Graphic Statics

(graphostatics), the study of graphic methods of solving problems in statics. By using the corresponding geometric constructions, graphic statics can determine unknown forces, bending moments, centers of gravity, and moments of inertia of plane figures. Using d’Alembert’s principle, the methods of graphic statics can be applied in solving problems of dynamics. Graphic statics is used in structural mechanics to calculate beams, girders, and other constructions as well as to calculate the stresses in various components of mechanisms and machines. Its methods yield significantly less accurate results than analytic (numerical) methods, and with the advent of electronic computers, they have lost their previous importance.