MODULE OF INSTRUCTION______________________________NSCI-6100 PHYSICS FOR ENGINEERS 1

Non-Concurrent Forces
Course Learning Outcomes:
By the end of the module, students are able to:

1. Define the non-concurrent forces;

2. Learn the number of ways in which could help resolve different force
system; and
3. Get the resultant in terms of; (1) magnitude, (2) inclination, (3)
position.
Introduction
Non-Concurrent Forces is defined as the forces which lies in the line of
activity but do not intersect or forms a parallel at a common point. These
forces are the general system of forces.
The resultant of non-concurrent force system is defined according to
magnitude, inclination and position.
The magnitude of the resultant can be found as follows:

The inclination from the horizontal is defined by:

The position of the resultant can be determined according to the principles

of moments.

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MODULE OF INSTRUCTION______________________________NSCI-6100 PHYSICS FOR ENGINEERS 1

The principles of equilibrium are also used to determine the resultant of non-
parallel, non-concurrent systems of forces. Simply put, all of the lines of
action of the forces in this system do not meet at one point. The parallel force
system was a special case of this type. Since all of these forces are not entirely
parallel, the position of the resultant can be established using the graphical
or algebraic methods.
There are a number of ways in which one could resolve the force system that
is shown. One graphical method would be to resolve a pair of forces using
the parallelogram or triangle method into a resultant. The resultant would
then be combined with one of the remaining forces and a new resultant
determined, and so on until all of the forces had been accounted for.

This could prove to be very cumbersome if there is a great number of forces.

The algebraic solution to this system would potentially be simpler if the
forces that are applied to the system are easy to break into components.
The algebraic resolution of this force system is illustrated in the example
problem.
Problem 1:
Given: the system of forces

Determine: the resultant by an algebraic method (first its magnitude, and

then the point on its line of action where it meets the crooked arm)

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MODULE OF INSTRUCTION______________________________NSCI-6100 PHYSICS FOR ENGINEERS 1

Solution:
The first step is to determine a convenient location for the center moments.
This point should be chosen with care since it can make the problem much
easier if correctly chosen. Assume that point A shall be taken as the center of
moments. Next, inspect the forces in order to find any that must be
decomposed into their components. Only the 50-pound force must be
decomposed into its orthogonal components. It has a line of action that is a
3-4-5 triangle. This can be clearly seen by observation. Thus, the components are
Fx = 30 pounds and Fy = 40 pounds.

Next, find the magnitude and direction of the resultant by summing the
moments of the forces and/or their components.
Sum Fx = 100pounds + 30pounds = 130pounds
Sum Fy = -80pounds – 60pounds + 40pounds = -100pounds
F = SQRT((130pounds) ^2 + (-100pounds^2)) = 164pounds

Next, the direction must be determined.

Tan ∅ = -(100/130), so ∅ = 37.6degrees below x axis and to the right
Then, sum of the moments around point A to find the location of the
resultant. Assume that the resultant acts along the long side of the crooked
arm so that Fx will cause a zero moment.
Sum MA
(100pounds) (x ft) = (100pounds) (2ft) + (80pounds) (3ft) + (60pounds) (6ft) –
(40pounds) (9ft)
100x pound-ft = 200 pound-ft + 240 pound-ft + 360 pound-ft – 360 pound-ft
100x pound-ft = 440 pound-ft

x = 4.4 feet
Therefore, the resultant equals 164 pounds acting 37.4 degrees below the x
axis, down and to the right at a point 4.4 feet to the right of point A.

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MODULE OF INSTRUCTION______________________________NSCI-6100 PHYSICS FOR ENGINEERS 1

Problem 2:
Determine completely the resultant of the forces acting on the step fully
shown in the Figure.

Solution:
𝑅
𝑅𝑥 = ∑𝐹𝑥 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝜃𝑥 = 𝑅𝑦
𝑥
𝑅𝑥 = 750sin60° + 250 875
𝑡𝑎𝑛𝜃𝑥 = 899.52
𝑅𝑥 = 899.52 lb to the right
𝜃 = 44.21°
𝑅𝑦 = ∑𝐹𝑦
𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑙𝑒 = ∑𝑀𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟
𝑅𝑦 = 750sin60° - 1250
𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑙𝑒 = 250(1.25) + 1250(0.5) –
𝑅𝑦 = -875 lb 750(1.25)
𝑅𝑦 = 875 lb downward 𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑙𝑒 = 0
R = √𝑅𝑥 2 + 𝑅𝑦 2

R = √899.522 + 8752 Thus R = 1254.89 lb downward to

the right at 𝜃x = 44.21° and
R = 1254.89 lb passes through the axle

Reference:
A Committee on Physics (1962). College Physics. Published by Royal Publishing
House INC., Quezon City, Philippines.
Weber et al. College Physics, Fifth Edition. McGraw-Hill Book Company, New
York St. Louis San Francisco.
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