Search
 
 

STATICS - CASE STUDY

    Introduction


Construction Trolley System


Displacement Vectors

 

Some workers are refurbishing the Eiffel Tower. The construction crew utilizes a trolley system to transport equipment from point A on the ground to point B on the platform they are working on. The trolley is pulled by two cables at the base of the tower.

What is known:

  • With an axis system oriented as shown, the position vectors of points A and B are
    rA = 175i + 0j + 0k m
    rB = 39i + 70j + 29k m

  • When the trolley is halfway between points A and B, the forces exerted on the trolley by the cables are
    F1 = -943.7i - 221.7j + 245.4k m
    F2 = -919.4i - 216.0j - 328.6k m
   
  Question

 

What is the component of the force exerted on the trolley that is parallel to the line AB?

     
    Approach

 
  • Find the unit vector in the direction of the line AB.
  • Find the total force exerted on the trolley by the two cables.
  • Solve for the component of the total force that is parallel to the unit vector for line AB.
     
   
 
Practice Homework and Test problems now available in the 'Eng Statics' mobile app
Includes over 500 free problems with complete detailed solutions.
Available at the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.