Levers

Levers

A lever is a simple mechanism that enlarges force. Levers consist of a rigid bar (lever arm) a pivot point (fulcrum), a load force, and an effort force. The effort force creates a torque around the fulcrum. The amount of this torque is dependant on the amount of the force and its distance away from the fulcrum. This torque must be balanced out by the torque that the load force creates. Changing the distance between the fulcrum to the load force changes the amount of force magnification.
There are three main types of levers: First, second and ...