Mechatronics

Worked by:Kevin Sinaj

What is
Mechatronics?

Mechatronics, which is also called mechatronic engineering, is a multidisciplinary branch of

engineering that focuses on the engineering of both electrical and mechanical systems, and also
includes a combination
of robotics, electronics, computer, telecommunications, systems, control,
and product engineering. As technology advances over time, various subfields of engineering
have succeeded in both adapting and multiplying. The intention of mechatronics is to produce a
design solution that unifies each of these various subfields. Originally, the field of mechatronics
was intended to be nothing more than a combination of mechanics and electronics, hence the
name being a union of mechanics and electronics; however, as the complexity of technical
systems continued to evolve, the definition had been broadened to include more technical
areas. Mechatronics is an essential foundation for the expected growth in automation and
manufacturing.
The word mechatronics originated in Japanese-English and was created by Tetsuro Mori, an
engineer of Yaskawa Electric Corporation. The word mechatronics was registered
as trademark by the company in Japan with the registration number of "46-32714" in 1971.
However, the company later released the right to use the word to public, whereupon the word
began being used across the world. Nowadays, the word is translated into many languages and
is considered an essential term for industry.

French standard NF E 01-010 gives the following definition: "approach aiming at the synergistic
integration of mechanics, electronics, control theory, and computer science within product
design and manufacturing, in order to improve and/or optimize its functionality".
Many people treat mechatronics as a modern buzzword synonymous
with robotics and electromechanical engineering.
Mechatronics is an industry buzzword synonymous with robotics and electromechanical
engineering. Robotics, control systems, and electro-mechanical systems fall under
mechatronics.
What do mechatronics engineers do?
Mechatronics specialists can do quite a bit across multiple engineering disciplines
and have a solid base from which to grow. Mechatronics specialists know both
mechanical and electrical engineering fundamentals—they speak both languages—so a
mechatronics specialist can work with both mechanical and electrical engineering
teams.
Mechatronics specialists work with massive industrial robots, smaller robots in pick-and-
place operations, control systems for packaging of food and drink products, drones,
designing control systems for rides in amusement parks, prototype development.

Some mechatronics specialists are employed in firms where it is necessary to design

and maintain automatic equipment. This includes industries such as manufacturing,
mining, aviation, robotics, defense, and transport. Other mechatronic specialists are
employed by large manufacturing companies involved in high-volume production. Many
new career opportunities are on the horizon due to technological advances.

What careers are there in mechatronics?

A degree in mechatronics can lead to management positions, including project
management. Workplaces range from laboratories and processing plants to engineering
design offices.

Mechatronics specialists work in the fields of cybersecurity, telecommunications,

computer science, automotive engineering, robotics, artificial intelligence, and consumer
products and packaging.
Mechatronic specialists may use the following job titles:
 Machine vision
 Automation and robotics
 Servo-mechanics
 Sensing and control systems
 Automotive engineering, automotive equipment in the design of subsystems such
as anti-lock braking systems
 Building automation / Home automation
 Computer-machine controls, such as computer driven machines like CNC milling
machines, CNC waterjets, and CNC plasma cutters
 Industrial goods
 Consumer products
 Mechatronics systems
 Medical mechatronics, medical imaging systems
 Structural dynamic systems
 Transportation and vehicular systems
 Mechatronics as the new language of the automobile
 Computer aided and integrated manufacturing systems
 Computer-aided design
 Engineering and manufacturing systems
 Packaging
 Microcontrollers / PLCs
What skills do mechatronics specialists need?
Mechatronic specialists have broad multidisciplinary skills, so they are able to move into
more traditional engineering disciplines.

A mechatronics specialist is a creative problem solver who can work on a team.

Thinking creatively is the first step; being able to communicate good ideas to coworkers
involves tact.

Many mechatronic engineers use computer-aided design (CAD) and other

engineering software for modeling, simulating, and analyzing complex mechanical,
electronic, or other engineering systems.

Why You Should Study for a Mechatronics Degree?

Mechatronics is at the core of everything in our lives. From the complex computer hardware
system, coffee makers, dishwashers, to the production of simple chocolate bars.

Mechatronics can be viewed as professionals who act as a link between the technicians and
engineers. In most cases, mechatronics works from the conception to the completion of a
project. According to a research report conducted by Aberdeen Group, the most successful
companies are those that are capitalizing on mechatronics or similar collaborative processes.

In mechatronics, the principles of electronics, mechanics and computing are all unified under
one umbrella to create an economic, functionally complex system.

Mechatronics students take courses in various fields:

 Mechanical engineering and materials science and engineering

 Electronics engineering

 Electrical engineering

 Computer engineering (software & hardware engineering)

 Computer science

 Systems engineering
  Control engineering

 Optical engineering

 Telecommunications

What tasks do mechatronics specialists do?

There are many tasks mechatronic specialists perform, depending on their particular
industry. Some design, develop, maintain, and manage high-technology engineering
systems for the automation of industrial tasks. Others apply mechatronic/automated
solutions to the transfer of material components or finished goods, or design and assist
with the manufacture of consumer products such as cameras and video recorders. Still
others carry out studies into the feasibility, cost implications, and performance benefits
of new mechatronic equipment. And others apply electronic and mechanical processes
and computers to tasks where the use of human labor may be dangerous (for example,
underwater exploration, mining, or forestry).
Physical implementations

Mechanical modeling is modeling and simulating physical complex phenomena in the

scope of a multi-scale and multi-physical approach. This implies to implement and to
manage modeling and optimization methods and tools, which are integrated in a
systemic approach. The specialty is aimed for students in mechanics who want to open
their mind to systems engineering, and able to integrate different physics or
technologies, as well as students in mechatronics who want to increase their knowledge
in optimization and multidisciplinary simulation techniques. The speciality educates
students in robust and/or optimized conception methods for structures or many
technological systems, and to the main modeling and simulation tools used in R&D.
Special courses are also proposed for original applications (multi-materials composites,
innovating transducers and actuators, integrated systems, …) to prepare the students to
the coming breakthrough in the domains covering the materials and the systems. For
some mechatronic systems, the main issue is no longer how to implement a control
system, but how to implement actuators. Within the mechatronic field, mainly two
technologies are used to produce movement/motion.

Variants of the field

An emerging variant of this field is biomechatronics, whose purpose is to integrate

mechanical parts with a human being, usually in the form of removable gadgets such as
an exoskeleton. This is the "real-life" version of cyberware.

Another variant that we can consider is Motion control for Advanced Mechatronics,
which presently is recognized as a key technology in mechatronics. The robustness of
motion control will be represented as a function of stiffness and a basis for practical
realization. Target of motion is parameterized by control stiffness which could be
variable according to the task reference. However, the system robustness of motion
always requires very high stiffness in the controller.
Avionics is also considered a variant of mechatronics as it combines several fields such
as electronics and telecom with Aerospace engineering.

Internet of things

The Internet of things (IoT) is the inter-networking of physical

devices, embedded with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and network
connectivity which enable these objects to collect and exchange data.

IoT and mechatronics are complementary. Many of the smart components associated
with the Internet of Things will be essentially mechatronic. The development of the IoT
is forcing mechatronics engineers, designers, practitioners and educators to research
the ways in which mechatronic systems and components are perceived, designed and
manufactured. This allows them to face up to new issues such as data security,
machine ethics and the human-machine interface.

How much do mechatronics engineers earn?

According to Recruiter, the mean salary for a mechatronics engineer is $88,800 with the top ten
percent earning close to $103,380.

A United States Michigan

High $154,720 $134,010
Median $97,250 $91,340
Low $50,620 $48,820

 $46.75
median hourly wage
 

 $97,250
 median annual salary

The future of mechatronics engineering

After figuring out how to harvest, store and use electricity, engineers were able to bring
mechanics to life; and as computer science rose in usefulness, mechatronic engineers started to
use their field to create smart and complex machines that are designed to make life more
secure and efficient. As these machines become more intricate and capable, the future of
mechatronics will continue to grow and look for ways we can use energy and mechanics to help
accomplish difficult or time consuming tasks, as well as continue to connect the world and
increase our understanding of life.
Currently, individuals in the tech field are awaiting the end of Moore’s Law, named after
Gordon E. Moore, co-founder of Intel. In 1970, Moore predicted that every two years the
number of transistors on a chip would double, which would make technology smaller.
Transistors are semiconductor devices used to amplify or switch electronic signals and electrical
power. This theory has been witnessed by the general public, who went from seeing room sized
computers, to table sized computers, to computers than can fit on our laps, to computers that
fit in our hands. The IoT continues to grow and incorporate standard objects, which makes it
impossible not to wonder what to expect next from the internet of things. However, as we
approach the smallest possible size, not only for these devices but for any possible object, the
end of Moore’s Law is expected in the future of electronics.
Imagining the future of electronics may seem impossible, but that job belongs to futurists, who
are, as the name implies, people who attempt to predict the future. The practice is also known
as trend analysis, and it’s done by organizational leaders, authors, consultants and other kinds
of leaders using interdisciplinary and systems thinking. Futurists are often used for risk
management in businesses that are considering bold innovations as well as for identifying
emerging market opportunities; however, in the most modern and contextual usage, futurists
use these processes to envision the future of technology.

Three Technological Developments

According to Futurist Brian David Johnson, who worked at Intel until leaving to work for Arizona
State University in 2016, the three major technological developments we can expect by 2022
are projects referred to as the Secret Life of Data, Ghost of Computing, and Future of Fear. The
Secret Life of Data refers to the use of big data and programming algorithms to understand
human thought processes, which makes the data more efficient for us to use and, in a way,
feels like it has a mind of its own.
Ghost of Computing involves the aforementioned decrease in size of electronics. As the size of
the technology needed for a computer gets closer and closer to zero, the question is no longer
about how much smaller and more efficient can the technology be made, rather, what should
the technology be used in and for now. Society is approaching a peak and pivot point where
limits seem to have no end and mechatronic minds are capable of realizing any creation.
The last of the three mentioned by Johnson is less of a new technology and more of a theory. In
a very literal sense, the Future of Fear is about disabling the concerns people have about the
future of technology. Johnson mentions that people create fears they associate with the future
of technology but that are not established in machines or the IoT. After all, technology is and
always has been a tool we are in control of that makes human life more efficient.
Our entire modern world revolves around the advancements society has made with electricity.
Technological advancements continue to grow and change in ways that will no longer be
noticeable by the size of the technology we create, but with the innovative ideas we are able to
make into realities. Mechatronics is a field that opens the door to possibilities of new
breakthrough ideas that have the potential to change day-to-day life. While technology and the
future have been envisioned in a lot of different ways, futurists with tech companies are
provided with the tools to see what the world will look like in 10 or 15 years, and of course,
there are many technological developments just down the road.

According to the latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics the number of jobs for Mechatronics
Engineers is expected to experience moderate growth, specifically in Michigan and Wisconsin.
Michigan Tech is strategically located in close proximity to the largest automotive companies
that have expressed they are in need of Mechatronics specialists.

133,000
employees in 2016
 

5% to 9%
projected growth
 

9,500
projected job openings