Internal Force Sign Convention

Calisthenics Sheet
Me En 101 Static Systems in Mechanical Engineering
C. Sorensen | Rev. 1.0

1 Internal Forces
We have discussed external forces, which are forces that are applied from outside a rigid body. In addition
to external forces, there are internal forces, which are the forces that exist within a rigid body as a result of
the external forces.
We can find internal forces by making an imaginary cut to split a rigid body into two parts (call them
part A and part B). Without the cut, both parts A and B are in equilibrium, because the rigid body is in
equilibrium. When we make the cut and remove part B, the internal forces are the forces that are necessary
to hold part A in equilibrium. Part B provides those internal forces. By Newton’s third law, part A exerts
equal and opposite forces on part B. The internal forces at the cut are the forces that are applied to both
part A and part B.
In two dimensions, there are three internal forces, called the normal force N (normal to the cut), the shear
force V (parallel to the cut), and the internal moment M (perpendicular to both N and V ). Note that we call
the moment M one of the internal forces, even though we normally consider a moment to be different from
a force.
In three dimensions there are six internal forces: one normal force (normal to the cut), two shear forces
(perpendicular to the normal force and and to each other), and three moments (in the directions of each of
the three previous forces). However, in this class we will not work with internal forces in three dimensions.

2 Sign Conventions in Two Dimensions

By Newton’s third law the internal forces at a cut act in opposite directions on part A and part B. Thus, the
direction of a positive internal force depends on which side of the cut we are investigating.
By convention, the cut in two dimensions is perpendicular to the x axis. This means that the normal
force will be in the x direction, the shear force will be in the y direction, and the moment will be in the z
direction.
For the part of the body on the right hand side (positive x side) of the cut, a positive normal force N will
be to the left (negative x direction). A positive shear force V will be up (positive y direction). A positive
moment will be clockwise (negative z moment).
For the part of the body on the left hand side (negative x side) of the cut, the positive internal forces
are opposite. Thus, a positive normal force N is in the positive x direction, positive shear force V is in the
negative y direction, and a positive moment M is counterclockwise (positive z direction).
This sign convention is shown in the figure below.

M M V

Part A Part B
N N
V Cut

Figure 1: Positive sign convention for internal forces at a cut. All arrows in this figure indicate a positive internal force.
Because of Newton’s third law, the forces on part A are in the opposite direction of the forces on part B.

FIXME – NEED TO ADD SOME SIMPLE SAMPLE PROBLEMS FOR SIGN CONVENTIONS

2.1 Magnitude and Angle, 2D

When the magnitude and angle are given, the components are found using trigonometry.
For a 2-D vector, with the angle given relative to the positive x axis, we have the following:

1
  
 ⃗
Ax =  A  cos θ (1)
 
 ⃗
Ay =  A  sin θ (2)

If the angle is given relative to the positive y axis, the equations are different:

 
 ⃗
Ax =  A  sin θ (3)
 
 ⃗
Ay = A  cos θ (4)

Rather than using these equations blindly, it is generally best to think carefully and use the basic defini-
tion of the trigonometric functions.

Set 1
Find the x and y components of the given vectors. For each of these diagrams, x is to the right and y is up.
1. 2. 15° 3. 4. 5.
A=10 cm A=6 N A=4 lbf A=20 mm/s 150°

30°
45° 20° A=5 in.

Ax Ay Ax Ay Ax Ay Ax Ay Ax Ay

2.2 Magnitude and Angles, 3-D

For a 3-D vector, angles can be given two two or three axes. If angles are given only two axes, the third
angle can be found from the following relationship:

cos2 θx + cos2 θy + cos2 θz = 1 (5)

Which is solved for the missing angle as

√
cos θx = ± 1 − cos2 θy − cos2 θz (6)
√
cos θy = ± 1 − cos2 θx − cos2 θz (7)
√
cos θz = ± 1 − cos2 θx − cos2 θy (8)
(9)

with the proper sign being chosen by inspection (positive if the vector head is on the positive side of the
axis).
The components of 3-D vector are then found from

 
 ⃗
Ax = A  cos θx (10)
 
 ⃗
Ay =  A  cos θy (11)
 
 ⃗
Az =  A  cos θz (12)

2
Set 2
1. z 2. z 3. z 4. z
A=200 mph
41° 77°
A=20 m
115° 130°
y 139°
y 80° y y
60°
A=10 lb 135°
115°
60°
x x x x
A=50 N

Ax Ay Az Ax Ay Az Ax Ay Az Ax Ay Az

2.3 Rise and Run, 2D

The direction of a vector is sometimes given with a triangle that shows rise and run. Given a rise and run,
the hypotenuse of the triangle can be found by the Pythagorean theorem:
√
hyp = rise2 + run2 (13)

The angles can then be found from trigonometry:

cos θx = run/hyp (14)

cos θy = rise/hyp (15)

And the components can be found as listed above once the angles are known.

Set 3
Find the x and y components of the given vectors. x is to the right and y is up.
1. 2. 5 3. 4. 5. 1
A=5 mm/s 12 A=12 in.
A=10 N 4 A=20 kN 1 1
1 A=12 in.
3 1
2

Ax Ay Ax Ay Ax Ay Ax Ay Ax Ay

2.4 Rise and Run, 3D

In 3D, we are given a slope in 3 dimensions, with a representative length parallel to the x, y, and z axes.
Proceeding as in the case of 2D, we calculate the hypotenuse as follows:
√
hyp = lx2 + ly2 + lz2 (16)

The direction cosines are then obtained from

cos θx = lx /hyp (17)

cos θy = ly /hyp (18)
cos θz = lz /hyp (19)

3
Set 4
1. z 2. z 3. z 4. z
5
A=10 lb
6 A=20 m
9
3 2 y y y y
12
16 12
8
9
11
x x x x A=10 kN 5
A=300 N
Ax Ay Az Ax Ay Az Ax Ay Az Ax Ay Az

2.5 Projection, 3D
One way of working with 3D vectors is to project the vector on to one of the coordinate planes (usually the
xy plane). Then, the 3D problem becomes a coupled set of 2D problems. Each of the 2D problems can be
defined by either rise and run or by an angle. Then the appropriate 2D methods can be applied.

Set 5
Find the x, y, and z components of the following vectors.
1. z 2. z 3. z 4. z
A=10 lb A=30 ft/s
1 5
12 A=5 m 3 1 12
5 4
50° y y 30° y A=200 m/s y

20° 20°

x x x x

Ax Ay Az Ax Ay Az Ax Ay Az Ax Ay Az