Mechanical Engineering Handbook

John J. Uicker, Jr

Preference :

Engineers use the concepts and methods of mechanics of solids in designing and evaluating tools, machines, and structures, ranging from wrenches to cars to spacecraft. The required educational background for these includes courses in statics, dynamics, mechanics of materials, and related subjects. For example, dynamics of rigid bodies is needed in generalizing the spectrum of service loads on a car, which is essential in defining the vehicle’s deformations and long-term durability. In regard to structural integrity and durability, the designer should think not only about preventing the catastrophic failures of products, but also of customer satisfaction. For example, a car with gradually loosening bolts (which is difficult to prevent in a corrosive and thermal and mechanical cyclic loading environment) is a poor product because of safety, vibration, and noise problems. There are sophisticated methods to assure a product’s performance and reliability. A similar but even more realistic test setup is shown in Color Plate 1.* It is common experience among engineers that they have to review some old knowledge or learn something new, but what is needed at the moment is not at their fingertips. This chapter may help the reader in such a situation. Within the constraints of a single book on mechanical engineering, it provides overviews of topics with modern perspectives, illustrations of typical applications, modeling to solve problems quantitatively with realistic simplifications, equations and procedures, useful hints and reminders of common errors, trends of relevant material and mechanical system behaviors, and references to additional information.