STATIC

EQUILIBRIUM
STATIC EQUILIBRIUM
▪ Equilibrium and static
equilibrium
▪ Static equilibrium conditions
▪ Net external force must equal
zero
▪ Net external torque must equal
zero
▪ Center of gravity
▪ Solving static equilibrium
problems

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STATIC AND DYNAMIC
EQUILIBRIUM
▪ Equilibrium implies the object is at rest (static) or its
center of mass moves with a constant velocity (dynamic)
▪ We will consider only with the case in which linear and
angular velocities are equal to zero, called “static
equilibrium” : vCM = 0 and ω = 0
▪ Examples
▪ Book on table
▪ Hanging sign
▪ Ceiling fan – off
▪ Ceiling fan – on
▪ Ladder leaning against wall

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CONDITIONS FOR
EQUILIBRIUM
▪ The first condition of
equilibrium is a statement of
translational equilibrium
▪ The net external force on the
object must equal zero

▪ It states that the translational

acceleration of the object’s
center of mass must be zero

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 FORCE VS. TORQUE
▪ Forces cause accelerations
▪ What cause angular accelerations ?
▪ A door is free to rotate about an axis through O
▪ There are three factors that determine the effectiveness of
the force in opening the door:
▪ The magnitude of the force
▪ The position of the application of the force
▪ The angle at which the force is applied

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TORQUE DEFINITION
▪ Torque, τ, is the tendency of a force to rotate an
object about some axis
▪ Let F be a force acting on an object, and let r be a
position vector from a rotational center to the point
of application of the force, with F perpendicular to r.
The magnitude of the torque is given by

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TORQUE UNITS AND
DIRECTION
▪ The SI units of torque are N m
.

▪ Torque is a vector quantity

▪ Torque magnitude is given by

▪ Torque will have direction

▪ If the turning tendency of the force is counterclockwise, the
torque will be positive
▪ If the turning tendency is clockwise, the torque will be negative

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NET TORQUE
▪ The force will tend to
cause a counterclockwise
rotation about O
▪ The force will tend to
cause a clockwise rotation
about O
▪ Στ = τ1 + τ2 = F1d1 – F2d2
▪ If Στ ≠ 0, starts rotating
❑ Rate of rotation of an
▪ If Στ = 0, rotation rate does object does not change,
not change unless the object is acted
on by a net torque
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GENERAL DEFINITION OF
TORQUE
▪ The applied force is not always perpendicular to the position
vector
▪ The component of the force perpendicular to the object will
cause it to rotate
▪ When the force is parallel to the position vector, no rotation
occurs
▪ When the force is at some angle, the perpendicular
component causes the rotation

February 22, 2022

GENERAL DEFINITION OF
TORQUE
▪ Let F be a force acting on an object, and let r be a
position vector from a rotational center to the point of
application of the force. The magnitude of the torque is
given by

▪ θ = 0° or θ = 180 °:
torque are equal to zero
▪ θ = 90° or θ = 270 °: magnitude of torque attain to the
maximum

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UNDERSTAND SINΘ
▪ The component of the force (F
cos θ ) has no tendency to
produce a rotation
▪ The moment arm, d, is the
perpendicular distance from the
axis of rotation to a line drawn
along the direction of the force
d = r sinθ

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CONDITIONS FOR
EQUILIBRIUM
▪ If the object is modeled as a
particle, then this is the only
condition that must be satisfied

▪ For an extended object to be in

equilibrium, a second condition
must be satisfied
▪ This second condition involves
the rotational motion of the
extended object

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CONDITIONS FOR
EQUILIBRIUM
▪ The second condition of
equilibrium is a statement of
rotational equilibrium
▪ The net external torque on the
object must equal zero

▪ It states the angular acceleration of

the object to be zero
▪ This must be true for any axis of
rotation

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CONDITIONS FOR
EQUILIBRIUM
▪ The net force equals zero
▪ If the object is modeled as a particle, then this is the only condition that must
be satisfied
▪ The net torque equals zero
▪ This is needed if the object cannot be modeled as a particle

▪ These conditions describe the rigid objects in the equilibrium analysis

model

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 STATIC EQUILIBRIUM
▪ Consider a light rod subject to the two forces
of equal magnitude as shown in figure.
Choose the correct statement with regard to
this situation:
(A) The object is in force equilibrium but not
torque equilibrium.
(B) The object is in torque equilibrium but not
force equilibrium
(C) The object is in both force equilibrium and
torque equilibrium
(D) The object is in neither force equilibrium nor
torque equilibrium

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EQUILIBRIUM EQUATIONS
▪ For simplicity, We will restrict the applications to
situations in which all the forces lie in the xy plane.
▪ Equation 1:
▪ Equation 2:
▪ There are three resulting equations

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▪ A seesaw consisting of a uniform board of mass mpl and length L
supports at rest a father and daughter with masses M and m,
respectively. The support is under the center of gravity of the
board, the father is a distance d from the center, and the daughter
is a distance 2.00 m from the center.
▪ A) Find the magnitude of the upward force n exerted by the
support on the board.
▪ B) Find where the father should sit to balance the system at rest.

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 A) Find the magnitude of
the upward force n
exerted by the support on
the board.
B) Find where the father
should sit to balance the
system at rest.

Clockwise –
Counterclockwise +

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AXIS OF ROTATION
▪ The net torque is about an axis through any point in the
xy plane
▪ Does it matter which axis you choose for calculating
torques?
▪ NO. The choice of an axis is arbitrary
▪ If an object is in translational equilibrium and the net
torque is zero about one axis, then the net torque must be
zero about any other axis
▪ We should be smart to choose a rotation axis to simplify
problems

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B) Find where the father should sit to balance the system at rest.
Rotation axis O Rotation axis P

P O

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CENTER OF GRAVITY
▪ The torque due to the gravitational force on an object of mass M is the
force Mg acting at the center of gravity of the object
▪ If g is uniform over the object, then the center of gravity of the object
coincides with its center of mass
▪ If the object is homogeneous and symmetrical, the center of gravity
coincides with its geometric center

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WHERE IS THE CENTER OF
MASS ?
▪ Assume m1 = 1 kg, m2 = 3 kg, and x1 = 1 m, x2 = 5 m,
where is the center of mass of these two objects?
A) xCM = 1 m
B) xCM = 2 m
C) xCM = 3 m
D) xCM = 4 m
E) xCM = 5 m

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CENTER OF MASS (CM)
▪ An object can be divided into many
small particles
▪ Each particle will have a specific
mass and specific coordinates
▪ The x coordinate of the center of
mass will be

▪ Similar expressions can be found

for the y coordinates

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CENTER OF GRAVITY
(CG)
▪All the various gravitational forces acting on all the various
mass elements are equivalent to a single gravitational force
acting through a single point called the center of gravity (CG)

▪ If

▪ then

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CG OF A LADDER

▪ A uniform ladder of E
length l rests against a
smooth, vertical wall.
When you calculate the
torque due to the D
gravitational force, you
have to find center of
gravity of the ladder. The C
center of gravity should
be located at B

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LADDER EXAMPLE

▪ A uniform ladder of length l

rests against a smooth, vertical
wall. The mass of the ladder is
m, and the coefficient of static
friction between the ladder and
the ground is μs = 0.40. Find
the minimum angle θ at which
the ladder does not slip.

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PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGY
1
▪ Draw sketch, decide what is in or out the system
▪ Draw a free body diagram (FBD)
▪ Show and label all external forces acting on the object
▪ Indicate the locations of all the forces
▪ Establish a convenient coordinate system
▪ Find the components of the forces along the two axes
▪ Apply the first condition for equilibrium
▪ Be careful of signs

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WHICH FREE-BODY DIAGRAM IS
CORRECT?
▪ A uniform ladder of length l rests against a smooth, vertical
wall. The mass of the ladder is m, and the coefficient of
static friction between the ladder and the ground is μs =
0.40. gravity: blue, friction: orange, normal: green

A B C D

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▪ A uniform ladder of length l rests against a smooth, vertical
wall. The mass of the ladder is m, and the coefficient of static
friction between the ladder and the ground is μs = 0.40. Find the
minimum angle θ at which the ladder does not slip.

mg

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PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGY
2
▪ Choose a convenient axis for calculating the net torque on the
object
▪ Remember the choice of the axis is arbitrary

▪ Choose an origin that simplifies the calculations as much as

possible
▪ A force that acts along a line passing through the origin produces a
zero torque

▪ Be careful of sign with respect to rotational axis

▪ positive if force tends to rotate object in CCW
▪ negative if force tends to rotate object in CW
▪ zero if force is on the rotational axis

▪ Apply the second condition for equilibrium

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 CHOOSE AN ORIGIN O THAT
SIMPLIFIES THE CALCULATIONS AS
MUCH AS POSSIBLE ?
▪ A uniform ladder of length l rests against a smooth, vertical wall.
The mass of the ladder is m, and the coefficient of static friction
between the ladder and the ground is μs = 0.40. Find the minimum
angle.

A) B) C) O D)

O
O

m m m m
g g g g
O

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▪ A uniform ladder of length l rests against a smooth, vertical
wall. The mass of the ladder is m, and the coefficient of static
friction between the ladder and the ground is μs = 0.40. Find the
minimum angle θ at which the ladder does not slip.

mg

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PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGY
3
▪ The two conditions of equilibrium will give a system of
equations
▪ Solve the equations simultaneously

▪ Make sure your results are consistent with your free body
diagram
▪ If the solution gives a negative for a force, it is in the
opposite direction to what you drew in the free body
diagram
▪ Check your results to confirm

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HORIZONTAL BEAM
EXAMPLE
▪A uniform horizontal beam with a
length of l = 8.00 m and a weight of
Wb = 200 N is attached to a wall by a
pin connection. Its far end is supported
by a cable that makes an angle of φ =
53° with the beam. A person of weight
Wp = 600 N stands a distance d = 2.00
m from the wall. Find the tension in
the cable as well as the magnitude and
direction of the force exerted by the
wall on the beam.

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HORIZONTAL BEAM EXAMPLE
▪ The beam is uniform
▪ So the center of gravity is at the
geometric center of the beam

▪ The person is standing on the beam

▪ What are the tension in the cable and

the force exerted by the wall on the
beam?

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HORIZONTAL BEAM EXAMPLE,
2
▪ Analyze
▪ Draw a free body
diagram
▪ Use the pivot in the
problem (at the wall) as
the pivot
▪ This will generally be
easiest
▪ Note there are three
unknowns (T, R, θ)

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HORIZONTAL BEAM EXAMPLE,
3
▪ The forces can be
resolved into components
in the free body diagram
▪ Apply the two conditions
of equilibrium to obtain
three equations
▪ Solve for the unknowns

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HORIZONTAL BEAM EXAMPLE,
3

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