How Many Types Of Motion Are There

Team Careers360Updated on 24 Mar 2023, 11:36 AM IST

There are various types of motion according to the nature of the movement of the object/body. Some of the common types of motion are Translational Motion, Rotational Motion, Circular Motion, Periodic Motion, Oscillatory Motion, Uniform Motion, Non-Uniform Motion, Reciprocating Motion, One Dimensional Motion, Two Dimensional Motion, Three Dimensional Motion etc. When the body is moving then it is not necessary that it will be performing only one specific kind of motion, According to situations it may be performing 2-3 types of motion simultaneously.

Motion can be characterised as a shift in an object's location with regard to time. Motion can be seen in various day-to-day activities happening around us, such as a book falling off a table, water running from a faucet, rattling windows, etc. There is motion even in the air we breathe! The universe is a moving thing. The universe in which we exist is constantly in motion. Atoms, the building blocks of all matter, are always in motion.

The motion of some kind underlies every physical process in the universe. Motion is present, whether it is quick or gradual. Given the significance of motion in the physical world, it is crucial that we give the study of motion the attention it deserves. The following phrases are frequently used to describe motion:

Distance: Distance refers to the total amount of ground covered by an object in motion. It is a scalar quantity measured in units of length (such as meters or miles), and it can be positive or zero but never negative.
Displacement: Displacement refers to the change in the position of an object, usually measured from its starting point to its ending point. It is a vector quantity that includes both magnitude (the distance between the starting and ending points) and direction.
Speed: Speed refers to how fast an object moves and is typically measured in distance units per time (such as meters per second or miles per hour). It is a scalar quantity that does not consider the direction of motion.
Velocity: Velocity refers to the speed of an object along with its direction of motion. It is a vector quantity that includes both magnitude (the speed of the object) and direction.
Acceleration: Acceleration is the rate at which an object's velocity changes. It is a vector quantity that includes both magnitude (the amount of change in velocity with time) and direction. Acceleration can be positive (speeding up), negative (slowing down), or zero (constant speed).
Time: Time refers to the duration between two events or moments. It is a scalar quantity that is typically measured in units of seconds, minutes, or hours, and it is an essential component of all measurements of motion.

Types Of Motion

We may have observed that various bodies move in different ways. A few bodies travel in a distinctive fashion, while others move in a straight line or a curved course. Motion can be divided into various types depending on the state of motion, direction, etc:

Translational Motion-

Motion in which all points of a moving body travel uniformly in one direction. We may observe that an object's orientation remains unchanged relative to a fixed point when it is moving translationally. According to the motion's path, translational motion is further split into the following categories:

Rectilinear Motion: This type of motion follows a straight line as it moves.
Curvilinear Motion: This type of motion follows a curved path.

Example:- The movement of a train, a football, a car on the road, etc., are a few examples of linear motion.

Rotary Motion

When a body rotates around its axis, it creates a motion known as a rotatory motion.

Examples:-

Rotational motion is exemplified by how the earth revolves around its own axis.
Another way to demonstrate rotatory motion is that a car's wheels and steering wheel rotate about their own axes.

Oscillatory Motion

A body moving to and fro about its mean/equilibrium position is known as oscillatory motion.

Examples:-

A swing that has a youngster on it travels back and forth about its mean position when pushed.
A clock's pendulum oscillates as it swings back and forth around its mean position.
When a guitar string is strummed, its mean position causes the string to travel back and forth, creating an oscillatory action.

Circular Motion:

Circular motion refers to the motion of an object in a circular path around a central point.

Examples:-

A planet orbiting around the sun.
A satellite revolving around the earth.

Periodic Motion:

The periodic motion refers to the motion of an object that repeats itself after a fixed period.

Example:-

The motion of a pendulum.
The back-and-forth motion of a swing.
The motion of a spring.
The motion of a rocking chair.

Uniform Motion:

Uniform motion refers to the motion of an object with a constant speed without any acceleration or deceleration.

Examples:-

A car moving at a constant speed along a straight road.
A train moving at a constant speed on a straight track.

Non-Uniform Motion:

Non-uniform motion refers to the motion of an object with a changing speed or direction, typically due to external forces acting upon the object.

Examples:-

A car accelerating from a standstill.
A ball is thrown into the air.
A bike slows down to stop at a traffic signal.

Reciprocating Motion:

Reciprocating motion refers to the back-and-forth motion of an object in a straight line, such as the motion of a piston in an engine.

Examples:-

The back-and-forth motion of a piston in an engine
The motion of a sewing machine needle
The motion of a reciprocating saw.

One-Dimensional Motion:

One-dimensional motion refers to the motion of an object along a single axis or line.

Examples:-

A ball rolling along a straight track.
A person walking in a straight line.
A car moving on a straight road.

Two-Dimensional Motion:

The two-dimensional motion refers to the motion of an object in two directions/dimensions, typically described using a coordinate system with the help of two coordinates.

Examples:-

A projectile motion of a ball thrown at an angle
The motion of a car taking a turn

Three-Dimensional Motion:

Three-dimensional motion refers to the motion of an object in three directions/dimensions, typically described using a three-dimensional coordinate system.

Examples:-