What is mechatronics and why teach it?

David Bradley Epicentre, University of Abertay Dundee, Dundee, Scotland E-mail: [email protected]
Abstract Despite a world-wide interest in mechatronics education, there is no clear and consistent understanding of what mechatronics is, nor how, and at what level, it should be taught. The key challenge for mechatronics course designers is seen as that of ensuring an appropriate balance between depth and breadth while providing opportunities to enable students to practise integration. The paper discusses this in relation to a number of mechatronic themes. Factors inuencing the design, structure and content of a mechatronics programme are discussed and suggestions made as to the possible core content of such a programme. Keywords education; engineering design; robotics; systems

Mechatronics has developed in the UK from the mid-1980s to the point where there are currently some 42, three-year and four-year undergraduate courses at 27 UK institutions which involve mechatronics in some way in their title, the distribution being as in Table 1.1 There are also many mechatronics-based programmes and courses around the world, including relatively recent developments in countries such as those in Southern Africa, New Zealand, Lithuania, Hungary, Colombia and Switzerland.26 Additionally, there are growing numbers of international conferences supported, among others, by the International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC), the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers and the Mechatronics Forum.711 These conferences are supplemented by technical journals having mechatronics as their subject area.12,13 However, and despite this world-wide interest in mechatronics, it is still not certain that there is a clear and consistent understanding of what mechatronics is and how, and at what level, it should be taught. A review of the literature about mechatronics will rapidly result in a number of denitions, each of which perhaps seeks to emphasise a slightly different aspect of the mechatronics concept, ranging from design to precision engineering and from sensors to actuators.14,15 Nevertheless, and despite their difference in emphasis, most of the denitions do manage to agree in some way that mechatronics is concerned with the integration of its core technologies to generate new and novel technological solutions in the form of products and systems in which functionality is integrated across those core technologies, with information technology and software engineering then providing the glue which binds the whole together. This integration is also reected in the various diagrammatic forms that have been used to represent the structure of a mechatronic system, as is seen from the two examples of Fig. 1. In terms of the development of mechatronic education, the concern in course design has always been that of how to achieve a balance between providing the necessary depth of understanding of the core technologies and the ability to develop
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TABLE 1
Course title

Undergraduate degree programmes in the UK involving mechatronics1

Number 20 11 3 2 1 Course title Instrumentation and control (mechatronics) Mechanical engineering and mechatronics Mechatronics (extended) Plant and process engineering (mechatronics) Robotics and mechatronics Number 1 1 1 1 1

Mechatronics Mechatronic engineering Engineering (mechatronics) Manufacturing engineering (mechatronics) Automotive mechatronics

solutions which integrate them. This may be compared with the perhaps more usual, subject-based approach to engineering education where the emphasis has tended to be on providing a depth of understanding, often at high levels of detail, within the subject area: something which may well result in a relatively narrow focus with a high degree of specialisation. In contrast, the education of a mechatronics engineer has to place a greater emphasis on the ability to work across and between individual areas of technology. This is not, however, to suggest that a mechatronics engineer does not have to have a depth of knowledge in certain specialist areas; rather, that such depth is balanced by an understanding and appreciation of the contributions of other areas of technology, as is suggested by Figs. 2 and 3. The achievement of a balanced programme of mechatronics education must therefore ensure that individuals are provided with sufcient depth in at least one area of technology in order to allow them to make an effective contribution to that area, whilst ensuring the breadth of understanding necessary to give them credibility in regard to other subject specialists. In particular, this means that the mechatronics engineer must be able to speak the language of the individual specialists and hence to act as an interpreter to ensure the correct communication of ideas and concepts between these specialists.19 This basic problem of communication is compounded by the fact that, as will be seen in the following sections, not only do specialists use their own domain-specic terms to describe technologies in those domains but mechatronics, and particularly mechatronics education, can also be considered in relation to a number of themes, each of which emphasises a different aspect of the core concept. The key challenge facing mechatronics course designers is therefore that of ensuring that there is an appropriate balance between depth and breadth within the course, as well as providing opportunities to enable students to practise integration. This then raises questions as to whether mechatronics can, or indeed should, be taught at undergraduate level, particularly within a three-year degree programme, or whether it should be studied at Masters level as a bridging programme, taking students from a wide range of specialist backgrounds and providing them with the necessary breadth of knowledge and integration skills.
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WORLD

INFORMATION DOMAIN PROCESSOR

ACTUATORS ENERGETIC DOMAIN

STRUCTURE

SENSORS

ENVIRONMENT

System Concept Component/Sub-System Design or Selection Specification & Instruction

Fig. 1

Diagrammatic representations of mechatronics.16,17

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St Da ate ta Se S ns On tora ing -l ge F Int ine , R eed ell Art ea ba ige ific l-T ck nc ial ime e

MECHATRONIC SOLUTIONS

tric al lec nic , E ha lic ec es au M vic dr tic, de Hy ma rid eu yb Pn & H

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Overlap

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Subject Area
(a)

Mechatronics Engineer

(c)

Software and IT

Depth

Engineering Specialisation

Engineering Specialisation

Depth

Subject Area
(b)

(d)

Fig. 2 Balance of technical expertise for specialist and mechatronics-educated engineers.18 (a) Specialist education; (b) mechatronics education; (c) I type (specialist) engineering education; (d) P type (mechatronic) engineering education.

Mechatronics technologies and other factors While there is a general agreement on the core mechatronics technologies of electronics, mechanical engineering together with information technology (IT) and software engineering, to focus exclusively on these technologies within the development of a mechatronics engineer would be misleading. As illustrated by Fig. 4, these techInternational Journal of Electrical Engineering Education 41/4

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Broad knowledge across disciplines Supports communication of ideas

Deep knowledge in selected areas

Gives credibility and earns respect and confidence

Fig. 3

The mechatronics T.

Manufacturing Technology

Requirements Analysis

Marketing

Management

IT &S oft
Design for Manufacture & Assembly

ctr on

Materials

ics

wa re

Ele

MECHATRONICS Aesthetics

Mechanical Engineering Industrial Design & Ergonomics Education & Training Working Practices

ri ee gin En ng

Conceptual Design

Quality, Standards & Safety

Fig. 4

Mechatronics technologies and related domains.

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nological domains do not exist in isolation, either from each other or from a much wider group of domains, all of which will inuence the way in which a mechatronic product or system will evolve. Viewed in this way mechatronics can be seen as a holistic approach to the design, development and manufacture of complex engineering systems, products and processes in which there is an emphasis on the communication and integration of knowledge in a collaborative manner. Consider the education and training domain. In problem solving, all individuals will draw upon their knowledge and experience in reaching a decision and can be reluctant to incorporate ideas and concepts from elsewhere, particularly where these are seen as conicting with or challenging their own position. The education and training of mechatronics engineers must therefore be such as to encourage them actively to seek solutions from outside their own direct experience while giving them the condence, and the ability, to integrate knowledge from other sources. An openness of approach, and a willingness to accept and use ideas from a wide range of sources, is therefore key to the formation of a mechatronics engineer. Another domain of Fig. 4, that of aesthetics, presents a somewhat different challenge to the education of the mechatronics engineer by forcing them to consider what may often be perceived as a non-engineering aspect of the design process. However, in the case of many products it is the visual aspects that provide the initial impact and, along with the marketing, attracts consumers to that product. The requirement here is therefore to enable mechatronic engineers to gain an understanding of the balance between the aesthetic, and other related, drivers in product development and the underlying engineering, perhaps through the use of CAD and other computer-based tools as illustrated by Fig. 5. If the mechatronics engineer is going to function as the link between domain specialists, it is important that it is recognised that this role may well extend beyond the core technologies into these other, often less well-dened and unconsidered, areas of mechatronics. This will again require that course structures provide the opportunity for students to practise these and related skills within an appropriate context. The language of mechatronics While individual subject domains have developed their own language to describe their activities, the same cannot be said of mechatronics which must take the domainspecic terms and integrate them across domains as part of its communication role. The problem is further compounded by the fact that there are what may be considered as a number of mechatronic dialects depending on the context or theme being considered or referred to. This means that even within the mechatronics community there is the potential for misunderstanding depending upon which dialects are being spoken by the individuals concerned. This situation may be illustrated by considering the session titles at three major mechatronics conferences (Table 2) from which it can be seen that out of a total of 42 sessions, only four are common to all three conferences, while a further 10 are shared across two conferences, leaving 28 to be exclusive to a single conference. While such an analysis is somewhat simplistic as it does not take into account any special themes that the conference is seeking to
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Product Data Management Visualisation Automatic Generation of Drawings

Product Support & Manuals

3D Thinking

3D CAE

Touch Screen Diagnostics

Assembly Checking Marketing Material CAD/CAM Integration

Shop Floor Assembly Aids

Analysis

Fig. 5

Computer-aided integration.20

address, it nevertheless provides some indication of the diversity that exists within the mechatronics community when it comes to describing itself.21,14 While there are arguments that what is required is an ontology of mechatronics, perhaps a better approach would be through the medium of mechatronics education to identify how concepts are developed and the ways in which they are linked.21 At the moment there is perhaps a tendency for those outside the mechatronics community to view it as a non-subject as it often appears to outsiders to seek to present itself as an all-encompassing area of technology and engineering instead of as an approach, or perhaps indeed a methodology, to achieving integrated solutions to engineering problems, and to breaking down the traditional barriers between disciplines (Fig. 6). Mechatronic themes As has already been suggested, mechatronics and mechatronics education is increasingly being seen and considered in relation to a number of themes which emphasise different aspects of the mechatronic concepts of integration. Given the breadth of subject material, as suggested by Fig. 4 and Table 2, the fact that mechatronics may be perceived by many as encompassing this division into themes is perhaps only to be expected, despite the fact that it can increase the problems of understanding the true nature of the subject. In relation to mechatronics education, the choice of theme is dictated by a number of factors including:
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TABLE 2
Session title Actuators Mechatronics education Mobile robots Fluid power (hydraulics & pneumatics) Biomechatronics Data storage systems (hard drive disk systems) Manufacturing Mechatronic system design Micromechatronics Motion control Sensing Teleoperation and haptics Vision Walking machines Adaptive control Adaptive vibration control Aerospace Automatic guided vehicles Automotive power train Automotive systems Biomedical systems Mechatronics 2002      

Mechatronic conference sessions

ASME 2001       Mechatronics 2002       IFAC 2002 ASME 2001

IFAC 2002    

Session title Control architecture Control design Devices Display robotics/ robot games Embedded control systems Fault detection

               

    

Flexible manipulators Human machine interface Identication Marine systems Measurement systems Modelling and simulation Neural and fuzzy control Noise control Piezoelectric transducers Planning Railway vehicles Robot force control Space systems

              

Vehicle control Virtual reality

The backgrounds and interests of the staff involved in teaching; Industrial requirements, both locally and nationally; Student perceptions and interests; Availability of resources, particularly human and nancial; Research activity.

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Subject Domain

Subject Domain

MECHATRONICS

Subject Domain

Fig. 6

Mechatronics building bridges, not walls.

While it is unlikely that any one of these considerations will dominate course development, they will all play a role in determining the structure of any course. For instance, resource implications will often mean that teaching of specialist material will require that mechatronic engineers are incorporated as part of a larger group of subject specialists for this purpose, with the courses then being structured to meet the needs of the subject specialists rather than the mechatronics students. Also, the increasing modularisation of programmes can tend to mitigate against the ability to introduce the necessary integrating material, particularly where modules are seen as having to be complete and entire within themselves.
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Design This may be considered to be the primary theme for mechatronics as by implication it is this aspect which attempts to bring together concepts and ideas in relation to a product or system. However, as suggested by Fig. 7, the design theme is also probably the most abstract and least technically based of those considered here, placing the emphasis on conceptual areas such as requirements analysis and capture, concept generation, information and knowledge management supported by areas such as modelling and analysis rather than the more direct application of technical skills.16 Elements of the design theme are also likely to found embedded within all other themes, though this may be in an implicit form rather than as explicit course content. Nevertheless, it is essential that all mechatronics courses contain an element of design to support the concepts of integration and to bring in factors such as those shown in Fig. 4. Automation and robotics This is seen by some as the key technological area of mechatronic development and brings together a wide range of mechatronic technologies, including the hard technologies of drives, actuators and sensors and the structural aspects of robotics together with articial intelligence and software. However, by focussing on the specic area of application it is possible that consideration of the wider implications of mechatronics are, if not ignored, given only a limited consideration within the course structure. Nevertheless, courses in this area often provide a unique perspective on mechatronics, as for instance the programme dealing with high-powered systems developed by the Technical University of Denmark and Aalborg University.19,22

Politics

Sociology Psychology

Economics

Science

Engineering Science

Engineering Design

Engineering Technology

Production

Industrial Design

Artistic Design

Art

Fig. 7

Positioning engineering design.

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Manufacturing Manufacturing systems are inherently mechatronic in their conguration and can be considered to be so at a number of different levels, as suggested by Fig. 8. In considering the approach to mechatronics adopted by courses taking manufacturing as their theme, the emphasis is often not on the components of the system; CNC machines, robots, handling systems and so forth, but on the way in which these may be integrated to create the required environment. Given the increasing trend towards Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) and the move away from the traditional hierarchical organisation in which function dominates to a more knowledge-based structure centred on knowledge sharing and clusters and which is dominated by process, as suggested by Fig. 9, this means that courses based around this theme will perhaps increasingly need to emphasise areas such as knowledge management rather than technology. Systems There is no doubt that mechatronics is concerned with systems of all types, whether they be products in their own right or the integration of components to generate a larger system, as for instance in a manufacturing system. However, perhaps the best illustration of this systems-level approach to mechatronics is seen in the automotive industry where a mechatronic theme has been present for many years dealing with a wide range of on-board systems from active suspensions to engine management. In a wider context, the systems theme for mechatronics tends to place emphasis on the functionality of the system and of the choice of components to meet that functionality. In this sense it is perhaps closest to the design theme, but with what might be considered to be a narrower focus.

Communications Link

Island of Automation

Local Area Network CNC machine tool or robot Individual CNC machine tool or robot with internal communications Internal Node

Factory level system made up of Islands of Automation connected by a broad band network

Islandof Automation consisting of CNC machine tools and robots connected by a local area network Internal communications

Fig. 8

A manufacturing system as a multi-layered mechatronic environment.

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(a)

Process Group 'C' Group 'N' Group 'A' Group 'B'

Function

(b)
Knowledge & Skills Based Organisation

Core Partner

Knowledge & Skills Based Organisation

Process

Knowledge & Skills Based Organisation

Knowledge Transfer Activities

Function

Fig. 9

Knowledge structures. (a) Hierarchical organisation; (b) Knowledge clustering.

Mechatronics education Faced with all of the above challenges, how might the designers of a programme of mechatronics education respond? What is clear is that they are faced with a number of questions, including:

Should a theme be chosen or does it emerge as a result of local expertise and enthusiasms? How are the integration aspects introduced and managed? How are external requirements relating to factors affecting course structure, as for instance the Bologna Agreement in Europe, to be managed?23,24 What is the local market for graduates and is the proposed course going to meet those requirements?

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tronics and which equips them to t in to a wide range of professional environments on graduation. Course content A review of the content of a range of mechatronics courses suggests that the balance between key (or core) subject areas, in that they appear in the majority of courses, and what are here termed secondary areas is as set out in Table 3. This not to suggest that these subject areas of themselves constitute a mechatronics course, rather that they provide an indicator as to the generality of material that such courses contain, and hence around which a course might be structured. Course structure The actual structure of any course will be determined by the academic structure of which it forms a part. Thus the division of the academic year into terms or semesters and the degree of modularity achievable, including exible structures based around prerequisites, will inuence the way in which a course is congured, as will the length of the course. With an increasing move to modularity, and hence transferability, the danger within a mechatronics programme is that the need to modularise will result in a loss of the exibility which is required to provide students with the opportunity to put into practice the integration that is part of mechatronics. Similarly, within a modular structure there is, for reasons of resource management and scale, the requirement to use modules developed for specialist courses to provide the required input in that area into other courses, again perhaps prejudicing the opportunity to practise integration. Group work and projects In the great majority of mechatronics courses it is through the use of group working and projects that the integrating aspects of mechatronics are introduced and there is signicant evidence of the effectiveness of such an approach in engaging students, even if this is occasionally at the expense of some of their other studies.24,26 Figure 10 shows an example of one such project in the form of the Formula SAE/Formula
TABLE 3
Key subject areas Control systems Embedded systems Software engineering Electronics (analogue and digital) Sensors and actuators Drives Mathematics

Mechatronic course subject areas

Secondary subject areas Engineering design Machine dynamics Kinematics Manufacturing technology Hydraulic and pneumatic systems Simulation and modelling Articial intelligence Robotics Human machine interface

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Fig. 10 Lancaster University Formula Student vehicle.20

Student vehicle constructed by students on the MEng and MSc programmes at Lancaster University.27,28 In this particular case, students undertook both individual and group projects on different aspects of the vehicle system which would then be integrated onto the vehicle itself. A question which is often raised in relation to projects of this nature is that of the marking scheme to be adopted in order to reward individual effort. Experience suggests that there is no one answer to this requirement, but that a compbination of approaches which require the participating students to identify their contribution is necessary. This can range from project log-books and minutes of group meetings to the provision of individually identied and attributed contributions to the nal report. There is also however an alternative view which sugests that in relation to many projects of this type, any attempt to provide a grade other than a pass or fail would inevitably force students to become conservative in their approach and would eliminate many of the more interesting options and solutions which would otherInternational Journal of Electrical Engineering Education 41/4

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wise be put forward, but which would perhaps fail to achieve the target levels of performance. While it could be argued that success in achieving design goals is a valid objective, perhaps in educational terms it is sometimes more worthy to encourage students to explore new and novel ideas and concepts than to penalise them for their adoption of such an approach. Undergraduate versus Masters programmes A continuing debate when it comes to mechatronics education is that of whether it is a subject than can, or indeed should, be taught as an undergraduate programme in its own right or whether it is a subject which is best taught at postgraduate, and specically Masters, level where it can build upon the more specialist background provided by courses covering a wide range of subject areas. Certainly, if the objectives of providing a sufcient depth of specialist knowledge to give credibility within a balanced programme which supports the effective communication of ideas (Fig. 3) are considered, it is becoming increasingly difcult to see how this can be achieved within the time constraints imposed on some undergraduate programmes. On the other hand, to provide a Masters-level programme which is capable of providing the broadening of experience required across participating students with a wide range of backgrounds requires a high level of exibility in relation to the provision of options and the integration of courses from existing, specialist, undergraduate programmes which may be non-viable in terms of resources; particularly human and nancial. Conclusions Mechatronics has always suffered from an identity crisis both within the academic community and elsewhere, and indeed is likely to continue to do so given the diversity of approaches and emphases that are found within the community. Yet at the same time there is a need for graduate engineers with the particular integration skills that are provided by a mechatronic background and education. The challenge facing mechatronics course designers is therefore that of achieving the necessary balance between detailed knowledge and the ability to act in the integrating role in a wide range of environments. The achievement of this balance is subject to a whole range of pressures ranging from the rapid advance of technology in some areas to external factors impacting on course management and design. At the moment, and providing it is recognised that there is no universal solution to the design of a mechatronics course, a balance between undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in mechatronics is probably just about achievable, though how long this will remain the case is open to question. If mechatronics is to develop as an academic subject, then there is perhaps a need to rethink our approach to the provision of education in this area in a way which allows for a sharing of resources and skills between academic institutions and industry and which views mechatronics not just as an academic subject to be dealt with in three-, four- or ve-year academic programmes but as a holistic approach to lifeInternational Journal of Electrical Engineering Education 41/4

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long learning and education within engineering. Such an approach, in which students are able to integrate programmes from a wide range of sources to achieve their degree, will require a exibility of view which perhaps does not currently exist. It is however interesting to note that this sharing of expertise was something which was attempted in the late 1980s and early 1990s in the form of the Integrated European Course in Mechatronics which brought together a group of institutions throughout Europe, each providing a specialist contribution to a broad-based postgraduate programme. That this attempt to provide a shared programme was not a success was probably due its being ahead of its time as it required the students to move from institution to institution, creating problems of timing and travel for the participants. Perhaps it is now time to resurrect the concept of a multi-centre mechatronics programme, but making use of current communications technology to support its provision. References
1 www.ucas.ac.uk 2 www.umng.edu.co 3 R. Bchi, C. Brom, H. Frommer, H. Kser and M. Thaler, Mechatronics A new diploma course at Zurich University of Applied Sciences Winterthur, in Proc. 4th Intl. Workshop on Research and Education in Mechatronics, 2003, Bochum, pp. 229234. 4 www.eng.morgan.edu/~salimian/courses/mechatronics/resources.html 5 www.vgtu.lt 6 www.bme.hu/en/ 7 www.ifac-control.org 8 www.asme.org 9 www.ieee.org/portal/index.jsp 10 www.imeche.org.uk/mic/mechatronics_forum.asp 11 www.mechatronics-net.de 12 www.elsevier.com/inca/publications/store/9/3/3/ 13 www.asme.org/pubs/journals/mechatronics.html 14 D. A. Bradley, Mechatronics An established discipline or a concept in need of direction?, Mechatronics2000, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 2000, Paper 09_01.pdf (CDRom), 6 pp. 15 www.engr.colostate.edu/~dga/mechatronics/denitions.html 16 D. A. Bradley, D. Dawson, D. Seward and S. Burge, Mechatronics and the Design of Intelligent Machines and Systems (Stanley Thornes, Cheltenham, 2000). 17 F. Conrad and T. Srensen, Design, product structuring and modelling of mechatronic products and systems, Proc. 6th Workshop on Product Structuring, Technical University of Denmark, January, 2003, pp. 131153. 18 J. Buur, Mechatronics in Japan (Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby 1990). 19 D. A. Bradley, The what, why and how of mechatronics, IEE J. Sci. Educ., 6 (2) (1997), pp. 8188. 20 D. Dawson, 2003, Personal Communication. 21 A. Moshaiov, A socio-mechatronic analysis of research in mechatronics, Proc. 4th Intl. Workshop on Research and Education in Mechatronics, 2003, Bochum, pp. 295302. 22 T. O. Andersen, M. R. Hansen and F. Conrad, Application of modelling and simulation in mecha-

Brunel University (UK), Dundee University (UK) University of Abertay Dundee (then Dundee Institute of Technology) (UK), Technical University of Denmark (Denmark), University of Leuven (Belgium)& Univeristy College Dublin (Ireland).
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23 24 25

26

27 28

tronics and uid power system design education and research, Proc. 4th Intl. Workshop on Research and Education in Mechatronics, 2003, Bochum, pp. 283294. www.eua.be:8080/eua/en/policy_bologna.jsp www.engc.org.uk/international/bologna.asp M. Dick and H. Birkhofer, Design is fun! Experiences from a student design contest at Darmstadt University of Technology, ICED03, Stockholm, Abstract pp. 637638/CDRom File No 1186. M. Grimheden and M. Hanson, How might education in mechatronics benet from problem based learning, Proc. 4th Intl. Workshop on Research and Education in Mechatronics, 2003, Bochum, pp. 283294. www.sae.org/students/formula.htm www.imeche.org.uk/formulastudent/index.htm

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