The problem is as follows:
A locksmith has a rectangular iron frame, along with its diagonal, which is represented in the figure from below, and an electric grinder that can cut such metal. In an effort to recycle the iron, he must cut the structure and obtain $19$ segments of $20$ cm each. How many straight cuts, without bending the material, must the locksmith make at least?
The alternatives given in my book are as follows:
$\begin{array}{ll} 1.&\textrm{3 cuts}\\ 2.&\textrm{5 cuts}\\ 3.&\textrm{4 cuts}\\ 4.&\textrm{6 cuts}\\ \end{array}$
I'm not sure exactly how to approach this question. Can someone help me here?. The only thing which I was able to spot, was the obvious lenght of $100$ cm of the diagonal. But I don't know how to connect this clue with what it is being asked.
How would I know where to get those weird cuts.
My instinct tells me to start cutting from the corners but it doesn't seem that would help much into minimizing the number of cuts to be made, therefore I'm asking for assistance. Can someone help me here?.
Which should be the way to go?. I'm not savvy with these kinds of questions so it would help me a lot if you could add a drawing or reuse my sketch to better visualize where the cuts should be made. Dashed lines or a line over the image would help.
Thus can someone help me here?.