Finding current in a complex circuit with resistors

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Goomba
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I am given the following circuit:
Circuit schematic: 14.0 V battery on the left feeds a bridge-style network of resistors R1 = 1.00 Ω, R2 = 2.00 Ω, R3 = 1.00 Ω, R4 = 2.00 Ω and R5 = 1.00 Ω, with R3 connecting the middle nodes.


How do I find the current through the battery? I have trouble seeing which resistors are in series and which resistors are in parallel. I think I need to figure that out and then calculate R_eq accordingly. Then set I=V/R and solve for I.

But which resistors are in series and which are in parallel? It's confusing the way the circuit is laid out here...
 
Use conservation of charge (KCL) at the two nodes across R3.
 
Goomba said:
I am given the following circuit:
Circuit schematic with a 14.0 V battery on the left and five resistors: R1 = 1.00 Ω and R2 = 2.00 Ω on the top branches, R3 = 1.00 Ω as the horizontal bridge between the middle nodes, R4 = 2.00 Ω and R5 = 1.00 Ω on the bottom branches.


How do I find the current through the battery? I have trouble seeing which resistors are in series and which resistors are in parallel. I think I need to figure that out and then calculate R_eq accordingly. Then set I=V/R and solve for I.

But which resistors are in series and which are in parallel? It's confusing the way the circuit is laid out here...

No two resistors are in series nor in parallel here. There is no way to simplify. You must solve the entire circuit using Kirchhoff's rules. Find the current flowing out of the battery (no need to find the other currents). Then just use R_eq = V_battery / I_ out of the battery.

Pat
 
Thanks

I figured it out. :biggrin: The node-voltage method is a beautiful thing.
 
u can also use the star-delta transformation to simplify the circuit given