Statics of Suspended Cables

An investigation is made of the response of a suspended cable to various types of static loadings. The study is primarily theoretical although the results of some simple experiments are reported. Following a brief review of the history of the problem, solutions are given for the properties of the free-hanging cable, the response of the cable to a point load, and the response to a distributed load. General solutions are given that are accurate to the second order of small quantities and the simplifications that can be made to the general theory are considered. The theories to be presented apply to a suspended cable in which the ratio of sag to span is about 1:8 or less; this restriction covers most situations of practical importance. It is believed that many of the results are new.