By Ryan
The field of mechatronics in automotive engineering refers to a
combinatorial approach to design, with emphasis on contributions from
mechanical, electrical, computer, and control engineering groups.
A large share of automotive innovations consists of significant
improvements in formerly pure mechanical systems which are made possible using
integrated electronics together with complex information processing. Such
mechatronic systems require a concurrent design of mechanical, electronical,
and information processing sub-systems in order to reach the cost requirements
of the automotive industry.
In the recent past and in the foreseeable future, most innovations
in automotive systems rely on electronics. Those innovations are rarely pure
electronic systems for information processing and communication—like the mobile
phones or navigation system—but most of them are closely tied to mechanical
parts of the system. The three major mechanical subsystems in a car, the
chassis system, the propulsion system and the interior system, all are
undergoing a massive change from mainly mechanical systems with some electronic
control towards highly integrated mechatronical systems which would not
function without electronic control.
Mechatronics can be said to be one of the core competencies of the
automotive industry. With mechatronics a better functionality, better use of
space, lower number of interfaces and smaller cost for a given performance can
be reached. Mechatronics is more than just technology: it requires a
function-oriented design approach to solve a problem with the best suited
technologies available. For good mechatronic systems, teamwork and use of tools
with well-defined interfaces to link the technologies together are the key
success factors.
Sources
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