Chapter 1

General Principles

Engineering Mechanics: Statics

 ME122 ENGINEERING
MECHANICS-I: (Statics)

Objectives:
To gain basic understanding of various engineering structures in equilibrium. To
develop knowledge regarding physical phenomena in mathematical terms.
Course Outline:
Force System. Force, rectangular components, moment, couples, resultant of
forces, moments and couples (two and three dimensional systems).
Equilibrium. Mechanical systems, isolation and equilibrium equations for two and
three dimensional systems. Free body diagram, two force and three force
members.
Structures. Plane trusses, method of joints, method of sections, frames and
machine analysis. Forces in
beams and cables
Friction. Types of friction, dry friction, application of friction.
 Recommended Books:
1. Vector Mechanics for Engineers by Beer and Johnston (10th Edition)
2. Engineering Mechanics by J.L. Meriam (7th Edition)
3. Engineering Mechanics by R.C. Hibbler (12th Edition)
 ME122 ENGINEERING
MECHANICS-I: (Statics)
Grading policy

 Quizzes+Assignments= 25%

 Mid-term exams= 25%

 End-term exams= 50%

 Chapter Objectives

 To provide an introduction to the basic

quantities and idealizations of
mechanics.
 To give a statement of Newton’s Laws
of Motion and Gravitation.
 To review the principles for applying
the SI system of units.
 Chapter Outline

 Mechanics
 Fundamental Concepts
 Units of Measurement
 The International System of Units
 1.1 Mechanics
Mechanics – can be defined as that branch of the
physical sciences concerned with the state of rest or
motion of bodies that are subjected to the action of
forces

Deformable-body
Rigid Body Mechanics Fluid mechanics
mechanics

Statics – deals with the Dynamics – concerned with the

equilibrium of bodies, that are accelerated motion of bodies
either at rest or move with a
constant velocity
 1.2 Fundamentals Concepts
Basic Quantities
 Length
– Locate position and describe size of physical
system
– Define distance and geometric properties of a body
 Mass
– Comparison of action of one body against
another
– Measure of resistance of matter to a change in
velocity
Basic Quantities
 Time
– Conceive as succession of events
 Force
– “push” or “pull” exerted by one body on another
– Occur due to direct contact between bodies
Eg: Person pushing against the wall
– Occur through a distance without direct contact
Eg: Gravitational, electrical and magnetic forces
 1.2 Fundamentals Concepts
Idealizations
 Particles
– Consider mass but neglect size
Eg: Size of Earth insignificant compared to its
size of orbit

 Rigid Body
– Combination of large number of particles
– Neglect material properties
Eg: Deformations in structures, machines
and mechanism
 1.2 Fundamentals Concepts
Idealizations
 Concentrated Force
– Effect of loading, assumed to act at a point
on a body
– Represented by a concentrated force,
provided loading area is small compared to
overall size
Eg: Contact force between wheel and ground
 1.2 Fundamentals Concepts

Newton’s Three Laws of Motion

 First Law
“A particle originally at rest, or moving in a straight
line with constant velocity, will remain in this state
provided that the particle is not subjected to an
unbalanced force”
 1.2 Fundamentals Concepts
Newton’s Three Laws of Motion
 Second Law
“A particle acted upon by an unbalanced force F
experiences an acceleration a that has the same
direction as the force and a magnitude that is
directly proportional to the force”

F  ma
 1.2 Fundamentals Concepts

Newton’s Three Laws of Motion

 Third Law
“The mutual forces of action and reaction between
two particles are equal and, opposite and collinear”
 1.2 Fundamentals Concepts
Newton’s Law of Gravitational Attraction

m1 m 2
F G 2
r
F = force of gravitation between two particles
G = universal constant of gravitation
m1,m2 = mass of each of the two particles
r = distance between the two particles
 1.2 Fundamentals Concepts

mM e
Weight, W  G
r2

Letting g  GM e / r 2 yields W  mg
 1.2 Fundamentals Concepts
Comparing F = mg with F = ma

 g is the acceleration due to gravity

 Since g is dependent on r, weight of a body is
not an absolute quantity
 Magnitude is determined from where the
measurement is taken
 For most engineering calculations, g is
determined at sea level and at a latitude of 45°
 1.3 Units of Measurement
SI Units [Système International d’Unités]

F = ma is maintained only if
– Three of the units, called base units, are arbitrarily
defined
– Fourth unit is derived from the equation
 SI system specifies length in meters (m), time in
seconds (s) and mass in kilograms (kg)
 Unit of force, called Newton (N) is derived from F =
ma
 1.3 Units of Measurement

Name Length Time Mass Force

International Meter Second Kilogram Newton

Systems of (m) (s) (kg) (N)
Units (SI)
 1.3 Units of Measurement
 At the standard location,
g = 9.806 65 m/s2
 For calculations, we use
g = 9.81 m/s2
 Thus,
W = mg (g = 9.81m/s2)
 Hence, a body of mass 1 kg has a weight
of 9.81 N, a 2 kg body weighs 19.62 N
 1.4 The International System
of Units
Exponential Prefix SI Symbol
Form
Multiple
1 000 000 000 109 Giga G
1 000 000 106 Mega M
1 000 103 Kilo k

Sub-Multiple
0.001 10-3 Milli m
0.000 001 10-6 Micro μ
0.000 000 001 10-9 nano n
 1.5 Numerical Calculations
Example 1.1
Evaluate each of the following and express with SI
units having an approximate prefix:
(a) (50 mN)(6 GN)
(b) (400 mm)(0.6 MN)2,
(c) 45 MN3/900 Gg

Solution
First convert to base units, perform indicated
operations and choose an appropriate prefix
 1.5 Numerical Calculations

(a)
50mN 6GN 
 
 5010 3 N 6109 N 
 300106 N 2

 30010 N  3  3 
6  1kN  1kN 
2

 10 N  10 N 
 300kN 2
 1.5 Numerical Calculations

(b)
400mm0.6MN  2

      
3
 400 10 m 0.6 10 N 6 2

 40010 m0.3610 N 
3 12 2

 14410 m.N
9 2

 144Gm.kN 2
 1.5 Numerical Calculations
(c) 45MN 3 / 900Gg



45 10 N6

3

 
900 10 6 kg
 0.0510 N / kg
12 3

 0.0510 N 
 1kN  1

12 3

 10 N  kg
3

 0.0510 kN / kg
3 3

 50kN 3 / kg
Dimensional homogeneity
Significant figure
Rounding Off Numbers