Description
The Unit for studying Forces in an Overdeterminate Truss, “MFCS2”, allows the measurement of the bar forces in a statically determinate truss and in a statically overdeterminate truss, the study of the distribution of forces in the single plane truss with a surplus bar, the study of the dependency of the bar forces on the external force and the comparison of the experimental bar forces with several mathematical methods, such as the method of knots, Ritter´s sections or Castigliano´s method.
The unit consists on eight bars of stainless steel with different lengths to form different trusses structures, one of them allows to convert the structure into hyperstatic. Between the bars will be placed a force sensor to measure the stresses on the bars, they will work with traction or compression and they will be placed forming triangular units with different angles. The bars can be considered ideal, because friction is neglected and nodes doesn´t transmit moments.
To generate an external force in the truss, a load application device will be attached to one of the node disks and with a force sensor the applied load will be measured.
The unit includes a dia gauge to visualize the deformation in any node when the structure is subjected to an external force. All the readings from the force sensor are shown on a digital display of the electronic console.
