A3-Cameron

Above are the pages of work done in analyzing the truss as defined in the A3 instructions.  The forces calculated can be viewed in the table on the top of the first page.  A negative sign denotes compression, while a positive number denotes tension.  Below is a screenshot of the Bridge Designer replication of this analysis.

To allow the hand analysis to correspond to that of the Bridge Designer, it is necessary to count the number of spaces between each node on Bridge Designer.  It was given in the directions that the distance between each horizontal node was equidistant meaning that each interval should be the same between a set of two horizontal nodes. 

For the bridge that was created to span 24 inches, the Bridge Designer analysis can be viewed below. These calculations were created using a 20 pound load in the center of the bridge.

This type of analysis could also be used in analyzing the K'Nex bridges.  With an understanding of how each type of connection will ultimately affect the pull out force of the K'Nex, one would be able to analyze the bridge created with K'Nex.  The average pull out force of each type of connection can be used to predict what the rough pull out force would be for each connection of the bridge.  Proceeding further, one could then utilize the method of joints in order to determine the force on each member and predict whether the joint would be able to withstand that magnitude of force being exerted on it.