"Outside width of bridge must be at least 5.0 cm at any height along its span"

[phammie]

I have read over the rules and saw that the testing block itself is 5 cm so what does "Outside width of bridge must be at least 5.0 cm at any height along its span" mean? If the width were bigger than 5 cm then the block would fall through

[chinesesushi]

I have read over the rules and saw that the testing block itself is 5 cm so what does "Outside width of bridge must be at least 5.0 cm at any height along its span" mean? If the width were bigger than 5 cm then the block would fall through

Please read the forums before asking a question that has been asked before, nearly in the exact same form. Bernard has graciously provided us with a fantastic diagram that shows what the rules mean and possible designs that can be used. Also, check the FAQs for Bridge Building on soinc.org

I'm having an extremely confusing problem. I know this place isn't the right place to get clarifications, bla bla, but I think I'm interpreting a rule completely wrong. When i looked at the rule regarding the width of the bridge (3.e), it says that the bridge must be a width of 5 cm OR MORE. However, the loading block's dimensions are 5cm x 5cm (4.c.i). Doesn't that mean that if the width of the bridge is greater than 5 cm, the loading block would fall through the bridge.. Am I wrong?

There are several ways the loading block would not fall through a bridge that is wider than 5.0 cm. I've illustrated some of them below. Feel free to ask questions if any of them are unclear.

[bernard]

Attaching the image again :)