DCGN241 - Statics

Designation:

Required

 

Catalog Description:

Forces, moments, couples, equilibrium, centroids and second moments of areas, volumes and masses, hydrostatics, friction, virtual work. Applications of vector algebra to structures.

 

Prerequisites:

Credit or concurrent enrollment in PHGN100, MACS112, and EPIC151

 

Textbook:

Vector Mechanics for Engineers: Statics. Seventh Edition by Beer, Johnston & Eisenberg

 

Course Objectives:

This course is the first fundamental engineering science course that students are required to take. It is designed to introduce the students to the methods and techniques of problem solving and engineering analysis. In addition, it is designed to introduce the students to the elements of statics analysis as related to rigid bodies. The students must master certain key topics in order to proceed to the next course in an engineering curriculum. One of the key skills is the ability to draw free body diagrams (FBDs). Without this skill, the student is severely impaired when solving design and analysis problems in engineering.  The students are also expected to develop professional engineering communication skills and good work habits. Upon completion of statics, the students will have the engineering background to enroll in upper level analysis and design courses.

Course objectives can be summarized as follows:

  1. Students should gain a working knowledge and understanding of the fundamentals of statics.

  2. Students should develop professional engineering communication skills and good work habits.

Mastery of objective (1) will be demonstrated through the successful completion of the following:

  1. Biweekly quizzes.

  2. Three 1.5 hour exams.

  3. 35 homework sets.

  4. Bonus problems.

  5. Final exam.

Mastery of objective (2) will be demonstrated through interactive question-answer in-class environment as well as frequent but dedicated office hours by instructors and teaching assistants.

 

Topics covered:

Vector operations, Cartesian vectors, Dot products and Cross products

Particle equilibrium in 2D and 3D

Moment of a force and about a line

Moment of a couple

Equivalent systems

Rigid body equilibrium in 2D and 3D

Centroids of areas, volumes, and composite objects

Distributed beam loading

Fluid pressure

Truss systems, method of joints and sections

Frames and machines

Shear force and bending moment diagrams

Cables-discrete and uniform loadings

Friction-wedges and belts

Moment of inertia for an area, parallel-axis theorem

Mohr’s circle

 

Class Schedule:

This three-credit course meets three times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.  On Tuesdays and Thursdays, students receive additional two hour office hours from the graduate teaching assistants.

 

Contribution of Course to Meeting Professional Component:

This course provides the students with the necessary engineering background to enroll in upper level analysis and design courses.

 

Relationship of Course to Program Objectives:

This course is one of the distributed core courses taken by all the engineering students. In this core course, the following objectives are sought after:

  • Sound knowledge of related science and engineering fundamentals

  • Application of fundamental mechanics principles

  • Ability to solve related engineering problems

  • Ability to communicate

Person(s) Preparing Description and Date of Preparation:

Masami Nakagawa and Manohar Arora                             

Date: February 6,  2006.