Motion analysis broadly defined is the use of visual recording devices to obtain data for analysis for the purpose of solving problems. The unaided human eye or standard rate film and video record rates are not capable of capturing and storing many of the events encountered in research or manufacturing environments. Motion can be analyzed by recording an event with a series of images taken at a very high repetitive rate and viewing them at a much lower rate. There are thousands of phenomena in everyday life that cannot be seen with the unaided eye or through standard video. These include everything from ballistics, manufacturing processes, automobile crash tests or the study of a beverage line running at 2,000 cans per minute.
Sample rate is the number or frequency of images taken, usually measured in images per second.
Shutter speed is the duration of exposure for the image, usually measured in hundredths or thousandths of a second. Most consumer camcorders offer high- speed shutter capability for their 30 frame per second record rates. Various formulas are used for specific types of motion depending on whether the motion is linear or cyclic or a combination. However, a rule of thumb is that the recording rate should be 3 to 10 times the cycle count or there should be 3 to 10 images of the event of interest. The shutter speed is used to eliminate blur in recorded images.