Seneca College

School of Software Design & Data Science

MEC110 – Mechanics – Winter 2023
Professor: Jacky Lau
Exam A – Apr 21, 2023
ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS IN THE BOOKLET PROVIDED.
1. The time limit for the exam is 150 minutes.
2. Only non-programmable calculators are allowed. Example (but not limited to):
◦ Casio FX-991, FX-115, Sharp ELW516, EL520, Texas Instruments TI-36, TI-30, HP 35
3. You must show your methods, and numeric answers, UNITS when requested for full marks.
4. Write in PEN. Otherwise, no remarking request will be accepted.
Useful formulas and values to use for constants:
m kg
g=9.81 2
ρw =1000 3
cos 2 α + cos 2 β + cos2 γ =1 F=mg F=kx F=μ N F=dx
s m
p=ρ gz ⃗ =⃗r × F
M ⃗ M =Fd M =rW tan( θ + ϕ s) M =Rr μ k ϕ =tan−1 μ T 2 =T 1 eμ β
There are 4 questions.
Q1. [25 marks] A 95 kg block D is attached by cable to point C that is suspended by cable AC
and cable BC. Cable BC is attached to a pin at point B and cable AC is attached to a square-
threaded screw at point A. The screw is 8 mm in diameter with a lead angle of 4° and is self-locking
in this configuration.
a) Draw a free-body diagram of the given configuration then find the tension in cable AC and BC.
b) Find the minimum coefficient of static friction required so the screw at point A is self-locking.
c) Find the minimum amount of moment required to further tighten the screw at point A if the
coefficient of static friction is μS = 0.26.
Express your answer to 3 significant figures.

2231 MEC110 Test 2 – Page 1 of 4

Name: ____________________________________________ Student Number: ___________________________

Q2. [25 marks] A simplified airplane landing gear frame and machine system is shown. Pins A,
B, and E are attached to the structure while pins C, D, and F are free to move. Points A-B, D-C,
and E-G are aligned vertically, and points F-A and E-D are aligned horizontally. Hence, the angle
between CGE and the overall dimension of the structure can be found from the geometry.
Member FA is a piston that provides a horizontal force to keep the landing gear in the given
configuration. The mass of member BCG with the landing gear is 30 kg with a centre of gravity at
point G. Ignore the mass for all other members.
a) Draw all the necessary free-body diagrams for part b and part c.
b) Find the horizontal force that piston FA is providing at point F.
c) Find the reaction forces at pins A, B, and E.
Express your answer to 3 significant figures.

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Name: ____________________________________________ Student Number: ___________________________

Q3. [25 marks] A bent rod is supported by thrust bearing (the rod cannot move along the y-
direction) at A and cable BC and BD. The bearings are in proper alignment and exert only
reaction forces on the rod. F1 = 800 N is in the negative z-direction applied at point B and F2 =
350 N is applied on the rod along the positive y-axis.
a) Draw a free-body diagram of the given configuration.
b) Find the reaction force at bearings A and the tension on cable BC and BD.
c) If BC and BD are spring of stiffness k = 280N/m, what are their natural (non-stretched) length?
Express your answer to 3 significant figures.

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Name: ____________________________________________ Student Number: ___________________________

Q4. [25 marks] A thin plate used to contain water is supported with pins at points E and C by a
truss structure. The weight of the plate can be ignored so only horizontal support forces are
needed at points E and C. The lowest point of the plate and the base of the water container is
aligned horizontally at point B. The Truss structure is supported by pin A and roller J. The depth
of the water container is h = 10 m and the width is 2 m. Hint: the horizontal support force at
points C and E are not distributed equally. ρw = 1000 kg / m3.
a) Draw all the necessary free-body diagrams. Hint: There are hydrostatic and truss FBDs.
b) Find the total hydrostatics force and the horizontal support force at C and E.
c) Find the reaction forces at support A and support J.
d) Find the force in members CG and FG. (use positive for tension and negative for compression)
Express your answer to 3 significant figures.

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