Instantaneous velocity is the quantity that measures how fast an object is moving along its path. In other words, the instantaneous velocity of an object is the limit of the average velocity as the elapsed time approaches zero, or the derivative of displacement with respect to time. Like average velocity, the instantaneous velocity is a vector with the dimensions of length per unit time. Instantaneous velocity can have both positive and negative values. The instantaneous velocity can be...

A stroke engine has a slider-crank mechanism that converts rotational motion from the crank into linear motion of the slider or vice versa. This mechanism consists of three main parts: the crank, the connecting rod, and the slider.
When an external force is exerted, it sets the crank into a rotational movement. This, in turn, instigates the motion of the connecting rod, leading to what is referred to as a general plane motion. This process involves two key points - point A on the connecting rod...

Velocity and position can be calculated from the known function of acceleration as a function of time. The total area under the acceleration-time graph and the velocity-time graph gives the change in velocity and position, respectively. In the case of an airplane, its acceleration is tracked using the inertial navigation system. The pilot provides the input of the airplane's initial position and velocity before takeoff. The inertial navigation system then uses the acceleration data to...

If acceleration as a function of time is known, then velocity and position functions can be derived using integral calculus. For constant acceleration, the integral equations refer to the first and second kinematic equations for velocity and position functions, respectively.
Consider an example to calculate the velocity and position from the acceleration function. A motorboat is traveling at a constant velocity of 5.0 m/s when it starts to decelerate to arrive at the dock. Its acceleration is...

The understanding of the concept of reference frames is essential to discuss relative motion in one or more dimensions. When we say that an object has a certain velocity, we must state the velocity with respect to a given reference frame. In most examples, this reference frame has been Earth. For instance, if a statement reads that a person is sitting in a train moving at 10 m/s east, then it implies that the person on the train is moving relative to the surface of Earth at this velocity,...

To calculate other physical quantities in kinematics, the time variable must be introduced. The time variable not only allows us to state where an object is (its position) during its motion, but also how fast it’s moving. The speed at which an object is moving is given by the rate at which the position changes with time. For each position, a particular time is assigned. If the details of the motion at each instant are not important, the rate is usually expressed as the average velocity v.