Republic of the Philippines

CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE

F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

MECH 1 – STATICS OF RIGID BODIES Period: 1st Sem. AY .2023-2024 Subject Instructor: Course and Year:
BSCE 2 Learning Material No. and Title: 1. Fundamental Concepts Time Allotment: Week 2 Outline of Topics
1. Definition of Mechanics
2. Fundamental Concepts
3. Units of Measurement
4. The International System of Units
5. Numerical Calculations
6. General Procedure for Analysis
Specific Intended Learning Outcome/s (SILOs)
At the end of this topic, the student should be able to:
• Discuss the fundamental concepts of forces.
• Identify units of measurement.
• Solve unit conversion problems.
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= 1. Definition of Mechanics

Mechanics is a branch of the physical sciences that is concerned with the state of rest or motion of bodies that
are subjected to the action of forces. In general, this subject can be subdivided into three branches: rigid-body
mechanics, deformable-body mechanics, and fluid mechanics. Rigid-body mechanics is divided into two areas: statics
and dynamics. Statics deals with the equilibrium of bodies, that is, those that are either at rest or move with a constant
velocity, whereas dynamics is concerned with the accelerated motion of bodies.

2. Fundamental Concepts

The following four quantities are used throughout mechanics.

• Length. Length is used to locate the position of a point in space and thereby describe the size of a physical
system.
• Time. Time is conceived as a succession of events.

• Mass. Mass is a measure of a quantity of matter that is used to compare the action of one body with that of
another.
• Force. In general, force is considered as a “push” or “pull” exerted by one body on another. This interaction can
occur when there is direct contact between the bodies, such as a person pushing on a wall, or it can occur
through a distance when the bodies are physically separated. Examples of the latter type include gravitational,
electrical, and magnetic forces. In any case, a force is completely characterized by its magnitude, direction,
and point of application.

Models or idealizations are used in mechanics in order to simplify the application of the theory. Here we will consider
three important idealizations.

• Particle. A particle has a mass but a size that can be neglected.

• Rigid Body. A 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. This model is
important because the body’s shape does not change when a load is applied, so we do not have to consider
the type of material from which the body is made. In most cases, the actual deformations occurring in
structures, machines, mechanisms, and the like are relatively small, and the rigid-body assumption is suitable
for analysis.
• Concentrated Force. A concentrated force represents the effect of loading which is assumed to act at a point on
a body. We can represent a load by a concentrated force, provided the area over which the load is applied is
very small compared to the overall size of the body. An example would be the contact force between a wheel
 and the ground.

MECH 1 – Statics of Rigid Bodies Page 1 of 4

Republic of the Philippines

CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

Engineering mechanics is formulated on the basis of Newton’s three laws of motion:

• First Law. A particle originally at rest, or moving in a straight line with constant velocity, tends to 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 an acceleration a that has the same
direction as the force and a magnitude that is directly proportional to the force. If F is applied to a particle of
mass m, this law may be expressed mathematically as F = ma.
• Third Law. The mutual forces of action and reaction between two particles are equal, opposite, and collinear.

Shortly after formulating his three laws of motion, Newton postulated a law governing the gravitational attraction
between any two particles. Stated mathematically,

Any two particles or bodies have a mutual attractive (gravitational) force acting between them. In the case of a particle
located at or near the surface of the earth, however, the only gravitational force having any sizable magnitude is that
between the earth and the particle. Consequently, this force, termed the weight, will be the only gravitational force
considered in our study of mechanics.

W = mg

3. Units of Measurement

The International System of

Units,
abbreviated SI after the French
“Système
International d’Unités,” is a modern
version of
the metric system which has received
worldwide recognition. SI system
defines
length in meters (m), time in seconds
(s), and
mass in kilograms (kg). The unit of
force
called a newton (N), is derived from F = ma.
Measurements give g = 9.80665 m/s2, but for
calculations, we’ll use g = 9.81 m/s2.

In the U.S. Customary System of

Units (FPS), length is measured in feet (ft),
time in seconds (s), and force in pounds (lb).
The unit of mass is called a slug. In this
system of units, g = 32.2 ft/s2.

In the FPS system, recall that 1 ft =

12 in. (inches), 5280 ft = 1 mi (mile), 1000 lb
= 1 kip (kilo-pound), and 2000 lb = 1 ton.

MECH 1 – Statics of Rigid Bodies Page 2 of 4

Republic of the Philippines

CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

4. The International System of Units

When a numerical quantity is either very large or very small, the units used to define its size may be modified
by using a prefix. Each represents a multiple or submultiple of a unit which, if applied successively, moves the decimal
point of a numerical quantity to every third place.

Here are a few of the important rules that describe the proper use of the various SI symbols:

a. Quantities defined by several units which are multiples of one another are separated by a dot to avoid confusion
with prefix notation.
b. The exponential power on a unit having a prefix refers to both the unit and its prefix.
c. With the exception of the base unit, the kilogram, in general, avoid the use of a prefix in the denominator of
composite units.
d. When performing calculations, represent the numbers in terms of their base or derived units by converting all
prefixes to powers of 10. The final result should then be expressed using a single prefix. Also, after calculation,
it is best to keep numerical values between 0.1 and 1000; otherwise, a suitable prefix should be chosen.

5. Numerical Calculations

The terms of any equation used to describe a physical process must be dimensionally homogeneous; that is,
each term must be expressed in the same units. Provided this is the case, all the terms of an equation can then be
combined if numerical values are substituted for the variables.

The number of significant figures contained in any number determines the accuracy of the number. If zeros
occur at the end of a whole number, it may be unclear as to how many significant figures the number represents. To
avoid these ambiguities, we will use engineering notation to report a result. This requires that numbers be rounded off
to the appropriate number of significant digits and then expressed in multiples of (10 3). If zeros occur at the beginning
of a number that is less than one, then the zeros are not significant.

Rounding off a number is necessary so that the accuracy of the result will be the same as that of the problem
data. As a general rule, any numerical figure ending in a number greater than five is rounded up, and a number less
than five is not rounded up. There is a special case for any number that ends in a 5. As a general rule, if the digit
preceding the 5 is an even number, then this digit is not rounded up. If the digit preceding the 5 is an odd number, then
it is rounded up.

When a sequence of calculations is performed, it is best to store the intermediate results in the calculator. In
other words, do not round off calculations until expressing the final result. This procedure maintains precision
throughout the series of steps to the final solution.

6. General Procedure for Analysis

▪ Read the problem carefully and try to correlate the actual physical situation with the theory studied.
▪ Tabulate the problem data and draw to a large scale any necessary diagrams.

MECH 1 – Statics of Rigid Bodies Page 3 of 4

Republic of the Philippines

CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

▪ Apply the relevant principles, generally in mathematical form. When writing any equations, be sure they are
dimensionally homogeneous.
▪ Solve the necessary equations, and report the answer with no more than three significant figures. ▪ Study the
answer with technical judgment and common sense to determine whether or not it seems reasonable.

Example Problems:

1. Convert 2 km/h to m/s How many ft/s is this?

2. Convert the quantities 300 lb∙s and 52 slug/ft3to appropriate SI units.
3. Evaluate each of the following and express with SI units having an appropriate prefix:
a. (50 mN) (6 GN),
b. (400 mm) (0.6 MN)2
c. 45 MN3/900 Gg
4. What is the weight in newtons of an object that has a mass of (a) 8 kg, (b) 0.04 kg, and (c) 760 Mg?
5. Represent each of the following as a number between 0.1 and 1000 using an appropriate prefix: a.
45 320 kN,
b. 568(105) mm,
c. 0.00563 mg
6. Represent each of the following combinations of units in the correct SI form using an appropriate prefix:
a. m/ms
b. µkm
c. ks/mg
d. km∙µN
7. The density (mass/volume) of aluminum is 5.26 slug/ft 3. Determine its density in SI units. Use an appropriate
prefix.
8. Two particles have a mass of 8 kg and 12 kg, respectively. If they are 800 mm apart, determine the force of
gravity acting between them. Compare this result with the weight of each particle.
MECH 1 – Statics of Rigid Bodies Page 4 of 4