the results would be:

  • Arc's length = 10.000

  • Radian Angle =180°/π=57.296° = 57.296°


That's a difference of no more than 0.04% which would be accurate enough for most common carpentry tasks.

 

You can download the CAD and GH file here:




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