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Rigid Body Statics

Fundamentals: Are you ready to explore the world of rigid bodies?

In this chapter, we will dive into the fascinating world of rigid body mechanics and explore:

  • The invisible forces that act on objects and set them in motion or slow them down.
  • The secret of cutting free, which allows us to isolate the most important forces acting on an object.
  • The magical free body diagrams, which show us how forces and moments act on an object.
  • The rigid body and its six degrees of freedom, which give it its mobility.
  • The 6 axioms of rigid body statics, which are the foundation for everything we know about objects at rest.

Are you ready to uncover these secrets?

Then buckle up and let's go on an exciting journey into the world of rigid body mechanics!

It's going to be exciting!

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Table of Contents

1. Forces – The Hidden Powers that Shape our World

Hey, have you ever wondered what exactly a force is? In everyday life, sports, or at work – forces are at work everywhere. Time, length, and mass – we all know these quantities. But force? Many people first think of the weight force, which we measured with the force meter in school.

What Newton tells us about force

Isaac Newton, the famous physicist, thought about forces a long time ago. In his book "Principia" he describes: Force is what causes an object to change its state. Whether it is at rest or moving uniformly – as soon as a force acts on the object, its velocity changes.

Acceleration and deceleration

Forces can accelerate or decelerate objects. Imagine a car that is accelerating. The driving force pushes it forward and the speed increases. But at the same time, the wind force also acts against it, which slows the car down.

Measuring force – but how?

We cannot see forces themselves directly. But we can observe their effects. When an object changes its velocity, we know that a force is acting on it.

Newton's definition of force

Newton defined force as follows:

Force = mass x acceleration

Formula fun
$$ \begin{aligned} F = m \cdot a \end{aligned} $$

(2.1)

Unit of force: Newton (N)

The unit of force is Newton (N). 1 N is the force that gives an object with a mass of 1 kg an acceleration of 1 m/s2.

So, now you know!

Forces are omnipresent and influence our world in many ways. With Newton's definition and the unit Newton, we can better understand and measure these invisible influences.