INTRODUCTION TO

STATICS /
FUNDAMENTAL
CONCEPTS
ENGR. HEBER JOHN DE VERA
 CHAPTER OBJECTIVES

To be able to understand/learn To have a deep understanding

the fundamentals of statics- on the Newton's 3 Laws of
history and basic concepts and motion
calculations
PRINCIPLES OF STATICS
The subject of statics developed very early in history because the principle involved
could be formulated simply from measurements of geometry and force.
The Flemish mathematician and engineer Simon Stevinus (1548-1620) was
the first to demonstrate resolution of forces, thereby establishing the foundation of
modern statics.
ARCHIMEDES (287-212 B.C.) – his writings deals with the principle of lever; studies
of the pulley, inclined plane, and wrench are also recorded in ancient writings – at
times when the requirements of engineering were limited primarily to building
construction.
ENGINEERING – is defined as the profession in which knowledge of mathematical
and natural sciences gained by study, practice, and experience is applied with
judgement in order to develop ways to utilize economically the materials and forces
of nature for the benefit of mankind.
MECHANICS

• Defined as the branch of the physical sciences

concerned with the state of rest or motion of
bodies that are subjected to the action of forces.
• In general, this subject is subdivided into three
branches: 1. Rigid-body mechanics, 2.
Deformable-body mechanics and 3. Fluid
mechanics

Rigid body Mechanics is subdivided

into two areas:
• Statics – deals with the equilibrium of bodies,
that is, those that either at rest or move with
constant velocity.
• Dynamics – is concerned with the accelerated
motion of bodies.
.
ENGINEERING MECHANICS – is a branch of mechanics that deals with a
study of forces in relation to problems with engineering applications.
FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS:
Basic Quantities: The following four quantities are used throughout
mechanics.

1. LENGTH – is needed to locate the position of a point in space and

thereby describe the size of the physical system.
2. TIME – is conceived as a succession of events.
3. MASS – is a property of matter by which we can compare the action of
one body with that of another.

4. FORCE – in general, it is considered as a ―pus or ―pull

exerted by one body on another.
UNITS AND DIMENSIONS
Units – the standard of measurement.
Dimension – refers to the type of measurement, regardless of the units
used.

BASE DIMENSION BASE UNIT

Mass Kilogram (kg)

SI system Length Meter (m)
Time Seconds (s)
Force Newton (N)
IDEALIZATION – is used in mechanics in order to simplify
application of the theory.

 PARTICLE – has a mass, but a size that can be neglected.

 RIGID BODY – can be considered as a combination of a
large number of particles in which all the particles remain at
a fixed distance from one another both before and after
applying a load.
 CONCENTRATED FORCE – represents the effect of a
loading which is assumed at a point on a body

“ENGINEERING APPROACH” TO PROBLEM ANALYSIS

1. GIVEN 3. SOLUTION
2. FIND 4. VALIDATE
• NEWTONIAN MECHANICS:
• PRINCIPIA (Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy) –
Sir Isaac Newton’s celebrated laws of motion published in
1687.

• Two branches of Newtonian Mechanics:

• Relativistic mechanics – addresses phenomena that occur on
a cosmic scale.
• Quantum mechanics – is concerned with particles on the
atomic or sub-atomic scale.
NEWTON’S THREE LAWS OF
MOTION:
The entire subject of rigid-body mechanics is formulated on the
basis of Newton’s three laws of motion, the validity of which is
based on experimental observation.
FIRST LAW: A particle originally at rest, or moving
on a straight line with constant velocity, will remain
in this state provided the particle is not subjected
to an unbalanced force.
SECOND LAW: A particle acted upon by an
unbalanced force, F experiences acceleration a t that
has the same direction as the force and a magnitude
that is directly proportional to the force. If F applied to
a particle of mass, m, this law may be expressed
mathematically as

THIRD LAW: The mutual forces of action and reaction

between two particles are equal, opposite, and collinear.
Diagnostic Test
1. A person weighs 150N on the moon, where g = 1.64m/s2. Determine (a) the mass of
the person and (b) the weight of the person on earth.
Solution:
Wmoon = 150N ; gmoon = 1.64m/s2

a) Wmoon = mgm
150N = m(1.64m/s2)
m = (150N)/(1.64m/s2)
m = 91.46kg.

b) W = mg
W = (91.46kg)(9.81m/s2)
W = 897.22N
Diagnostic Test
2) Convert the following:
a. 40,000 N-cm to kN-m
(40,000 N-cm)(1kN/1000N)(1m/100cm) = 0.4 kN-m
b. 6 m/s to mm/hr
(6m/s)(1000mm/1m)(3600s/1hr) = 2.16 x 106 mm/hr
c. 1 bar to kPa
(1x105Pa)(1kPa/1000) = 100 kPa
d. 500 g/mm to kg/m
(500g/mm)(1kg/1000g)(1000mm/1m) = 500 kg/m
Diagnostic Test
3. A man weighs 900N on the surface of the earth. Compute his weight in an airplane
flying at an elevation of 9,000m.
Solution:
W = 900N ; Welev. = 9,000m = ?
Using Newton’s Law of Gravitational Attraction,
𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒 ; 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑣

𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑣

Using r = 6,371 km and G = 6.674 x 10-11

2
𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑣
Diagnostic Test
4. Two identical spheres of radius 80mm and mass 2kg on the surface of the earth are
placed in contact. Find the gravitational attraction between them.
Solution:
Using Newton’s Law of Gravitational Attraction,

2
FORCE VECTORS
ENGR. HEBER JOHN DE VERA
CHAPTER OBJECTIVES:

1. To understand the different type of force systems.

2. To show how to add forces and resolve them into

components using the Parallelogram Law.

3. To express force and position in Cartesian vector

form and explain how to determine the vector’s
magnitude and direction.

4. To introduce the dot product in order to determine

the angle between two vectors or the projection of
one vector onto another.
FORCE SYSTEMS
Force system – it is any arrangement where two or more
forces act on a body or on a group of related bodies.
 TWO PHYSICAL QUANTITIES
IN MEASUREMENT

SCALAR - is any positive or VECTOR - is any physical quantity

negative physical quantity that can
be completely specified by its
magnitude. Examples of scalar
quantities include length, mass,
and time.
that requires both a magnitude
and direction for its complete
description. Examples of vectors
encountered in statics are force,
position, and moment.
FORCE VECTORS
• A vector is drawn by
an arrow. The length of the
arrow represents magnitude
of the vector, and the angle
between the vector and a
fixed axis defines the
direction of its line of action.
The head or tip of the arrow
indicates the sense of
direction of the vector
VECTOR OPERATIONS
- Multiplication and Division of a Vector by a Scalar
- Vector Addition
- Parallelogram Law
- Triangle Rule
- Vector Subtractions
- Finding a Resultant Force
- Addition of Several Forces
VECTOR OPERATIONS
- Multiplication and Division of a Vector by a Scalar
- Vector Addition
- Parallelogram Law
- Triangle Rule
- Vector Subtractions
- Finding a Resultant Force
- Addition of Several Forces
VECTOR OPERATIONS
- Multiplication and Division of a Vector by a Scalar
- Vector Addition
- Parallelogram Law
- Triangle Rule
- Vector Subtractions
- Finding a Resultant Force
- Addition of Several Forces
Engr. Heber John de Vera
09178370439
hjdevera.ce@tip.edu.ph

Contact hours: 3:00PM –

06:00PM (Monday to Friday)