MODULE 3: ENGINEERING DIMENSIONS  International System (SI) of Units ,

AND UNITS https://www.britannica.com/science/Internat

ional-System-of-Units
3.1 FUNDAMENTAL DIMENSIONS AND  British Gravitational (BG) System of
UNITS Units ,
Engineering Fundamentals – Concepts https://www.me.psu.edu/cimbala/Learning/
Every Engineer Should Know General/units.htm
 U.S. Customary Units
 Fundamental dimensions and units
 Length  
 Time International System (SI) of Units
 Mass
 Most common system of units used in
 Force
the world
 Temperature  Examples of SI units: m, kg, ampere
 Electric current  Approved by the General Conference on
Weights and Measures (CGPM)
 Energy and power
 Series of prefixes & symbols of decimal
  multiples (adapted by CGPM, 1960)

Fundamental Dimensions and Units  

Fundamental Dimensions
Fundamental Unit of Length
The physical quantities used to fully describe Meter (m)
natural events and our surroundings
Length of the path traveled by light in a
 Length vacuum during a time interval of 1/299,792,458
 Time of a second
 Mass Fundamental Unit of Mass
 Temperature
Kilogram (kg)
 Electric current
 Amount of substance A unit of mass; it is equal to the mass of the
 Luminous intensity  international prototype of the kilogram

Units   
Fundamental Unit of Time
 Used to measure physical dimensions
Second (s)
 Appropriate divisions of physical
dimensions to keep numbers manageable Duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the
radiation corresponding to the transition
 (e.g.) 19 years old vs. 612,000,000 seconds between the 2 hyperfine levels of the ground
old state of cesium 133 atom
   
Systems of Units  Fundamental Unit of Electric Current
Common systems of units Ampere (A)
Constant current that, if maintained in 2
straight parallel conductors of infinite length, of
negligible circular cross section, and placed 1
 meter apart in a vacuum, would produce o Temperature: Fahrenheit (°F),
between these conductors a force equal Rankine (°R)
to 2 ×10−7 N/m length
U.S. Customary System of Units
Fundamental Unit of Temperature  Primary units
Kelvin (K) o Length : foot (ft), 1 ft = 0.3048 m
o Time : second
Unit of thermodynamic temperature, is the o Mass : pound mass (lbm)
fraction 1/273.16 of thermodynamic
temperature of the triple point of water 1 lbm = 0.453592 kg, 1 slug = 32.2 lbm
  
Units of Temperature o Force : pound force (lbf)

 Both the Celsius and the Fahrenheit Defined as the weight of an object having a
scales are arbitrarily defined mass of 1 lbm at sea level and at a latitude
 The Kelvin and Rankine scales are
absolute scales of  45 ∘, where acceleration due to gravity

temperature (K) = temperature (°C) + 273 is 32.2  f t s 2 , 1 lbf = 4.448 N

  
o Temperature: Fahrenheit (°F),
Fundamental Unit of Amount of Substance Rankine (°R)
Mole (mol)
 
The amount of substance of a system that
contains as many elementary entities as there SI vs. U.S. Customary Units
are atoms in 0.012 kilograms of carbon 12 Examples of SI Units in Everyday Use
  Unit Conversion

Fundamental Unit of Luminous Intensity  Important to learn to convert information

Candela (cd) from one system of units to
another correctly
In a given direction, of a source that emits  Always show the appropriate units that
monochromatic radiation of frequency go with your calculations
540x1012 hertz and that has a radiant intensity  See the conversion tables given in the
in that direction of 1/683 watt per steradian book 
 
 
SI – Prefix & Symbol 
Example Unit Conversion
British Gravitation (BG) System of Units
Given:    A person who is 6’-3” tall and weighs
 Primary units 185 pound force (lbf)
o Length : foot (ft), 1 ft = 0.3048 m
Find:    Height and weight in SI units
o Time : second
o Mass : slug, 1lb = (1 slug)(1 ft/s2) Solution: 
o Derived from Newton’s second
law The person's height, H
o Force : pound (lb), 1 lb = 4.448 N
H = ( 6 f t + 3 i n ( 1 f t 12 i n ) ) ( 0.3048 m 1 f t  Solution: 
) = 1.905 m
Dimensional Homogeneity
The person's weight, W 
 All formulas used in engineering
Example Unit Conversion analysis must be dimensionally
Given:    A person is driving a car at a speed homogeneous
of 65 miles per hour (mph) over a distance of
25 miles   (e.g.)  Given: L = a + b + c

Find:    Speed and distance in SI units Left hand side of equation should have the
same dimension as right hand side of equation
Solution:  
 
Speed of cars, S
Example Dimensional Homogeneity
Distance traveled, D 
Given: 
Example Unit Conversion
where
Given:    Outside temperature is 80oF and has
a density of 0.0735 pound mass per cubic foot d = end deflection, in m
(lbm/ft3)
P = applied load, in N 
Find:    Temperature in SI units
L = length of bar, in m 
Solution:
A = cross-sectional area of bar, in m2
Temperature of air, T
E = modulus of elasticity     
Example Unit Conversion
Find:     The units for modulus of elasticity
Given:    Area A = 100 cm2
Example Dimensional Homogeneity
Find:    A in m2
Given:  The heat transfer rate through a solid
Solution: material

Example Unit Conversion     Fourier’s law:

Given:    Volume V = 1000 mm3 Numerical versus Symbolic Solutions

Numerical solution
Find:    V in m3
  Data is given for problems to be solved
Solution:
Symbolic solution
Example Unit Conversion
  The steps and the final answer are presented
Given:    Atmosphere pressure P = 105 N/m2
with variables that could be substituted with
Find:    P in lbf/in2 data–if necessary

Solution:  

Example Unit Conversion Example Numerical Versus Symbolic

Solutions
Given:    Density of water = 1000 kg/m3
Given:  The hydraulic system shown
Find:   Density in lbm/ft3
Find:    The load that can be lifted:    m2
Numerical solution: The result of the calculation should be
recorded with the last significant digit in the
Significant Digits (Figures) result determined by the position of the last
column of digits common to all of the numbers
 Engineers make measurements and being added or subtracted.
carry out calculations
 Engineers record the results of For example,
measurements and calculations using
Multiplication and Division Rules
numbers
 Significant digits (figures) represent and The result of the calculation should be
convey the extent to which recorded or recorded with the least number of significant
computed data is dependable digits given by any of the numbers used in the
calculation
 
For example,
How to Record a Measurement
Components and Systems
What should we record for this temperature
measurement?
 Every product is considered a system
Least count that serves a purpose
 Any given engineered product or
One half of the smallest scale division
engineering system is made up of smaller
The least count is 1°C (the smallest division is parts called components
2°C)  The components of a well-designed
engineering system should function and fit
well together
71 ± 1 ∘ C
What should we record for the length? Every engineered product is made of
components
The least count is 0.05 in. (the smallest division
is 0.1 in.)  Components:

What should we record for this pressure?  Cooling system

The least count is 0.5 cm. (the smallest division  Engine
is 1 cm.)  Wiper motor system
 Exhaust system
   Drive train
 Brake system
Significant Digits

 175, 25.5, 1.85, and 0.00125 each have
System:
three significant digits
 The number of significant digits for the
 Vehicle
number 1500 is not clear
o It could be 2, 3, or 4
Physical Laws and Observations
o If recorded as 1.5 x 103 or 15 x
2 ,
10    then 2 significant digits
 Physical laws are based on observation
and experimentation and are expressed
 
using mathematical formulas
Addition and Subtraction Rules  Engineers apply physical and chemical
laws and principles along with mathematics
to design, develop, test, and produce
 products and services that we use in our
everyday lives

For example,

 Second law of thermodynamics

o Heat flows spontaneously from a
high-temperature region to a low-
temperature region
o When a hot object is placed next
to a cold object, the hot object gets
cooler and the cold object gets warmer;
the cold object does not get colder

 Conservation of mass
o   The rate by which mass enters
a system minus the rate by which it
leaves the system should equal the rate
of increase or decrease of mass within
the system
 Conservation of energy
 Newton’s second law of motion
o Direct relationship between the
push, the mass of the object being
pushed, and the acceleration of mass

 Physical laws are based on

observations
 Some physical laws may not fully
describe all possible situations
 Some laws are stated in a particular way
to keep the mathematical expression
simple
 Engineering correlations are based on
experimental results and have limited
applications