- •What is Mechatronics?
- •1.4 The Development of the Automobile as a Mechatronic System
- •Vehicles. (Adapted from Modern Control Systems, 9th ed., r. C. Dorf and r. H. Bishop, Prentice-Hall, 2001. Used with permission.)
- •1.5 What is Mechatronics? And What’s Next?
- •Information technology (systems theory, automation, software engineering, artificial intelligence).
- •Figure 2.2 Mechanical process and information processing develop towards mechatronic systems
- •2.2 Functions of Mechatronic Systems
- •Improvement of Operating Properties
- •Table 2.2 Properties of Conventional and Mechatronic Design Systems
- •2.3 Ways of Integration
- •Figure 2.4 Ways of integration within mechatronic systems.
- •2.4 Information Processing Systems (Basic Architecture and hw/sw Trade-offs)
- •Figure 2.5 Advanced intelligent automatic system with multi-control levels, knowledge base, inference mechanisms, and interfaces.
- •2.5 Concurrent Design Procedure for Mechatronic Systems
- •• An Automotive Example
- •• Software Design
- •3.2 Input Signals of a Mechatronic System
- •3.3 Output Signals of a Mechatronic System
- •3.4 Signal Conditioning
- •3.5 Microprocessor Control
- •3.6 Microprocessor Numerical Control
- •3.7 Microprocessor Input–Output Control
- •Input and Output Transmission
- •3.8 Software Control
- •4.4 Microprocessors and Microcontrollers
- •4.5 Programmable Logic Controllers
- •5.2 Microactuators
- •5.3 Microsensors
- •5.4 Nanomachines
- •6.2 Nano-, Micro-, and Mini-Scale Electromechanical Systems and Mechatronic Curriculum
- •6.3 Mechatronics and Modern Engineering
- •Integrated multidisciplinary features approach quickly, as documented in Fig. 6.2. The mechatronic paradigm, which integrates electrical, mechanical, and computer engineering, takes place.
- •6.4 Design of Mechatronic Systems
- •6.5 Mechatronic System Components
- •6.7 Mechatronic Curriculum
- •Integrating electromagnetics, electromechanics, power electronics, iCs, and control;
- •6.8 Introductory Mechatronic Course
- •6.9 Books in Mechatronics
- •6.10 Mechatronic Curriculum Developments
- •Introduction to Mechatronics,
- •7.3 Rigid Body Models
6.2 Nano-, Micro-, and Mini-Scale Electromechanical Systems and Mechatronic Curriculum
Conventional, mini- and micro-scale electromechanical systems are studied from a unified perspective because operating features, basic phenomena, and dominant effects are based upon classical electromag-netics and mechanics (electromechanics). Electromechanical systems integrate subsystems and compo-nents. No matter how well an individual subsystem or component (electric motor, sensor, power amplifier, or DSP) performs, the overall performance can be degraded if the designer fails to integrate and optimize the electromechanical system. While electric machines, sensors, power electronics, microcontrollers, and DSPs should be emphasized, analyzed, designed, and optimized, the main focus is centered on integrated issues. The designer sometimes fails to grasp and understand the global picture because this requires extensive experience, background, knowledge, and capabilities to attain detailed assessment analysis with outcome prediction and overall performance evaluation. While the component-based divide-and-solve approach is valuable and applicable in the preliminary design phase, it is very important that the design and analysis of integrated electromechanical systems be accomplished in the context of global optimiza-tion with proper objectives, specifications, requirements, and bounds imposed. Novel electromechanical and VLSI technologies, computer-aided-design software, software-hardware co-design tools, high-per-formance software environments, and robust computational algorithms must be applied to design elec-tromechanical systems. The main objective of the mechatronic curriculum development is to satisfy academia–industry–government demands as well as to help students develop in-depth fundamental, analytic, and experimental skills in analysis, design, optimization, control, and implementation of advanced integrated electromechanical systems. It is not possible to cover the full spectrum of mecha-tronics issues in a single course. Therefore, the mechatronic curriculum must be developed assuming that students already have sufficient fundamentals in calculus, physics, circuits, electromechanical devices, sensors, and controls.
The engineering curriculum usually integrates general education, science, and engineering courses. The incorporation of multidisciplinary engineering science and engineering design courses represents a major departure from the conventional curriculum. Usually, even electrical engineering students have some deficiencies in advanced electromagnetics, electric machinery, power electronics, ICs, micro-controllers, and DSPs because several of these courses are elective. Mechanical engineering students, while advancing electrical engineering students in mechanics and thermodynamics, have limited access to electromagnetics, electric machines, power electronics, microelectronics, and DSP courses. In addi-tion, there are deficiencies in computer science and engineering mathematics for both electrical and mechanical engineering students because these courses are usually required only for computer engi-neering students. The need for engineering mathematics, electromagnetics, power electronics, and electromechanical motion devices (electric machines, actuators, and sensors) has not diminished, rather strengthened. In addition, radically new advanced hardware has been developed using enabling
fabrication technologies to fabricate nano- and micro-scale sensors, actuators, ICs, and antennas. Efficient software has emerged. To overcome the difficulties encountered, the mechatronic courses which cover the multidisciplinary areas must be introduced to the engineering curriculum. Mechatronics has been enthusiastically explored and supported by undergraduate and graduate, educational and research-oriented universities, high-technology industry, and government laboratories. However, there is a need to develop the long-term strategy in mechatronic research and education, define the role, as well as implement, commercialize, and market the mechatronic and electromechanics programs.