Publisher's Synopsis
The book is basic in the sense that it begins at the beginning and is entirely self-contained. It is also comprehensive and contains detailed descriptions of modern techniques in Mechanical and Electrical Systems in Architecture, Engineering, and Construction. The aim has been to make the subject matter broadly accessible to advanced students, whilst at the same time providing a reference text for graduate scholars and research scientists active in the field. Mechanical systems can include elements of infrastructure, plant and machinery, tool and components, heating and ventilation and so on. Electrical systems might include, power supply and distribution, telecommunications, computing instrumentation, control systems and so on. A machine consists of an actuator input, a system of mechanisms that generate the output forces and movement, and an interface to the user. Electric motors, hydraulic and pneumatic actuators provide the input forces and movement. This input is shaped by mechanisms consisting of gears and gear trains, belt and chain drives, cam and follower mechanisms, and linkages as well as friction devices such as brakes and clutches. Structural components consist of the frame, fasteners, bearings, springs, lubricants and seals, as well as a variety of specialized machine elements such as splines, pins and keys. The user interface ranges from switches and buttons to programmable logic controllers and includes the covers that provide texture, color and styling. The dynamic analysis of machines begins with a rigid-body model to determine reactions at the bearings, at which point the elasticity effects are included. The rigid-body dynamics studies the movement of systems of interconnected bodies under the action of external forces. The assumption that the bodies are rigid, which means that they do not deform under the action of applied forces, simplifies the analysis by reducing the parameters that describe the configuration of the system to the translation and rotation of reference frames attached to each body. Power flow through a machine provides a way to understand the performance of devices ranging from levers and gear trains to automobiles and robotic systems.