The paper discusses the analytical expressions of a motion profile characterized by elliptic jerk. This motion profile is obtained through a kinematic approach, defining the jerk profile and then obtaining acceleration, velocity, and displacement laws by successive integrations. A dimensionless formulation is adopted for the sake of generality. The main characteristics of the profile are analyzed, outlining the relationships between the profile parameters. A kinematic comparison with other motion laws is carried out: trapezoidal velocity, trapezoidal acceleration, cycloidal, sinusoidal jerk, and modified sinusoidal jerk. Then, the features of these motion profiles are evaluated in a dynamic case study, assessing the vibrations induced to a second-order linear system with different levels of damping. The results show that the proposed motion law provides a good compromise between different performance indexes (settling time, maximum absolute values of velocity and acceleration).
