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I'm familiar with the equation for the sag of a cable:

$$x = \frac{wx(L-x)}{2T}$$

Where w = the weight per length, T = the tension and L = the length of the span between supports. I'm wondering if there is a similar equation for the sag of a cable that has two different weights. For instance, if two cables with different cross sectional areas were tied or spliced together.

I'm just hoping to be pointed in the right direction, if there is one. I'm hoping there is, but more realistically I expect this can't be done statically and I will need to use some sort of FEM package.

Many thanks.

am1234
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1 Answers1

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This can be solved exactly by noting that (in this limit) the displacement of the cable satisfies the differential equation $T y'' = - w y$ at all points (look at the forces in an infinitesimal element of the rope to see this.) This generalizes in a straightforward way to the case where $w(x)$ is a function of the position $x$.

In the case where you have cables of two different weights, you would write down the general solution to the above ODE for each part of the cable separately, subject to the boundary conditions at either end and the additional requirement that $y$ and $y'$ are continuous at the location of the splice. This then leads to a system of four equations (ends of the cable and continuity at the splice) and four unknowns (two free parameters for each region) that can be solved.

Michael Seifert
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