A Review of Kinematic Theories and Practices Compiled for Biomechanics Students and Researchers

The topic of kinematics is fundamental to engineering and has a significant bearing on clinical evaluations of human movement. For those studying biomechanics, this topic is often overlooked in importance. The degree to which kinematic fundamentals are included in Biomedical engineering (BmE) curriculums is not consistent across programs and often foundational understandings are gained only after reading literature if a research or development project requires that knowledge. The purpose of this paper is to present the important theories and methods of kinematic analysis and synthesis that should be in the “toolbox” of students of biomechanics. Each topic is briefly presented accompanied by an example or two. Deeper learning of each topic is left to the reader, with the help of some sample references to begin that journey.