Biomechanics

The field of study concerned with the application of

mechanical principles in the study of living organisms

Mechanics
The branch of physics that analyses the action of forces
Biomechanics of human movement
The field of study concerned with the
mechanical analysis of human movement

• Biomechanics involves the use of the tools of

mechanics (the branch of physics that
analyses the action of forces) in the study of
human movement
 Mechanics
The study of conditions under which
objects “stay at rest” or “move”
• Statics deals with the conditions under
which objects remain at rest or move with
a constant velocity
• Dynamics deals with the conditions under
which objects move with an acceleration
 Kinematics

Branch of biomechanics concerned with

describing the motion of bodies

• How far a body moves

• How fast it moves
• How consistently it moves
 Kinetics

Branch of biomechanics concerned with

what causes a body to move the way it
does
 M E C H A N I C S

S T A T I C S D Y N A M I C S

K i n e t i cC s o on f s t a n t
m o t i o n v l e ls o s c Ki t yi n e m Ka t i i n c es t i c s
s y s t e m s ys s t e m s

K i n e m Ka t i i n c es t i c s
 Biomechanics of human movement

The study of the forces acting on the human body

and their effects on the movement of the body
Biomechanics of Sport and Exercise

The science underlying the technique

 Technique
The way in which the body segments move in relation to
each other in order to carry out a specific physical task

GOOD TECHNIQUE: movement pattern or posture which

1) achieves the purpose of the movement (high level of
performance); 2) minimises the mechanical stress on the
musculo-skeletal system (reduced risk of injury).
POOR TECHNIQUE: may be effective, at least for a while,
in terms of performance but the risk of injury is likely to be
increased.
 Motion

The way in which objects move

 F o r m s o f m o t i o n

L i n e a r m o A t i n o gn u l a r
( t r a n s l a t i o n ( r) o t a t i o

R e c t i l i n e a Cr ut r r a v n i sl i l n a et i a o r n t r a
 Linear motion (translation)
It occurs when all parts of an object or person move the
same distance, in the same direction, in the same time.

Rectilinear translation
• It occurs when the
direction of movement
is a straight line
• Example. Rectilinear
translation in skating
 Linear motion (translation)
It occurs when all parts of an object or person move the
same distance, in the same direction, in the same time.

Curvilinear translation
• It occurs when the
direction of movement
follows a curved path
• Example. Long jumper
during the flight phase
 Angular motion (rotation)
It occurs when an object or part of an object such as an
arm or leg moves in a circle or part of a circle about a
particular line called the axis of rotation

• Example. Rotation of
the forearm and hand
about the elbow joint
Most movements are combinations of the two basic
forms of motion.

Example: in cycling,
• the linear motion of
the head, trunk and
arms
• is achieved by angular
motion of the lower
limbs about their
respective joints
Rotation at the hip and knee joints in rowing

• The axis through the

hip joint undergoes
rectilinear translation
• The axis through the
knee joint undergoes
curvilinear translation
 Qualitative analysis
It is based on observation (directly and/or via
film or video-tape) and results in more or less
subjective evaluation.

Quantitative analysis
It is based on measurements taken on recordings
(eg film, video-tape, force-times curves) and
results in an objective evaluation.
• Qualitatively, the robot malfunctioned
• Quantitatively, he missed the coffee cup by 5 cm
Mathematics Review and
Trigonometry
Decimals can be expressed as positive or negative powers of ten

100 = 1
101 = 10
102 = 100
10-1 = 0.1
10-2 = 0.01
10-3 = 0.001
56.24 x 102 = 5,624
3.79 x 10-2 = 0.0379
2.1 x 10-3 = 0.0021
 Proportion: relationship between two numbers or quantities

• There is a direct proportion between two quantities if an exact

increase in one causes an exact increase in the other
• Example:
d
s = if d is tripled, s will also triple

_____

• There is a inverse proportion between two quantities if an exact

t
increase in one causes an exact decrease in the other
• Example: d
s = if t is doubled, s is halved

_____
Equation: a statement that two mathematical expressions are equal
a c
=
_____
_____

• If two number are directly across from the equals sign or in

b
vertical position, they are directlydproportional
• If two numbers are diagonally across from the equals sign, they
are inversely proportional
• directly proportional: a and c, b and d, a and b, c and d
• inversely proportional: a and d, b and c

cxb axd cxb

a= c= d=
______________ ______________ ______________

d b a
 Right triangle

B
c
a

C b A

• In a right triangle, one angle must be 90 degrees, while the sum

of the other two acute angles must be 90 degrees (the sum of the
three angles of any triangle is always 180 degrees).
• In a right triangle, the square of the longest side, or hypotenuse,
is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides. This
yields to the following equation: a2 + b2 = c2. This is known as the
Pythagorean theorem.
Trigonometric functions are ratios between various sides of a right triangle.
We are concerned with 3 of them: sine (sin), cosine (cos) and tangent (tan).
B
c
a

C b A
In triangle ABC:
• side b is opposite angle B and adjacent to angle A
• side a is opposite angle A and adjacent to angle B
opposite side a opposite side b
sin A = __________________________ = sin B = __________________________ =
____ ____

hypotenuse
adjacent side b hypotenuse
adjacent side a
cos A = __________________________ =c cos B = __________________________ =c
____ ____

hypotenuse
opposite side a hypotenuse
opposite side b
tan A = __________________________ =c tan B = __________________________ =c
____ ____
• The value of the sine, cosine and tangent of a given angle (for
example 26°) is a constant value regardless of the size of the
right triangle.

• You can find the values of trigonometric functions on an

appropriate table.
 Example
L
42° n = 20 cm
m
N M
l
• Given triangle LMN with angle L = 42 degrees and hypotenuse n = 20
cm, find the length of the sides l and m.

opposite side l l adjacent side m m

sin 42° = __________________________ = = cos 42° = __________________________ = =
____ _____
____ _____

l = 20 sinhypotenuse
42° hypotenuse
m = 20 cos
n 20
42° n 20
l = 20 x 0.6691 m = 20 x
0.7431
l = 13.38 cm m = 14.86 cm
A vector is an arrow-shaped straight line
which represents a particular variable
in magnitude (length of the line)
and direction (arrow’s orientation)
B

A
scale: 0.2 m s-1
AB = 2 m s-1 ; it makes a 30° angle with the horizontal
 Determining the horizontal and vertical components of a vector
• A resultant vector of magnitude 2 ms-1 makes a 30 degrees angle with the
horizontal. Find its horizontal and vertical components.

v = 2 ms-1
vy
30°
vx

adjacent side vx vx opposite side vy vy

cos 30° = __________________________ = = _____
sin 30° = __________________________ = ____
= _____

____
2 v 2
vx = 2 cos hypotenuse
30° vy = 2 sin hypotenuse
30°
v
vx = 2 x 0.8660 vy = 2 x 0.5000

vx = 1.73 ms-1 vy = 1 ms-1

 Finding the resultant of a vector

• Example. A canoe floating

down a river is subject
both to the force of the
current and the force of
the wind
• The net force is the
resultant of all the acting
forces
The composition of vectors with the same directions
requires adding their magnitudes
The composition of vectors with opposite directions
requires subtracting their magnitudes
 The “tip-to-tail” method of vector composition

• The tail of the second

vector is placed on the
tip of the first vector and
the resultant is then
drawn with its tail on the
tail of the first vector and
its tip on the tip of the
second vector
 Suggested reading
• Watkins, J. An introduction to mechanics of
human movements. MTP Press, Lancaster, 1983
• pp. 1-3
• Kreighbaum, E. & Barthels, K.M. Biomechanics:
a qualitative approach for studying human
movement. Burgess Publishing Company:
Minneapolis, 1981
• pp. 588-594