Rivet and Weld Systems —a review of their educational value

The design of simple riveted joints has held a place, for longer than most of us can remember, in the early mechanics courses of the ONC. It provides useful examples of shearing and bearing stresses and, along with other examples, helps to lay the foundations for later mechanics of materials and stress analysis. With honourable exceptions, welded joints are left for the ‘advanced’ structures or materials course, or, perhaps, omitted completely.