Kinematics

Kinematics is the branch of classical mechanics which describes the motion of points (alternatively "particles"), bodies (objects), and systems of bodies without consideration of the masses of those objects nor the forces that may have caused the motion. Kinematics as a field of study is often referred to as the "geometry of motion" and as such may be seen as a branch of mathematics. Kinematics begins with a description of the geometry of the system and the initial conditions of known values of the position, velocity and or acceleration of various points that are a part of the system, then from geometrical arguments it can determine the position, the velocity and the acceleration of any part of the system. The study of the influence of forces acting on masses falls within the purview of kinetics. For further details, see analytical dynamics.

Kinematics is used in astrophysics to describe the motion of celestial bodies and collections of such bodies. In mechanical engineering, robotics, and biomechanics kinematics is used to describe the motion of systems composed of joined parts (multi-link systems) such as an engine, a robotic arm or the human skeleton.

The use of geometric transformations, also called rigid transformations, to describe the movement of components of a mechanical system simplifies the derivation of its equations of motion, and is central to dynamic analysis.

Kinematic analysis is the process of measuring the kinematic quantities used to describe motion. In engineering, for instance, kinematic analysis may be used to find the range of movement for a given mechanism, and working in reverse, using kinematic synthesis used to design a mechanism for a desired range of motion. In addition, kinematics applies algebraic geometry to the study of the mechanical advantage of a mechanical system or mechanism.

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