Two Suspended Beams of Differing Obliquity
The nearer the verticals of the two ends, the more weight the middle bears
A graduated horizontal beam is drawn at the upper right, with an oblique member running down from it and three loads hung from the assembly. The note reasons that as one and the same beam is tilted and the verticals dropped from the centres of its two ends draw closer together, the middle bears more weight, since the centre of the suspended gravity always lies midway between those two verticals. Comparing the labelled lengths, the longer o S is than a n the stronger it is, and the longer p q than o S the more weight it proportionally supports.
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Obliquity and the verticals of a beam's ends
As a beam is made oblique and the verticals through the centres of its two ends come nearer together, its middle supports more weight, the centre of gravity of the hung load lying midway between them. The longer o S is than a n, and p q than o S, the greater the weight carried.
Graduated bar with three suspended loads
The diagram sets a scaled horizontal bar against a sloping strut, from which three weighted boxes hang. The accompanying figures give the numeric loads 10, 20 and 160 for the compared members.