PROBLEM:

A right circular cylinder, a radius of base x, height y, is inscribed in a right circular cone, radius of base r and a height h. Express y as a function of x (r and h are constants).

SOLUTION:

Refer to the figure below for an elevation view.

By ratio and proportion of two similar triangles, we have

\begin{align*}
\frac{y}{r-x} & = \frac{h}{r} \\
y & =\frac{h\left(r-x\right)\:}{r} \ \qquad \ \color{DarkOrange} \left( \text{Answer} \right) \\
\end{align*}