Biomechanics Assignment-2 Answers

Dr. Waleed M. Altalabi

Name: …………………………………………………………………………………………………

Part 1: MCQs
1- The system of forces acting on the forearm are the weight of the load Wload, the weight of the arm itself Warm, the
tension in the biceps muscle FM, and the joint reaction force at the elbow Fj. This system is called [003 Force, Moment and
Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 20]

A. Collinear forces, because all the applied forces have a common line of action.
B. Tangential forces, because the applied forces are in the direction parallel to the surface.
C. Parallel force, because the lines of action of the applied forces are parallel to each other.
D. Concurrent forces, because the lines of action of the forces have a common point of intersection.

2-Choose the CORRECT statement from the four below. [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 16]

A. A system of forces is said to be coplanar if all the forces are acting in one plane (on a two-dimensional 2D).
B. A system of forces is said to be coplanar if some of the forces are acting in one plane (on a two-dimensional 2D).
C. A system of forces is said to be coplanar if all the forces are acting in Two plane (on a two-dimensional 2D).
D. A system of forces is said to be coplanar if some of the forces are acting in Two plane (on a two-dimensional 2D).

3- What is the CORRECT statement about Synovial Fluid? [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 36]

A. The synovial fluid is an elastic material that reduces frictional effects, reduces wear and tear of articulating
surfaces by limiting direct contact between them, and nourishes the articular cartilage lining the joint surfaces.
B. The synovial fluid is a plastic material that reduces frictional effects, reduces wear and tear of articulating
surfaces by limiting direct contact between them, and nourishes the articular cartilage lining the joint surfaces.
C. The synovial fluid is a viscous material that reduces frictional effects, reduces wear and tear of articulating
surfaces by limiting direct contact between them, and nourishes the articular cartilage lining the joint surfaces.
D. The synovial fluid is a viscoelastic material that reduces frictional effects, reduces wear and tear of articulating
surfaces by limiting direct contact between them, and nourishes the articular cartilage lining the joint surfaces.

4- What is NOT CORRECT about the Couple and Couple-Moment? [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 96]

A. The rotational effect of a couple is quantified with couple-moment.

B. A special arrangement of forces that is of importance, which is formed by two parallel forces with equal
magnitude and opposite directions.
C. The couple has the different torque about every point in space.
D. On a rigid body, the couple has a pure rotational effect.

5- Choose the TRUE statement: [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 14]

A. If a force acting on a surface is applied in a direction perpendicular to that surface, then the force is called a
tangential force.
B. If a force acting on a surface is applied in a direction perpendicular to that surface, then the force is called a
tensile force.
C. If a force acting on a surface is applied in a direction perpendicular to that surface, then the force is called a
concurrent force.
D. If a force acting on a surface is applied in a direction perpendicular to that surface, then the force is called a
normal force.

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6- Choose the INCORRECT meaning of force system: [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 18]

A. A tensile force applied on a body will tend to stretch or elongate the body, whereas a compressive force will
tend to shrink the body in the direction of the applied force.
B. A set of forces form a parallel force system if the lines of action of the forces are parallel to each other.
C. Any two or more forces acting on a single body form a force system.
D. A system of forces is concurrent if the lines of action of the forces have not a common point of intersection.

7- Which one of the following statements is TRUE? [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 23]

A. A mass of a body is 66Kg on Earth. However, the weight of a body is about 108N on the moon, because the
magnitude of the gravitational acceleration on the moon is about one-sixth of what it is on Earth.
B. A mass of a body is 66Kg on Earth. However, the weight of a body is about 108N on the moon, because the
magnitude of the gravitational acceleration on the moon is about six times of what it is on Earth.
C. A mass of a body is 66Kg on Earth. However, the weight of a body is about 11N on the moon, because the
magnitude of the gravitational acceleration on the moon is about one-sixth of what it is on Earth.
D. A mass of a body is 66Kg on Earth. However, the weight of a body is about 396N on the moon, because the
magnitude of the gravitational acceleration on the moon is about six times of what it is on Earth.

8- A system of forces is collinear if all the forces have a common line of action. Which one of the following examples is a
force collinear system? [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 17]

A. A human arm flexed at a right angle and holding an object.

B. A monkey hangs by his right hand on a rope connects between two trees.
C. Two children playing tug of war.
D. a man is pushing a heavy box on the floor.

9- Which one of the statements is TRUE about center of gravity and center of mass? [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-
Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slides 40,41]

A. For a large object or a structure, such as the Empire State building in New York City, the center of gravity may be
different than the center of mass because the magnitude of gravitational acceleration varies with altitude. For
relatively small objects, the difference between the two can’t be ignored.
B. For a large object or a structure, such as the Empire State building in New York City, the center of gravity may be
different than the center of mass because the magnitude of gravitational acceleration varies with altitude. For
relatively small objects, the difference between the two can be ignored.
C. For a large object or a structure, such as the Empire State building in New York City, the center of gravity and the
center of mass are the same because the magnitude of gravitational acceleration constant with altitude. For
relatively small objects, the difference between the two can be ignored.
D. For a large object or a structure, such as the Empire State building in New York City, the center of gravity and the
center of mass are the same because the magnitude of gravitational acceleration constant with altitude. For
relatively small objects, the difference between the two can’t be ignored.

10- Consider a horizontal force F is applied on the block to move it toward the right. This will cause a frictional force f to
develop between the block and the floor. Which one of the following statements is INCORRECT? [003 Force, Moment and Torque
Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slides 31,32]

A. When the magnitude of the applied force F exceeds maximum force of static friction (fmax), the block moves
toward the right. In this case the force of kinetic friction fk is lower than F.
B. When the block is in motion, the resistance to motion at the surfaces of contact is called the dynamic friction, fk.
C. The coefficient of kinetic friction is usually higher than the coefficient of static friction.
D. The difference between the magnitudes of the applied force and kinetic friction causes the block to accelerate
toward the right.

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11- Which the statement is CORRECT? [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 18]

A. A system of forces is concurrent if all the forces are acting in one plane.
B. A system of forces is concurrent if the lines of action of the forces have a common point of intersection.
C. A system of forces is concurrent if all the forces have a common line of action.
D. A system of forces is concurrent if the lines of action of the forces are parallel to each other.

12- Torque is associated with the rotational and twisting actions of applied forces. based on this concept, which one of
the four statements is FALSE? [003 Force, Moment and Torque Vectors-Waleed-Altalabi.pptx. Slide 66,70]

A. The moment of a force about a point acts in a direction perpendicular to the plane upon which the point and the
force lie.
B. The magnitude of the torque of a force about a point is equal to the magnitude of the force times the length of
the shortest distance between the point and the line of action of the force, which is known as the lever or
moment arm.
C. The magnitude of the moment vector along its line of action can be determined using the right-hand rule.
D. To refer to the direction of the moments of coplanar force systems, it may be sufficient to say that a particular
moment is either clockwise (cw) or counterclockwise (ccw).

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Part 2: Solve the problems:
1- A 35-N hand and forearm are held at a 45° angle to the vertically oriented humerus. The CG of the forearm and hand is
located at a distance of 15 cm from the joint center at the elbow, and the elbow flexor muscles attach at an average
distance of 3 cm from the joint center. (Assume that the muscles attach at an angle of 45° to the bones.)
a. How much force must be exerted by the forearm flexors to maintain this position?
b. How much force must the forearm flexors exert if a 50-N weight is held in the hand at a distance along the arm of 25
cm?

Answer a.
Wta= 35N, a=0.15 m, θ=45, Fm=??, dm=0.03m, and α=45.
𝑇 =0

𝑇 = (𝐹 ) (𝑑 sin 45) − (𝑊𝑡𝑎) (𝑎 sin 45)

0 = (𝐹 )(0.03𝑚 sin 45) − (35𝑁)(0.15𝑚 sin 45)
( )( . )
𝐹 = .

Answer b.
Wtb= 50N, b=0.25m, Fm=??

𝑇 =0

𝑇 = (𝐹 ) (𝑑 sin 45) − (𝑊𝑡𝑎) (𝑎 sin 45) − (𝑊𝑡𝑏) (𝑏 sin 45)

0 = (𝐹 )(0.03𝑚 sin 45) − (35𝑁)(0.15𝑚 sin 45) − (50𝑁)(0.25𝑚 sin 45)
( )( . ) ( )( . )
𝐹 = .

2- A patient rehabilitating a knee injury performs knee extension exercises wearing a 15-N weight boot. Calculate the
amount of torque generated at the knee by the weight boot for the four positions shown, given a distance of 0.4 m
between the weight boot’s CG and the joint center at the knee.
Answer:
Wboot=15N, d=0.4m.
𝑀 = 𝑊 𝑑 sin 𝜃
𝑀 = (15𝑁)(0.4) sin 𝜃

𝜃 = 0°
𝑀 = 0 𝑁𝑚
𝜃 = 30°
𝑀 = 3 𝑁𝑚
𝜃 = 60°
𝑀 = 5.2 𝑁𝑚
𝜃 = 90°
𝑀 = 6 𝑁𝑚

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3- A therapist applies a lateral force of 80 N to the forearm at a distance of 25 cm from the axis of rotation at the elbow.
The biceps attaches to the radius at a 90° angle and at a distance of 3 cm from the elbow joint center.
a. How much force is required of the biceps to stabilize the arm in this position?
b. What is the magnitude of the reaction force exerted by the humerus on the ulna?
Answer a. Fl=80N, d=0.25m, Fm =??, a=0.03m.
𝑇 =0

𝑇 = (𝐹 ) (𝑎 ) − (𝐹 ) (𝑑)
0 = 𝐹 (0.03) − (80𝑁)(0.25𝑚)
(80𝑁)(0.25𝑚)
𝐹 = = 666.66 𝑁
(0.03)
Answer b.
𝐹 =0
0 = 𝐹 − (𝐹 ) − 𝐹
𝐹 = 𝐹 − (𝐹 )
𝐹 = 666.66 − 80 = 586.66 𝑁
4- Tendon forces Ta and Tb are exerted on the patella. The femur exerts force F on the patella. If the magnitude of Tb is 80
N, what are the magnitudes of Ta and F, if no motion is occurring at the joint?
Answer: Ta=??, Tb= 80N, F=??
𝐹 =0
0 = (𝐹 cos 29°) − (𝑇 cos 38°) − (𝑇 𝑆𝑖𝑛 30°)
(𝐹 cos 29°) = (𝑇 cos 38°) + (𝑇 𝑆𝑖𝑛 30°)
(𝐹 0.875) = (𝑇 0.788) + (40)
(𝑇 0.788) + (40)
𝐹= (1)
0.875

𝐹 =0

0 = (𝐹 sin 29°) + (𝑇 sin 38°) − (𝑇 𝑐𝑜𝑠 30°)

(𝑇 sin 38°) = (𝑇 𝑐𝑜𝑠 30°) − (𝐹 sin 29°)
(80𝑁 𝑐𝑜𝑠 30°) − (𝐹 sin 29°)
𝑇 = (2)
sin 38°
(69.28) − (𝐹 0.484)
𝑇 = (2)
0.616
Now, Instead the (Ta) by the Equation (2) in the Equation (1).
(69.28) − (𝐹 0.484)
( 0.788) + (40)
0.616
𝐹= (1)
0.875
0.875 𝐹 = 88.624 − 0.619 𝐹 + 40
0.875 𝐹 + 0.619 𝐹 = 128.624
𝐹 = 86.1 𝑁
Finally, instead the value of F in the Equation 2
(69.28) − (86.1)(0.484)
𝑇 = (2)
0.616
𝑇 = 44.82 𝑁
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