External force: |
(english) A surface force or body force acting on an object. External forces are sometimes called applied forces. |
Fixed connection: |
(english) In two dimensions, a fixed connection between two members restrains all three degrees of freedom of the connected member with respect to one another. A fixed connection is sometimes called a rigid connection or moment-resisting connection. |
Fixed support: |
(english) In two dimensions, a fixed support restrains three degrees of freedom: two translations and one rotation. |
Flexibility: |
(english) Flexibility is the inverse of stiffness. When a force is applied to a structure, there is a displacement in the direction of the force; flexibility is the ratio of the displacement divided by the force. High flexibility means that a small load produces a large displacement. |
Flexure: |
(english) Bending deformation, i.e., deformation by increasing curvature. |
Force: |
(english) A directed interaction between two objects that tends to change the momentum of both.Since a force has both direction and magnitude, it can be expressed as a vector |
Internal force: |
(english) Forces which hold an object together when external forces or other loads are applied. Internal forces are sometimes called resisting forces since they resist the effects of external forces. |
Line of Action: |
(english) The line of action of a force is the infinite line defined by extending along the direction of the force from the point where the force acts. |
Linear Elastic: |
(english) A force-displacement relationship which is both linear and elastic. For a structure, this means the deformation is proportional to the loading, and deformations disappear on unloading. For a material, the concept is the same except strain substitutes for deformation, and stress substitutes for load. |
Load: |
(english) An external force. The term load is sometimes used to describe more general actions such as temperature differentials or movements such as foundation settlements. |