At the end of this section you should be able to:

1. Use the correct sign convention for internal- shear force and bending moment in a beam

2. Create the V-M diagram for a statically-determinate beam with

   • External supports

   • Point loads

   • Uniformly- and triangularly-distributed loads

   • Point couples

   • Internal supports

VM Diagrams shows you how to build and interpret shear force and bending moment diagrams for beams, including the correct internal sign convention for shear and moment. You will create shear force diagrams and bending moment diagrams for statically determinate beams with common external supports, point loads, uniform and triangular distributed loads, point couples, and internal supports. The practice set emphasizes reading key features of V and M plots, including where bending moment crosses zero and where maximum bending moment occurs, so you can locate critical sections quickly and correctly.