What does 'kinematics' study in engineering mechanics?

Kinematics is a branch of mechanics that specifically focuses on the motion of objects. This includes the study of how objects move, the paths they take, their velocities, and accelerations, but it does so without considering the actual forces that cause that motion. This distinction is fundamental to understanding kinematics: it provides a way to analyze movement purely in terms of position, displacement, time, and speed, which is crucial in various engineering applications. By ignoring forces, kinematics allows engineers to create models of motion that can be used to predict how objects will interact in systems, which is essential for designing mechanisms and understanding motion dynamics.