Weights on Pulleys and How Much They Lighten a Load
Two problems on the force needed to hold a suspended weight m above the ground
The page poses two balance problems about a weight m held clear of the ground by two counter-weights running over pulleys, one cord vertical and the other oblique. Leonardo asks by how much the pair of weights at a and n lighten the load m, and then what weight at a n would leave m twice as near to a as to n. A small diagram at the top shows the two pulleys, the hanging weights, and a block (lettered di) with the load m at ground level.
On this page
How much two weights lighten the load m
Leonardo asks by how much the two weights at a and n lighten the weight m. He then asks what weight at a n is required so that m should stand twice as near to a as to n, while being held clear of the ground by those two weights.
Two pulleys carrying the counter-weights
The diagram shows a cord led over two fixed pulleys at the top of the sheet, one cord dropping vertically to a weight and the other running obliquely to a second weight, so that the pair supports the block and load below.