ES 1022y Engineering Statics Introduction

Introduction
Mechanics
Mechanics is the branch of science concerned with bodies at rest or in motion and
subjected to applied forces. In general, the subject of mechanics can be subdivided into
three branches:

Rigid body mechanics can be further divided into two areas:

In this course we shall consider the first of these two areas.

The types of loads typically encountered in mechanics include:

Fundamental Concepts
Before starting our study of statics we first need to remind ourselves of certain
fundamental concepts and principles. These include basic quantities, idealizations, and
Newton’s three laws of motion.

Basic Quantities

Length - defines position in space and time.

Time - measure of the succession of events; relevant in dynamics but not in statics.

Mass - measure of inertia of a body; important where forces derive from gravity and
from accelerations.

Force - "push" or "pull" exerted by one body on another; a vector quantity with both
direction and magnitude.

1
ES 1022y Engineering Statics Introduction

Idealizations

Particle - body of negligible dimensions; can be analyzed as a point mass; geometry is

not considered in analysis.

Rigid body - stiff body with negligible deformations, i.e. parts of body remain fixed
relative to each other (changes in geometry are small); material properties not considered
in analysis of applied forces.

Concentrated force - represents effect of loading assumed to act at a point on a body;

reasonable if area over which load is applied is very small compared to overall size of
body.

Newton’s Three Laws of Motion

In statics Newtonian mechanics is used to analyze particles and rigid bodies at rest, while
neglecting forces associated with inertia and accelerations. Newtonian mechanics
assumes that space, time, and mass are absolute quantities. This assumption is not
entirely correct (Einstein's theory of relativity), however for most engineering
applications in which the velocities are low it is a good approximation.

First Law:

A particle experiencing no unbalanced force will either remain at rest or

Second Law:

A particle experiencing an unbalanced force will have

Mathematically this can be expressed as

Third Law:

Forces of action and reaction between two particles have the same magnitude and line of
action,

2
ES 1022y Engineering Statics Introduction

In addition to Newton’s three laws of motion we also make use of Newton’s law of
gravitational attraction. This states that

This can be written mathematically as

where G is the universal gravitational constant, M is the mass of one particle, m the mass
of the other particle, and r is the distance between the two particles.

Weight:

The gravitational force between the Earth and a particle on or near the Earth’s surface is
called the weight W.

For objects at or near the earth's surface,

Letting

the weight force W for an object with mass m can be written as

Units of Measurement
The four basic quantities of force, mass, length and time are not independent of each
other. Instead they are related by Newton’s second law of motion

or in terms of the basic quantities

As a result the units used to measure the basic quantities cannot all be selected arbitrarily.
Instead three of the four units must be arbitrarily defined, while the fourth unit is then
defined using Newton’s second law of motion. The former are referred to as base or
fundamental units, while the latter is referred to as the derived unit.

3
ES 1022y Engineering Statics Introduction

In this course we shall use both SI and US Customary units. These can be summarized as:

SI (Système International) FPS (US Customary)

length: metre*(m) foot* (ft)

mass: kilogram*(kg) slug (lb.s2/ft)

time: second*(s) second*(s)

force: Newton (N) (kg.m/s2) pound*(lb)

* = fundamental units; Newton and slug are derived units.

Numerical Calculations
All terms in any equation used to describe a physical process must be dimensionally
homogeneous, that is

Accuracy: the closeness of a result to the true value; specified by the number of
significant figures (the number of reliably known digits in a number).

Accuracy depends on:

As a general rule of thumb carry one more significant digit in your calculations than
required in the final answer.

Note: A zero used to specify the location of a decimal point in a number is not
significant. If in doubt, express number in engineering notation (exponent is displayed in
multiples of three).

Examples:

has four significant figures

has two significant figures

to three significant figures

to three significant figures

Finally remember that not all digits given by a calculator may be significant.

4
ES 1022y Engineering Statics Introduction

Problem Solving
When solving a problem try and use the following three step approach:
1) Interpret:
Read the problem carefully and determine what is given and what is to be
found. Ask if not clear. If necessary, make assumptions and indicate them.
2) Plan:
Think about the major steps that you need to take to solve the problem.
Think of alternative solutions and choose the best one.
3) Execute:
Carry out your steps. Use appropriate diagrams and equations. Estimate
your answers. Avoid simple calculation mistakes. Check and revise your
work if necessary.