Mechanics is the area of physics concerned with the relationships between force, matter, and motion among physical objects. Forces applied to objects result in displacements, which are changes of an object's position relative to its environment.
Arabic machine in a manuscript of unknown date
First European depiction of a piston pump, by Taccola, c. 1450.
A machine is a physical system that uses power to apply forces and control movement to perform an action. The term is commonly applied to artificial devices, such as those employing engines or motors, but also to natural biological macromolecules, such as molecular machines. Machines can be driven by animals and people, by natural forces such as wind and water, and by chemical, thermal, or electrical power, and include a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement. They can also include computers and sensors that monitor performance and plan movement, often called mechanical systems.
A Honda F1 racecar engine
A flint hand axe was found in Winchester.
The Kinematics of Machinery (1876) has an illustration of a four-bar linkage.
Diesel engine, friction clutch and gear transmission of an automobile